Ritual and Mobility: δ18O and δ13C analyses of Bronze Age khirigsuur horses from Khanuuy Valley, Mongolia

Summary

Khirigsuurs are large stone burial and ritual monuments that served as stages for group activities and social negotiation during the Late Bronze Age (c.1300-700 BC) in Mongolia. Animal remains were routinely interred in satellite mounds associated with primary burial features, in particular the heads and extremities of horses, and often in great numbers. The question remains, however, whether horses selected for interment in khirigsuur satellites were from local or distant herds. Here, we examine the carbon and oxygen isotopes of incrementally sampled mandibular molars from horse heads ritually deposited in khirgsuur complexes located in Khanuuy Valley. Such isotopic data provide first insights into the complexity of social and political networks involved with khirigsuur construction and maintenance.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• Dietary Biographies: Chronicling past husbandry, mobility, and exchange practices through isotopic analysis of plant and animal tissues

Keywords

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