Familiar kinship? palaeogenetic and isotopic evidence from a triple burial of the Cogotas I archaeological culture (Bronze Age, Iberian Peninsula)

Abstract

This paper examines the identification of kinship relations in archaeological multiple burials and advocates the application of different methods and lines of research to clarify such issues in relation to funerary practices. Recognizing family relationships - an important task in research on prehistoric societies - is especially complicated and interpretations have often been made without an adequate empirical basis. Bioarchaeological, isotopic and DNA analyses applied to the triple burial of Los Tolmos (Cogotas I archaeological culture, Iberian Bronze Age) have provided direct information on this issue. In this respect, the new results also imply the need to consider gender constructs in greater depth and to be more open-minded towards other forms of relationship in the past beyond the traditional heteronormative nuclear family.