First ancient cyclopia case linked to trisomy 13 found in Peru
DNA analysis confirms a 1,600-year-old Nazca infant had trisomy 13, causing cyclopia, in a burial at Jauranga, Peru.
A 1,600-year-old infant with cyclopia and trisomy 13 was found in a ceramic urn at Jauranga in Peru's Palpa Valley. The infant lived during the Middle Nazca period, between A.D. 325 and 440. This discovery provides the first archaeological evidence connecting the fatal congenital eye defect with a chromosomal disorder in pre-Columbian South America.
Genetic analysis confirmed the infant was female and carried an extra copy of chromosome 13. The condition, known as trisomy 13 or Patau syndrome, is one of the principal genetic causes of cyclopia. The infant's skull showed a single central eye socket. Its shape was not the result of intentional head modification or post-burial distortion.
The infant was buried alongside another infant in a single event. DNA evidence showed the two infants had different mothers. They were interred in a standard cemetery context. The grave contained no special offerings. The Nazca people commonly buried their youngest children in ceramic jars in southern Peru. The burial of this individual suggests that the Nasca treated this individual in death like most other infants.
The infant likely survived only a short time after birth. Researchers note the possibility of surviving several weeks or months cannot be ruled out. Cyclopia itself is exceptionally rare, occurring in approximately one in 100,000 births.
Genetic and burial context
The study was led by archaeologist Elsa Tomasto-Cagigao of the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru and anthropologist Lars Fehren-Schmitz of the University of California, Santa Cruz. Their work confirmed the female infant's sex through the presence of two X chromosomes. The finding of two infants from different mothers in one urn was unusual for the Nazca. Yet the context was an ordinary cemetery with other burials. There were no indications of an unusual ceremony.
This suggests the infant with the visible congenital condition was not treated differently in death. The shared burial in a common vessel points to a standard cultural practice for infants, regardless of physical anomalies.
Scientific significance
The research was published in the journal PNAS on November 9. It is the first archaeological example of cyclopia associated with trisomy 13. Cyclopia has been documented in historic and modern anatomical collections. It had not been found in an ancient archaeological burial before this discovery.
Bioarchaeologist Siân Halcrow of the University of Otago in New Zealand highlighted the find's importance. Researchers from Peru, the United States, and Germany participated in the study. The analysis provides a rare window into how ancient Andean societies perceived and handled severe congenital disorders.
The study's publication marks the first archaeological documentation of cyclopia linked to trisomy 13.
