Hiding inequality beneath prosperity: Patterns of cranial injury in middle period San Pedro de Atacama, Northern Chile

Abstract

The Middle Period in San Pedro de Atacama (AD 400-1000) stands out as a time of great prosperity that was, in part, associated with high levels of interaction with foreign polities, including the highland state of Tiwanaku. Although previous studies have demonstrated an increase in rates of violence during the subsequent Regional Developments Period (AD 1000-1400), this does not mean that the Middle Period was a time of peace and tranquility. Here, the prevalence of violence in four contemporary cemeteries is analyzed, exploring potential sources of conflict, including social inequality. Cranial trauma was documented through the presence, location, size, and state of healing of all wounds and was found in 14.7% of the sample (61/415; including two cases of perimortem trauma). Skeletal remains were also analyzed for demographic data to investigate differences in patterns of violence related to sex and age. Notably, most of the trauma centered on the anterior portion of the skull, suggesting the prominence of face-to-face confrontations that involved both sexes. Correlations between trauma and items in the mortuary assemblage that may have been associated with prestige or an elevated social standing in two cemeteries from the Solcor ayllu indicate that individuals from the more elite cemetery were subjected to significantly less traumatic injury. These data suggest that people did not share equally in the benefits of this period's affluence and that there were tensions in Atacameño society despite seemingly widespread prosperity.

Integrating Identities: An Innovative Bioarchaeological and Biogeochemical Approach to Analyzing the Multiplicity of Identities in the Mortuary Record

“…Cranial modification is an ascribed symbol of group identity and a permanent signifier of social identity imposed upon children; it reflects a decision made by community members and likely represents Wiessner's (1983) emblemic style. In the Andes, modified head shapes appear to be culturally dictated and related to community identities (Blom 2005;Cocilovo and Zavattieri 1994;Torres-Rouff 2002). This cross-generational symbolic decision serves as a relatively stable cultural feature, ideal for analyses of community identity and social change.…”

“…Analysis of skeletal and dental metric and nonmetric traits affords a view into the relatedness and diversity of different mortuary populations and has been particularly useful in studies of ethnogenesis-the formation of new ethnic groups (Stojanowski 2005;Sutter 2009). Studies of body modifications are important in understanding both intentional signifiers of community identities (e.g., Blom 2005;Tiesler 2014;Torres-Rouff 2008) and unintentional skeletal and dental changes that can then be related to different social identities (Torres-Rouff 2011b). Similarly, biogeochemical studies of paleomobility can be used to infer geographic origins as they relate to social identities (e.g., Knudson and Blom 2009).…”

“…The Middle Horizon Tiwanaku polity, centered on the capital site of Tiwanaku in the Lake Titicaca Basin, influenced the southern Andes between AD 500 and 1100. Tiwanaku-style material culture is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru (see overviews in Goldstein 2005;Janusek 2008), and the San Pedro de Atacama oases exhibit a clear relationship with the Tiwanaku polity (Salazar et al 2014;Torres-Rouff 2008). Núñez (1991) argues that the Middle Horizon shows the earliest evidence for the production of surplus, facilitating the rise of persistent inequality, as well as incipient craft specialization, including new metallurgical practices (Lechtman 2014), population growth (Llagostera and Costa 1999), and individuals who focused their energies on the caravan trade (Pomeroy 2013).…”

“…Practitioners of cranial vault modification intentionally reshape the head using binding fabrics and/or stiff pads during the first years of life, when the bones of the skull are malleable (Blom 2005;O'Brien and Stanley 2013;Tiesler 2014;Torres-Rouff 2008). Cranial modification is an ascribed symbol of group identity and a permanent signifier of social identity imposed upon children; it reflects a decision made by community members and likely represents Wiessner's (1983) emblemic style.…”

Eating out or dining in: modeling diverse dietary strategies in the Middle Period, San Pedro de Atacama, Chile

“…Based on the evidence of differential susceptibility to stress and divergent health outcomes within (Hubbe et al 2012) and between (Torres-Rouff 2011) cemeteries, in concert with settlement pattern analyses (Llagostera and Costa 1999), researchers have argued that the Middle Period in the Atacama oases witnessed the strengthening of a local elite who controlled systems of access to distant resources (Llagostera 1996(Llagostera , 2004Núñez 1991Núñez , 2007. Our recent research has indicated that differences within cemeteries in the region strongly reflect social dynamics in the oases (Hubbe et al 2012;TorresRouff et al 2015); thereby motivating an analytical shift from an exclusive focus on comparing sites to a perspective that also incorporates detailed examination of patterns of individual variation within sites and cemeteries.…”