Dissertation Research: A Bioarchaeological Analysis of Prehistoric Social Status and Health in the Moche Valley, Peru

莫切人在公元200-600年间控制了秘鲁北部海岸的大部分地区，是南美洲最早发展出国家级别社会组织的社会之一。尽管莫克文明在考古学上得到了充分的研究，但对于该地区莫克文明之前的社会的兴起和崩溃，以及这些早期的转变如何影响国家形成的过程，我们所知甚少。最重要的是，人们对不断变化的社会条件，特别是日益加剧的社会分层，如何影响该地区居民的健康和物质福利知之甚少。拟议的研究试图通过分析Cerro Oreja的史前墓葬来解决这些问题，Cerro Oreja是位于Moche山谷的一个大型遗址，拥有1500年的占领历史。在莫切州形成和扩张之前的关键时期，Cerro Oreja是山谷中最重要的中心，该遗址为观察文化变迁提供了绝佳的有利位置。Cerro Oreja的骨骼样本体积庞大，背景信息质量高，时间和空间控制程度高，因此具有作为史前健康和社会地位信息来源的巨大潜力。生物考古方法将用于评估这一人口不断变化的社会政治组织如何影响社会地位与健康之间的关系。将被分类为精英和平民的个人的健康状况进行比较，以评估地位高的人能更好地缓冲与剧烈体育活动有关的营养压力、疾病和慢性疾病的影响。在不同社会群体的人的健康状况的变化将通过检查物质形式的三个文化阶段，最终形成莫切国家分析。这项研究将产生有用的数据，用于评估由考古研究产生的模型，以解释莫切山谷的状态演变。获得的数据还将增加我们对南美洲安第斯地区古代社会疾病进程的认识。最后，这项调查将有助于我们理解健康、阶级和社会经济组织之间的相互作用。

The Moche, who controlled much of Peru's northern coast from AD 200-600, were on eof the first societies in South America to develop state level social organization. Although Moch civilization has been well-studied archaeologically, much less is known about the rise and collapse of societies that preceded the Moche in this region, and how these earlier transformations influenced the process of state formation. Most importantly, little is known about how changing socail conditions, particularly increasing socail stratification, affected the health and material well-being of theinhabitants of this region. The proposed research seeks to address these issues with analysis of a collection of prehistoric burials from Cerro Oreja, a large site located in the Moche Valley with a 1,500 tear history of occupation. As Cerro Oreja was the paramount center in the valley during the critical period immediately preceding Moche state formation and expansion, the site provides an excellent vantage point from which to observe cultural change.The skeletal sample from Cerro Oreja has great potential as a source of information on prehistoric health and social status, due to its large size, quality of contextual information and degree of chronological and spatial control. Bioarchaeological methods will be used to assess how the changing socio-political organization of this population influenced the relationship between social status and health. The health status of individuals classified as elites and commoners will be compared to evaluate the proposition that high status individuals are better buffered against the effects of nutritional stress, disease, and chronic conditions associated with strenuous physical activities. Changes in the health status of people of different social groups will be analyzed through examination of material form three cultural phases that culminated in hte formation of the Moche state. This research will produce data useful for evaluating models generated by archaeological research to explain the evolution of the state on the Moche Valley. The data obtained will also increase our knowledge of disease processes in ancient societies from Andean South America. Finally, this investigation will contribute to our understanding of the interplay between health, class, and socio-economic organization.