Posted on 08/16/2024 10:59:50 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
DNA analysis of human remains unearthed in the twentieth century in northwestern Mexico at the Mogollon culture site of Paquimé, or Casas Grandes, suggests that the individual's parents had been closely related, according to a Newsweek report. The study of the bones, led by Jakob Sedig of Harvard University, determined that the boy had lived locally, and was between the ages of two and five at the time of death, which occurred between A.D. 1301 and 1397. Discovered beneath a roof support beam, the child was thought to have been a member of an elite family who was sacrificed to consecrate the construction of a ceremonial structure known as the House of the Well. But the close relationship between his parents was a surprise, Sedig explained. "The data suggests his parents weren't as closely related as siblings but were more closely related than first cousins," he said. An elite family is now thought to have used the sacrifice to consolidate and legitimize their social standing. "There were other sacrificial victims at the site (in a building called the House of the Dead) who were not treated nearly as well as the child in our study," Sedig added. "So it seems to us that there was something special, unique, and/or important about [this] child sacrifice," he concluded.
(Excerpt) Read more at archaeology.org ...
Heh, yeah, in my experience bad’s the only kind that’s real. ;^)
Lol! Steely Dan! Well done
all cultures are equal, folks!
Niece and uncle, or double first cousins, or half siblings.
Pre-Christianity there were only a few cultures who said no to human sacrifice. And even they would backslide on occasion.
We are all descended from blood thirsty barbarians that did terrible things.
Hopefully we can rise above it.
Of course in this case the kid might not have been a human sacrifice. Some cultures did bury their family in the the floor of their house to keep them close. Which is kind of weird but humans are weird so what can you say?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.