UC San Diego

Human social inequality is known to impact health outcomes, often through socioeconomically linked nutritional disparities. Differential access to particular types and amounts of food has been demonstrated by archaeological examinations and stable isotope analyses throughout Classic Period Mesoamerica. The results of these studies have suggested that Mesoamerican elites were granted greater access to maize and meat relative to commoners during the Classic Period. Stable oxygen isotope studies have served to further elucidate issues of migration and social interaction in Classic Period Mesoamerica by aiding in defining marriage patterns, understanding how migration relates to social status, and identifying the geographic origins of sacrifice victims. Few studies of Pre-Classic human remains from central Mexico have employed stable isotope analyses. The present study employs stable oxygen, carbon, and nitrogen isotopes in order to understand dietary behaviors, status differences, and migration patterns at the complex Formative Period site of Chalcatzingo in Morelos, Mexico. Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope results suggest that both elites and commoners consumed large amounts of maize and similar amounts of animal protein. There was no significant difference between commoners and elites in terms of dietary behaviors. Stable oxygen isotope results differed from previously reported values for central Mexico, potentially suggesting that Chalcatzingo was a community composed of a number of migrants. There was no statistically significant difference between elites and non-elites in terms of oxygen stable isotope values. The social stratification at this site evidently did not result in substantial differences in dietary behaviors or migration patterns between elites and commoners, suggesting that factors other than socioeconomic status and archaeological evidence must be taken into account when considering how such behaviors were mediated in the past.