The two-year-old with three necklaces was someone’s child.

The person who made those necklaces — who selected fish vertebrae and palm seeds and shells and strung them into three separate ornaments for a small child — cared for that child in the way that any parent or grandparent or beloved community member cares for a child.

The child who wore those necklaces was not an archaeological data point during their short life.

They were loved.