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pg 464 A total of thirteen elements were chosen for analysis. They were calcium, magnesium, strontium, aluminum, barium, chromium, copper, iron, manganese, nickel, selenium, vanadium, and zinc From these a subset of four elements was selected for this preliminary study: calcium, magnesium, strontium, and zinc. pg 466 As has been found in some ascriptive societies, those inheriting high status tend to exhibit elevated zinc and calcium levels and depressed strontium and magnesium levels, presumably because high-ranking individuals enjoyed a diet more varied and richer in meat protein than people of lower rank (Brown 1973
Schoeninger 1979). pg 467 If it can be determined that human biology responds to certain environmental and societal pressures in reasonably predictable patters, as this study suggests, then analyses of mortuary populations can serve as valuable tools in the reconstruction of the process that precipitated the biological reaction. The value of elemental research then can transcend the role of corroboration and provide direct clues to cultural processes in archaeological contexts in which traditional links to human behavior are absent.
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