Burials offer a glimpse into the lives, beliefs, and sometimes violent deaths of past peoples. A recent study published in Latin American Antiquity has brought attention to a particularly enigmatic burial at Buen Suceso, Ecuador, dating to between AD 771 and 953. The grave contained the remains of a young pregnant woman, a cranial fragment from another individual, and an assortment of grave goods that suggest a possible ritual sacrifice.
Led by Dr. Sara Juengst, an international team of researchers analyzed the burial, comparing it to others from the region. Their findings point to a complex blend of cultural traditions, physical trauma, and ritual significance, raising new questions about Manteño funerary practices and the role of sacrifice in pre-Columbian Ecuador.
The Manteño culture (AD 650–1532) flourished along the Pacific coast of Ecuador, known for its extensive trade networks, monumental architecture, and distinctive ceramics. Broadly speaking, Manteño society was divided into three regional groups: the Manteño del Norte, the southern Huancavilca, and the Punáes of Isla Puná. Buen Suceso, the site of this burial, sits at the cultural boundary between the Huancavilca and Manteño del Norte, making it a unique location for understanding cross-cultural influences.
Despite being primarily associated with the much older Valdivia culture (3750–1475 BC), Buen Suceso also contains later burials linked to Manteño occupation. This includes Burial 10, the focus of the study, which revealed an unusual and possibly violent death.
The remains belonged to a young woman, estimated to be between 17 and 20 years old, who was in the final stages of pregnancy. Alongside her, researchers identified a separate cranial fragment from an individual aged 25–35 years old, though their relationship remains unclear.
“The woman was likely near full-term pregnancy based on the development of the fetal bones, so it is likely people were aware she was pregnant,” explains Juengst.
An analysis of her skeleton revealed multiple signs of illness and stress during life. She exhibited cribra orbitalia (porous lesions in the eye sockets) and porotic hyperostosis (pitted lesions in the skull), both linked to chronic anemia. Her teeth bore signs of linear enamel hypoplasia (LEH), horizontal grooves that form when childhood malnutrition or illness disrupts enamel growth. Additionally, various infections had left their mark on her bones, suggesting long-term health struggles.
While these conditions indicate a life of hardship, it is the evidence of perimortem trauma—injuries occurring around the time of death—that raises the most striking questions.
The young woman’s skeleton showed clear signs of postmortem modification. Her left leg had been removed, her hands were missing, and cut marks were visible on her bones. It remains unclear whether she was killed intentionally or if her death was accidental, but a forceful blow to the head appears to have been the cause.
The burial contained an assortment of artifacts, many of which were unusual for Manteño burials. These included chaquira beads, crescent-shaped Spondylus shell ornaments known as mascaras, obsidian blades, ceramic fragments, and a piece of green clay stone. While chaquiras have been found in only one other Manteño burial at the site, mascaras and obsidian artifacts were entirely unique to Burial 10.
Compared to other graves at Buen Suceso, the woman was buried with a significantly higher number of grave goods. This, combined with the unusual modifications to her body, suggests that she may have been part of a ritual sacrifice.
While there is no definitive evidence that the Manteño regularly practiced human sacrifice, Spanish colonial records do contain descriptions of ritual killings among coastal Ecuadorian groups. The Italian explorer Girolamo Benzoni, writing in the 16th century, described the ritual killing of individuals as offerings to deities.
“European chroniclers actually don’t mention limb removal, but they do describe ritual sacrifice of individuals,” Juengst notes. “Benzoni suggests this was performed to appease a god or ask supernatural powers for favors—although European explorers were somewhat notoriously bad at understanding what they observed.”
The inclusion of a green clay stone in the burial raises further questions. Green stones are associated with fertility rituals in Valdivia burials, which predate the Manteño by millennia. If this symbolism persisted, it is possible that the woman’s sacrifice—if it was one—was linked to fertility or renewal.
“The burial of infants at special locations is common throughout western South America and along the Ecuadorian coast, but specific rituals about pregnancy are not documented,” says Juengst. “Ceramics from coastal Ecuador often depict female forms, sometimes interpreted as pregnant, but it’s unclear what rituals surrounding pregnancy would have existed.”
While this burial offers intriguing clues, many questions remain unanswered. Was the young woman sacrificed as part of a ritual? Why was her leg removed? What significance did the combination of Valdivia and Manteño artifacts hold for those who buried her?
The researchers emphasize the need for further excavations and comparative analysis with other pre-Columbian burials. By expanding the dataset, archaeologists may be able to better understand whether Burial 10 represents an isolated event or part of a broader tradition of ritual sacrifice and funerary complexity among the Manteño.
For now, this burial stands as a rare and compelling glimpse into the intersection of health, violence, and ritual in pre-Columbian Ecuador.
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Ubelaker, D. H. (1992). “Patterns of Demography in Prehistoric Ecuador.” World Archaeology, 24(1), 82-102.
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Marcos, J. G. (2005). “Valdivia and the Coastal Tradition of Ecuador.” Latin American Antiquity, 16(2), 167-179.
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Benzoni, G. (1565). “History of the New World.”
By integrating bioarchaeology, material culture, and historical accounts, researchers are slowly piecing together the complex mortuary practices of the Manteño, offering fresh perspectives on ritual, death, and identity in the ancient Americas.
