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Abstract
Bronze Age China has consistently been an area of research foci for both domestic and international researchers. However, paleopathological analysis of certain cultures within the "Northern Zone" is relatively new and demands scholarly exploration. Located along the northern borders of modern-day China, this area was a critical arena for interregional contact which aided technological and cultural diffusion. The following research analyzes skeletal stress markers to make inferences about the health and lifestyles of Qijia (2200-1400 BCE) individuals, paying particular attention to trends that would indicate sex-based social inequality. To do this, a small sub-sample (n=44) from the Qijia culture cemetery Mogou (1750-1100 BCE) was analyzed for nonspecific indicators of stress, including osteomyelitis, periosteal reaction, porotic hyperostosis, cribra orbitalia, dental pathologies, and trauma. Results indicate that the population at Mogou was in relatively "good" health, displaying majority healed skeletal lesions. Additionally, there are no significant differences in pathology or trauma between the sexes, suggesting that individuals at Mogou were not subjected to sex-based inequality to a degree that resulted in differences in skeletal lesions.