William R. Maples' "Dead Men Do Tell Tales"

Paper Summary:

This paper examines how the book, "Dead Men Do Tell Tales" by William R. Maples, informs readers of the role of Maples, a forensic anthropologist, in analyzing human skeletal remains resulting from unexplained deaths. The paper looks at how Maples attempts to determine ancestry, sex, and age; identify the nature of the traumas and their causative agent(s); establish postmortem interval; and provide positive identification of deceased persons. It also examines how in this book, Maples revisits his strangest, most interesting, and most horrific investigations, from normal, typical cases of homicide and suicide, to the baffling cases of conquistador Francisco Pizarro and Vietnam MIAs, to the mysterious deaths of President Zachary Taylor and the family of Tsar Nicholas II.

From the Paper:

"In addition to sex determination, age is also necessary for positive identification. Maples does not give any detailed methods on how age can be determined from the skeletal remains. He only says that age can be determined from dentition, but now how. White (2000) notes that dentition is used to determine age because the results are fairly accurate. Teeth grow in pattern according to age, so it is useful to match the decedent's teeth to the standard chart. While it does not give the exact age because individual's teeth form and erupt differently (Byers 2008:342), it can however give a very close range. For example, the decedent is approximately 17-20 years old. Dental development is the most widely used technique for aging sub-adult remains (White 2000:342). White (2000) argues that tooth development is more closely associated with chronological age and it seems to be under "tighter genetic control" (342). For instance, the two permanent incisors and the first permanent molar usually emerge between six and eight years (White 2000:342). "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bruzek, J. (2002). A Method for Visual Determination of Sex, Using the Human Hip Bone. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 117:157-168.
• Byers, S. N. (2008). Introduction to Forensic Anthropology. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.
• Fenton, T. W., Heard, A. N., Sauer, N. J. (2008). Skull-Photo Superimposition and Border Deaths: Identification through Exclusion and the Failure to Exclude. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 53(1):34-40.
• Krogman, W. M. (1962). The Human Skeleton in Forensic Medicine. Springfield, IL: Charles C Thomas.
• Maples, W.R., Browning, M. (1995). Dead Men Do Tell Tales: The Strange and Fascinating Cases of a Forensic Anthropologist. New York, NY: Broadway.

More papers on William R. Maples' "Dead Men Do Tell Tales":

• Book Review # 147947 : "Biological Science in "Dead Men Do Tell Tales"
• Analytical Essay # 42028 : "Dead Men's Path"
• Analytical Essay # 127365 : "Michael Obi in "Dead Men's Path"

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