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Inferring Disability and Care Provision in Late Prehistoric Tennessee

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New Developments in the Bioarchaeology of Care

Part of the book series: Bioarchaeology and Social Theory ((BST))

Abstract

The recent development of the “bioarchaeology of care” (see Tilley, Chap. 2 this volume) provides a methodology for assessing disability and the provision of care in bioarchaeological contexts. This approach provides a framework for investigating relationships between biological and sociocultural dimensions of physical impairment. The current study presents a case of possible trauma-related disability of an adult female from a late prehistoric agricultural community in Tennessee. This individual survived significant traumatic injuries to her pelvis, as well as fractures to her ribs, spine, and facial bones. Her possible disability and likely care are considered within the contexts of both accidental injury and intentional violence. Utilizing the Index of Care, her injuries are assessed to determine the immediate and long-term impacts that they may have had on her ability to perform daily activities within the specific social, cultural, and physical context. The chapter also examines how long the recovery process may have taken and the type of care she likely received from members of her community. This emphasis provides a unique opportunity to critically evaluate normative assumptions about biological differences that can be limited by ahistorical approaches.

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Acknowledgements

A special thanks to Giovanna Vidoli, Dawnie Steadman, Christina Fojas, Erin Koch, Janet Mansfield, and Hilary Jarvis for their help, as well as Boyce N. Driskell and Jennifer McDonough at the University of Tennessee Archaeological Research Laboratory for granting permission to analyze the skeletal collections. I would also like to thank Lorna Tilley and Alecia A. Schrenk for the invitation to contribute to this volume. This project was supported in part by an NSF grant awarded to D. W. Steadman and C. C. Cobb (BCS-0613173).

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  1. University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA

    Heather Worne Ph.D.

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  1. Heather Worne Ph.D.
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Correspondence to Heather Worne Ph.D. .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Archaeology and Anthropology, Australian National University, Canberra, Aust Capital Terr, Australia

    Lorna Tilley

  2. Department of Anthropology, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

    Alecia A. Schrenk

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Worne, H. (2017). Inferring Disability and Care Provision in Late Prehistoric Tennessee. In: Tilley, L., Schrenk, A. (eds) New Developments in the Bioarchaeology of Care. Bioarchaeology and Social Theory. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39901-0_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39901-0_5

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