The Destructive Potential of Earthworms on the Archaeobotanical Record

Abstract

As part of a large salvage project at yiftahel, Lower Galilee, Israel, layers of a Pre-Pottery Neolithic B village (of the 7th millennium B.C.) were uncovered. The excavation concentrated on a single dwelling, Structure 700, one of the largest of this period ever excavated in the Levant. Evidence for spatial variation in usage enables reconstruction of some of the activities carried out within and outside the dwelling.

A unique find was a store of more than 2000 horsebean seeds, which predates the earliest previously-known use of this vetch by about 2000 years. The excellent state of preservation of the significant botanical and faunal remains at yiftahel enables a better understanding of the diffusion of domesticated plants and animals and their exploitation in the various Neolithic communities.     

Archaeobotanical remains from the mid-first millennium AD site of Kaerdong in western Tibet

In this study, we present the preliminary result of archaeobotanical investigation at Kaerdong in western Tibet. The result shows that agropastoralism with combined strategies of foraging, hunting and fishing was in practice at the location between approximately 455 and 700 cal. AD. Our results also show that herding animals grazed at meadows above 4300 m above sea level (masl), and dung was used as fuel. The presence of a rice grain together with spikelet bases indicates that rice was a component of food resources possibly as a result of a trade and exchange system. In addition, tatary buckwheat grains were also recovered at the site.     

Archaeobotanical inference of Bronze Age land use and land cover in the eastern Mediterranean

Charcoal and charred seeds at five Bronze Age archaeological sites discern ancient land use in the eastern Mediterranean. Seed frequencies of orchard crops, annual cereals and pulses, and wild or weedy plants are used to characterize plant utilization at different archaeological sites on the island of Cyprus, in the Rift Valley of Jordan, and in the Jabbul Plain and along the upper Euphrates River valley in Syria. Seed to charcoal ratios provide proxies to determine the relative usage of dung versus wood for fuel across the ancient Mediterranean landscape. Greater charcoal and lower charred seed values are interpreted to represent a wooded environment, while higher amounts of charred seeds and minimal wood charcoal suggest a much great use of dung as a fuel source. Interestingly, Politiko-Troullia (Cyprus, Cypriot archaeological sites are, by convention, named for the nearest modern village (Politiko), followed by an italicized toponym (Troullia) referring to the plot of land that incorporates the site) has the lowest seed to charcoal ratio, suggesting its residents primarily burned wood and that the landscape surrounding Troullia remained relatively wooded during the Bronze Age. In contrast, villagers at Tell el-Hayyat (Jordan) utilized a mixture of wood and dung, in contrast to Tell Abu en-Ni’aj (Jordan), and especially Umm el-Marra and Tell es-Sweyhat (Syria), where inhabitants relied solely on dung fuel. Comparative analysis and interpretation of seed and charcoal evidence thus illustrates the variety of fuel use strategies necessitated by the dynamic and diverse Bronze Age landscapes of the Eastern Mediterranean.     

Rice,Ethnicity, and the Collation of Archaeobotanical Data for Prehistoric Korea

Nationalism and archaeology are universally and almost unavoidably intertwined. The multilevel influence of nationalism not only delimits the legitimate interpretations of archaeological data but also determines the retrieval, analysis and dissemination of data. This point is illustrated in the present study with a historical overview of archaeobotanical data collation at four prehistoric sites, two in North Korea and two in South Korea, that were excavated between 1957 and 1981. The paper examines the persistent and increasing archaeological interest since the early 1970s in the search for rice, a crop that constitutes an integral part of the Korean ethnic identity. The remains of rice have tended to receive more scholarly attention, be subject to extended discussion, and be more widely publicized, compared to the relatively neglected research on the remains of other “miscellaneous” crops. This demonstrates that botanical remains from archaeological sites, often presented as an outcome of scientific scrutiny, are a social product and that greater attention needs to be paid to local archaeological concerns before the data are compared internationally or across different research traditions.     

马家浜文化生业模式初探——来自杨家遗址和马家浜遗址的植物考古学证据

马家浜文化的稻作农业研究是学术界较为关注的问题,基于此前对古水稻和水稻田的研究,研究者多认为其稻作农业已经处于较为发达的阶段.本文通过近年对杨家、马家浜遗址出土大量植物遗存的分析,推测马家浜文化稻作农业发展的关键阶段应始于马家浜晚期,水稻在此阶段成为主要食物资源.并根据对水稻粒型的统计学分析,发现在马家浜晚期,粒型的增大出现一个飞跃,应与耕种技术的进步有关.粟的发现暗示着旱作农业的南传可能存在陆路的传播路线,是将来工作中需要关注的问题.     

Technical Notes on the Preparation of Leaf and Epidermis Specimens for Reference Collections and Archaeobotanical Investigations

Abstract

Technical notes are provided for the preparation of reference specimens and archaeological specimens of leaves and epidermis fragments (including cuticles) for transmitted light microscopy. Equipment requirements, logistical considerations and processing steps are outlined and a method of clearing, staining and mounting is described and evaluated.     

试论后金主称帝的时间

关于后金称帝的时间．一直是学术界争论的活题。本通过大量详实的资料,论证出朝鲜人赵庆男1619年前后说更为允妥：从而否定了国内学术界的1636年说法。     

五开卫设置时间辨析

五开卫是明朝在贵州东部设置的第一个卫,为日后黎平府的设立准备了有利条件,对黔东南的历史发展产生了深远影响.但对其建置年月,史书记载多有抵牾,后人也很少进行辨析.理清五开卫的设置经过,有助于深入认识贵州尤其是黔东南的历史.史料分析结果表明,洪武十八年四月下令设置五开卫,但建卫工作直到年底才实际开展,至洪武二十五年最终确立卫所体系.     

