@inbook{wesp_2023, place={Gainesville}, title={Biocultural Impacts of Labor in Colonial Mexico City: the intersections of age, sex, and heritage}, url={https://upf.com/book.asp?id=9781683403500}, booktitle={The Biocultural Consequences of Contact in Mexico: Five Centuries of Change}, publisher={University of Florida Press}, author={Wesp, Julie K.}, editor={Edgar, Heather J.H. and Willermet, CathyEditors}, year={2023}, pages={84–108} }
 @article{wesp_hernandez lopez_2022, title={Cortical bone maintenance and loss in Colonial Mexico City: Analysis of sex- and age-related differences}, volume={5}, ISSN={["1099-1212"]}, url={https://doi.org/10.1002/oa.3111}, DOI={10.1002/oa.3111}, abstractNote={Abstract Previous research has demonstrated significant age‐ and sex‐related differences in bone loss in European populations. This study utilizes metacarpal radiogrammetry to analyze cortical bone thickness and bone loss for a sample of indigenous individuals ( n = 120) from the Hospital Real San José de los Naturales (HSJN) skeletal collection in Colonial Mexico City. The results indicate statistically significant differences between males and females in total length, total width, and cortical thickness, but no difference in the standardized cortical index measure. There are significant differences in age groups for all measures except total length and the population follows a similar pattern of decreased cortical index over the life course. When age and sex are considered together, females begin this bone loss from young to middle adulthood with continued loss in old adulthood; however, males do not see a decrease in cortical index until old adulthood. While these results are consistent with previously reported patterns of bone loss, the HSJN population has higher levels of peak cortical bone in young adulthood than any archeological European populations. We suggest that this increased peak bone mass may reflect differences in diet that include higher levels of calcium and magnesium as a result of the traditional practice of softening corn by boiling it in limewater ( nixtamalization ). Similarly, a small sample of African descendant individuals ( n = 5) from the HSJN population was compared with the averages for indigenous individuals in the collection and indicated a variation in bone size, though predominantly higher levels of cortical index that may also suggest important population differences that should be further explored. This research provides important comparative data on bone maintenance and loss that supports previous hypotheses that a higher nutrient diet in modern populations may be the key factor in increased peak bone mass compared with archeological populations.}, journal={INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OSTEOARCHAEOLOGY}, author={Wesp, Julie K. and Hernandez Lopez, Paulina Elizabeth}, year={2022}, month={May} }
 @article{wesp_2022, title={Excavating the Third Root Constructing Archaeological Narratives That Include Afro-Yucatecans}, ISBN={["978-1-64642-283-8"]}, DOI={10.5876/9781646422845.c003}, abstractNote={Archaeologists working in historically Maya-speaking territories (today's southeastern Mexico, Belize, northern Honduras, and Guatemala) have long influenced developments across the discipline.These researchers have produced a rich body of scholarship exploring Maya society before Spanish invasion and settlement.They have contributed regionally and internationally, creating and testing new standards for archaeological practice, perfecting innovative scientific techniques, exploring the inclusion of ethnographic and epigraphic methods, and helping illuminate the processes involved in the rise, maintenance, and collapse of intricate state-level societies (Marcus 2003;Nichols and Pool 2012;Chase and Chase 2016).Unlike archaeology in other settler colonial societies such as the United States and Australia, however, Mayanist archaeology has been slower to embrace the study of post-fifteenth-century life in the region (but see Rice and Rice 2004; Kepecs and Alexander 2005; Alexander and Kepecs 2018; Alexander 2019).}, journal={COLONIALITY IN THE MAYA LOWLANDS}, author={Wesp, Julie K.}, year={2022}, pages={58–80} }
 @inbook{wesp_2022, place={Boulder}, title={Excavating the Third Root: constructing archaeological narratives that include Afro-Yucatecans}, url={https://upcolorado.com/university-press-of-colorado/item/6240-coloniality-in-the-maya-lowlands}, booktitle={Coloniality in the Maya Lowlands: Archaeological Perspectives}, publisher={University Press of Colorado}, author={Wesp, Julie K.}, editor={Fryer, Tiffany C. and Morgan, Kasey DiserensEditors}, year={2022}, pages={58–80} }
