Achondroplasia in the New World
Although there are examples of achondroplasia in the New World, they are not nearly as numerous as the achondroplastic skeletons of the Old World. Unfortunately, most skeletons have not been extensively studied, and many times only brief descriptions of these skeletons are provided in excavation reports (Dasen 1993).
A 152 centimeter skeleton was found in Waverly, Ohio, and though undated, is thought to be pre-Columbian. The long bones of this skeleton are extremely thick and have large areas of muscle attachment; the skull bones are also abnormally thick (Ortner et al. 1981).
Two dwarf skeletons, one adult female and one adult male, were excavated from a cemetery of an Indian village in Moundville, Alabama. The female skeleton was measured at 125 centimeters. The forehead bulges slightly, the nose is depressed and the jaw is prognathous. The long bones of this skeleton are all short and robust. The male skeleton excavated was measured to be around 150 centimeters. The skull of this skeleton is almost completely intact and displays a short skull base characteristic of achondroplastic dwarfs. As expected, the long bones are short but robust. Because of the lack of trade goods found with the bones, it is thought that these skeletons also date back to the pre-Columbian period (Ortner et al. 1981).
Figure 10 (Ortner et al. 1981: 333): Achondroplastic male skeleton from a pre-Colombian site in Alabama
Figure 11 (Ortner et al. 1981:333): Left lateral view of skull
