2023-08-21 21:00:03
3,800 years ago, a family of 44 people lived and died in the Ural region, south of what is now Russia. They belonged to the Srubnaya-Alakul culture, a Bronze Age tribes mixture of several peoples who buried their dead in kurgans, communal graves on which earth and stone were deposited, creating an artificial mound that marks the place of the burials. . Millennia later, the bodies of those people were found. And now science reveals more details about how they lived, shedding light on issues such as their longevity, parentage, genetic ancestry or the most common practices in their relationships. The results have just been published in the journal ‘Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences‘ (PNAS).
The study, led by Jens Blöcher, Joachim Burger and their colleagues from the Johannes Gutenberg University (Germany), combined anthropological, archaeological and paleogenetic data on the remains found in the aforementioned kurgan, excavated between 2017 and 2019 after its discovery on the margin. right of the Yandyrka river, near the village of Nepluyevka (Kartaly district, Russia). There the researchers found remains of houses that were grouped near the riverbank, possibly to use the nearby pastures for livestock (mainly cows and sheep), their main occupation. This town dominated metallurgy, as indicated by several pieces found in different houses in the town.
Kurgan where the bodies of Shetlana Sharapova were found
Of the 44 people found, 39% died before their fifth birthday and 57% before they were fifteen. Individuals who exceeded this limit had a life expectancy of 27.8 years for women and 36.2 for men. In addition, there was a gap between the ages of five and maturity in women, so the authors believe that they were surely patrilocal societies in which they were the ones who moved to the towns of their husbands, with whom they were buried. Conversely, women who were born in the village possibly moved on to other groups.
Grave of one of the six brothers from whom all the branches are born Shetlana Sharapova
This theory is also supported by their genes: studying 32 genomes of the 44 Kugan individuals revealed that women had a more diverse genetic background than men. Also, there were no sisters among females older than five years. On the contrary, the basic structure of this family revolved around six siblings from which all the descendants depart. “The eldest had eight children (the largest number) with two women, while the other relationships were monogamous,” say the authors, who maintain the theory that the firstborn probably had more status than the rest.
However, according to the authors, they have not found archaeological signs indicating any kind of hierarchy. Still, all signs point to these early pastoralists and herders on the Europe-Asia border were patrilocal societies. “The evolution of family structures in prehistoric Europe has been the subject of great interest and much speculation since the second half of the 19th century,” the authors note. Although older approaches emphasized an early divergence in family structures between East and West, more recent ethnohistoric research suggests a continuity across Bronze Age Eurasia due to similar production systems and comparable modes of owning and passing on. properties”. That is, the differences between families between both continents may not be as marked as we thought.
. The genome revealed that life expectancy was quite low: 27.8 years for women and 36.2 for men.
We found that life expectancy was generally very low, with adult men living an average of 8 years longer than women. A total of 35 first-degree, 40 second-degree, and 48 third-degree biological relationships connected 23 of the individuals studied, allowing us to propose a three-generation family tree with six siblings at the center. The eldest of these brothers had eight children with two women and most of the children in general, while the other relationships were monogamous. Notably, related females older than five years were completely absent from the site, and adult females were more genetically diverse than males. These results suggest that biological sibling relationships played a structural role in society and that descent group membership was based on patrilineality. The females originated from a larger mating web and moved to join the males, with whom they were buried. Finally, the older brother probably held a higher social position, expressed in terms of fertility.
Researchers reconstruct the family structure of a herding community in central Eurasia dating back 3,800 years. Little is known about the social and family structure of Bronze Age Eurasian societies at the level of local communities. Jens Blöcher, Joachim Burger, and colleagues combined anthropological, archaeological, and paleogenetic data on 32 individuals from a 3,800-year-old burial mound in the southern Urals region of present-day Russia to explore ancestry, marriage, and practices of residence of individuals. . The authors report that the community subsisted mainly by grazing cattle. Average adult life expectancy was about 27.8 years for women and 36.2 years for men. Genomic analysis identified 35 first-degree, 40 second-degree, and 48 third-degree biological relationships among 23 individuals. The authors reconstructed a possible family tree made up of six siblings and their wives, children, and grandchildren. The older brother had a total of eight children with two women, possibly reflecting high social status, while the other relationships were monogamous. Adult women were genetically more diverse than men. The sisters and girls older than five years were absent. The findings are consistent with a patrilineal descent system and suggest that women moved to live and be buried with their husbands. According to the authors, the results provide insights into the kinship practices of Bronze Age Eurasia. while the other relationships were monogamous. Adult women were genetically more diverse than men. The sisters and girls older than five years were absent. The findings are consistent with a patrilineal descent system and suggest that women moved to live and be buried with their husbands. According to the authors, the results provide insights into the kinship practices of Bronze Age Eurasia. while the other relationships were monogamous. Adult women were genetically more diverse than men. The sisters and girls older than five years were absent. The findings are consistent with a patrilineal descent system and suggest that women moved to live and be buried with their husbands. According to the authors, the results provide insights into the kinship practices of Bronze Age Eurasia.
#monogamous #lived