Isotopic Evidence for Mobility in the Copper and Bronze Age Cemetery of Humanejos (Parla, Madrid): a Diachronic Approach Using Biological and Archaeological Variables

Marta Cintas-Peña; Rafael Garrido Pena; Ana M. Herrero-Corral; Raúl Flores Fernández; Anna J. Waterman; Marta Díaz-Zorita Bonilla; Pedro Díaz-del-Río; David W. Peate

doi:10.1007/s10816-023-09633-6

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Isotopic Evidence for Mobility in the Copper and Bronze Age Cemetery of Humanejos (Parla, Madrid): a Diachronic Approach Using Biological and Archaeological Variables

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Isotopic Evidence for Mobility in the Copper and Bronze Age Cemetery of Humanejos (Parla, Madrid): a Diachronic Approach Using Biological and Archaeological Variables

Marta Cintas-Peña, Rafael Garrido Pena, Ana M. Herrero-Corral, Raúl Flores Fernández, Anna J. Waterman, Marta Díaz-Zorita Bonilla, Pedro Díaz-del-Río and David W. Peate

Journal of archaeological method and theory, Vol.31(3), pp.1152-1184

12/22/2023

DOI: 10.1007/s10816-023-09633-6

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Abstract

Abstract Over the last several decades, the application of aDNA and strontium isotope analyses on archaeologically recovered human remains has provided new avenues for the investigation of mobility in past societies. Data on human mobility can be valuable in the reconstruction of prehistoric residential patterns and kinship systems, which are at the center of human social organization and vary across time and space. In this paper, we aim to contribute to our understanding of mobility, residence, and kinship patterns in late Prehistoric Iberia ( c. 3300–1400BC) by providing new strontium data on 44 individuals from the site of Humanejos (Parla, Madrid). The study presented here is multi-proxy and looks at these new data by interweaving biological, chronological, and archaeological information. This analysis found that 7/44 individuals buried at Humanejos could be identified as non-local to the necropolis. Although more men ( n = 5) than women ( n = 2) were found in the non-local category, and more non-local individuals were identified in the pre-Bell Beaker ( n = 5) than in Bell Beaker ( n = 1) or Bronze Age ( n = 1), we find no statistically significant differences concerning sex or time period. This contrasts with other archaeological datasets for late prehistoric Europe which suggest higher female mobility, female exogamy, and male-centered residential patterns were common. At Humanejos, we have also identified one non-local female whose exceptional Beaker grave goods suggest she was an individual of special status, leading to additional questions about the relationships between gender, mobility, and social position in this region and time period.

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Title: Subtitle: Isotopic Evidence for Mobility in the Copper and Bronze Age Cemetery of Humanejos (Parla, Madrid): a Diachronic Approach Using Biological and Archaeological Variables
Creators: Marta Cintas-Peña
Rafael Garrido Pena
Ana M. Herrero-Corral
Raúl Flores Fernández
Anna J. Waterman - Mount Mercy University
Marta Díaz-Zorita Bonilla
Pedro Díaz-del-Río - Instituto de Historia
David W. Peate - University of Iowa
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: Journal of archaeological method and theory, Vol.31(3), pp.1152-1184
DOI: 10.1007/s10816-023-09633-6
ISSN: 1072-5369
eISSN: 1573-7764
Grant note: DOI: 10.13039/100018694, name: HORIZON EUROPE Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions, award: GA 891776; name: Dirección General de Patrimonio Cultural; name: SFB 1070 “Ressourcenkulturen”; DOI: 10.13039/501100004837, name: Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, award: PID2019-105690GB-I00 and HAR2013-47776-R; DOI: 10.13039/100009042, name: Universidad de Sevilla
Language: English
Electronic publication date: 12/22/2023
Academic Unit: Earth and Environmental Sciences; Honors Program
Record Identifier: 9984539444202771

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