Magnetic Resonance Micro-imaging (µMRI): studying human bone tissue in archaeological contexts

The bones of the human skeleton represent an important resource for anthropological investigations as the life of the individual can be reconstructed through the morphological characteristics of his skeleton. In the last decade, the application of X-ray imaging-based methodologies to the study of archaeological human remains has made it possible to obtain unique information on individual life history such as the presence of pathologies. In this context, the use of magnetic resonance micro-imaging (µMRI) has proved particularly useful for studying the characteristics of materials composed of porous systems such as bone tissue [1]. Here we present the preliminary results of µMRI analyses on samples from three human tibiae from the Roman necropolis of San Donato (Urbino, Italy) dated to the 1st-3rd century AD [2]. Measurements were performed on a Bruker AVANCE-400 high-resolution spectrometer operating at a high magnetic field (9.4T) and a maximum gradient intensity of 1200 mT/m. To test the potential of µMRI, the samples were analysed in high-resolution Synchrotron-based X-ray Phase Contrast Tomography (XPCT) and the resulting images compared. This work demonstrates that the µMRI approach can highlight certain details that cannot be detected with other non-destructive techniques, thus proving to be a valuable support for anthropological and archaeological research. [1] Sinibaldi et al. 2018. Multimodal ‐ 3D imaging based on μMRI and μCT techniques bridges the gap with histology in visualization of the bone regeneration process. J Tissue Eng. Regen. Med. 12:750-761. [2] Paine et al. 2009. A health assessment for Imperial Roman burials recovered from the necropolis of San Donato and Bivio CH, Urbino, Italy. JASs 87:193-210.