Oxygen isotope analysis in a land of environmental extremes: the complexities of isotopic work in the Andes

Knudson, Kelly J.

doi:10.1002/oa.1042

Cited by 144 publications

(138 citation statements)

References 130 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

119

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Since δ 18 O in teeth reflects the δ 18 O of consumed water, which in turn is affected by climatic influences on evaporative pressure such as aridity, temperature and altitude, this lack of correlation suggests that enrichment through physiological means of water conservation is less likely a major influence on δ 15 N values. However, recent work by Knudson (2009) demonstrates substantial δ 18 O variation within populations determined to be "local" via Sr isotope analysis. This suggests that more work is needed to fully understand the various environmental and metabolic factors influencing δ 18 O in humans, including correlation with δ 15 N in arid contexts.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Variation in Dietary Histories Among the Immigrants of Machu Picchu: Carbon and Nitrogen Isotope Evidence

2010

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This study estimates dietary composition during infancy and childhood among 71 adults interred at the site of Machu Picchu, a royal Inca estate in the southern highlands of Peru. Recent research suggests that the majority of individuals were members of the cosmopolitian yana and aclla servant classes, and immigrated to the site from different regions; individual dietary histories may have been similarly varied. Diet was estimated at multiple points in early life through characterization of carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in tooth enamel and dentin, which preserve isotopic values from the first years of life. These data were compared to isotopic data from modern food samples, and analyzed using recently-published statistical models. A subset of individuals also has existing bone collagen isotopic data, which reflects diet from the last decade of life and thus permits comparison over the life course. Results indicate significant variation in enamel δ 13 C (approximately 12‰), dentin δ 13 C (approximately 9‰) and δ 15 N (approximately 8‰) between individuals across the study population. These findings suggest substantial variability in diet during infancy and childhood, and support interpretations that this population was primarily yanacona or mixed yanacona/acllacona. This study also highlights the utility of multi-tissue isotopic analysis in more nuanced reconstruction of diet in the ancient Andes.Key words: Stable isotopes, teeth, Inca, paleodiet, Precolumbian Andes. este estudio estima la composición dietética durante la infancia y la niñez en 71 entierros de adultos del sitio machu Picchu, una propiedad real inca en las montañas de Perú. esta investigación sugiere que la mayoría de los individuos eran miembros de una clase cosmopolita de servidores yana y aclla que inmigraron a este sitio desde diferentes regiones, por lo que sus historias dietéticas tempranas pudieron haber sido variadas. la dieta fue estimada en múltiples puntos de la primera parte de la vida de estos individuos a través de la caracterización de las proporciones de isotópicos estables de carbón y nitrógeno conservados en el esmalte y dentina de la dentadura desde las primeras épocas de vida de los individuos. estos datos fueron comparados con datos isotópicos de alimentos actuales y analizados con modelos

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Variation in Dietary Histories Among the Immigrants of Machu Picchu: Carbon and Nitrogen Isotope Evidence

2010

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…A pesar de ello la relación entre el incremento en los valores de δ 15 N asociados directamente a los niveles tróficos está bien fundada y parece no cuestionada (Hedges & Reynard 2007 Knudson 2009;Sanhueza & Falabella 2010;Buzon et al 2011). Estos isótopos se registran en el fosfato y carbonato de la hidroxiapatita y reflejan principalmente la composición isotópica del agua corporal, determinada básicamente por el agua ingerida en el momento de formación de los huesos y dientes (Longinelli & Nuti 1973;Longinelli 1984;Luz et al 1984;Sponheimer & Lee-Thorp 1999;White et al 2004;.…”

