Introduction

The single measurement table in the original database has here been converted into separate tables for each main postcranial element, to facilitate decoding of measurement numbers.

Post-Cranial Measurements in the Source Data

Apart from the GID field (to link to the Specimen table) and Comments, each consists of two types of field: measurements and measurement modifiers.

The measurement fields have been named so as (a) to preserve the original numeric code used in the Çatalhöyük system, and (b) to define the measurement for other analysts. The majority of measurements follow von den Driesch (1976) and are labelled in the format "M[Çatalhöyük number]:[von den Driesch code]", e.g. "M2:GB" or "M4:Bp". Where the measurement does not follow von den Driesch it is labelled as "M[Catalhoyuk number]:[abbreviated definition] ([source author, where applicable])", e.g. "M8:Max length w/o dist epiphysis (Uerpmann)".

Where measurements are defined in the Çatalhöyük system but don't actually occur in the dataset they are omitted from the table without changing the numbering of the remaining measurements. For example, the Sacrum table has M1:PL, M2:GB, M3:BFcr and M6:HFcr, but no M4 or M5.

Each measurement field is accompanied by a measurement modifier field with a matching number: Mod1, Mod2, etc. This field notes whether the specimen was young or the measurement potentially affected by burning, pathology etc. The default is Standard measurement.

Post-Cranial Measurements in Open Context

Because Open Context organizes data in a different schema, and only the fields / properties actually used with a given specimen will be visible with that specimen. During the import process, measurement of different types were extracted from source tables after consulting the documentation above. In publication with Open Context values in the "Mod" fields from the source data tables where used to generate different properties (fields) as follows:

This allows measurements of different types to be easily differentiated and queried. In addition, Open Context editors annotated Çatalhöyük measurements (only with the "Standard measurements" modifier) that matched widely used conventions with the Open Context Zooarchaeology Annotations vocabulary.