RT Journal Article
T1 The ivy and the palm: Care and mourning for a child buried in 19th-century Madrid, Spain
A1 Ríos Frutos, Luis Francisco
A1 Martínez, Berta
A1 García-Rubio, Almudena
A1 Etxeberria, Francisco
A1 González, Mercedes
A1 de Miguel Ibañéz, María Paz
A1 Valcárcel Núñez, Virginia
AB Objective. To evaluate indicators of care and symbolism in a mid-19th-century child burial. Materials. Mummified human remains, a medical bandage, remnants of plants and clothing. Methods. Dental radiography, scanning electron microscopy, botanical identification, clothing description, a review of funerary iconography. Results. A dental age between 5.5 and 6.5 years and a female sex were estimated. The bandage on the left arm contained a metal plate composed of copper and zinc, and an ivy leaf (genus Hedera). A palm branch (Phoenix dactylifera) was placed in the coffin, and the corpse was dressed in blue clothing. .Conclusions. The bandage combines traditional knowledge (Hedera leaf) and contemporaneous recommendations from medical texts (metal plate) and represents a case of care of a child in mid-19th-century Madrid. The blue clothing and braided palm branch represent a Christian codified mourning for her death. Significance. Evaluating funerary objects alongside skeletal remains has provided insight into ways in which traditional medical treatment, alongside current religious symbolism was intertwined to provide care and to mourn for a 19th-century child. Limitations. Preservation concerns and time constraints due to reburial precluded a complete study of the remains, and the type of ivy leaf (fertile) limits identification at the species level. Suggestions for further research. A review of plant use in the funerary and paleopathological record during the Early Modern Period.
PB Elsevier
SN 1879-9817
YR 2025
FD 2025-09
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/130010
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/130010
LA eng
NO Ríos, L., Martínez, B., García-Rubio, A., Etxeberria, F., González, M., de Miguel Ibañéz, M. P., & Núñez, V. V. (2025). The ivy and the palm: Care and mourning for a child buried in 19th-century Madrid, Spain. International Journal of Paleopathology, 50, 73-80. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.IJPP.2025.07.003
NO The excavation was funded by the Ayuntamiento de Madrid, in agreement with the Archidiócesis de Madrid, the Convento de las Madres Trinitarias Descalzas and the Dirección General de Patrimonio Histórico de la Comunidad de Madrid, Project Exp. 0733/11. The study of the cemetery was funded by the Dirección General de Bibliotecas, Archivos y Museos from Ayuntamiento de Madrid, in agreement with the Convento de las Madres Trinitarias Descalzas, Archidiócesis de Madrid, and the Dirección General de Patrimonio Histórico de la Comunidad de Madrid, Project RES/0413/2016-Exp. 0733/11.
NO Ayuntamiento de Madrid
NO Comunidad de Madrid
NO Archidiócesis de Madrid
NO Convento de las Madres Trinitarias Descalzas
DS Docta Complutense
RD 20 ene 2026