 @inbook{wesp_2022, place={New York}, title={The Bioarchaeology of Colonial New Spain}, url={https://www.routledge.com/The-Routledge-Handbook-of-Mesoamerican-Bioarchaeology/Tiesler/p/book/9780367357818}, booktitle={The Routledge Handbook of Mesoamerican Bioarchaeology}, publisher={Routledge}, author={Wesp, Julie K.}, editor={Tiesler, VeraEditor}, year={2022}, pages={633–50} }
 @article{ancient viral genomes reveal introduction of human pathogenic viruses into mexico during the transatlantic slave trade_2021, volume={10}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/elife.68612}, DOI={10.7554/elife.68612}, abstractNote={After the European colonization of the Americas, there was a dramatic population collapse of the Indigenous inhabitants caused in part by the introduction of new pathogens. Although there is much speculation on the etiology of the Colonial epidemics, direct evidence for the presence of specific viruses during the Colonial era is lacking. To uncover the diversity of viral pathogens during this period, we designed an enrichment assay targeting ancient DNA (aDNA) from viruses of clinical importance and applied it to DNA extracts from individuals found in a Colonial hospital and a Colonial chapel (16th–18th century) where records suggest that victims of epidemics were buried during important outbreaks in Mexico City. This allowed us to reconstruct three ancient human parvovirus B19 genomes and one ancient human hepatitis B virus genome from distinct individuals. The viral genomes are similar to African strains, consistent with the inferred morphological and genetic African ancestry of the hosts as well as with the isotopic analysis of the human remains, suggesting an origin on the African continent. This study provides direct molecular evidence of ancient viruses being transported to the Americas during the transatlantic slave trade and their subsequent introduction to New Spain. Altogether, our observations enrich the discussion about the etiology of infectious diseases during the Colonial period in Mexico.}, journal={eLife}, publisher={eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd}, year={2021}, month={Aug} }
 @inbook{wesp_2021, place={Malden}, edition={2nd}, title={Bioarchaeological Research on Daily Life in the Emerging Colonial Society}, url={https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Mesoamerican+Archaeology%3A+Theory+and+Practice%2C+2nd+Edition-p-9781119160885}, booktitle={Mesoamerican Archaeology: Theory and Practice, 2nd edition}, publisher={Blackwell}, author={Wesp, Julie K.}, editor={Hendon, Julia A. and Overholtzer, Lisa and Joyce, Rosemary A.Editors}, year={2021}, pages={374–97} }
 @article{guzmán-solís_blanco-melo_villa-islas_bravo-lópez_sandoval-velasco_wesp_gómez-valdés_luz moreno-cabrera_meraz-moreno_solís-pichardo_et al._2020, title={Ancient viral genomes reveal introduction of HBV and B19V to Mexico during the transatlantic slave trade}, volume={6}, DOI={10.1101/2020.06.05.137083}, abstractNote={After the European colonization of the Americas there was a dramatic population collapse of the Indigenous inhabitants caused in part by the introduction of new pathogens. Although there is much speculation on the etiology of the Colonial epidemics, direct evidence for the presence of specific viruses during the Colonial era is lacking. To uncover the diversity of viral pathogens during this period, we designed an enrichment assay targeting ancient DNA (aDNA) from viruses of clinical importance and applied it on DNA extracts from individuals found in a Colonial hospital and a Colonial chapel (16th c. – 18th c.) where records suggest victims of epidemics were buried during important outbreaks in Mexico City. This allowed us to reconstruct three ancient human parvovirus B19 genomes, and one ancient human hepatitis B virus genome from distinct individuals. The viral genomes are similar to African strains, consistent with the inferred morphological and genetic African ancestry of the hosts as well as with the isotopic analysis of the human remains, suggesting an origin on the African continent. This study provides direct molecular evidence of ancient viruses being transported to the Americas during the transatlantic slave trade and their subsequent introduction to New Spain. Altogether, our observations enrich the discussion about the etiology of infectious diseases during the Colonial period in Mexico.}, publisher={Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory}, author={Guzmán-Solís, Axel A. and Blanco-Melo, Daniel and Villa-Islas, Viridiana and Bravo-López, Miriam J. and Sandoval-Velasco, Marcela and Wesp, Julie K. and Gómez-Valdés, Jorge A. and Luz Moreno-Cabrera, María and Meraz-Moreno, Alejandro and Solís-Pichardo, Gabriela and et al.}, year={2020}, month={Jun} }
