Stable isotope analysis of 14 individuals from the Mesolithic cemetery of Vasilyevka II,Dnieper Rapids region,Ukraine

Bone collagen extracted from 14 humans from the Mesolithic cemetery of Vasilyevka II was analysed for their δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N ratios. This cemetery is one of only two later Mesolithic cemeteries from the Dnieper Rapids region, being dated to 7300–6220 cal BC on the basis of three radiocarbon determinations. This analysis provides insights into the nature of the diet of the Dnieper populations at the very end of the Mesolithic period, prior to the adoption of pottery in the region, and the assumed shift towards the exploitation of domesticates in the economies of the populations of the Dnieper region, and considers these in relation to broader temporal indicators of diet in the region.     

Geographic variation in bone carbonate and water δO values in Mendoza,Argentina and their relationship to prehistoric economy and settlement

Questions of mobility, settlement pattern, and their relation to economic organization and resource use are central to ongoing work in central-western Argentina. Here we analyze geographic patterns in the distribution of 178 human bone carbonate δ¹⁸O samples, 46 human tooth enamel carbonate δ¹⁸O samples, and 48 water δ¹⁸O samples from throughout the Andean Cordillera and Monte Desert and evaluate their implications for prehistoric mobility and economy. We confirm and refine previous generalizations regarding a highland/lowland dichotomy in water δ¹⁸O values and show that the range of human carbonate δ¹⁸O values generally reflect available water sources. While there is little within-lifetime change in patterns of water use, we show that most individuals have stable isotope signatures consistent with water use from multiple areas or areas other than where they were ultimately interred. These data indicate high levels of residential mobility, and we conclude by discussing their implications for our understanding of regional prehistory.     

Refining oxygen isotope analysis in the Nasca region of Peru: An investigation of water sources and archaeological samples

The development of complex societies, irrigation agriculture and sociopolitical transitions are of interest to researchers working in the Nasca region on the south coast of Peru. Occupied for thousands of years, many questions regarding the circumstances of these changes in the area are being investigated. Oxygen isotope analysis provides a method for exploring residential mobility of past peoples during these transitions. This study presents new δ¹⁸O data from water sources that would have been used by the ancient inhabitants, providing important information regarding the oxygen isotope variability in the region and the necessary baseline data for migration studies in this region. Our results suggest that the isotopic composition of water sources in the Nasca region is not highly variable. In addition, archaeological human tooth enamel samples from the sites of La Tiza and Pajonal Alto are analysed. The δ¹⁸O_c results of the human enamel samples confirm the local nature of the burial population, as suggested by previous strontium isotope analysis (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr). Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. This article was published online on 13 January 2010. An error was subsequently identified. This notice is included in the online and print versions to indicate that both have been corrected 15 January 2010.     

An investigation of diet in early Anglo-Saxon England using carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis of human bone collagen

The principal aim of this work is to investigate whether protein sources in human diets in early Anglo-Saxon (5th-7th century AD) England varied with geographic location, or with respect to age or sex. The methodology used was analysis of δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C in human bone collagen from 76 adult skeletons from a total of 18 different cemeteries located in inland, riverine and coastal environments. In order to control for the possible effects of socio-economic status on diet, only high status individuals, as identified by grave goods, were studied. Data were analysed using statistical manipulation of the raw results and using IsoSource (Phillips and Gregg, 2003), a mathematical treatment which models the composition of the protein part of human diets using bone stable isotope ratios when the isotopic values for potential protein sources are known or can reasonably be inferred. The results suggest that protein sources varied little according to geographic location and that terrestrial foods dominated at all locations. However there were some subtle patterns. Slightly elevated δ¹³C in skeletons from coastal locations, and δ¹⁵N in those from riverine sites may indicate that communities in these locations made greater use of marine and freshwater resources respectively. If this is correct then it demonstrates that 5th-7th century communities made some use of wild resources even within a predominantly agrarian economy. In general the analysis of the raw data and the IsoSource results were mutually supportive, and this work demonstrates the value of this twin-pronged approach to analysis of human bone stable isotope data.     

