Residential Mobility and Dental Decoration in Early Medieval Spain: Results from the Eighth Century Site of Plaza del Castillo, Pamplona

Prevedorou, Eleanna; Bonilla, Marta Díaz-Zorita; Romero, Alejandro; Buikstra, Jane E.; Ibáñez, Manuel Alcaraz; Knudson, Kelly J.

doi:10.26575/daj.v23i2.74

Cited by 24 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 64 publications

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“…Because the palaeogenomic data support a North African paternal ancestry of the three individuals from the graves, we believe that they were Berbers integrated into the Arab army during its rapid expansion through North Africa. Such conclusions are in perfect accordance with the ones deriving from the isotopic analyses conducted on two individuals from Plaza del Castillo in Pamplona [ 47 ]. Because the remains may be those of soldiers, it is worth noting that the bodies deposited in the graves were carefully buried (with clear respect for funerary customs) and did not present any osteological evidence of combat (which do not testify to deaths resulting from combat), as already pointed out for Islamic necropolises in Spain [ 48 ].…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 89%

“…Because the remains may be those of soldiers, it is worth noting that the bodies deposited in the graves were carefully buried (with clear respect for funerary customs) and did not present any osteological evidence of combat (which do not testify to deaths resulting from combat), as already pointed out for Islamic necropolises in Spain [ 48 ]. Moreover, in the cemetery of Plaza del Castillo in Pamplona (dating from the Conquest) adults of both sexes (with notably one female individual showing intentional dental modification testifying of an African origin) and children were discovered, suggesting that family groups or camp followers participated to the early Muslim population [ 40 , 47 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Early Medieval Muslim Graves in France: First Archaeological, Anthropological and Palaeogenomic Evidence

et al. 2016

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The rapid Arab-Islamic conquest during the early Middle Ages led to major political and cultural changes in the Mediterranean world. Although the early medieval Muslim presence in the Iberian Peninsula is now well documented, based in the evaluation of archeological and historical sources, the Muslim expansion in the area north of the Pyrenees has only been documented so far through textual sources or rare archaeological data. Our study provides the first archaeo-anthropological testimony of the Muslim establishment in South of France through the multidisciplinary analysis of three graves excavated at Nimes. First, we argue in favor of burials that followed Islamic rites and then note the presence of a community practicing Muslim traditions in Nimes. Second, the radiometric dates obtained from all three human skeletons (between the 7th and the 9th centuries AD) echo historical sources documenting an early Muslim presence in southern Gaul (i.e., the first half of 8th century AD). Finally, palaeogenomic analyses conducted on the human remains provide arguments in favor of a North African ancestry of the three individuals, at least considering the paternal lineages. Given all of these data, we propose that the skeletons from the Nimes burials belonged to Berbers integrated into the Umayyad army during the Arab expansion in North Africa. Our discovery not only discusses the first anthropological and genetic data concerning the Muslim occupation of the Visigothic territory of Septimania but also highlights the complexity of the relationship between the two communities during this period.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Early Medieval Muslim Graves in France: First Archaeological, Anthropological and Palaeogenomic Evidence

et al. 2016

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“…Only a few studies on bioavailable 87 Sr/ 86 Sr isotope ratios from archaeological sites on the Iberian Peninsula have been published so far [ 91 – 93 ]. A rich comparative dataset from the area, which includes human enamel, bone, dentine, and faunal samples was gathered at the early medieval cemetery of San Martín de Dulantzi (Algría-Dulantzi, Álava) some 90 km north-east of Reinoso, where Cretaceous limestone and marls prevail [ 92 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Community in Life and Death: The Late Neolithic Megalithic Tomb at Alto de Reinoso (Burgos, Spain)

