Ripped Flesh and Torn Souls
(University of Nevada, Las Vegas)
Recognizing the signature of abduction, forced captivity, slavery and the hard physical labor that often accompanies human bondage on skeletal remains is relatively new area of study in biological anthropology. Information from human remains provides empirical data on the extent and effects of slaving practices and violence in archaeological populations. This project focuses on the biological and behavioral effects of captivity and indentured servitude in pre-state societies. Although much of the current research on slavery and work emphasizes the Atlantic slave trade, there is an emerging body of scholarship focused on pre-state societies that practiced a range of abduction and slaving practices. An analysis of non-lethal violence and pathology as a signature of forced captivity and hard physical labor is presented for a wide variety of cultures in order to clarify the role, maintenance and cultural logic of institutionalized violence. Data is presented from the distant past and applied to the postmodern present as a way to integrate cultural practices and biological effects into a more cohesive explanatory model.