Body Length and Body Mass

Abstract The estimation of overall body length (or stature) and lean body mass from the skeletal remains of Pleistocene humans normally involves several steps of estimation, in which any errors might be (but are not necessarily) com- pounded. One can therefore query why one would under- take the exercise of estimating these values, rather than merely using the directly measured or minimally estimated dimensions of the appendicular skeleton as indications of body size. The answers are in both the degree of completeness of the remains and the need to have body mass estimations for the appropriate scaling of weight- bearing limb remains. The Dolní Věstonice 13 to 15 human remains are relatively unusual in preserving at least one of each of the long bones either virtually intact or lacking only portions of the epiphyseal regions, as well as in having complete pelvic remains. In this, they are matched only by several of the Italian Gravettian human remains among their mature contemporaries (e.g., Barma Grande 2, Fanciulli 4 and 5, Ostuni 1, and Paglicci 25); the lost Předmostí 3, 4, 9, 10, and 14 remains; and one Middle Paleolithic specimen (Skhul 4). Among contemporary or older immature remains, only Lagar Velho 1, Sunghir 2 and 3, and KNM- WT 15000 match the completeness of these skeletons.