The young woman was seven to nine months pregnant when she was killed, and researchers believe she may have been sacrificed due to her fertility.
Sara Juengst/UNC CharlotteArchaeological excavations in Ecuador revealed the 1,200-year-old burial of a woman and her unborn child.
Human sacrifice is a well-documented aspect of pre-Columbian history, and a recent excavation in Ecuador may have uncovered one of the most enigmatic examples yet. Archaeologists in Buen Suceso unearthed the remains of a young, pregnant woman from the Manteño period (771 to 953 C.E.) who appears to have been brutally sacrificed.
Her dismembered body was surrounded by artifacts like mollusk shells, crab claws, and obsidian blades, suggesting that her death may have been a ritual offering to appease the gods during devastating El Niño events.
Archaeologists Uncover Evidence Of A Shocking Human Sacrifice
Sara Juengst/UNC CharlotteArchaeologists found valuable items in the woman’s grave, such as crescent-shaped mollusk shells and obsidian blades.
During recent excavations in Ecuador, archaeologists uncovered six burials dating back to the region’s Manteño period between 771 and 953 C.E. One of the graves, Burial 10, contained the remains of a young woman who was between 17 and 20 when she died. She was surrounded by artifacts like mollusk-shell ornaments and obsidian.
Most remarkably, archaeologists discovered that the woman was seven to nine months pregnant at the time of her death and that she had suffered a brutal attack. Analysis of her remains showed that she was bludgeoned to death, and her left leg and hands were removed before she was buried.
Alongside the grave goods, researchers found the skull of another adult human and burnt offerings that may have been placed on the woman’s remains centuries after her death.
Now, scientists are seeking answers about why a pregnant woman who was seemingly a wealthy or high-status member of Ecuadorian society was killed so viciously.
Why Was This Pregnant Woman Ritually Sacrificed?
Ymblanter/Wikimedia CommonsA small figurine made during the Manteño period.
According to a recent study published in the journal Latin American Antiquity, human sacrifices weren’t common during the Manteño period.
“Evidence for human sacrifice in coastal Ecuador is rare but not entirely absent. European chroniclers mentioned that human sacrifice occurred when a local leader died or to ask favors from local deities. Burial 10 may have been sacrificed as part of similar rites,” the researchers wrote.
But why would these coastal communities target a pregnant woman? According to Sara Juengst, a bioarchaeologist at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, the sacrifice may have been to control her power.
“The fact that it was a woman who was pregnant might indicate that women held important positions of power, and thus their power needed to be ‘managed,'” she told Live Science. “If a rival of this woman wanted to take over, they would need to eliminate her and her unborn offspring, but also still give her honor based on her status.”
However, analysis of the artifacts in Burial 10 also brought forth a new theory. The young woman was found with cockle shells placed on her eyes and a crab claw on her abdomen, indicating a connection to the sea.
The placement of the artifacts “suggests protection and special treatment for her and her fetus,” Juengst said. Additionally, the spondylus mollusk shell found in the grave “is associated with fertility and water, and it was prized by many South American cultures.”
At the time of her death, Ecuador was hit with several intense El Niño events. The woman’s sacrifice may have been an effort to appease the gods and pray for a successful harvest.
So, as researchers continue their analysis, they are left with two primary theories: the young woman was a victim of jealousy or a political rivalry, or she was offered as a sacrifice in the face of a devastating El Niño. While the violent nature of her death would point to a vicious, impulsive attack, the offerings and artifacts at her grave suggest an organized and purposeful execution.
“Interpretation of this burial must ultimately consider these repeated emphases and ties to the past to understand the reasons for this enigmatic burial,” archaeologists concluded.
After reading about the Ecuadorian woman who may have been sacrificed to appease El Niño, learn about Moloch, the ancient god of child sacrifice. Then, read about Huitzilopochtli, the Aztec god of human sacrifice.
