Diet and gender in the Tiwanaku colonies: Stable isotope analysis of human bone collagen and apatite from Moquegua, Peru

Abstract

These data indicate relatively high C4 plant consumption among the Tiwanaku colonies, and support paleobotanical and archaeological evidence that maize (Zea mays) was the staple crop. Dietary values are similar overall between the sexes, but significantly higher δ(13) Ccollagen values in males is consistent with a model of gendered norms of consumption similar to that of the later Inca (AD 1438-1533), where males consumed more maize than females, often in the form of beer (chicha). Results provide new insights on social dynamics within the Tiwanaku colonies and suggest the increased importance maize consumption for males during the Tiwanaku expansion.

Re-approaching palaeodiet in the Andes: use and application of sulphur isotope analysis in reconstructing Peruvian palaeodiet

“…Ceramic fragments also indicate aspects of subsistence through analyses of vessel form and function (Goldstein 2003), artwork (Somerville et al 2015), and residues on ceramic fabric (Duncan, Pearsall, and Benfer 2009). Ancient chicha production is illustrated on ceramic vessels from sites at Lake Titicaca (Goldstein 2003).…”

“…Many Peruvian palaeodietary studies examine stable carbon and nitrogen isotope values from human bone collagen. Studies illustrate different subsistence practices according to significant variation in individual age (Turner, Kingston, and Armelagos 2010), sex (Somerville et al 2015), political regimes (Lambert et al 2012), and in areas where there were different animal husbandry practices (Finucane, Agurto, and Isbell 2006). Alternatively, some studies have been unable to identify specific parameters of subsistence practices (Burger and van der Merwe 1990;Kellner and Schoeninger 2008).…”

Multiethnicity, pluralism, and migration in the south central Andes: An alternate path to state expansion

“…Similarly, in the Cochabamba region of Bolivia, Tiwanaku colonists may have been few on the ground (71) yet exerted considerable cultural influence, transforming local material culture into a new Cochabamba-Tiwanaku style. A significant factor in the appeal of Tiwanaku practice may have been the popularity of Tiwanaku's traditions focused on chicha, or maize-beer drinking, and Tiwanaku-style drinking vessels and maize cultivation and consumption increased markedly in many regions of Tiwanaku influence (72)(73)(74).…”

“…Distinctions in chemical composition between Tiwanaku and Wari ceramics further show that Tiwanaku and Wari potters in the Moquegua region had distinct technological styles, and used clays from different local sources (86). The Tiwanaku and Wari enclaves even maintained distinct tastes in favorite fermented beverages, with consumption of maize chicha a vital part of everyday and ritual life for the Tiwanaku colony (73,74), whereas Wari settlers preferred to drink spicy chicha de molle, a fermented beverage made from seeds of the Peruvian pepper tree (79,87,88).…”

“…Chen Chen-style settlements are consistently closer to agricultural land, their quincha wattle and daub domestic architecture is more permanent in construction, and their mortuary pattern consists of subsurface burials without major surface structures. The Chen Chen-style settlements are also associated with canal and spring-fed irrigation systems and the residential sites have dense concentrations of cist storage features, industrial-size grindstones, and stone hoes, whereas macrobotanical and isotopic evidence all point to intensive production, consumption, and exportation of maize to the Tiwanaku-type site in Bolivia (46,73,74,77,(94)(95)(96)(97). This finding indicates that intensive maize agriculture was the primary productive goal of the Chen Chen-style colony.…”