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feet below the surface at the time of burial. Most remains were found in flexed positions on their sides or backs. Some were found extended and face-up, locally known as a "bathtub burial." About 30% of the burials were on their backs with their hands under their chins, knees to chest and feet crossed. They were so tightly compressed that they were most likely tied together with ropes or in sacks. However, the bodies laid on their sides had not been compressed. About 15% of the bodies were simply extended on their backs. In keeping with the significant variety, these graves were both scattered individuals or associated in compact groups. Most of the burials were blanketed with a layer of red soil, most likely acquired from nearby hills. Abnormal burials, described below, comprise about 20% of the total.
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272:. Two methods for which there was evidence was breaking the back or the neck. In two specific instances, individuals with broken backs were found face-up with their knees up near one shoulder. In both cases, these individuals were holding bundles of bones, possibly representing their masters. The flesh of these individuals had been systematically removed and in at least one case, their bones had been painted purple.
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The skeletal remains of a total of 369 individuals were found extended across the
Mangopobre Valley. The bulldozing of the site left the graves without any discernable surface indications. The original depths of the graves are a matter of conjecture. However some may have been at depths of up to 15
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are burials in which the bones have been preserved and stripped of flesh. They are often considered to be the bones of the nobility because of the slaves found buried in association. These burials generally had the most elaborate graves. For example, in one exceptional case a body of a presumably
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that gave those buried access to what they believed was another world. These rites were generally reserved for the rich and noble, with the poor rarely receiving burial. An exception to the rule occurred when a slave was chosen to be killed or committed suicide to be buried with their masters,
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A second form of ritual burial was the removal of arms or legs. One arm was often cut off at the shoulder, and placed on top of the other arm. In some cases, graves contained the separated arms or legs of other bodies. Harte had excavated an individual whose legs had been severed.
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data, some of the archaeological evidence does support the practice of suicide in the manner described by Oviedo. The remains of fifteen bodies in orderly rows suggests death had occurred before interment, perhaps by poisoning. There is evidence for some individuals having been
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yet there appears to be a group of nobility that dominates others as servants and promotes their methods and rituals as the proper way to connect to the divine. The social organization of this site could be considered a
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Excavators found many burials in ceramic urns. While some contained adults, most held children. Lothrop suggested that these children may have been expected to age and serve in the next life. However, these
260:; some were found with their mouths open as if gasping for air while others died while biting their fingers. However, suicide was not the only method of unnatural death at the site.
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Around 25% of the human remains were classified as having evidence for the individuals having been mutilated. These were put into two categories: bundle burials and ritual burials.
393:, most likely made between the 6th and 11th centuries. Its size, aesthetic, and technical mastery are considered to indicate that it is one of the best examples from the entire
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positions were sometimes reversed. In one case, a child had been buried with gold jewelry and elaborate pottery accompanied by an adult urn with no decoration or grave goods.
141:. The people living in lower Central America at this time had complex social systems. They had extensive trading networks. Imported goods ranged from jade to iron tools.
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While native units were small in Panama, they were nevertheless complex and rigid. Rulers were primarily projected as warriors. There is no historical evidence of
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192:. Oviedo's statements suggest that if one ultimately chose to join their masters in the afterlife it was a personal choice. They would either
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culture. This site is notable for its large number and variety of burials and grave goods, especially those with offerings objects of
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were either placed in seashells near the body or scattered around the head. In three cases, the phalanges were found inside of the
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where lateral displacement of the bones was impossible, meaning that the archaeological record had not been shifting over time.
312:). In some cases, heads had been buried with a separate but whole body. The decapitations had been undertaken leaving the
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important leader was found disarticulated and placed into two separate graves with about twenty graves placed nearby.
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Harte's excavation yielded two other types of mutilation. One burial had nothing but pottery and part of a
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before or after removal. This ritual was done with precision and skill, suggesting a long term of use.
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527:. Handbook of Middle American Indians. Vol. 4. University of Texas Press. pp. 180–209.
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Lothrop, S. K. (1954). "Suicide, Sacrifice and
Mutilations in Burials at Venado Beach, Panama".
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Several individuals showed evidence of having been intentionally killed, perhaps as
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According to Oviedo, the burial customs of the local peoples were viewed by them as
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177:. Oviedo most likely knew the local natives and may have even visited the site.
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from the time. Frog forms in art are common in Panama, possibly representing
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in 1948 while bulldozing off the topsoil in order to enrich the lawns of the
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200:. Oviedo notes that those chosen were usually young, strong and beautiful.
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The last form of ritual burials had amputated fingers. In some cases, the
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One of the officials who resided in Old Panama there was Royal
Historian
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artwork at Venado Beach represents some of the most superb examples of
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Wardwell, Allen (1973). "Some New
Acquisitions of Pre-Hispanic Gold".
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After his excavations, Montgomery donated some objects to the
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and Lt. Col. Montgomery in 1951. Venado Beach is part of the
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places the principal occupation of this site at AD 200-900
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The site was excavated in the late 1940s and early 1950s.
491:"Unearthing Gold Masterpieces from Venado Beach, Panama"
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Venado Beach, frog pendent, Metropolitan Museum of Art.
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389:. Of these, one example is a pendant in the form of a
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Map of region in Panama where Venado Beach is located.
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intact. Often near the mandible there were two upper
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Venado Beach was once within the target area used by
523:. In Ekholm, Gordon F.; Willey, Gordon R. (eds.).
525:Archaeological Frontiers and External Connections
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220:The graves were found on a flat layer of
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521:"Archaeology of Lower Central America"
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196:themselves or be buried alive while
175:Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés
606:Pre-Columbian archaeological sites
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157:. It was first discovered by the
374:. It is similar to that of the
320:, presumably extracted from the
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601:Archaeological sites in Panama
495:The Metropolitan Museum of Art
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16:Archaeological site in Panama
489:Doyle, James (2015-08-18).
300:There are several types of
188:reportedly to serve in the
88:archaeological site on the
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387:Metropolitan Museum of Art
383:Art Institute of Chicago
519:Lothrop, S. K. (1966).
98:Samuel Kirkland Lothrop
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362:Gold and especially
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453:American Antiquity
378:region of Panama.
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498:. Retrieved
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318:canine teeth
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169:Ethnohistory
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82:Venado Beach
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306:decapitated
230:Urn Burials
112:(including
595:Categories
500:2019-10-17
405:References
399:nose rings
276:Mutilation
270:sacrifices
204:Excavation
190:next world
155:Old Panama
151:Fort Kobbe
106:Gran Coclé
53:; try the
40:link to it
573:0094-3312
473:0002-7316
372:fertility
333:phalanges
264:Sacrifice
159:U.S. Navy
128:Lifestyle
62:June 2016
43:. Please
385:and the
376:Veraguas
314:mandible
310:trophies
139:chiefdom
581:4111236
397:. Gold
364:tumbaga
337:cranium
322:maxilla
249:suicide
243:Suicide
223:coquina
212:Burials
185:rituals
182:magical
145:History
114:tumbaga
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571:
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344:pelvis
194:poison
94:Panama
36:orphan
34:is an
577:JSTOR
198:drunk
84:is a
569:ISSN
529:ISBN
469:ISSN
391:frog
110:gold
561:doi
461:doi
251:in
92:of
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