Entering the "Valley of Death": Isotopic Evidence of Vulnerable Survivors at Roman Period Kellis, Egypt

Summary

Breast-fed infants living in communities with adequate food access experience particularly high health risks during complementary feeding between ages 6 to 36 months. The most vulnerable of these die in this period, characterized as the "valley of death," which represents a biocultural reality. The majority of those who survive are "vulnerable survivors." The Kellis 2 cemetery sample (Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt, AD 50-450) provides a unique opportunity to analyze effects of biocultural disruptions occurring during this critical period of physiological adjustment. Maternal, fetal, and infant (N=210) 13C and 15N profiles were produced from hair, dentin collagen, and bone collagen to evaluate adverse biological factors simultaneously present during weaning and illness. Results indicate there are three situations where feeding practices and health interact: first, the mother’s ability to meet nutritional demands of infants during prolonged breastfeeding; second, undernutrition due to a health insult when the child is losing passive immunity; third, children being weaned on foods lacking protein quality and content when they may already be undernourished. This strongly suggests risks of malnutrition start shortly after birth, and vulnerable survivors who escape the valley of death at this age may be even more susceptible and predisposed to environmental stressors than previously considered.

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): 21444