Fijian cannibalism and mortuary ritual
Bioarchaeological evidence from Vunda
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12371388 |
|---|---|
| Authors | David Degusta (Laboratory for Human Evolutionary Studies, Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720‐3140, USA, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2000 |
| Volume | 10 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 76-92 |
| Publication date | 2000-01-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Journal of Osteoarchaeology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1047-482X • E-ISSN: 1099-1212 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1002/(sici)1099-1212(200001/02)10:1<76::aid-oa506>3.0.co;2-# |
| OpenAlex | W2092336660 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 20 |
| References cited | 20 |
The human skeletal remains from the site of Vunda (AD 800–1600) in Fiji have been interpreted as evidence of cannibalism. The cannibalism hypothesis is tested by examining the modifications of the Vunda skeletal sample. The sample consists of human and non-human bones from a midden context, as well as intact human burials extracted from the midden. Most modifications are more common in the medium mammal sample than in the midden human sample—burning (9% of medium mammal remains and 5% of human remains), cutmarks (4 and 1.5%), percussion pits (1 and 0%), and peeling (2 and 0%)—though these differences are not statistically significant. There are no significant differences between the human burials and the midden human sample in the rates of cutmarks, percussion pits, peeling, or in the pattern of element representation. Therefore the cannibalism hypothesis is not supported at Vunda. Most of the ‘midden’ human remains were probably part of the formal burials. The modifications and context of the Vunda sample are compared with the remains from the nearby, partially contemporaneous site of Navatu (where an inference of cannibalism is supported) to tentatively establish the characteristics of Fijian mortuary rituals versus cannibalism. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
Ancient history · Archaeology · Bioarchaeology · Biology · Cannibalism · Geography · Paleopathology · Sociology · Taphonomy · Zooarchaeology · Anthropology · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Pacific and Southeast Asian Studies · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology · Ecology · History
Osteological evidence of butchering technique found in the Neolithic site of Fruntișeni (Vaslui County)
Cultural Modifications in an Adolescent Earth-Oven Interment from Fiji
A Critique of the ‘AD 1300 Event’, with Particular Reference to Palau
Early Polynesian mortuary behaviour at the Talasiu site, Kingdom of Tonga
Kana Tamata or Feasts of Men
Culturally modified human remains recovered from an earth‐oven interment on Waya Island, Fiji
Archaeological Evidence for Cannibalism in Prehistoric Western Europe
Cooked Bones? Method and Practice for Identifying Bones Treated at Low Temperature
Temporal trends in the Colonisation of the Pacific
A practical approach to the identification of low temperature heated bone using TEM
Identification of fragmentary bone from the Pacific
Identification of the first reported Lapita cremation in the Pacific Islands using archaeological, forensic and contemporary burning evidence
Environmental and climatic considerations
Cutmark systematics
Artificially Maintained Controversies (Part 2)
Chapter 10
Upper Palaeolithic ritualistic cannibalism at Gough's Cave (Somerset, UK)
Bioarchaeological contributions to the study of violence
Men, Women, and Children Starving
The Archaeology of Cannibalism
Man-Eating Myth
Archaeofaunas and Subsistence Studies
Prehistoric Cannibalism at Mancos 5MTUMR-2346
The Ethnography of cannibalism
Vertebrate Taphonomy
News and Short Contributions
Plow-zone Zooarchaeology
Cannibalism in Chaco Canyon
Engis
Carnivore alteration of human bone from a late prehistoric site in illinois
The Question of Ritual Cannibalism at Grotta Guattari [and Comments and Replies]
Teec Nos Pos
A Reappraisal of Anasazi Cannibalism
A biocultural perspective on Marianas prehistory
Prehistoric Cannibalism at Manco 5MTUMR-2346
Food in Antiquity
The Study of Kinship in Primitive Societies
| Unique citing works | 20 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,87 |
| Citation span | 2003 - 2025 (23) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 14 |