Applications of Isotope Analysis to Conflict Archaeology: A Case Study from the Northern Iberian Peninsula

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Interdisciplinary Approaches to Basque Archaeology: Current Research and Future Directions" session, at the 90th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Isotopic approaches to investigate geographic area of origin, mobility, and dietary practices have long been applied to archaeological and forensic contexts. Isotopic ratios from human bones and teeth can be used to derive information about cultural, geographic, and demographic group membership. This presentation leverages isotopic approaches in an effort to better understand large, commingled assemblages of human remains associated with past conflicts. Strontium, oxygen, carbon, and nitrogen isotopic ratios are examined from individuals buried in the Silo of Charlemagne cemetery (located in Orreaga/Roncesvalles in northern Navarre, Spain), a site which holds the remains of individuals associated with multiple military conflicts, including the War of the Pyrenees and the Peninsular War. Here we summarize the isotopic results from five years of archaeological investigations at the Silo of Charlemagne and identify patterns that can contribute, alongside archival and archaeological data, to identifying potential military affiliations as well as geographic areas of origin of the individuals interred in the cemetery.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 90th Annual Meeting, Denver, CO (2025)   •
• Interdisciplinary Approaches to Basque Archaeology: Current Research and Future Directions

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 51512