Rabbits as Food at the end of the Upper Palaeolithic at Molí del Salt (Catalonia,Spain)

Many factors have been causally linked to the diversification of hunting during the European Palaeolithic: declining supplies of high‐ranked prey, considerable human demographic growth, reduced residential mobility, larger populations of ubiquitous small mammals and significant technological developments. However, small prey exploitation was not uniform: the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus ) is the most frequent species in the Upper Palaeolithic archaeological record of the Iberian Peninsula – south and Mediterranean area – and Southern France. This is demonstrated at Molí del Salt, an Upper Palaeolithic site located at Vimbodí (Catalonia, Spain), whose mammal fauna stands out for the predominance of rabbits [91% of minimum number of individuals (n = 136)]. We analysed the faunal remains from one level [A^sup (c. 12 700–13 000 cal BP)] in order to identify the agent responsible for the faunal accumulation, and to reconstruct aspects of procurement and consumption that shed light on Palaeolithic subsistence strategies in the Northeast Iberian Peninsula. Our results indicate that human agency rather than carnivore activity was responsible for the bone accumulation at Molí del Salt. We identified all the stages in the consumption sequence from skinning to ingestion. We argue that the rabbits were mostly harvested during summer or winter or both seasons. Clearly, the European rabbit was a target species for the human groups which lived at Molí del Salt providing meat, and skin. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Microchemical and crystallographic analysis of human bones from Nasca,Peru. A possible method of direct dating of archaeological skeletal material

This paper provides two archaeometric equations obtained by crystal–chemical parameters for dating human bone samples from the archaeological site of Nasca, Peru. Based on radiocarbon dating, the burials span from 500 BC to AD 1000. Crystal–chemical modifications in bone hydroxylapatite over time were compared with a twentieth century skeleton from Italy. Chemical analysis was carried out by means of electron microprobe along a profile from the periosteal to the endosteal border of the midshaft of four human femurs. The results indicate that the Ca/P ratio is linearly correlated with time according to the equation t=7880.68Ca/P−12805.90 (r=0.97; r²=0.95). Bone apatite X-ray powder diffraction analysis showed a systematic increase in the (002) reflection intensity with time, according to the equation t=250.49h/a−1961.86 (r=0.98; r²=0.97). The two independent archaeometric equations permit good accuracy in dating osteoarchaeological remains from the south coast area of Peru. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stable isotopes and human diet in central western Argentina

Central western Argentina is the southern boundary of prehispanic maize in the archaeological record. This paper explores the stable isotope information from human bone (δ¹³C, from collagen and δ¹³C from apatite) and tooth (δ¹³C from enamel) samples in order to characterize the temporal and spatial trends of these isotopes and to understand them in terms of human diet. We analyzed 104 human individuals from the last 6000 years. Using the Kellner and Schoeninger (2007) model the results shows a high variation in human diet with few human individuals with a notably high significance of C₄ plants (probably maize) as an energy source and these samples have a chronology around ca. 1000 years BP. On the other hand a high variation in an individual’s dietary life history is shown by differences between δ¹³C collagen, apatite and enamel.     

Infrared and Isotopic Evidence for Diagenesis of Bone Apatite at Dos Pilas, Guatemala: Palaeodietary Implications

The use of stable carbon isotopic analysis of bone apatite to reconstruct prehistoric diets is hindered by the possibility of diagenetic alteration of carbonate during burial. We examine apatite preservation in Classic Period Maya skeletal remains from Dos Pilas, Guatemala, using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). We use weight % CO₂evolved from apatite, FTIR carbonate/phosphate absorbance ratios, phosphate peak splitting crystallinity indices, fluoride peaks, and stable oxygen isotopic ratios to identify diagenetic change in apatite chemistry. Isotopically light carbon taken up from burial soil is adequately removed from most Dos Pilas bone by treatment with dilute acetic acid, but more severe alteration cannot be reversed by standard preparation methods. Infrared criteria identify recrystallized apatite in a subset of Dos Pilas burials, that is accompanied by isotopic exchange, and that no longer preserves biogenic δ¹³C. These results illustrate that comparatively recent bone may be diagenetically altered and demonstrate a need for systematic evaluation of mineral integrity in all archaeological bone prior to interpreting paleodiets with apatite δ¹³C.     

The Use of Strontium Isotope Analysis to Investigate Tiwanaku Migration and Mortuary Ritual in Bolivia and Peru

Strontium isotope analysis is applied in South America for the first time in order to investigate residential mobility and mortuary ritual from ad 500 to 1000. While Tiwanaku‐style artefacts are spread throughout Bolivia, southern Peru and northern Chile during this time, the nature of Tiwanaku influence in the region is much debated. Human skeletal remains from the site of Tiwanaku and the proposed Tiwanaku colony of Chen Chen have been analysed to test the hypothesis that Tiwanaku colonies, populated with inhabitants from Tiwanaku, existed in Peru. Strontium isotope analysis supports this hypothesis by demonstrating that non‐local individuals are present at both sites.     

