The bioarchaeological record of non-adult individuals in huntergatherer contexts from the eastern Pampa-Patagonia transition (Argentina)
This paper aims to assess the characteristics of the bioarchaeological record and the differential preservation patterns of bone and dental elements of non-adult individuals in the lower Colorado River. Based on quantitative, sex-age at death, and taphonomic information, we discuss the causes that i...
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| Autores principales: | , |
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| Formato: | Artículo publishedVersion |
| Lenguaje: | Español |
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Instituto de Arqueología, Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Universidad de Buenos Aires
2024
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| Acceso en línea: | https://revistascientificas.filo.uba.ar/index.php/Arqueologia/article/view/12538 https://repositoriouba.sisbi.uba.ar/gsdl/cgi-bin/library.cgi?a=d&c=arqueo&d=12538_oai |
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| Sumario: | This paper aims to assess the characteristics of the bioarchaeological record and the differential preservation patterns of bone and dental elements of non-adult individuals in the lower Colorado River. Based on quantitative, sex-age at death, and taphonomic information, we discuss the causes that intervened in the representation of skeletal parts and their correlation with the shift in mortuary practices during the Late Holocene. We analyzed 743 anatomical units corresponding to 28 individuals recovered from four archaeological sites with chronologies ranging from ca. 1400-500 years BP. We recorded a low representation of skeletal parts from immature individuals, independent of age at death and sex. Although some factors, such as low bone mineral density that characterizes the anatomical units and the action of taphonomic processes (e.g. root activity, machinery action) may have damaged their integrity, the results obtained fail to explain the absence of a high percentage of skeletal and dental elements from immature individuals. On the contrary, the ritual behavior associated with funerary practices, including the handling of bodies and the selection of skeletal parts for the assembly of burial bundles offers the most parsimonious explanation to understand the low rate of anatomical completeness observed in the mortuary contexts. |
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