Victims or Venerated? A Bioarchaeological Examination of Gendered Ritual Violence and Social Identity of the Possible Aqlla at Túcume, Peru

Summary

Human sacrifices are frequently referred to as ‘victims’ of ritual violence, which presupposes that the sacrificed had no control over their fate or were unjustly harmed. Many examples of human sacrifice have been identified recently across the north coast of Peru involving a range of time periods and bodily treatment to suggest that there was incredible variation in practice, including in the identity of those sacrificed. Both males and females have been identified as sacrifices, but rarely are both found within the same sacrifice tradition suggesting that gender identity often played a role. This paper explores the various human sacrificial contexts at Túcume (1000-1532 CE) specifically focusing on the 19 young females from Huaca Larga who were inferred as an Inca Aqlla; supposedly killed to accompany the principal ruler at his dead. While no direct perimortem trauma is evident, they do conform to mortuary treatments of human offerings. The osteological analysis of pathological stress markers suggests that these women did not necessarily lead lives of honored status, but suffered cranial trauma, dental disease, and episodic stress during childhood. Even if they came from lower social strata, their ‘death’ may have elevated their status, regardless of if they had a choice.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

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

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 20676