Tracing the dynamic life story of a Bronze Age Female

Abstract

Ancient human mobility at the individual level is conventionally studied by the diverse application of suitable techniques (e.g. aDNA, radiogenic strontium isotopes, as well as oxygen and lead isotopes) to either hard and/or soft tissues. However, the limited preservation of coexisting hard and soft human tissues hampers the possibilities of investigating high-resolution diachronic mobility periods in the life of a single individual. Here, we present the results of a multidisciplinary study of an exceptionally well preserved circa 3.400-year old Danish Bronze Age female find, known as the Egtved Girl. We applied biomolecular, biochemical and geochemical analyses to reconstruct her mobility and diet. We demonstrate that she originated from a place outside present day Denmark (the island of Bornholm excluded), and that she travelled back and forth over large distances during the final months of her life, while consuming a terrestrial diet with intervals of reduced protein intake. We also provide evidence that all her garments were made of non-locally produced wool. Our study advocates the huge potential of combining biomolecular and biogeochemical provenance tracer analyses to hard and soft tissues of a single ancient individual for the reconstruction of high-resolution human mobility.

A matter of months: High precision migration chronology of a Bronze Age female

“…These findings contrast with the recently published findings of another comparable (in relation to status, age and prehistoric Period) nonlocal Bronze Age female individual unearthed in Denmark, the “Egtved Woman”, which showed a very different mobility pattern of repeated travels during at least the last two years of her life [5]. Furthermore, the strontium isotope analyses of the Egtved Woman’s scalp hair, nail and tooth enamel were interpreted such that this individual spent less than a year, cumulatively, in present-day territorial Denmark over her life span.…”

“…This type of detailed mobility investigations of single individuals is possible when hair and/or nails are also preserved [5,9]. Similarly, age determination can be more precise when several techniques are combined.…”

Strontium isotope ratios of human hair from the United States: Patterns and aberrations

“…As an example, Font and colleagues found endogenous Sr to be the most significant contributor to the geospatial signal encoded in the 87 Sr/ 86 Sr of hair, while several other studies conversely found strong relationships between exogenous sources and the 87 Sr/ 86 Sr of hair . Therefore, separating the factors contributing to the 87 Sr/ 86 Sr of hair is paramount for utilizing this analytical tool in anthropologic studies …”

“…Reconstructing the provenance of an individual is important to many anthropologic and forensic investigations . Stable isotope ratios recorded in human scalp hair have utility in reconstruction of the movement histories of individuals . This is because hair keratin and its isotopic signatures are recorders of an individual's environment .…”

“…[1][2][3][4] Stable isotope ratios recorded in human scalp hair have utility in reconstruction of the movement histories of individuals. [5][6][7][8][9] This is because hair keratin and its isotopic signatures are recorders of an individual's environment. 10 The applications of isotope analysis of hair are far-reaching considering the common occurrence of human hair at archeological sites and crime scenes.…”