There are few bioarcheological analyses of life experiences in colonial period Aotearoa New Zealand, despite this being a time of major adaptation and social change. In our study, early life histories are constructed from multi-isotope and enamel peptide analysis of permanent first molars associated with Victorian era dental practices operating between AD 1881 and 1905 in Invercargill. Chemical analyses of the teeth provide insight into the childhood feeding practices, diet, and mobility of the people who had their teeth extracted.
Four permanent left mandibular first molars were analyzed from a cache of teeth discovered at the Leviathan Gift Depot site during excavations in 2019. The methods used were: (1) enamel peptide analysis to assess chromosomal sex; (2) bulk (δ C ) and incremental (δ C and δ N) isotope analysis of dentin to assess childhood diet; and (3) strontium ( Sr/ Sr) and oxygen (δ O) isotope analysis of enamel to assess childhood residency. Two modern permanent first molars from known individuals were analyzed as controls.
The archaeological teeth were from three chromosomal males and one female. The protein and whole diets were predominately based on C -plants and domestic animal products (meat and milk). A breastfeeding signal was only identified in one historic male. All individuals likely had childhood residences in Aotearoa.
Unlike most bioarcheological studies that rely on the remains of the dead, the teeth analysed in this study were extracted from living people. We suggest that the dental patients were likely second or third generation colonists to Aotearoa, with fairly similar childhood diets. They were potentially lower-class individuals either living in, or passing through, the growing colonial center of Invercargill.

© 2023 The Authors. American Journal of Biological Anthropology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.