
- This event has passed.
Holes in the Head: Violence and Skull-Surgery in Ancient Bolivia
January 23, 2018 @ 7:30 pm EST
323 Concord Road
Davidson, NC 28036 United States
Sponsored by: Society 333 of the AIA; co-sponsored by the Davidson College Public Lectures Committee, the Program in Premedicine and Allied Health Professions, and the Departments of Anthropology, History, and Latin American Studies
AIA Society: Central Carolinas (Charlotte)
Sara Juengst (Asst. Prof. of Anthropology, UNC Charlotte)
Lecture Description: As a bioarchaeologist, Juengst skeletons excavated from archaeological contexts in order to investigate past lifeways, considering topics such as power, food, community, and violence. Violent interactions resulting in major skeletal injury were common in the pre-Hispanic Andes, caused by shifting political power, resource scarcity, and community conflicts. However, ancient Andeans also practiced skull surgery, or trepanation, as a cure for many of these injuries. In this talk, Juengst will present cases from pre-Hispanic Bolivia to look at moments of violence in the past, how past peoples took care of their injured, and how skeletons help tell those stories.