Solis Diaboli Student Colloquium

Event Details

Time: December 4, 2008 at 3:30pm
Location: ASU Tempe Campus, Coor 184
Event Type: Lecture
Organized By: Almira Poudrier
Latest Activity: Nov. 29, 2008

Event Description

Assessing musculoskeletal markers characteristic of military activities: an analysis of sacrificial victims from Teotihuacan.

Speaker: Meagan A. Rubel

Located in the northeast part of the Basin of Mexico, Teotihuacan underwent massive urban expansion during AD 200 and was becoming a political and religious center for the area. The sacrifice of 200-250 men and women at the Feathered Serpent Pyramid, most of who were dressed in military garb and buried with weapons, is thought to illustrate the growing importance of the military during this period. Mass sacrifice prompts questions concerning 1) the extent of Teotihuacan’s influence in the Basin of Mexico, 2) their politics with foreign societies, and 3) the specific role of the military in internal and external affairs.

In attempting to answer these questions about early Teotihuacan, this pilot study analyzed skeletal material from four mass graves (26 individuals) to address the occupational identities of the sacrificial victims. It was hypothesized that the preliminary results of musculoskeletal marker (MSM) scoring would show a positive correlation between the individuals and military occupation. MSM were based on patterns of repetitive weapons training that would be expected of military members. The results showed that 41% of the total population sampled exceeded the average MSM measurements. Interestingly, 48% of the men exceeded average MSM measurements while only 25% of the women exceeded theirs. This analysis suggests the males, and not females, were more likely to have been involved in military occupational activities. Future studies investigating MSM in a larger Teotihuacan sample size could be conducted to elaborate on these findings and set a MSM baseline between classes in this particular population.

Meagan Rubel is an undergraduate student in the School of Evolution and Social Change at ASU. She's majoring in Anthropology and Biology and minoring in Geography and Geographic Information Systems. Her talk will explain and comment on some of the research she completed for her thesis.