Multilevel Migration and Interpersonal Violence at the Angel Site: Bioarchaeological Investigations of Trauma at a Large Mississippian Period Community in Southwestern Indian

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2021: General Sessions" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

The connection between migration and violence is complex and occurs in many social spheres within a single community. Data accessible through archaeological excavations, partnered with bioarchaeological analyses, can provide insights that are otherwise invisible regarding these experiences. To this end, my research explores the patterns of interpersonal trauma and migration observed at the Angel site, a large Mississippian period (AD 1050-1450) community located on the Ohio River, focusing on two key associations. First, the correlation between females with well-healed blunt-force trauma, unusual burial position, and isotopic signatures more similar to Fort Ancient communities suggest an association between non-local origins and violent treatment for some community members. Second, only males from the site exhibit scalping, with one individual, also buried prone, receiving 14 perimortem fractures to their body. These patterns are likely related to social disruptions during the late Mississippian period caused, in part, by the migration of peoples into the area due to sociopolitical instability and climate change. These data are the first from one of the largest Mississippian period communities in mid-continent and corroborate prior bioarchaeological research on migration and trauma for this time period in the Eastern Woodlands of North America.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 86th Annual Meeting, Online (2021)   •
• SAA 2021: General Sessions

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 32316