Ancient DNA reveals diverse community in 'Lost City of the Incas'

Phys dot org ^ | July 26, 2023 | Tulane University

[SunkenCiv]

Who lived at Machu Picchu at its height? A new study, published in Science Advances, used ancient DNA to find out for the first time where workers buried more than 500 years ago came from within the lost Inca Empire.

Researchers, including Jason Nesbitt, associate professor of archaeology at Tulane University School of Liberal Arts, performed genetic testing on individuals buried at Machu Picchu in order to learn more about the people who lived and worked there...

It was once part of a royal estate of the Inca Empire.

Like other royal estates, Machu Picchu was home not only to royalty and other elite members of Inca society, but also to attendants and workers, many of whom lived in the estate year-round. These residents did not necessarily come from the local area, though it is only in this study that researchers have been able to confirm, with DNA evidence, the diversity of their backgrounds...

This DNA analysis works in much the same way that modern genetic ancestry kits work. The researchers compared the DNA of 34 individuals buried at Machu Picchu to that of individuals from other places around the Inca Empire as well as some modern genomes from South America to see how closely related they might be.

The results of the DNA analysis showed that the individuals had come from throughout the Inca Empire, some as far away as Amazonia. Few of them had shared DNA with each other, showing that they had been brought to Machu Picchu as individuals rather than as part of a family or community group.

[SunkenCiv]

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

[SunkenCiv]

Here's the Archaeologica News Page entries since last week (they update it on Friday, adding the various days' links, kinda odd). It's been a light week topic-wise, but some of these have been posted, largely or entirely from the Archaeology magazine website news page.

It's been continually raining for a month, generally the biggest rains have been on my days off. Earlier the sky was lit up with huge lightning, but there was no thunder because it was so far off. Right now it sounds as if there's a lot of wind out there in the night.

July 27th, 2023 Edition

• Archaeologists Uncover Remains of the Theatrum Neroni Used by Nero Heritage Daily
• Deadly Stick Recovered from Germany Dates to 300,000 Years Ago Discover Magazine
• Isles of Scilly Iron Age warrior was probably a woman BBC
• Ancient human remains found in County Armagh BBC
• Ancient DNA Reveals Diverse Community in Inca Empire Heritage Daily
• Ancient DNA reveals diverse community in 'Lost City of the Incas' Phys
• Archaeologists Uncover Roman Mosaic Depicting Medusa Heritage Daily
• Bees have appeared on coins for millennia, hinting at an age-old link between sweetness and value Phys
• WW1 German U-Boat Found Off Shetland Coast Heritage Daily
• Archaeologists Uncover Oldest Evidence of 'Curry' Outside of India Smithsonian Magazine
• Possible remains of 187-year-old jail uncovered in Albany Phys
• Researchers reconstruct earliest known composite-tiled roofs Phys
• Researchers find evidence of a 2,000-year-old curry, the oldest ever found in Southeast Asia Phys
• Research highlights importance of including Indigenous cultural perspectives in coastal restoration plans Phys
• In new space race, scientists propose geoarchaeology can aid in preserving space heritage Science Daily
• Unproven numbers distract from the real harm of the illicit antiquities trade, says study Phys
• Large Public Baths Found in Augusta Emerita Heritage Daily
• People may have been cooking curries in South-East Asia for at least 2000 years Arkeonews
• Bronze Age discovery made at Shetland spaceport site BBC
• 1,800-Year-Old Spices Are Earliest Evidence of Curry Making in Southeast Asia Scientific American
• Presumed Beethoven skull fragments return to Vienna Phys
• ARCHAEOLOGISTS CONDUCT PROJECT TO CONSERVE COSTA RICA'S STONE SPHERES Heritage Daily
• First archaeological dig at Sleaford Castle for 160 years BBC
• Early Humans Survived an American Ice Age, Archaeologists Say Discover
• Roman settlement found at Healing housing development site BBC
• Archaeologists Found an Ancient 'Entrance to the Underworld' Under a Church In Mexico Vice
• 300-Year-Old Minaret Toppled to Make Way for Road Expansion in Iraq Smithsonian Magazine

[SunkenCiv]

[brownsfan]

How could anything have gone wrong if they were diverse?! /s

[PeterPrinciple]

Like other royal estates, Machu Picchu was home not only to royalty and other elite members of Inca society, but also to attendants and workers, many of whom lived in the estate year-round. These residents did not necessarily come from the local area, though it is only in this study that researchers have been able to confirm, with DNA evidence, the diversity of their backgrounds...

---

otherwise known as slaves..........................

[alexander_busek]

Like other royal estates, Machu Picchu was home not only to royalty and other elite members of Inca society, but also to attendants and workers hostages and bondsmen, many of whom lived in the estate year-round. [...] researchers have been able to confirm, with DNA evidence, the diversity of their backgrounds...

The results of the DNA analysis showed that the individuals captured women had come from throughout the Inca Empire, some as far away as Amazonia, most likely in chains.

In the case of the Aztecs, substitute "ritual sacrificial victims."

Regards,

[skr]

Probably slaves if no families accompanied the outliers.

[babble-on]

Rousseau’s Noble Savages were no more noble than the rest of us savages.

[philman_36]

otherwise known as slaves..........................

Bad Teacher: You read to the end of the book before everybody again, didn't you, Peter.
Where are your principles?

{;^)

[philman_36]

Or you could get sent to yourself.
{;^)

[MeganC]

What a crap revisionist narrative that is! The Inca were not into diversity and harmony! They were into imperial conquest!

Any people who were not Inca living in Inca communities were SLAVES or they were even used as human sacrifices!

[SauronOfMordor]

“Workers” = slaves?

[Aevery_Freeman]

There were no large mammals for a food source or a Micky D. near by so...

[Angelino97]

The word "diverse" is tossed into so many headlines and news stories for no good reason.

I once saw a headline in a local paper that said, "New Park Attracts a Diverse Crowd."

The real news was that a new park had opened. That the people in the park were of different races and ethnicities was hardly news and need not have been mentioned at all.

[Impala64ssa]

Diverse? Like with affirmative action and pride month and honoring the LGBTWIA2+FUBAR and respecting pronouns diverse? Or just more revisionist history to downplay Incan savagery?

[Venkman]

““Now, of course, genetics doesn't translate into ethnicity or anything like that," said Nesbitt of the results”

lol, of course not!

[MuttTheHoople]

They needed different tribes for slaves and sacrifices.

[logi_cal869]

[SunkenCiv]

No, they were just 'paying their taxes' -- or else.

[Wilderness Conservative]

Everyone knows the all great societies throughout history eventually collapsed because they didnt have enough trannies in charge and not enough of their children were groomed before puberty.