Spoiler Alert: Bioarchaeological Study of Cremation Funerary Urns with an Application of Computer Tomography

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Tzintzuntzan, Capital of the Tarascan Empire: New Perspectives" session, at the 88th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Nine urns from the early Postclassic cemetery in Los Tamarindos (Tierra Caliente, Michoacán, Mexico) containing human cremains have been excavated with the support of a CT scan. Selected examples from this sample will be presented to demonstrate the analytical potential of the methodology that merges bioarchaeological analysis of human cremains and computer tomography, which demonstrates the spatial distribution of archaeological and osteological material within the funerary urn prior to the exploration of the urn fill. Computer tomography proved to be essential for micro-excavation process planning. Moreover, it allowed us to improve the decision-making process of division of exploration layers to study and improve our understanding of the spatial distribution of osteological material within the urn. Moreover, the CT scan provides valuable information about the pre-excavation distribution of archaeological material such as pottery and grave goods, which can be essential in reconstructing the urn fill formation process. Finally, CT scans can enhance the transparency of studies involving cremation urn burials, providing important graphic documentation, allowing us to present and prove the observed patterns in the spatial distribution of osteological material. In this study, we will also address the most significant limitations of the applied methodology.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Tzintzuntzan, Capital of the Tarascan Empire: New Perspectives   •
• Society for American Archaeology 88th Annual Meeting, Portland, OR (2023)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 35849.0