Determination of mercury in Colombian prehispanic biological samples

Alvaro J. Idrovo, William M. Romero, Elizabeth Silva, Gladys Villamil de García, Jaime E. Ortíz, .

DOI: https://doi.org/10.7705/biomedica.v22i1.1141
Keywords: paleopathology, mercury, environmental pollution, archaeological toxicology
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Abstract

Mercury is useful as a tracer of environmental pollution levels. We measured mercury levels in hair from two human mummies (XII and XIV centuries, respectively) and from a stag (Odocoileus virginianus). The total and inorganic mercury levels found in the samples were very low. This findings indicated a minimal exposure to mercury in food and its absence in the atmosphere. Mercury levels can be used to explore the relationship between humans and environment, especially after metallurgy appeared, and to assess environmental contamination in different periods.

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  • Alvaro J. Idrovo Departamento de Salud Pública y Tropical, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional de Colombia. Bogotá. D.C.
  • William M. Romero Departamento de Antropología, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, D.C.
  • Elizabeth Silva Laboratorio de Salud Ambiental, Instituto Nacional de Salud, Bogotá, D.C.
  • Gladys Villamil de García Laboratorio de Salud Ambiental, Instituto Nacional de Salud, Bogotá, D.C.
  • Jaime E. Ortíz Laboratorio de Salud Ambiental, Instituto Nacional de Salud, Bogotá, D.C.
How to Cite
1.
Idrovo AJ, Romero WM, Silva E, Villamil de García G, Ortíz JE. Determination of mercury in Colombian prehispanic biological samples. biomedica [Internet]. 2002 Mar. 1 [cited 2024 May 18];22(1):67-70. Available from: https://revistabiomedica.org/index.php/biomedica/article/view/1141
Published
2002-03-01
Issue
Vol. 22 No. 1 (2002)
Section
Technical note

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