 @article{wesp_joyce_2020, title={Archaeology and the Body}, DOI={10.1093/obo/9780199766567-0255}, abstractNote={The body has become a central focus of archaeological research as practitioners ask questions about the role of individual human beings, their engagement with things, and the effects of embodied actions in the past. The body can serve as a starting point for analyzing diversity in past populations in terms of sex, gender, status, ethnicity, ability, and other aspects of identity. Study of the human body allows practitioners to reconstruct how culture change affected portions of populations in different ways. Archaeologists draw on a wide range of social theories from allied disciplines that have explored gender, race, ability, and philosophical understandings of living in a body to explore how material remains of past populations can be used to provide temporal depth to questions about embodiment. Archaeologists employ a variety of materials to address embodiment, ranging from human skeletal remains, materials used as clothing and adornment, tools employed as extensions of the body, and objects and immobile features that structure embodied experiences. This diversity of materials facilitates examination of similarly diverse research questions, including phenomenological understandings of how the world is experienced through the body and the senses; how cultural practices modified bodies; how visual culture, including representations of bodies, create and change body ideologies; and how skeletal remains were shaped by daily life in the past. In recent years, archaeologists have begun to reflect on the ethical implications of archaeological research on human bodies and how this research can be conducted to include perspectives from descendant communities and the public regarding research questions and the presentation of results. Archaeologists also consider how their own experiences are shaped by working with human remains.}, journal={Anthropology}, author={Wesp, Julie K. and Joyce, Rosemary A.}, year={2020}, month={Oct} }
 @article{bravo-lopez_villa-islas_rocha arriaga_villasenor-altamirano_guzman-solis_sandoval-velasco_wesp_alcantara_lopez-corral_gomez-valdes_et al._2020, title={Paleogenomic insights into the red complex bacteria Tannerella forsythia in Pre-Hispanic and Colonial individuals from Mexico}, volume={375}, ISSN={["1471-2970"]}, url={https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2019.0580}, DOI={10.1098/rstb.2019.0580}, abstractNote={The ‘red complex’ is an aggregate of three oral bacteria (Tannerella forsythia, Porphyromonas gingivalis and Treponema denticola) responsible for severe clinical manifestation of periodontal disease. Here, we report the first direct evidence of ancient T. forsythia DNA in dentin and dental calculus samples from archaeological skeletal remains that span from the Pre-Hispanic to the Colonial period in Mexico. We recovered twelve partial ancient T. forsythia genomes and observed a distinct phylogenetic placement of samples, suggesting that the strains present in Pre-Hispanic individuals likely arrived with the first human migrations to the Americas and that new strains were introduced with the arrival of European and African populations in the sixteenth century. We also identified instances of the differential presence of genes between periods in the T. forsythia ancient genomes, with certain genes present in Pre-Hispanic individuals and absent in Colonial individuals, and vice versa. This study highlights the potential for studying ancient T. forsythia genomes to unveil past social interactions through analysis of disease transmission. Our results illustrate the long-standing relationship between this oral pathogen and its human host, while also unveiling key evidence to understand its evolutionary history in Pre-Hispanic and Colonial Mexico. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Insights into health and disease from ancient biomolecules'.}, number={1812}, journal={PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES}, publisher={The Royal Society}, author={Bravo-Lopez, Miriam and Villa-Islas, Viridiana and Rocha Arriaga, Carolina and Villasenor-Altamirano, Ana B. and Guzman-Solis, Axel and Sandoval-Velasco, Marcela and Wesp, Julie K. and Alcantara, Keitlyn and Lopez-Corral, Aurelio and Gomez-Valdes, Jorge and et al.}, year={2020}, month={Nov} }
 @article{wesp_2020, title={Working in the City: An Historical Bioarchaeology of Activity in Urban New Spain}, volume={54}, ISSN={["2328-1103"]}, url={https://doi.org/10.1007/s41636-019-00223-6}, DOI={10.1007/s41636-019-00223-6}, number={1}, journal={HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY}, publisher={Springer Science and Business Media LLC}, author={Wesp, Julie K.}, year={2020}, month={Mar}, pages={92–109} }
