A Prehistoric Multiple Burial from Monument Valley Evidencing Trauma and Possible Cannibalism

Abstract

In 1970, J. Lee Correll excavated a small multiple burial site in Monument Valley. The seven incomplete human skeletons found interred in a slablined pit were fragmented and appeared mutilated. Since there is neither material culture nor geologic stratification present, Anasazi population affiliation is based on moiphological characteristics. Missing bone elements, greenstick breakage of long bones, smashed skulls, burned bone, and cut marks suggest yet another case of cannibalism in the American Southwest.