Forensic anthropology involves the examination of human skeletal remains to answer a number of medico-legal questions. Dr Samantha Rowbotham is a Forensic Anthropologist with the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine (VIFM) and is a Trainee in the RCPA’s Forensic Science stream of the Faculty of Science, she explains more about what is involved as part of her role.

“A forensic anthropologist may assist with establishing identity and interpreting the circumstances in which an individual died. This includes cases where a deceased individual is skeletonised or differentially preserved. As each coronial case is the responsibility of a Forensic Pathologist, an anthropology examination is undertaken at their request, when expertise in the human skeleton is required. As forensic anthropologists, we work closely with investigating officers, the pathologist and other scientific disciplines such as odontology and molecular biology. Collectively, we try to establish who the deceased was and what happened to them around the time they died.

“There are a few different areas within the role of a forensic anthropologist. The first is to determine if the skeletal remains have possible significance to medical and legal authorities. We need to work out whether the remains are bone and if they are, to establish if they are human or animal. In cases where they are human, we must also determine if they are of forensic significance, that is, that they are not from an archaeological/historical context or from an anatomical teaching specimen.

“When human remains are of forensic significance and their identity is unknown, we create a biological profile from the skeleton. This includes an estimation of the persons age-at-death, sex, ancestry and height. Providing this basic profile can potentially help narrow down the list of missing persons to whom those remains may belong,” said Dr Rowbotham.

Although one of their primary roles is to assist with establishing the identity of a decedent, increasingly, anthropologists also now assist with the interpretation of how that individual died.

“Depending on how well the remains have been preserved and what questions need addressing, we may be asked to comment on what happened around the time they died. We will examine any changes to the skeleton and establish if these are a result of the environment the individual was exposed to after death, or if they are a result of trauma. If the changes are traumatic, we need to establish if that trauma occurred before, at the time of, or after, death.

“How much we are able to say depends on how well preserved the remains are. For example, if there is only a single bone preserved then there is very limited material to work with compared to a complete skeleton. Cases which involve trauma are also very challenging as trauma can be naturally complex, often subjective, and usually we have a limited evidence base from which to inform our interpretations.

“Because anthropology cases are relatively rare in Australia, we have a valuable opportunity to pursue work in other areas of the discipline, including research. We are in the privileged position to understand the questions asked of anthropologists in court, and these are typically around skeletal trauma. Therefore, we see firsthand where the gaps are in our evidence base that require further work. That’s really where we tailor our research at VIFM,” said Dr Rowbotham.