抗战时期湖南教育发展述论

抗战时期湖南教育在其他各业遭严重破坏的情况下取得罕见的发展。小学教育、中等教育、职业教育、师范教育和高等教育,规模空前扩大、教学质量提高,全省各级各类教育布局进一步合理,尤其是中等教育的发展跃居全国前列。为湖南后来教育的全面发展奠定坚实基础。湖南战时教育既具满足战争需要,服务抗战,又有发展不平衡的特点。教育在战时湖南之所以有如此进展。是由于湖南各界军政领导的重视、湖湘人民的共同努力和湖湘文化精神的支承,以及外地各类教育资源的支持。     

Archaeobotanical evidence of prehistoric maize (Zea mays) consumption at the northern edge of the Great Plains

Analysis of starch granules, phytoliths, and plant macrofossils from archaeological features and carbonized food residue provides important new insight into the extent of prehistoric maize (Zea mays) consumption on the North American Great Plains. These data suggest that consumption of maize, and probably other cultigens, was widespread on the eastern Canadian Prairies between approximately AD 1000 and 1600. Domesticated plants may have been grown locally, acquired through trade, or transported into the region following dispersal of family groups from horticultural villages located elsewhere. However, the lack of strong artifactual evidence of gardening, and the small-scale nature of sites on the eastern Canadian Prairies indicate that local horticulture, if practiced, was non-intensive.     

论三门峡秦人洞室墓的年代

本文在分析三门峡秦人墓中洞室墓各型式的基础上,对各型式墓葬的年代分别进行了讨论,进而认为,三门峡秦人墓中的洞室墓最早出现于战国晚期,并一直延续到西汉中期.     

论李维的历史方法

李维的历史方法是罗马传统历史方法的继承与发展。首先,他采用了逐年纪事的年代记的叙述方式。其次,他继承了罗马史学在其肇始就具有的爱国主义偏见和为罗马辩护的特点,特别是在对史料的处理方面,他按照爱国主义和道德教导的写作目的对史料进行删选,甚至伪造。最后,李维把文学技巧应用到历史写作之中。     

帆船时代福州国际贸易初探

福州是福建省会,帆船时代福州国际贸易是"海丝"文化的重要组成部分,其特色是以朝贡贸易为主。福州官方主导的朝贡贸易始于后汉,发展于唐五代,明清时期福州作为郑和下西洋重要基地和中琉朝贡贸易唯一官定港口而鼎盛。郑和船队驻泊长乐和中琉贸易定点福州,奠定了福州在海外贸易史上的历史地位。国际贸易兴盛带动港口建设,贸易港从福州内河向滨江滨海发展,先后出现东冶港、甘棠港、河口港、太平港、马尾港等名港,成为"海上丝绸之路"的核心港和出发地之一。福州人有精湛的帆船制造技术,熟知天文地理,并掌握高超的航海技术。他们从事海外贸易,穿洋过海、贸迁四方,形成代代相传的海洋文化传统,这是福州国际贸易发展的重要人文因素。     

先秦墨学的区域性特色述论

战国初期墨学兴起于宋、鲁地区 ,以墨子本人及其弟子的活动为中心 ,墨家提倡“兼爱”、“非攻”,并以身践行。随着墨子及其门人弟子游学活动范围的扩大 ,墨学得以传到周边国家和相对边远的地区。活动于各地的墨家后学 ,由于受到当地社会风俗、文化背景、政治环境的影响 ,对墨子的思想均有不同程度的变革 ,从而使得墨学的区域性特点更趋鲜明 :楚墨行事“任侠”,秦墨“重法”,齐墨“好辩”。     

先商的文化与年代

漳河型下七垣文化是以商族为主体所创造的商先公冥以后的先商文化,河北涧沟型龙山中晚期的文化遗存有可能是商契和昭明时期即商族发祥期的先商文化,相土至冥的年代应与新砦期、二里头文化一期的年代相当,但是,这一时期的先商文化目前尚未发现.     

先商的文化与年代(续)

确定商先公冥以前的先商文化,一是需确定契至冥时期商族的活动地域,另一是在文化类型的特征上探寻该地域内早于下七垣文化的遗存与漳河型下七垣文化之间的联系.     

战时知识青年从军运动述评

本以过去史学界较少论及的抗日战争后期国统区“知识青年从军运动”为研究对象,从运动的缘起、运动在国统区的扩展、运动背后的党团纷争等几个方面,力求对知识青年从军运动进行较为完整而准确的理解和评价。本认为,应肯定青年学生从军的爱国热情,客观考察当时国民党政权开展知识青年从军运动的目的和正反两方面的作用。从军运动及青年军在促进战时国统区社会风气的转变、提高国民革命军素质乃至促进军队改革、国民党整党及行政效率的改革方面,都产生了积极的作用。     

位卑未敢忘忧国——《蒙古游牧记》著述年代考

《蒙古游牧记》是清代学者张穆研究边疆史地的重要著述,也是清嘉、道之际西北史地学研究的代表作之一,填补了蒙古地志的空白。这部在近代很有影响的著作,其确切撰述年代却经久未定。根据对张穆遗留于世的书信、文集及与其关系密切的学者的相关文献之考订,可以确定《蒙古游牧记》的始撰之年为道光二十五年(1845)。《蒙古游牧记》之撰述年代的确定对研究张穆的学术思想具有重要学术价值。