Foot binding in a Ming dynasty cemetery near Xi’an, China

Abstract

This paper describes the morphology of the feet of a population of elite women from the Ming dynasty (1368( -1644 in Shaanxi province. This is a social stratum, time, and place in which foot binding was practiced. Among a group of 31 skeletons exhumed from the cemetery, eight were women with wellpreserved foot bones. Macroscopic examination revealed that half these women (4/8) had clearly altered foot bones: the metatarsal bones, and the few observable phalanges, were gracile and small, while the tarsal bones exhibited a slight reduction in size but no dramatic change in morphology. The other half of the women (4/8) had apparently unmodified metatarsal bones. T-tests comparing linear measurements of the foot bones between the two groups revealed that metatarsal bones were the most affected by binding, and among the tarsal bones, the talar trochlea and calcaneal dimensions were most impacted. This small group of skeletons reveals that some elite women in Shaanxi apparently still did not practice foot binding in the late Ming dynasty, or practiced a much milder form of foot binding, and that there was considerable variation even among those who did practice it.

Human–environment interactions at Yangguanzhai, a Middle Neolithic site in the Wei River Valley, northern China: A comprehensive soil‐stratigraphic analysis

“…These excavations revealed a lengthy sequence of human occupation from the Middle Holocene to the present and abundant features and artifacts, including the remains of 49 houses, 896 refuse pits, 9 ditches, 26 pottery kilns, 32 child burial urns, 45 historic tombs, and more than 7000 artifacts (Shaanxisheng, 2009a). The site has been separated into a “north section” where Middle Neolithic Miaodigou phase (c. 6000–5500 cal year BP) ceramics predominate, and a “south section,” where later Banpo IV phase (c. 5500–5000 cal year BP) ceramics are more common (Berger et al, 2019; Chang, 1986; Hein et al, 2020; Shaanxisheng, 2009a). Unfortunately, industrial and municipal development destroyed the south section, so temporal relationships between these two zones at the site are not well understood.…”

“…The Miaodigou assemblage includes house structures, numerous kilns, abundant intact pottery vessels, and thousands of ceramic sherds, large refuse pits, abundant faunal remains of wild and domesticated species, a cemetery with 2000+ individuals interred, and extensive agricultural cultivation (Berger et al, 2019; Shaanxisheng, 2009a, 2018a; Ye, 2017). Feature H85, a Miaodigou refuse pit, yielded calibrated radiocarbon dates ranging from 5656–5489cal year BP to 4859–4624 cal year BP (calibrations were updated using the IntCal20 calibration curve and the OxCal Online software program, version 4.4) (Table 1) (Bronk Ramsey, 2009; Reimer et al, 2020; Shaanxisheng et al, 2018; Ye & Hein, 2020).…”

“…In fact, it appears that Yangguanzhai remained largely unoccupied until the Ming dynasty (c. 582–306 cal year BP, or 1368−1644 CE), based on the presence of roof tiles and other historic artifacts. Additionally, 22 Ming dynasty tombs were discovered in the Yangguanzhai cemetery (Berger et al, 2019). Tomb epitaphs dated between 1531 and 1603 CE refer to villages on the northern bank of the Jing River during the Yuan and Ming dynasties, including Xuwucun, Hancun, and possibly Yangguanzhai (Shaanxisheng, 2018b; Yang, 2018a; Ye & Hein, 2020).…”

Cooperative Bodies: Bioarchaeologists Address Nonranked Societies

“…The repeated nature of these lifelong experiences with status can be recorded on the skeleton through the presence of lesions associated with nutrient deprivation, chronic infection, repetitive labor, and skeletal trauma (i.e., cribra orbitalia, porotic hyperostosis, linear enamel hypoplasia, periosteal reactions, osteomyelitis, osteoarthritis, and skeletal fractures). Additionally, human skeletons can be intentionally modified into distinct forms linked with social status, power, and cultural identity (e.g., cranial modification and foot binding) (e.g., Berger, Yang, and Ye 2019; Stone 2020; Torres‐Rouff 2002). However, human skeletal remains do not perfectly reflect one's lived experience.…”

“…Skeletally, this can be observed through practices such as cranial and dental modification, foot binding, corsetry, and labret piercings. These practices are permanent markers of identity, in life and observable after death, and often tied to gender roles, ethnic group, and social status (e.g., Berger, Yang, and Ye 2019; Blom 2005; Stone 2020; Torres‐Rouff 2002, 2012). While not necessarily tied to hierarchy, bioarchaeologists can interpret these identity indicators in context with patterns of material remains and skeletal lesions to suggest group affiliations and lived experiences associated with those identities.…”