Bioarchaeology of Care: A Hohokam Example

Abstract

Archaeological investigations at the northwestern margin of the large Hohokam village site known as La Plaza, AZ U:9:165(ASM), recovered 172 sets of human remains. Bioarchaeological analysis focused on the most complete 66 inhumations and 52 cremations. One of those, Burial 167, was the inhumation of a young adult female who exhibited a suite of pathological conditions that were identified as systemic infection (very likely tuberculosis), scoliosis, and premature degenerative bone disease. Burial 167 was interred with an elaborate assemblage of funerary items. The pathological conditions and funerary assemblage of Burial 167 are compared with other burials in the assemblage, and Burial 167 is identified as an example of the bioarchaeology of care among the Hohokam.

Las investigaciones arqueológicas hechas en la periferia noroeste del sitio arqueológico Hohokam conocido como “la plaza” (AZ U:9:165[ASM]) revelaron los restos óseos de aproximadamente 172 individuos. Debido al estado de preservación de algunos de los individuos, el análisis bioarqueológico se enfocó en 66 inhumaciones y 52 cremaciones que fueron suficientemente completos para permitir investigaciones más detalladas. Uno de estos individuos, el “Entierro 167” representaba los restos de una mujer joven que exhibía numerosas condiciones patológicas identificadas como escoliosis, algo parecido al tuberculosis, y múltiples enfermedades en los huesos. La mujer fue enterrada con un elaborado juego de artefactos. En nuestro estudio comparamos el “Entierro 167” con los restos óseos de otros individuos encontrados en el mismo sitio, y concluimos que el “Entierro 167” recibió un tratamiento mortuorio diferente al resto de los individuos, indicando que esta persona recibía cuidados especiales.

KEYWORDS:

• Bioarchaeology
• Hohokam
• Tuberculosis
• Scoliosis
• Osteomalacia

Acknowledgments

This article is dedicated to the memory of Walter H. Birkby, mentor and friend. The City of Tempe sponsored the archaeological investigations that collected the data reported in this article. The studies were undertaken to mitigate the impacts of constructing a transportation center adjacent to the Veterans Way/College light rail transit station. We gratefully acknowledge the unflagging support of Bonnie Richardson, AIA, LEED AP, who managed the design and construction of the LEED Platinum transportation center for the City of Tempe and made sure the project schedule accommodated the archaeological fieldwork. The coordination efforts of Tempe City Historic Preservation Officer Joe Nucci and the staff of the Engineering Division were essential in keeping the project on track, and the personal interest of Mayor Hugh Hallman was appreciated. The crew of A & P Construction, led by Aren McCulloch, shared the site with the archaeological crew for several months and we appreciate their cooperation and efforts to accommodate the archaeological excavations. We extend our appreciation to James Snead, editor of Kiva, and two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments. We offer a special thank you to the reviewer who identified osteomalacia as a possible diagnosis. We also extend our appreciation to Larry Zimmerman, Cindy Dongoske, Kimberly Spurr, Doug Craig, and Tom F. King for their helpful comments. The figures reflect the talents of Margaret Windsor and Ronald Savage. We extend gratitude and acknowledgment to Maren Hopkins, who graciously translated the abstract into Spanish.

Notes

1 This is the largest burial assemblage yet recovered from the La Plaza site, but a parallel project along the light rail transit project corridor excavated 110 burial features (Ryan and Bower 2011). Excavations in conjunction with expansion of the Arizona State University football stadium documented 67 burials (Stone 1991) and a new parking garage documented 20 (Rice and James 1989; Simon 1989). Several other excavations each recovered 1–4 burials (Brunson 1981; Hanson 1972; Jacobs 2001; Stark 1974; Steinbach et al. 2008; Wright 2005), bringing the total number of recovered burials to more than 380, with about 56 percent being cremations and 44 percent inhumations.

2 The investigated area was divided into five zones that largely reflected areas where historic or modern disturbance interrupted what was probably a more or less continuous distribution of archaeological features.

3 The curvature of the spine was measured when the burial was in situ.

4 Out of respect for Native American wishes and in accordance with the Vermillion Accord on Human Remains adopted in the 1989 World Archaeological Congress, South Dakota, USA (http://www.worldarchaeologicalcongress.org/site/about_ethi.php#code2) line drawings are presented to show diseased bone and not photographs.

Additional information

Funding

The archaeological excavations that yielded the data for this article were supported by the City of Tempe [Project No. 60-976762].