Paleopathology is a scientific discipline that examines skeletal and biological remains from archaeological excavations to study diseases and conditions in human and animal populations throughout history. Paleopathology in Switzerland remains underdeveloped compared to other countries, with no independent university discipline or established paleopathological school. Almost all Swiss paleopathologists have devoted only part of their research time to the field, working primarily in isolation. Nevertheless, early examples of paleopathological remarks exist, with Swiss studies potentially among the oldest in the field worldwide. Today, a small but active interdisciplinary community continues paleopathological research in Switzerland.
By examining pathological modifications of skeletons and other remains, researchers can identify injuries, infections, tumors, congenital malformations, deficiencies, metabolic diseases, and dental conditions. Combining paleopathological data with anthropological and archaeological information—such as age at death, sex, dating, burial location, and grave goods—allows reconstruction of not only individual medical histories but also the living conditions of population groups and epidemiological events. Investigation methods include examination of remains, imaging (radiography, computed tomography), tissue microscopy (histology), and molecular biology analyses, particularly ancient DNA analysis.
Significant bone collections exist in Switzerland, particularly in Basel, including the Galler Collection and skeletons from the cemetery of the former Saint-Jean hospital. Due to limited systematically collected data, epidemiological approaches to understanding disease patterns have been constrained compared to other regions.
Early history and key individuals Felix Platter (1536–1614) of Basel is credited as one of the first paleopathologists in the world. Working as a physician and one of the very first great anatomists of the early modern period, Platter was also a cofounder of forensic medicine and appointed professor of medicine at the University of Basel, the oldest Swiss university. In his famous Observationes—a treatise on every kind of disease—Platter described a peculiar case of gigantism in the third volume. In 1584, he analyzed an assemblage of large "old" bones from the Lucerne area that he and his contemporaries believed dated to an earlier epoch. Based on their enormous size, equivalent to nineteen feet tall, Platter concluded this was evidence of human gigantism. This reference is regarded as possibly the very first paleopathological comment in Switzerland.
Between the 16th century and the middle of the 19th century, no clear evidence of paleopathological research in Switzerland exists. During the second half of the 19th century and early 20th century, researchers such as Jakob Nüesch (1845–1915), Julius Kollmann (1834–1918), and Otto Schlaginhaufen (1879–1973) developed interest in anthropological questions concerning the origin of excavated individuals. At this time, craniometry and stature comparison were the main research topics. Kollmann, professor of anatomy at the University of Basel, particularly gained an international reputation, and under his direction the skull collection from Basel's Anatomical Institute became world-renowned.
Nüesch discovered the important Swiss archaeological site of Schweizersbild in 1891 in the canton of Schaffhausen, containing a Neolithic cemetery from the first half of the 4th millennium BC. He excavated and precisely documented twenty-two prehistoric graves. The famous German pathologist Rudolf Virchow visited this site and discovered the graves, and the finds attracted international attention.
Emil Bächler (1868–1950) of St. Gall excavated and analyzed several Paleolithic caves in Switzerland, including Wildkirchli, Wildenmannlisloch, and Drachenloch. He described bone pathology and potential human modifications of cave bear bones, making him an early Swiss researcher who described animal bone pathology.
Otto Schlaginhaufen, professor of anthropology at the University of Zurich from 1911 to 1951, conducted extensive osteometric analyses including studies of abnormally short skeletons from Neolithic sites at Egolzwil and Wauwil. He also studied traumatic lesions from the Hallstatt period and was a founding member of the Swiss Association of Anthropology in 1920. For over forty years he edited the Journal of the Swiss Association of Anthropology and Ethnology, where paleopathological papers are published.
Following World War II, an increasing number of Swiss researchers became interested in paleopathology. Erik Hug (1911–1991), professor of anthropology at the University of Geneva, conducted meticulous work analyzing skeletal remains from historically dated Swiss cemeteries. His work on Ulrich von Hutten confirmed skeletally that this famous humanist had suffered from syphilis. Hug was also a founding member and first scientific director of the Interkantonale Arbeitsgemeinschaft zur Betreuung Anthropologischer Funde (Interstate Anthropology Work Unit, IAG).
Siegfried Scheidegger (1903–1989), professor of pathology at the University of Basel, specialized in conditions such as syphilis and arthritis on skeletal remains. He was involved in founding the IAG in 1957 and an international symposium dedicated solely to paleopathology was held on the occasion of his 80th birthday in 1984 in Liestal.
Roland Bay (1909–1989), professor of dentistry at the University of Basel, developed a deep interest in dental paleopathology and anthropology. He was responsible for the Collection of Physical Anthropology at the Basel Natural History Museum and chairman of the Swiss Association of Anthropology.
Erwin Uehlinger (1899–1980) of Schaffhausen, head of the Institute of Pathology at the University of Zurich and dean of the Faculty of Medicine, pioneered the study of modern bone pathology. He first described the late primary infection of tuberculosis and his influence on bone pathology was so significant that a leading paleopathology textbook was dedicated to him. His work remains of importance for paleopathologists today.
