Many young women were believed to die due to pregnancy and childbirth in the past, yet few cases of pregnant female burials have been reported in bioarcheological literature. Therefore, this paper reports the burial of an adult female (H49-1) and her infant (H49-2), who were buried together in an early Western Zhou pit at the Sanbulijia site, Jiaodong Peninsula, Shandong Province, China. It is the first reported case of obstetric death in thePre-Qin Period in Shandong Province. The mother-child relationship was proved by ancient DNA evidence and archeological context. The infant's remains were placed between the adult's lower legs. Skeletal histological evidence suggests that the infant died during or shortly after childbirth. Sacroiliac fusion of individual H49-1 may have resulted in dystocia. Furthermore, a special postmortem burial ritual-pit burial, was carried out for both the infant and the mother. H49 is the first Zhou Dynasty pit burial (multiple burial) with an exact radiocarbon date in the Shandong Peninsula. The case under review suggests that both the adult and the infant may have died due to special events, which may be related to obstetric death.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.