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Paired Radiocarbon Dating on Human Samples and Camelid Fibers and Textiles from Northern Chile: The Case of Pica 8 (Tarapacá)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 May 2017

Francisca Santana-Sagredo ,
Rick Schulting ,
Julia Lee-Thorp ,
Carolina Agüero ,
Mauricio Uribe  and
Cecilia Lemp
Francisca Santana-Sagredo*
Affiliation:
Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford, Dyson Perrins Building, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3Q1, United Kingdom
Rick Schulting
Affiliation:
Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford, Dyson Perrins Building, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3Q1, United Kingdom
Julia Lee-Thorp
Affiliation:
Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford, Dyson Perrins Building, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3Q1, United Kingdom
Carolina Agüero
Affiliation:
Instituto de Investigaciones Arqueológicas y Museo, Universidad Católica del Norte, Gustavo Le Paige 380, San Pedro de Atacama, 1410000, Chile
Mauricio Uribe
Affiliation:
Departamento de Antropología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad de Chile, Ignacio Carrera Pinto 1045, Ñuñoa, Santiago, 7800284, Chile
Cecilia Lemp
Affiliation:
Departamento de Antropología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad de Chile, Ignacio Carrera Pinto 1045, Ñuñoa, Santiago, 7800284, Chile
*
*Corresponding author. Email: francisca.santanasagredo@rlaha.ox.ac.uk.
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Abstract

Pica 8 is a Late Intermediate Period (AD 900–1450) cemetery located in the Atacama Desert. Burials at the site present unexpectedly high variability in δ13C (–8‰ to –16‰) and δ15N (10‰ to 24‰) values in their skeletal tissues, implying highly diverse diets. There are two possible explanations for this variability: the first is diachronic change in diet while the second involves synchronic sociocultural distinctions. To distinguish between them a radiocarbon (14C) dating program (n=23) was initiated. The presumed importance of marine foods adds the complication of a marine reservoir effect. To address this problem, paired 14C dates were obtained on human bone and camelid textiles from nine graves. The results fall into two groups, one showing an average offset of 117±9 14C yr, and the other no statistically significant offsets. We conclude that the contribution of marine foods to bone collagen at Pica 8 was less than previously supposed. Other factors must be invoked to account for the unusually high human δ15N values at the site. Manuring crops with sea-bird guano emerges as a probable explanation. No relationship with chronology is seen implying the presence of considerable diversity in diets and hence lifeways within the Pica 8 community.

Keywords

Atacama Desertmarine reservoir effectstable carbon and nitrogen isotopes
Type
Research Article
Information
Radiocarbon , Volume 59 , Issue 4 , August 2017 , pp. 1195 - 1213
Copyright
© 2017 by the Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona 

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