 @inbook{caring for bodies or simply saving souls: the emergence of institutional care in spanish colonial america_2017, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39901-0_13}, DOI={10.1007/978-3-319-39901-0_13}, booktitle={New Developments in the Bioarchaeology of Care}, year={2017} }
 @inbook{wesp_2017, place={Albuquerque}, title={Embodying Sex/Gender Systems in Bioarchaeological Research. }, url={https://www.unmpress.com/9780826352583/exploring-sex-and-gender-in-bioarchaeology/}, booktitle={Exploring Sex and Gender in Bioarchaeology}, publisher={University of New Mexico Press}, author={Wesp, Julie K.}, editor={Agarwal, Sabrina C. and Wesp, Julie K.Editors}, year={2017}, pages={99–126} }
 @book{exploring sex and gender in bioarchaeology_2017, url={https://unmpress.com/books/exploring-sex-and-gender-bioarchaeology/9780826352583}, journal={University of New Mexico Press}, year={2017} }
 @article{bioarchaeological perspectives on the materiality of everyday life activities_2015, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/apaa.12067}, DOI={10.1111/apaa.12067}, abstractNote={The activities of everyday life influence not only the extrasomatic material world, but also the material properties of our own bodies. Living bone tissue is a dynamic material that responds to external and internal stimuli to alter its size, shape, and structure, and the repetitive actions from daily life performances leave traces that can be interpreted from archaeological skeletal remains. This chapter examines how the human body can be interpreted as a type of material object that both shapes and is shaped by our behavior. These changes are highlighted through the examination of a small skeletal population from the Postclassic site of Xaltocan in Central Mexico. Bioarchaeological analyses of these material changes add a unique perspective to the discussion of the materiality of everyday life in the past.}, journal={Archeological Papers of the American Anthropological Association}, year={2015}, month={Sep} }
 @article{long bone (humerus, femur, tibia) measuring procedure in cadavers_2014, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1556-4029.12459}, DOI={10.1111/1556-4029.12459}, abstractNote={In this work, we present a measuring methodology for long bones of the limbs (humerus, femur, and tibia) of human corpses. Measurements of cadaveric height and long bone lengths were conducted on 72 corpses (20 females and 52 males) from the School of Medicine at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Additionally, these measurements were compared with those taken from dry bones of a subsample of individuals. Our results show marginal differences (TEM% = 0.59) between cadaveric and dry bone measurements, resulting from different osteometric technical procedures. This note outlines the measuring methodology, which will be subsequently used to create regression formulas for stature estimation.}, journal={Journal of Forensic Sciences}, year={2014}, month={Sep} }
 @article{cloth production and economic intensification in the area surrounding chichen itza_2010, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.7183/1045-6635.21.3.274}, DOI={10.7183/1045-6635.21.3.274}, abstractNote={Recent investigations at the site of Xuenkal on the plains north of Chichén Itzá provide evidence of the changing regional political environment during the Terminal Classic Period (A.D. 900–1000). This paper examines a collection of spindle whorls recovered during the 2005, 2006, and 2007 field seasons of the Proyecto Arqueológico Xuenkal (PAX) as evidence for intensification of craft production. Through this analysis and comparison with spindle whorl collections from other Lowland Maya sites, we suggest the inhabitants of Xuenkal rapidly adapted to changing economic demands by increasing the amount of cloth produced in their residential settings, perhaps in response to increased tribute demands that emanated from the dominant political power of the region. Spinning and weaving is associated with the female gender during the Classic Period in Mesoamerica. Thus, intensification of this gendered activity not only produced excess materials for the state, but also reinforced its gender ideology. Analysis of these artifacts adds to the knowledge of Maya cloth production and addresses the nature of Chichén Itzá's influence on regional sites during the height of its influence in the Terminal Classic period.}, journal={Latin American Antiquity}, year={2010}, month={Sep} }