Isotopic data for bioarchaeological samples from Polynesia (pre-Contact and modern periods)

Abstract

Archaeologically-derived bone and teeth from individuals buried in pre-Contact Tonga and Fiji were analyzed isotopically to comprise the first part of the dataset presented here. The first collection is comprised of the two `Atele burial mounds on the Tongan island of Tongatapu. These two burial mounds, designated To-At-1 and To-At-2, are radiocarbon dated to the Complex Centralized Chiefdom period (c. 500-150 BP). The second collection is from the coastal site of Bourewa in the Republic of Fiji, dated to the Vuda Phase (c. 750—150 BP).↵The human portion of this dataset is comprised of:↵• Bone and dentine collagen analysis of δ15N and δ13C (n = 81), as well as d34S where sample size was large enough (n = 37)↵• Tooth enamel 87Sr/86Sr (n = 47)↵In addition, modern plant and animal samples (n = 27) collected from the island of Atiu (Cook Islands) were analyzed to contribute to a Pacific dietary baseline. ↵The human data provides a relatively large dataset (for the region) to compare to other contemporaneous sites to consider intra- and inter-island dietary practices and consider movement in the wider region (while being mindful of issues with interpretation). The dietary baseline has utility for placing archaeological and ecological samples within the tropic Pacific foodweb.

Keywords

• Carbon
• nitrogen
• sulfur
• strontium
• paleodiet
• paleomobility