Anthropological study of ancient human bones in China.

1994年和1995年，中国社会科学院考古研究所、新疆考古研究所和新疆维吾尔自治区博物馆对新疆维吾尔自治区出土的古人类骨骼遗骸进行了身体人类学研究，以弄清新疆古代人类骨骼的地域和时期变化。经过仔细的清洁和修复工作，对骨骼和牙齿进行测量和观察。从面部指数、面部平坦度、鼻部指数、门牙铲削、门牙双铲等形态特征来看，洛浦山普拉遗址的种族成分大多为高加索人，由于该地区是汉代丝绸之路南线的遗址之一，因此我们倾向于推测该地区存在着混血或多种族的生活。然而，本研究的结果表明，当时的拉普善普拉是高加索人的生活区，不受蒙古基因的影响。这表明，即使其他地区的文化或贸易商品从其他地区分布到该地区，其他种族对该地区的遗传影响也不一定存在，因此，估计新疆丝绸之路遗址的基因流动以及文化和贸易商品的流动是非常重要的。

A study of physical anthropology of the ancient human skeletal remains from the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region was carried out in order to clarify the regional and period variation in Xinjiang, in cooperation with Institute of Archaeology Chinese Academy of Social Science, Xinjiang Institute of Archaeology, and Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Museum in 1994 and 1995.The skeletal remains excavated from the Shanpula ancient tombs of Lopu country in south Xinjiang were surveyed by the osteological and dental anthropological method.The Shanpula tombs is one of the sites of the southern route of the Silk Road during the Han Dynasty. The skeletons and teeth were measured and observed after careful cleaning and restoration work. The morphological characteristics of facial index, facial flatness, nasal index, incisor shoveling, and incisor double-shoveling, proved that most of the racial component of the Lopu Shanpula site was caucasoid.We are apt to estimate that there was the mixed race or the living of plural race in this region, bacause this region is one of the site of the south route of the Silk Road during the Han Dynasty. Nevertheless the result of this study indicated that the Lapu Shanpula at the time was the living area of caucasoid, and was uninfluenced by mongoloid gene. This suggested that the genetic influence from other race to this region did not necessarily exist, even if culture or trade goods were distributed from other region to this region.Thus the estimation of the gene flow is important as well as the flow of culture and trade goods in the sites of the Silk Road of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.