par Boucherie, Alexandra 
;Lefèvre, Philippe ;Polet, Caroline
Référence 11th European Meeting of Forensic Archaeology (EMFA) (27 au 29 septembre 2023: Madrid)
Publication Non publié, 2023-09-27
;Lefèvre, Philippe ;Polet, Caroline Référence 11th European Meeting of Forensic Archaeology (EMFA) (27 au 29 septembre 2023: Madrid)
Publication Non publié, 2023-09-27
Communication à un colloque
| Résumé : | On the 8th of August 1956, a human error entailed a tragic disaster within the coalmine of Bois du Cazier in Marcinelles (Hainaut, Belgium) where 262 minors perished. Most of them, from diverse nationalities (Belgian, Italian, German, Algerian, Greeks, etc.) were at that time identified by their relatives, apart from 17 of them that remained unknown till today. In October 2021, following the demand of one descendant of the unidentified victims, the Belgian Disaster Victim Identification Unit of the Federal Police instigated a large-scaled operation in order to exhume the unknown remains and proceed to the reconciliation process using modern identification techniques. To carry out this duty of remembrance towards the families of the victims, a team composed of experts in forensic pathology, odontology, anthropology, archaeology and in DNA worked together. This paper aims to present the results of the anthropological analysis. After the inventory and identification of the skeletal remains, the biological profile of each individual was assessed. For sex estimation, DSP on coxal bones was used whereas seven distinct methods were applied to evaluate age-at-death, including cementochronology. Stature was estimated with the use of the “anatomical method” and equations based on limb bones length while biological origin was assessed with AncesTrees. By comparing antemortem records with postmortem data, this anthropological work permits to propose the identification of eight individuals, among which four of them were at the end positively identified with DNA. Besides identification purposes, this mission allows anthropologists to register skeletal stress markers that can specifically reveal the harsh working conditions of the minors. Parallel research carried out by historians in the archives of Bois du Cazier reveals eventually that the list of unknown victims was not strictly closed, underlying the difficulties of reassessing ancient historical human disaster with contemporary techniques. |
