Chronic mercury exposure in Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic populations in Portugal from the cultural use of cinnabar

Abstract

Cinnabar is a natural mercury sulfide (HgS) mineral of volcanic or hydrothermal origin that is found worldwide. It has been mined prehistorically and historically in China, Japan, Europe, and the Americas to extract metallic mercury (Hg0) for use in metallurgy, as a medicinal, a preservative, and as a red pigment for body paint and ceramics. Processing cinnabar via combustion releases Hg0 vapor that can be toxic if inhaled. Mercury from cinnabar can also be absorbed through the gut and skin, where it can accumulate in organs and bone. Here, we report moderate to high levels of total mercury (THg) in human bone from three Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic (5400–4100 B.P.) sites in southern Portugal that were likely caused by cultural use of cinnabar. We use light stable isotope and Hg stable isotope tracking to test three hypotheses on the origin of mercury in this prehistoric human bone. We traced Hg in two individuals to cinnabar deposits near Almadén, Spain, and conclude that use of this mineral likely caused mild to severe mercury poisoning in the prehistoric population. Our methods have applications to bioarchaeological investigations worldwide, and for tracking trade routes and mobility of prehistoric populations where cinnabar use is documented.

Toxic Pigment in aCapacochaBurial: Instrumental Identification of Cinnabar in Inca Human Remains from Iquique, Chile

“…; Emslie et al . ). Equally, early use in Serbia and traditional medicine in China and India have been described (Liu et al .…”

“…The use of cinnabar has been widely reported at archaeological sites in various parts of the world. For example, in the Old World, its use has been reported in Roman architecture and art (Cotte et al 2006) and also in human remains and artefacts from the Neolithic/Chalcolithic (5400-4100 BP) period of the Iberian Peninsula (Hunt-Ortiz et al 2011;Domingo et al 2012;Emslie et al 2015). Equally, early use in Serbia and traditional medicine in China and India have been described (Liu et al 2008;Gajić-Kvaščev et al 2012).…”

Excellent Preservation of Archaeological, Mercury‐Enriched Dental Remains

“…Reportedly, such tubules contributed to the migration of Hg from the enamel to dentin (Harris et al 2008) or that from pulp to dentin and enamel, provided that odontoblasts migrated from the dentin to enamel (Charadram et al 2013). In addition, albeit the presence of sulphur was small, we do not discard the plausible formation of HgS (Cervini-Silva et al 2013;Emslie et al 2015).…”

“…During ancient times, Hg was used in various geographical regions, most notably in the form of cinnabar (HgS: Stuart and Stuart ; Emslie et al . ). In particular, in Mesoamerica, HgS was used as an ingredient for preparing pigments used during funerary rituals, in ceremonials, and in paintings and murals (Gazzola , ).…”

“…Human bone remains dating back to the sixth to seventh and 12th to 17th centuries, found in Tokushima and Matsuyama, Japan, showed the accumulation of Hg up to 1700 μg g -1 (Yamada et al 1995). During ancient times, Hg was used in various geographical regions, most notably in the form of cinnabar (HgS: Stuart and Stuart 2008;Emslie et al 2015). In particular, in Mesoamerica, HgS was used as an ingredient for preparing pigments used during funerary rituals, in ceremonials, and in paintings and murals (Gazzola 2000(Gazzola , 2009.…”