Stable isotopic analysis of human bones from Jiahu site,Henan, China: implications for the transition to agriculture

We have investigated change in subsistence during the transition to agriculture in the site of Jiahu, Henan Province, China, using stable isotopic analysis of collagen and apatite in human bones. Millet agriculture is well documented at drier high latitudes of the Yellow River Valley, while rice agriculture predominated at wetter lower latitudes of the Yangtze Valley region. The early Neolithic site of Jiahu lies near the boundary between the drier north and wetter south. Archaeobotanical evidence shows that rice was a significant component of diet at Jiahu, but its δ¹³C value is similar to that of other foods, and therefore cannot be conclusively identified by carbon isotope analysis. Foxtail and broomcorn millets are the only C₄ crops known for the Chinese Neolithic. Because of their high δ¹³C values, their consumption can be evaluated by stable carbon isotope analysis of human bone. Collagen reflects mainly the δ¹³C value of dietary protein, and apatite accurately records that of the whole diet. Isotopic analysis of 15 well-preserved samples from three periods shows that collagen δ¹³C values were very low for almost all individuals, suggesting C₃-based foods dominated their diets. However, apatite carbonate δ¹³C values and δ¹³C spacing between collagen and apatite (Δ¹³C_ap-co) indicate that millet may have been a minor component of the diet in this region. Individuals, who consumed the smallest amounts of animal protein, as indicated by low δ¹⁵N, generally had the highest apatite δ¹³C values. Archaeobotanical evidence for millet at Jiahu is needed to support this interpretation.     

Migration in the Nile Valley during the New Kingdom period: a preliminary strontium isotope study

The value of strontium isotope analysis in identifying immigrants at numerous archaeological sites and regional areas has been demonstrated by several researchers, usually by comparing ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr values of human tooth enamel and/or bone with the local strontium isotope signature determined by faunal and environmental samples. This paper examines the feasibility of using ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios to investigate residential mobility in the Nile Valley region, specifically at the New Kingdom period (∼1050–1400 BC) archaeological site of Tombos (ancient Nubia). Archaeological and textual information regarding this period indicates that immigrant Egyptians and local native Nubians were likely interacting at this site during a period of Egyptian colonial occupation. The results of this study suggest that non-local individuals may be distinguished from locals using ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr values and that colonial agents in the Tombos population were probably both local native Nubians and immigrants.     

Investigating Dietary Patterns with Stable Isotope Ratios of Collagen and Starch Grain Analysis of Dental Calculus at the Iron Age Cemetery Site of Heigouliang,Xinjiang, China

Here, we present δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N results for the dietary reconstruction of nomadic pastoralists from the Iron Age (ca. 1000 bc –8 ad ) site of Heigouliang. The human (n = 27) δ¹³C values range from −19.6‰ to −17.0‰ with a mean value of −18.5 ± 0.5‰, and the δ¹⁵N results range from 11.5‰ to 13.8‰ with a mean value of 12.4 ± 0.6‰. The results indicated that animals, like sheep, were part of the predominately C₃ terrestrial diet, but two individuals have values greater than −18‰ that is indicative of some input of C₄ foods in their diets. Because of a lack of faunal samples and to supply complementary information concerning plant consumption, teeth from four individuals were analysed for dental calculus microfossils. Starch grains were found to correspond to Triticeae and Poaceae, possibly including wheat (Triticum aestivum), barley (Hordeum vulgare), highland barley (H. vulgare L var. nudum), foxtail millet (Setaria italica) and/or common millet (Panicum miliaceum). At the population level, no dietary differences were detected between burial owners and sacrificial victims, but variations were found when specific tombs were analysed. In particular, individuals with bone trauma associated with armed conflict also had distinct isotopic signatures possibly suggesting that some of the sacrificial victims could have been captured warriors that were sacrificed for the burial owners. While limited, the results are some of the first from an Iron Age population from Xinjiang and contribute to our understanding of the dietary patterns of this region. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sheep,Cattle, and Specialization: New Zooarchaeological Perspectives on the Taosi Longshan

In this paper, we present a zooarchaeological analysis of the Longshan period sites of Taosi and Zhoujiazhuang (ca. 2300–1900 cal. BC) in southern Shanxi Province, China. We compare the faunal record at both sites in terms of the proportions of wild and domestic taxa; the slaughter patterns for the main domesticates; the types of bones used to produce utilitarian and decorative bone artifacts; and the types of bones used for ritual oracle bone divination. Differences in the faunal records at Taosi and Zhoujiazhuang provide insights into the connections between specialization and early urbanism. Our research also provides clues about how sheep and cattle pastoralism was initially adopted in the Yellow River Valley during the late 3^rd millennium BC. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Isotopic evidence for the reconstruction of diet and mobility during village formation in the Early Middle Ages: Las Gobas (Burgos,northern Spain)

