Temporal, spatial and gender-based dietary differences in middle period San Pedro de Atacama, Chile: A model-based approach

Abstract

To explore the possible emergence and lived consequences of social inequality in the Atacama, we analyzed a large set (n = 288) of incredibly well preserved and contextualized human skeletons from the broad Middle Period (AD 500–1000) of the San Pedro de Atacama (Chile) oases. In this work, we explore model-based paleodietary reconstruction of the results of stable isotope analysis of human bone collagen and hydroxyapatite. The results of this modeling are used to explore local phenomena, the nature of the Middle Period, and the interaction between local situations and the larger world in which the oases were enmeshed by identifying the temporal, spatial, and biocultural correlates and dimensions of dietary difference. Our analyses revealed that: 1) over the 600-year period represented by our sample, there were significant changes in consumption patterns that may evince broad diachronic changes in the structure of Atacameño society, and 2) at/near 600 calAD, there was a possible episode of social discontinuity that manifested in significant changes in consumption practices. Additionally, while there were some differences in the level of internal dietary variability among the ayllus, once time was fully considered, none of the ayllus stood out for having a more (or less) clearly internally differentiated cuisine. Finally, sex does not appear to have been a particularly salient driver of observed dietary differences here. While we do not see any de facto evidence for complete dietary differentiation (as there is always overlap in consumption among individuals, ayllus, and time periods, and as isotopic analysis is not capable of pinpointing different foods items or preparations), there are broad aspects of dietary composition changing over time that are potentially linked to status, and foreignness. Ultimately, these stand as the clearest example of what has been termed “gastro-politics,” potentially tied to the emergence of social inequality in the San Pedro oases.

Emerging inequality in the San Pedro de Atacama oases (Chile): An investigation of entheseal patterns using ANCOVA and factorial ANOVA

“…Archeological and bioarcheological evidence suggest that the Middle Period enmeshed the oases into a large social network that resulted in increased cultural exchange with foreign regions and growth and affluence for the oases. Importantly, however, the analyses of body activity presented here add to recent literature (Pestle, Hubbe, et al, 2021; Torres‐Rouff et al, 2018; Torres‐Rouff & Knudson, 2017) that demonstrates that Middle Period prosperity was not evenly distributed among the oases. The distribution of entheseal changes suggests that different individuals were engaged in long‐term activity patterns that varied by where they lived (or at least where they were buried) and, in a few instances, by their biological sex.…”

“…Only the hip articulations show differences that can be explained by sex. This result is surprising, given that sex has been a meaningful factor of differentiation in previous analyses of diet composition (Pestle, Hubbe, et al, 2021), oral health (Hubbe et al, 2012), violence (Torres‐Rouff et al, 2018), and infection (Costa et al, 2009; Da‐Gloria et al, 2011; Marsteller et al, 2011). The lack of difference in entheseal changes does not necessarily imply that individuals of different sexes were engaged in similar physical activities (see discussion below) but instead supports the idea that the activities engaged in by men and women during the Middle Period had similar levels of physical impact on entheses development.…”

“…Despite this, drainage from the San Pedro and Vilama Rivers permitted small‐scale agriculture and camelid pastoralism in a series of oases that show evidence of human presence since at least 2500 BCE (Llagostera, 2004; Llagostera & Costa Junqueira, 1999; Núñez, 2007). It was during the Middle Period that Atacameño society witnessed significant growth and showed early signs of emerging social inequality (Llagostera & Costa Junqueira, 1999; Núñez, 1992; Pestle, Hubbe, et al, 2021). The Middle Period has generally been characterized as prosperous and peaceful and is associated with noticeable expansions in both interregional interaction and local population (Berenguer & Dauelsberg, 1989; Bravo & Llagostera, 1986; Llagostera, 2004; Llagostera & Costa Junqueira, 1999; Rivera, 2008).…”

“…Although the abundant material record and robust bioarcheological evidence suggest a period of prosperity, peace, and good health, recent studies demonstrate how different oases and individuals within those oases experienced these conditions unequally (Pestle, Hubbe, et al, 2021), ultimately questioning the idea of uniform Middle Period prosperity. Middle Period cemeteries show significant differences in several aspects of life experience, including interpersonal violence (Lessa & Mendonça de Souza, 2004; Torres‐Rouff & Costa Junqueira, 2006; Torres‐Rouff et al, 2018), nonspecific infections (Da‐Gloria et al, 2011), oral health (Hubbe et al, 2012), and dietary composition (Pestle, Hubbe, et al, 2021). Some of these differences in the Middle Period may be linked to status and residential mobility (Torres‐Rouff & Knudson, 2017), suggesting the emergence and perhaps establishment of structured inequalities in the oases at this time.…”

A multiplicity of identities: The intersections of cranial vault modification, paleodiet, and sex in San Pedro de Atacama, Chile

“…While the modeled data from carbon and nitrogen isotopes provide a panorama of dietary choices and not details of change over the lifecourse, these data give a strong sense of individual‐ and group‐level differences and diet. Complete details on stable isotope analysis sampling, extraction, instrumentation, and modeling are presented in Pestle, Hubbe, et al ( 2021 ) and the paleodietary data discussed here are derived without modification from the data presented in that work. Nonetheless, below we provide a brief summary of the methods employed.…”