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Feeding a third millennium BC mega-site: Bioarchaeological analyses of palaeodiet and dental disease at Marroquíes (Jaén, Spain)

Accepted version
Peer-reviewed

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Type

Article

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Authors

Díaz-Zorita Bonilla, M 
Bocherens, H 
Díaz-del-Río, P 

Abstract

At 113-ha in size and dating to the 3rd millennium cal BC, the ditched enclosure site of Marroquíes is one of the latest mega-sites in Iberia. The settlement preserves multiple mortuary areas which contain over 450 individuals, allowing for the examination of inter-individual and inter-group variability in diet and health. This study presents the first large-scale palaeodietary assessment of the site through the analysis of carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) stable isotope values from 113 human and 23 faunal samples. It also offers the first comprehensive analysis of dental disease at Marroquíes in a sample of over 4,600 human teeth. Humans at Marroquíes exhibit mean values of 8.4 ± 0.9‰ for δ15N and -19.3 ± 0.3‰ for δ13C, suggesting a diet predominantly based on proteins from terrestrial C3 plant foodwebs, conforming to a broader dietary pattern common throughout Late Prehistoric Iberia. Dental analyses revealed significant differences in the frequency of hypoplasias and calculus between mortuary areas. Overall, the documented variability within mortuary areas is higher than variability between them, suggesting that although differences in consumption patterns did exist, the bonds created by group affinities outweighed the expression of social asymmetries at death

Description

Keywords

4301 Archaeology, 4401 Anthropology, 43 History, Heritage and Archaeology, 44 Human Society, 3 Good Health and Well Being

Journal Title

Journal of Anthropological Archaeology

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0278-4165
1090-2686

Volume Title

52

Publisher

Elsevier BV
Sponsorship
European Commission Horizon 2020 (H2020) Marie Sk?odowska-Curie actions (746216)
Various funders listed, plus the corresponding author (at UCAM) is a H2020 MSCA-EF. Acknowledgements in AAM state: "This work was supported by a National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant (BCS-1440017), the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad de España (HAR2013-47776-R), the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) (2010RU0086), and the University of Michigan."