Section: Isótopos Estables: Aspectos Metodológicos Generalesunclassified

Recursos y Dietas Humanas en Laguna Llancanelo (Mendoza, Nordpatagonia): Una Discusión Isotópica del Registro Arqueológico

et al. 2014

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

RESUMENEste trabajo intenta caracterizar la dieta humana mediante los isótopos estables (δ 13 C y δ 15 N en colágeno y δ 13 C y δ 18 O en hidroxiapatita). Los resultados se discuten en primer lugar con la ecología isotópica generada para esta zona. Luego estas tendencias son comparadas con las generadas por el modelo de mezcla isotópica aplicando el software SISUS y, finalmente, comparando esto con el registro zooarqueológico de Llancanelo. En esta escala los resultados muestran una significativa variabilidad tanto en isótopos humanos como en el registro zooarqueológico que podrían segregarse en las tendencias del sector Norte y sector Oeste de la laguna. Aún así, hay similares tendencias en el humedal: isótopos y fauna señalarían una baja importancia de guanaco y reidos, y una mediana importancia de recursos acuáticos y animales terrestres pequeños. A pesar de no haber aún registro que lo confirme, los isótopos simulados por SISUS proponen una fuerte explotación de algarrobos (Prosopis ssp.) y en algunos casos también molle (Schinus polygamus).La información isotópica del conjunto humano arqueológico procedente de Llancanelo no muestra diferencias significativas con el resto de las muestras humanas del sur de Mendoza, pero, analizadas por sectores de la laguna, las del Oeste tienen mayor similitud con las dietas isotópicas de Payunia/Planicies Orientales y las del Norte con las de Piedemonte. Sobre esta base se propone a Llancanelo como un espacio de convergencia poblacional que fue explotado complementariamente con otras áreas del sur de Mendoza.

show abstract

“…18 O values within skeletons at a single site (Rozanski et al, 1993;White et al, 2007;Knudson, 2009;Price et al, 2010;Brettell et al, 2012;Evans et al, 2012). Further variation may be expressed both between teeth and within a tooth from a single individual, particularly since enamel of the permanent dentition typically forms over a number of years, allowing the potential for considerable oxygen isotope variability during the incorporation of these isotopes (Fricke and O'Neil, 1996;Wright and Schwarz, 1998;Weidemann et al, 1999).…”

mentioning

confidence: 98%

Geographic origins and dietary transitions during the bronze age in the oman peninsula

Gregoricka

2013

American J Phys Anthropol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The nature of the Bronze Age transition from the Umm an-Nar (ca. 2700-2000 BC) to the Wadi Suq (ca. 2000-1300 BC) period in the Oman Peninsula has been highly debated by archaeologists, with some characterizing the latter as a time of cultural isolation, social collapse, and/or population replacement following the successful involvement of the area in widespread interregional exchange networks across Arabia and South Asia. The hypothesis that a substantial change in residential mobility, immigration, and diet took place in response to considerable societal changes as reflected by the archaeological record was tested using stable oxygen and carbon isotope analysis. Archaeological human dental enamel from individuals interred in six Umm an-Nar (n = 100) and seven Wadi Suq (n = 16) communal tombs in the United Arab Emirates was used. Oxygen isotope data reveal largely homogeneous ratios indicative of a predominantly local population that acquired water from isotopically similar sources, although the presence of immigrants during both periods suggests that the region was not as isolated as previously held. Carbon isotope data exhibit a substantial temporal shift from an extremely varied to a more restricted diet, demonstrating that while considerable changes in subsistence strategies and social organization took place in the early second millennium BC, population continuity and sustained (although lessened) participation in pan-Gulf trade systems best characterizes this regional transformation.

show abstract

Oxygen isotope analysis in a land of environmental extremes: the complexities of isotopic work in the Andes

Cited by 144 publications

References 130 publications

Variation in Dietary Histories Among the Immigrants of Machu Picchu: Carbon and Nitrogen Isotope Evidence

Variation in Dietary Histories Among the Immigrants of Machu Picchu: Carbon and Nitrogen Isotope Evidence

Recursos y Dietas Humanas en Laguna Llancanelo (Mendoza, Nordpatagonia): Una Discusión Isotópica del Registro Arqueológico

Geographic origins and dietary transitions during the bronze age in the oman peninsula

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About