Title
Bioarchaeological evidence of care provided to a physically disabled individual from Pachacamac, Peru
Date Issued
01 June 2019
Access level
metadata only access
Resource Type
journal article
Publisher(s)
Elsevier Inc.
Abstract
This paper presents a bioarchaeology of care case study based on the skeletonized remains of an elderly female with a congenital condition that compromised both mobility and independence in undertaking certain basic tasks, and which generated requirements for long-term care in the form of both direct support and accommodation. The remains show evidence of bilateral cervical ribs, severe osteoarthritic destruction in the right shoulder joint, and a healed skull trepanation. The remains were recovered from a cemetery dating to the initial part of the Late Intermediate Period at the archaeological site of Pachacamac, Peru. The subject has been identified as belonging to an Ychsma ayllu. This paper applies the bioarchaeology of care methodology in considering the implications of care provision within the Ychsma socialcontext, and suggests that caregiving may have been a relatively common practice in this complex society. This case study is a good example of how the application of social theory through the bioarchaeology of care approach can enrich bioarchaeological studies.
Start page
139
End page
149
Volume
25
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Arqueología
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-85052988411
PubMed ID
Source
International Journal of Paleopathology
ISSN of the container
18799817
Sponsor(s)
We thank UNACEM for its generous support to the Pachacamac Valley Archaeological Program-Field School, all the project members, specially: Cynthia Vargas, Alain Vallenas and Raul Vargas. We want to thank Dr. Heather Smith and Dr. Lorna Tilley for her valuable comments on the final version of this article. Finally, we thank Dr. Lorna Tilley and Ken Nystrom for considering our work as part of this special issue.
Sources of information: Directorio de Producción Científica Scopus