Paquimé in Perspective: A Meta-Analysis of Turkey Remains from the US Southwest and Northern Mexico

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Current Research on Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) Domestication, Husbandry and Management in North America and Beyond" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Excavations at the site of Paquimé in Northern Mexico, uncovered the interred remains of hundreds of common turkeys. Given both the size and unusual nature of this assemblage, studies of the Paquimé turkeys seem well suited to furthering our understanding of domestication, management, and use of the common turkeys in North America. Yet, while interest in zooarchaeological studies of turkeys has never been higher, the Paquimé avifauna remain little discussed outside the context of studies of the Casas Grandes system. This paper evaluates what is currently known about the turkeys of Paquimé, highlighting similarities and differences between this assemblage and ones recovered from sites in the US Southwest, and suggests ways in which data from this site might contribute to broader narrative regarding turkey husbandry and domestication in North America.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 84th Annual Meeting, Albuquerque, NM (2019)   •
• Current Research on Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) Domestication, Husbandry and Management in North America and Beyond

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 23891