A Look at Local Populations during Wari Expansion: Bioarchaeology and Funerary Contexts at Ak’awillay, Cusco, Peru

Summary

Although the climate and rich cultural history of Peru frequently offers a perfect setting for bioarchaeological analysis, the pre-Inca peoples of the central Andean highlands often lack full representation within that analysis. Yet, excavations at Ak’awillay, a village in the Cusco region, between 2006 and 2016, revealed 79 bodies. Most of the remains recovered from the site date to the Middle Horizon (AD 600–1000); however, previous analysis of the architecture and artifacts at the site suggest that this population did not emulate Wari lifestyle. This paper provides a profile of a substantial part of the local population of Ak’awillay, shedding light on living and health conditions in Cusco during the Middle Horizon. This profile includes both the demographic make-up and the skeletal pathology of this population, as well as an evaluation of grave goods and cultural modifications done to the bodies before and after death. Preliminary analysis indicates that the people of Ak’awillay maintained unique cultural practices but led a rigorous lifestyle. Since this population was not heavily touched by either violence or sacrifice, our analysis documents a large sample of individuals who died of natural causes and provides a rich comparative dataset for Middle Horizon Peru.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 21035