Strontium, carbon, and nitrogen isotopes of human bone and tooth remains have been used to reconstruct residential mobility and diet of early medieval populations at Las Gobas from the sixth to eleventh centuries. Most non-local individuals correspond to the tenth to eleventh centuries and were mostly women and infants. This residential mobility coincided with the formation of Laño village and the abandonment of artificial cave settlement. Carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios of bone collagen indicate an omnivorous homogenous diet based on terrestrial plant resources, with few animal-derived proteins from livestock. Millet consumption was restricted to an earlier period of time (seventh to ninth centuries); and in later periods (tenth to eleventh centuries), mainly C₃ plants such as wheat and barley were consumed. In general, there were no dietary differences between individuals according to sex or age. Sex-related dietary differences have only been observed in the tenth to eleventh centuries, when females consumed a more vegetarian diet and less animal protein. The higher δ ¹⁵N values in infants reflect the weaning effect, while the differences in δ ¹⁵N values between young adult men and young adult women can be explained as a physiological factor related to pregnancy or different origins. In a comparison with contemporaneous medieval populations in the northern Iberian Peninsula, both δ ¹³C and δ ¹⁵N values suggest similar foodstuff resources and diet among Christian and Muslim populations.     

Alkaline cooking and stable isotope tissue-diet spacing in swine: archaeological implications

In this study we examine the effects of alkaline cooking on carbon and oxygen stable isotopic ratios of mineralized tissues from nine pigs raised on monotonous mixed C3/C4 vegetarian diets. Two sources of collagen (humerus and mandible) and two sources of apatite (humerus and enamel) were analyzed. Within each diet group, humerus and mandible collagens were found to record equivalent δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O ratios; however, enamel apatite was found to be enriched over bone apatite by 2.3‰ in carbon and 1.7‰ in oxygen. Alkaline cooking was found to slightly, but significantly increase the Δ¹³C_{collagen-diet} and Δ¹⁸O_{collagen-diet} of bone collagen. A similar trend towards enrichment was observed in bone and enamel Δ¹³C_apatite-diet and Δ¹⁸O _apatite-diet, but the differences were not significant. Observed isotopic shifts were consistent with increased nutrient utilization of the alkaline-cooked maize as compared to raw maize. In addition, a reexamination of the relationship between diet and tissue carbon isotopic values suggests that species and alimentary type should be considered when interpreting ancient diets.     

Leporid management and specialized food production at Teotihuacan: stable isotope data from cottontail and jackrabbit bone collagen

Archaeological research at the UNESCO World Heritage site of Teotihuacan (ad 1–ad 550) in the Basin of Mexico provides evidence for leporid (cottontails and jackrabbits) breeding and/or management within a residential complex of the city, Oztoyahualco. The present study tests this notion by analyzing Teotihuacan leporid bone collagen samples (n = 134) for stable isotope ratios of carbon (δ¹³C_collagen) and nitrogen (δ¹⁵N_collagen) to provide information on ancient leporid diet and ecology. Results demonstrate that carbon-stable isotope values from Oztoyahualco specimens are significantly higher than those from other contexts at Teotihuacan and from a sample of modern specimens from the region. These data are consistent with the notion that leporids from Oztoyahualco consumed diets high in C₄ and CAM plants, such as the human-cultivated staples of maize (Zea mays), nopal cactus (Opuntia sp.), and maguey (Agave sp.). Nitrogen-stable isotope results show no significant differences between Oztoyahualco and other contexts, suggesting that Oztoyahualco leporids inhabited similar environments, ate food grown on similar soils, and were feeding at the same trophic level. When considered in combination with archaeological data and previously published isotopic results, δ¹³C_collagen data from Oztoyahualco support the idea that leporids were artificially provisioned by humans, consistent with the hypothesis that they were bred and/or managed through human labor. More broadly, these results hint that food production at Teotihuacan was at least in part conducted by specialized workers in a manner similar to that of commercialized market economy of the later Aztec Empire (ad 1428–1521).     