Traumatisms Bone lesions provide information on accident risks from daily life and work, as well as violent acts. Fracture patterns in long bones distinguish themselves characteristically between sexes and across historical periods. In women, the clavicle, radius, and femoral neck are primarily affected, while men show additional fractures in the ulna, tibia, and fibula, reflecting gendered division of labor. Elderly women faced particular trauma risks from osteoporosis. During the Early Middle Ages, approximately 1% of all long bones studied showed consolidated fractures; this proportion generally decreased toward contemporary periods, though disparities between burial groups and social classes intensified. Individuals from lower classes showed significantly more broken bones, likely due to riskier daily tasks, as excavations at cemeteries in Berne and the forced labor facility of Realta demonstrate.
Violence is attested from the Neolithic onward. At Seeberg (Lake Burgäschi), in the early 4th millennium BC, a man succumbed to at least one blunt head trauma. Cranial traumatisms appear in multiple individuals from Iron Age burials. Numerous traumatic lesions have been found in contexts interpreted as Celtic sanctuaries and victory monuments (Le Mormont, La Tène), though debate continues whether these were inflicted post-mortem or represent war trophies or human sacrifice victims.
During the Early Middle Ages, traumatisms—primarily healed sword wounds—are attested on 5 to 10% of male skulls from excavated necropoli, indicating that violence between men was widespread but rarely fatal. Late medieval and early modern wars show different wound types reflecting changing warfare methods. Skulls of victims of the 1499 Battle of Dornach show multiple serious lesions caused by swords and halberds, with smaller proportions of blunt impacts and pointed weapon injuries. Coalition War soldiers (1799–1800) suffered numerous bayonet and bullet wounds.
Comparison of traumatisms with historically recorded events is sometimes possible. Wounds on the skull of Jörg Jenatsch, exhumed in Chur Cathedral, confirm written sources stating his murderer killed him from behind with an axe in 1639. Excavations of former gallows sites reveal lethal injuries characteristic of decapitation, testifying to medieval and early modern criminal justice.
Infectious diseases Infectious diseases such as osteomyelitis, tuberculosis, syphilis, and leprosy can leave skeletal traces recognizable at macroscopic level, enabling differential diagnosis. Through paleogenetics, pathogenic agents can now be detected in human remains. Osteomyelitis appears sporadically but regularly throughout Switzerland from the Neolithic to the modern period, typically associated with Staphylococcus aureus, identified on a femur from the Neolithic dolmen of Oberbipp (around 3000 BC).
Tuberculosis appears to have been present but isolated during prehistory and protohistory, with its spread dating to approximately 2000 years ago. The oldest confirmed cases in Switzerland date to the 7th century at Courroux, with other examples from the early and central Middle Ages at Oberwil bei Büren, Walkringen, and Leontica. Although primarily a pulmonary disease, tuberculosis extends to the skeleton in 1–5% of cases, typically damaging the spine or major joints. In the modern period, tuberculosis reached epidemic proportions, especially among poor populations, as shown by anthropological analyses from burial sites and cemeteries of forced labor institutions.
Syphilis, a sexually transmitted disease manifesting skeletally at the tertiary stage, spread as an epidemic across Europe from the late 15th century onward. Among the dead from the Battle of Dornach, two were probably infected, indicating that mercenary armies' mobility contributed to disease spread. Other cases have been identified at multiple Swiss sites, including congenital syphilis cases transmitted to children by infected mothers.
Following the devastating 14th-century epidemic, plague became endemic in Europe with recurrent outbreaks over subsequent centuries. Although plague leaves no visible marks on bone, the pathogenic agent can be detected in human remains through molecular biology. Mass graves or simultaneous multiple burials at Swiss sites such as Zweisimmen, Stans, and Ems indicate epidemic events; paleogenetics revealed early modern plague pathogens phylogenetically similar to samples from the Thirty Years' War period.
Bacterial and viral pathogens can be identified in archaeological remains through paleogenetic analyses. Researchers isolated Salmonella enterica Paratyphi genomes from the Neolithic dolmen of Oberbipp, a human-specific bacterium today causing paratyphoid or typhoid. Detection of viruses in archaeological skeletons remains in early stages, though a hepatitis B virus strain was identified in bones from the medieval multiple burial of Zweisimmen.
Deficiency diseases and developmental disorders In regions such as the Alpine area where natural iodine concentration is low, populations suffer from a spectrum of deficiency disorders without supplementation. Cooking salt was iodized from the 1920s in Switzerland, contributing to the near-total disappearance of iodine deficiency symptoms. Children born to mothers with severe iodine deficiency could develop cretinism, recognizable in bone as mental deficiency along with growth and skeletal development delays. Most known cases are from institutional cemeteries such as Riggisberg and Realta, as individuals with cretinism were often placed in institutions.