Bernardo Arriaza, Ph'D'

1
Arseniasis as an environmental hypothetical
explanation for the origin of the oldest
artificial mummification practice in the world.

• Bernardo Arriaza, Ph.D.
• Universidad de Tarapacá
• Departamento de Antropología
• Centro de Investigación del Hombre en el Desierto
• Arica-Chile

1st Paleopathology Association Meeting in South
America, Brazil, July 27-29, 2005
2
What is unique to Camarones?

• Oldest artificial mummification in the world
• Oldest mummies are infants

3
What is unique to Camarones?

• Very high contents of arsenic in the natural
  water system (1000µg/L) and high level in the
  food
• Camarones arsenic level in the water is 100 times
  higher than accepted WHO recommendations

4
WHO accepted arsenic level in the water is 10µg/L
5
Camarones water quality
Taken from Cornejo 2004
6
750µg/L
1300µg/L
1000µg/L
Taken from Cornejo 2004
7
Levels of arsenic in the body of modern Camarones
people
Taken from Cornejo 2004
8
Lab data

• Arsenite is more potent than arsenate (Hood 1972)
• But arsenate is converted to arsenite in the body
  by glutathione during biomethylation in the
  human body (Nemec et al. 1998)
• Nemec MD, Holson JF, Farr CH, et al. (1998).
  Developmental toxicity assessment
• of arsenic acid in mice and rabbits. Reprod
  Toxicol. 12647658
• Hood RD. (1972). Teratogenic effects of sodium
  arsenate in mice. Arch Environ Health. 2462 65

9
Is there a connection between arsenic intake and
artificial mummification?

• You betcha!
• It is hypothesized here that arseniasis triggered
  artificial mummification
• Why?

10
Arsenic poisoning produces

• Hyperpigmentation of the skin and nails
• Keratosis
• Carcinoma of the liver and urinary bladder
• Anemia

11
Taken fromhttp//www.sos-arsenic-net/images/feet
1.jpg
Taken from http//www.ecplanet.com/pic/2003/04/10
51353968/arsenico.jpg
12
Hyperpigmentation
Taken from http//dermis.multimedica.de/doia/ima
ge.asp?zugrdlangscd43nr40diagnr757335
13
Taken from http//www.pathology.vcu.edu/research/
paleo/case2.html
14
Presence of Mees lines, after 3 months of
arsenic poisoning
Taken from http//www.estrucplan.com.ar/Produccio
nes/entrega.asp?IdEntrega37
15
More important yet, arseniasis produces severe
consequences in mothers and children

• Premature births
• Stillbirths
• Low birth weight
• Spontaneous abortions
• High infant mortality
• Systemic organ damage and low red blood cell
  production
• After Milton 2005, Hopenhayn 2003

16
Definitions

• Spontaneous abortion a natural failure of
  pregnancy of less than 28 weeks of gestation.
• Stillbirths any delivery after 28 weeks of
  gestation that did not show any evidence of
  breathing or signs of life.
• Neonatal death the death of the newborn within
  28 days after birth.
• After Dutta DC. (1994)Textbook of
  Obstetrics Including Perinatology and
  Contraception, 3rd ed. Kolkata, IndiaNew Central
  Book Agency P Ltd
• p. 618.

17
Unfortunately

• Arseniasis in children often goes unnoticed
• Adult arsenic poisoning has received more
  attention due to the chronic nature of the
  lesions
• In Bangladesh, tube wells to reduce cholera and
  diarrhea now produce arseniasis

18
Field data

• Ahmad et al. (2001) Reported that Bangladesh
  women of reproductive age that were drinking
  water with 100 µg/L of arsenic, had spontaneous
  abortion rates nearly three times greater than
  normal ( N 192).
• These exposed women had more than double the
  rates of stillbirths and preterm births compared
  to their unexposed counterparts.
• Women exposed to arsenic for more than 15 years,
  had a rate about five times greater than
  unexposed individuals.
• THEN
• Assuming a linear correlation between level of
  poisoning and health consequences, extrapolating
  the Bangladesh spontaneous abortion rate, and the
  1000µg/L of arsenic at Camarones, then Chinchorro
  women likely had rates 30 times higher for
  spontaneous abortion, stillbirths and preterm
  births than a normal population.