Stable isotope evidence for dietary and cultural change over the Holocene at the Sabana de Bogotá region,Northern South America

The Sabana de Bogotá in the northern Andes is an interesting region to investigate temporal patterns of dietary variation because it counts with a vast archeological and osteological record for the last 10,000 years. In this paper, stable isotope data of human archeological bone collagen and apatite were used to study the evolution of diet and major subsistence transformations taking place during the Holocene (～9000–600 cal BP). Paleoenvironmental reconstructions and the isotopic ecology of the Sabana de Bogotá were used as an interpretative baseline. Stable isotope measurements (δ¹³C_col, δ¹³C_ap, δ¹⁵N, and Δ¹³C_col-ap) representing hunter-gatherers, horticulturalists, and agriculturalists (N = 134 individuals) were analyzed by using bivariate, regressional, and discriminant statistical techniques. Results show that early Holocene hunter-gatherers (9000–7000 cal BP) consumed mostly C₃ vegetal resources locally available. In contrast, animal protein was less important. Middle Holocene hunter-gatherers (6000–4500 cal BP) continued with the food foraging pattern observed in the earlier counterparts and presented a slight increase in C₃ animal protein intake. During the initial late Holocene ca. 4000 cal BP, important shifts in subsistence strategies occurred when populations presented a trend toward mixed C₃/C₄ diets, and by ca. 3500 cal BP, there is a clear signal of C₄ crops (i.e., maize) consumption concomitant with the introduction of ceramic technology. During the final late Holocene (last 2000 cal years BP), intensive agriculture was adopted and humans presented relatively diverse diets integrated by C₄ and C₃ crops, C₃-C₄ feeding animals, and freshwater resources. Such dietary change coincides with an increase in sociopolitical complexity, population size, and a general decline in health.     

Feeding Management Strategies among the Early Neolithic Pigs in the NE of the Iberian Peninsula

The socio‐economic relevance of domesticated animals during the Early Neolithic in the Iberian Peninsula is indisputable, yet we essentially know little about the way they were managed. Among domesticated animals, pig (Sus domesticus ) was a common food source, and previous studies have shown the potential of stable isotopes for assessing variability in pig diet in relation to husbandry practices. Nevertheless, this approach has never been applied to the earliest pigs in the Iberian Peninsula. We analysed the carbon and nitrogen stable isotope composition of pig bone collagen from several Early Neolithic sites in the NE Iberian Peninsula. While pig δ¹³C values were similar across different populations, there were significant differences in δ¹⁵N values between sites. These are attributed to different pig husbandry systems, which may reflect distinct social and spatial organisation and interaction with environmental conditions during the Early Neolithic in this region. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Late Neolithic vertebrate food web based on stable isotope analyses

Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses of bone collagen, and stable carbon and oxygen isotope analyses of the bone's structural carbonate, were performed on 120 individuals representing 33 vertebrate species, including a single human bone find, collected from the Late Neolithic settlement at Pestenacker, Bavaria, Germany. We were thus capable of reconstructing a rather complex food web and could also address particular issues, such as whether humans influenced the diet of their domestic animals as opposed to their wild relatives, or whether humans perhaps had to compete over food with their domesticates. A rather unexpected result was that freshwater fish, which could be captured in the nearby river Lech, a major tributary of the Danube, contributed to the human diet only occasionally. As for mammals, it was also possible to recognise different trophic levels for birds and aquatic vertebrates, applying stable isotope analyses to both bone collagen and structural carbonate. In the case of fish, δ¹⁸O values at least revealed a physiological regularity in terms of temperature preference, besides diet. Conceivably, variability of δ¹⁸O in surface water as reflected, for example, by species that avoided human settlements, may help to characterise past ecosystems and to define site catchment exploited by Neolithic man in the course of food acquisition. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The archaic prehistory of the North American Southwest

Evidence today suggests that by at least 8000 to 8500 B.P., Archaic hunter-gatherer economies were established throughout the North American Southwest. The Early Archaic seems to be a period of considerable variability across the subregions; this may be a product of currently slim knowledge of the period, or it may indicate that the region witnessed considerable flux. With the Middle Archaic period from 5500 to 3500 B.P. there seems to be greater similarity in material culture across the region and a definite increase in the number of known sites. Finally, the Late Archaic/Early Agricultural period from 3500 to 2000 or 1500 B.P. sees the establishment of a mixed farming-foraging economy in much of the Southwest with apparently major changes in subsistence-settlement systems. Preagricultural Archaic land use patterns are known in broad outline but not in detail; high mobility by small social groups in an annual round would have permitted exploitation of diverse biotic communities. In most parts of the region, significant socioeconomic change accompanies the incorporation of agriculture into the late preceramic period, as witnessed by the appearance of longer-term residential sites with pitstructures and storage features.