Abstract
Taphonomy and Warfare in the Mesa Verde Region
Kristin A. Kuckelman and Debra L. Martin
Abstract
The periodic eruption of warfare among the Ancestral Pueblo Indians who farmed the Mesa Verde region of southwestern Colorado is evidenced, on the remains of many individuals, by perimortem depression fractures of the cranium and other trauma characteristic of violence. Taphonomic study of the remains of those who died in warfare events reveals weathering, carnivore damage, and nonformal disposition of remains as well as evidence of trophy-taking and anthropophagy. Thoughtful analysis and interpretation of the taphonomic evidence has led to a richer and more nuanced understanding of Ancestral Pueblo warfare events and the societal contexts in which they occurred.
DOI Link
http://dx.doi.org/10.7275/R5D798BW
Recommended Citation
Kuckelman, Kristin A. and Martin, Debra L.
(2012)
"Taphonomy and Warfare in the Mesa Verde Region,"
Landscapes of Violence: Vol. 2:
No.
2, Article 13.
DOI: 10.7275/R5D798BW
Available at:
https://scholarworks.umass.edu/lov/vol2/iss2/13