Discovery of colon contents in a skeletonized burial: Soil sampling for dietary remains

Recovering dietary and parasitological data from skeletonized burials is often overlooked or attempted without sufficient consideration of preservation possibilities, quality sampling areas or the confounding influences of post-interment processes. A case study of a skeletonized Anasazi burial is presented to demonstrate three important points. First, that macrobotanical remains can be preserved in addition to the more durable pollen and parasite eggs. Second, that the sacrum can act as a structural container for the contents of the lower digestive tract upon decomposition of the body, thereby providing a productive sampling area. Finally, that reliable interpretation of any biological remains from skeletonized burials depends upon the analysis of several control samples. Since awareness of probable data sources plays a central role in what is actually collected and analysed, it is important to alert archaeologists to the possibilities of colon content analysis from skeletonized burials.