Trauma, Occupational Stress, and Mortuary Treatment by Sex in the Southwest

Debra L. Martin

Professor of Biological Anthropology

Director, U.S. Southwest and Mexico Program

School of Natural Science

Hampshire College

Amherst MA 01002

dlmNS@hampshire.edu

The osteological data on lethal and non-lethal trauma in the archaeological record for ancestral Pueblo populations show marked variability across time and location. In several locations, females have sustained more injuries (cranial and post-cranial) than age-matched males, and these patterns tend to co-occur with distinctive mortuary treatments. In some cases, occupationally-related health problems also exist for individuals who have sustained traumatic episodes. The various possible motivations for the non-lethal and sometimes lethal traumatic injuries are explored. Witchcraft execution, retribution, raiding, family abuse, and massacres can be supported in some of the cases, but not all. Theoretical approaches to understanding violence against women are discussed, situating in a more contextualized arena.