A Bioarchaeological Approach to Everyday Life: Squatting Facets at Abu Fatima

Human skeletal remains adapt throughout the life course, thereby recording a lived experience. Bioarchaeologists can interpret skeletal data in light of everyday life, a crucial component to social practice, structure, and transformation. In this article, I examine tibial squatting facets, as an embodied product of repetitive squatting, to elucidate everyday life in Bronze Age Nubia. I use the site of Abu Fatima (2500-1500 BCE, Third Cataract) as a case study. At Abu Fatima, 95% of individuals (20/21) had squatting facets, suggesting the vast majority of the population repetitively engaged in a squatting position throughout their lifecourse. This included men and women of all ages. This is much higher than most other comparative studies on tibial squatting facets. Additionally, I reference previous strontium isotope analysis to speak to whether or not migrants or locals were more likely to squat. Both groups, were squatting with regularity. While we cannot speak to the exact activities that were being done while squatting, this study posits a few suggestions and draws an interesting line of continuity between the daily lives of ancient and modern Nubian populations.