Childhood Diets and Residential Mobility in the Late Intermediate Period, Colca Valley, Peru: A Study of Carbon and Oxygen Isotope Ratios from Dental Apatite

Summary

Around AD 1300 in the Colca Valley of southern Peru, an increasing proportion of elite individuals began to mark themselves as ethnically distinct by elongating the heads of children. This permanent act had far-reaching effects on the livelihoods of modified individuals, especially females, who exhibit more diversified diets in adulthood and experienced lower rates of cranial trauma. The present study complements prior stable isotopic analysis of bone collagen by examining carbon and oxygen isotope ratios from dental carbonate to address two primary research questions: First, did distinct child feeding and weaning practices contribute to the unique life experiences of modified individuals? Second, were social groups based on ethnic, gender, or kinship identity differentiated by dietary and mobility patterns in early childhood and early adolescence? In particular, the comparison of oxygen isotope ratios from human enamel and local water sources in the Colca Valley will test the hypothesis that residential mobility was an integral aspect of women’s participation in the agropastoral economy. Finally, stable isotope variation in the Colca Valley is examined in light of evidence from contemporary regions in the Andes that attest to the dramatic effects of late prehispanic ecological and social changes on childhood diet and health.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 16580