et al. 2016

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The analysis of the human remains from the megalithic tomb at Alto de Reinoso represents the widest integrative study of a Neolithic collective burial in Spain. Combining archaeology, osteology, molecular genetics and stable isotope analysis (87Sr/86Sr, δ15N, δ13C) it provides a wealth of information on the minimum number of individuals, age, sex, body height, pathologies, mitochondrial DNA profiles, kinship relations, mobility, and diet. The grave was in use for approximately one hundred years around 3700 cal BC, thus dating from the Late Neolithic of the Iberian chronology. At the bottom of the collective tomb, six complete and six partial skeletons lay in anatomically correct positions. Above them, further bodies represented a subsequent and different use of the tomb, with almost all of the skeletons exhibiting signs of manipulation such as missing skeletal parts, especially skulls. The megalithic monument comprised at least 47 individuals, including males, females, and subadults, although children aged 0–6 years were underrepresented. The skeletal remains exhibited a moderate number of pathologies, such as degenerative joint diseases, healed fractures, cranial trauma, and a low intensity of caries. The mitochondrial DNA profiles revealed a pattern pointing to a closely related local community with matrilineal kinship patterns. In some cases adjacent individuals in the bottom layer showed familial relationships. According to their strontium isotope ratios, only a few individuals were likely to have spent their early childhood in a different geological environment, whilst the majority of individuals grew up locally. Carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis, which was undertaken to reconstruct the dietary habits, indicated that this was a homogeneous group with egalitarian access to food. Cereals and small ruminants were the principal sources of nutrition. These data fit in well with a lifestyle typical of sedentary farming populations in the Spanish Meseta during this period of the Neolithic.

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“…The statistical outlier for δ 34 S value is indicated in italics. d Mean δ 13 C and δ 34 S values, excluding the outliers, with SD Prevedorou et al 2010;Polet and Katzenberg 2003;Reitsema et al 2010;Reitsema and Vercellotti 2012;Schutkowski and Herrmann 1999). The data showed significant differences in diet among the populations from the valleys, whereby the δ 13 C and δ 15 N data differed most between the individuals from Adige valley and those from Venosta valley (Fig.…”

Section: Varying Dietary Patterns In Early Medieval Valleys In South mentioning

confidence: 96%

Early medieval Italian Alps: reconstructing diet and mobility in the valleys

Paladin

Moghaddam

Stawinoga

et al. 2020

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

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In Early Middle Ages (sixth-eleventh centuries AD), South Tyrol (Italian Alps) played a key role for geographical and military reasons. Historical sources document that allochthonous groups (germani) entered the territory, and the material culture shows mutual cultural exchanges between autochthonous and germani. Besides the nature of the migration, the demographic and socio-cultural impacts on the local population are still unknown. Stable isotope analyses were performed to provide insights into dietary patterns, subsistence strategies, changes in socio-economic structures, and mobility, according to spatial (e.g. valleys, altitudes) and chronological (centuries) parameters. Bone collagen of 32 faunal and 91 human bone samples from nine sites, located at different altitudes, was extracted for stable carbon, nitrogen, and sulphur isotope analyses. In total, 94% (30/32) of the faunal remains were of good quality, while the humans displayed 93% (85/91) of good quality samples for δ 13 C and δ 15 N and 44% (40/91) for δ 34 S stable isotopes. The isotopic results of the animals reflected a terrestrial-based diet. Statistical differences were observed within and among the humans of the different valleys. The δ 13 C values of individuals sampled from higher altitudes indicated a mainly C 3 plant-based diet compared to areas at lower altitudes, where more positive δ 13 C values showed an intake of C 4 plants. The δ 15 N values suggested a terrestrial-based diet with a greater consumption of animal proteins at higher altitudes. The data revealed higher variability in δ 34 S values in the Adige valley, with individuals probably migrating and/or changing dietary habits.

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Residential Mobility and Dental Decoration in Early Medieval Spain: Results from the Eighth Century Site of Plaza del Castillo, Pamplona

Cited by 24 publications

References 64 publications

Early Medieval Muslim Graves in France: First Archaeological, Anthropological and Palaeogenomic Evidence

Early Medieval Muslim Graves in France: First Archaeological, Anthropological and Palaeogenomic Evidence

A Community in Life and Death: The Late Neolithic Megalithic Tomb at Alto de Reinoso (Burgos, Spain)

Early medieval Italian Alps: reconstructing diet and mobility in the valleys

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