19
Adverse pregnancy outcomes as a consequence of
drinking contaminated water with arsenic levels
greater than 100µg/L in Bangladesh (Samta
Village) for 1,000 live birth
20

• There are few reports about the effect of
  arseniasis in drinking water on human pregnancy
  outcomes Akhtar Ahmad 2001

21
Camarones site reported by Schiappacasse and
Niemeyer (1984)

• Twenty-three inhumations were discovered and
  exhumed
• Six inhumations were under 4 years of age and
  five had artificial mummification

22
Camarones 14 anthropogenic burials(Schiappacase
and Niemeyer, 198485-105)
23
Camarones 17(Arriaza, Aufderheide and Muñoz
1993115-118)
24

• Camarones 14 has high infant mortality.
  Schiappacase and Niemeyer (1984) suggested
  infanticide (p. 171 and 179)
• A better explanation is arseniasis
• They estimated birth and mortality rates 45.1
  (per one thousand)

25
(No Transcript)
26
The proposed model
High arsenic content in the environment (in
water and riverine resources)

• High rates of
• Stillbirths
• Premature birth
• Abortion
• Infant mortality

Personal and social grief Intentional
preservation of infants began at Cam 14
Artificial mummification assuaged community
grief People like what they see All ages
undergo mummification
Mummification spread to surrounding areas and
became more elaborated and popular
27

Main factors triggering Chinchorro artificial
mummification practices
Environmental (Arsenic and dry environment)
Ideological (After life)
Health (neonatal dead)
Emotional (parental grief)
28
Thank you
Visit www.momiaschinchorro.com
29
Literature cited

• S. Akhtar Ahmad, M.H. Salim Ullah Sayed, Shampa
  Barua, Manzurul Haque Khan, M.H. Faruquee, Abdul
  Jalil, S. Abdul Hadi, and Humayun Kabir
  Talukder. Arsenic in Drinking Water and Pregnancy
  Outcomes (2001). Environmental Health
  Perspectives Vol 109 (6) 629631
• Abul Hasnat Milton, Wayne Smith, Bayzidur Rahman,
  Ziaul Hasan, Umme Kulsum, Keith Dear, M.
  Rakibuddin, and Azahar Ali (2005) Chronic
  Arsenic Exposure and Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes
  in Bangladesh. Epidemiology Volume 16(1)8286)
• Claudia Hopenhayn, Catterina Ferreccio, Steven R.
  Browning, Bin Huang, Cecilia Peralta, Herman
  Gibb, and Irva Hertz-Picciotto (2003) Arsenic
  Exposure from Drinking Water and Birth Weight.
  Epidemiology 14 593602
• Dutta DC. (1994) Textbook of Obstetrics Including
  Perinatology and Contraception, 3rd ed. Kolkata,
  IndiaNew Central Book Agency P Ltd 1994618
• Nemec MD, Holson JF, Farr CH, et al.
  Developmental toxicity assessment of arsenic acid
  in mice and rabbits. Reprod Toxicol.
  199812647658 Hood RD. Teratogenic effects of
  sodium arsenate in mice. Arch Environ Health.
  19722462 65
• Schiappacasse and Niemeyer (1984). Descripción y
  Análisis interpretativo de un sitio arcaico
  temprano en la quebrada de Camarones. Publicada
  Ocasional Nro. 41.
• Lorena Cornejo 2004. http//www.cnea.gov.ar/xxi/am
  biental/agua-pura/presentaciones-encuentro/present
  ación20proyecto20oea20lorena20en20buenos20ai
  res2.pdf
• http//www.ecplanet.com/pic/2003/04/1051353968/ars
  enico.jpg
• http//www.sos-arsenic-net/images/feet1.jpg
• http//dermis.multimedica.de/doia/image.asp?zugrd
  langscd43nr40diagnr757335
• http//www.estrucplan.com.ar/Producciones/entrega.
  asp?IdEntrega37