Findings of a surprising kind: About 350 years ago, a man from West Africa was buried in a place in Portugal where Stone Age people were once buried. According to the archaeologists’ research, he was probably taken to the region along with others from West Africa as part of the slave trade. The scientists say he may have been buried there by his community at the ancient burial site due to traditional customs from his homeland.
The focus is on the Amoreira site, which is about 80 kilometers north-east of Lisbon on the Tagus River – also known as the Tejo. Around 8,000 years ago, the hunters and gatherers of the area buried their dead in the heaps of mussel shells there. This emerges from investigations that have been carried out there since the 19th century. In 1930, archaeologists also discovered an unusual tomb. While it was similar to the others, it contained the remarkably well-preserved remains of an unusually large human.
On the trail of a special dead man
Together with other finds from Amoreira, the bone remains then ended up in the archives of the University of Porto. A research team from the University of Uppsala and the University of Lisbon has now devoted a detailed study to these unusual finds. To get clues to the identity of the dead, they performed radiocarbon dating, genetic testing, and isotopic analysis on samples taken from the remains.
As the team reports, their results showed that the bone remains did not come from a Stone Age dead man, but from a man who died between 1630 and 1760. But that wasn’t the only surprise: His genetic signature points to West African descent. The results of the isotope analysis also showed that for much of his life he ate foods that were not common in Portugal at the time. Certain isotope signals in the bone substance also reflected that the man had ingested water with characteristics typical of coastal areas in the Senegal and Gambia area.
Buried according to West African tradition?
From these results, the researchers concluded that it was a first-generation African who had come to Portugal via the slave trade of the time. But why was he buried in this strange place? Because in Portugal, from the Middle Ages until the middle of the 19th century, the dead were usually only buried on religious grounds. Until now it was assumed that this also applied to the slaves who were forced to convert to Christianity. As the researchers explain, the non-Christian burial may reflect the abducted people’s attempt to preserve their original socio-cultural identity and values in their local communities.
According to the team, Amoreira was probably already known to local people as an ancient burial site because of the visible bones. Another clue comes from West Africa: As the researchers’ research revealed, mussel deposits in West Africa are still used as cemeteries to this day. Especially in the Senegambia region, they often serve as burial sites. The burial in the Portuguese shell mound could thus indicate that the African community of Amoreira recognized this site as significant. Accordingly, the man may have been buried there in accordance with the socio-cultural traditions of his West African homeland.
Perhaps further investigations could clarify whether the find represents a special case or whether it was a more widespread burial practice of the victims of slavery, the scientists conclude.
Source: Uppsala University, professional article: Journal of Archaeological Science, doi: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2022.103370