Identification of metal residues associated with bit-use on prehistoric horse teeth by scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis

Our ability to identify evidence of the use of horses for transportation from archaeozoological remains is important for improving our understanding of the role of horses in socioeconomic changes throughout prehistory. When a horse is used with a bit, the bit can come into contact with the anterior (‘front’) surface of the lower second premolar (P₂). Here, results of X-ray microanalysis, undertaken in a variable pressure scanning electron microscope, of chemical elements on the anterior surface of four archaeological horse P₂ are presented. Analysis of dental materials (enamel and cementum) returned expected results, with calcium, phosphorous and oxygen dominating. Iron-rich residues are also identified on the front of two of the teeth, which are interpreted here as deriving from contact with iron bits. It is proposed that such analyses may provide a useful additional method for identifying bitting damage in archaeological horses or corroborating interpretations made from macroscopic examinations.     

Impression and replica methods for studying hypoplasia and perikymata on human tooth crown surfaces from archaeological sites

Perikymata and enamel hypoplasia can be studied most easily by light and scanning electron microscopy of replicas rather than of the original tooth crown surface. Delicate archaeological specimens require special handling. Selection of specimens and cleaning technique are some of the most important factors in producing good replicas, and this paper outlines procedures that have been developed over some years. Several widely available materials produce similarly detailed initial impressions of the crown surface, but an addition-type silicone dental impression material is recommended here because of its superior stability. The replica itself is cast in the mould of the original impression, and a slow-curing low-viscosity Araldite resin-hardener system is recommended. The paper outlines procedures for taking impressions from a variety of dental remains, together with methods for handling, examining and storing the replicas. The non-destructive techniques outlined here make it possible to take records of large numbers of crown surfaces in the field, or during a short museum visit, for later study in the laboratory. Many replicas can be produced from one original crown surface impression and the replicas are very robust—they can be mailed easily to other researchers for records or comparative studies. With continuing calls for reburial or repatriation of archaeological human remains, the production of a permanent record for future study is of considerable concern.     

The identification of archaeological dung deposits on the basis of remains of predatory mites (Acari; Gamasida)

The results of a study of recent predatory mite faunas, characteristic of the dung of different domestic animal species, forms the basis of a two-step identification method for archaeological dung deposits. The method is illustrated by a study of the remains of the predatory mites found in 12 mediaeval dung samples from the north of The Netherlands.     

The ethnoarchaeology of firewood management in the Fang villages of Equatorial Guinea, central Africa: Implications for the interpretation of wood fuel remains from archaeological sites

In archaeological literature, the study of trees and wood remains is a topic of relatively marginal interest, especially compared to texts on crops and human–animal relations. However, charcoal is the most frequent botanical remain found in archaeological sites. Charcoal analysis can therefore play a major role in the development of studies in both landscape and palaeoethnobotanical reconstruction. The majority of the archaeological charcoal assemblages reflect the exploitation of wood as an energy source (fuel). The archaeological study of firewood selection has been predominantly developed from “eco-utilitarian” or “subsistence economy” perspectives, but has not yet considered fuel collection and use as one of the most enduring categories of human–environment interactions, nor has archaeology looked into its potential as a source of empirical information on past perceptions of, and interactions with, ancient landscapes. The aim of this paper is to expand previous archaeological work on the interpretation of charcoal macro-remains through the study of firewood collection as a historically constituted, socially mediated and archaeologically observable landscape practice. In order to achieve this, we present an ethnoarchaeological case study from the Fang society of Equatorial Guinea (central Africa) aimed at gaining a better understanding of the complex interactions between cultural, ecological and economic variables in firewood collection strategies.     

Methodological problems in the analysis of fossil non-artifactual wood assemblages from archaeological sites

The analysis of fossil wood fragments is often undertaken in relation to the archaeological excavation of a site. However, such analysis does not yet appear to have the strong methodological foundation that the investigation of many other classes of palaeoenvironmental evidence (e.g. seeds and pollen) have. Consequently, it is difficult to evaluate the value of fossil wood analysis at an archaeological site. Using data regarding non-artifactual wood assemblages at one site in southern Scotland, the relative merits of possible analysis are described and discussed. The results from such analyses tend to fall into two broad groups: (I) those of relatively high reliability, and (2) those of relatively low reliability. The results in the former group are often based on moderately secure methodology and tend to provide relatively non-interpretative information (e.g. species lists). On the other hand, those in the latter group are more often based on insecure interpretive methodology and provide relatively more stimulating information, such as evidence for prehistoric woodland management. There are many reasons for this situation, and these are discussed. In conclusion, it is argued that to increase the reliability of results in the second group (in particular), a full understanding of the taphonomy of non-artifactual fossil wood assemblages is needed, and that once this is available attention can then be paid, as elsewhere in environmental archaeology, to the problems of providing statistically valid samples for analysis.     

Genetic sexing to determine the optimal discriminant functions for the analysis of archaeological remains from El Hierro (Canary Islands)

A correct sex assignment of a given bone or bone fragment is of paramount importance for the archaeologist, anthropologist and in forensic medicine. Discriminant functions, combining several anthropometric measurements obtained from individuals with known sex are useful tools for this purpose, but it is essential to know exactly the sex from which the measures are obtained. This is an easy task in modern populations, but it is problematic in ancient ones, since even when the entire skeleton is available, diagnosis of sex is not 100% accurate. Sexing by genetic methods by amplifying the first intron of the amelogenin gene constitutes a much more accurate method for sexing bones and may be the gold standard for further elaboration of discriminant functions which may serve for sexing new bones dug up in future excavations. With this aim we have genetically sexed 52 (out of 59) tibiae belonging to the prehispanic population of El Hierro, in the Canary Islands, identifying 18 women and 34 men, and then, performed discriminant functions combining several anthropometric variables. These functions show a high accuracy in sex diagnosis (94.2%; area under ROC curve = 0.954 with the best of the functions), so that they allow correct sexing of tibiae or tibiae fragments (only proximal third, distal third or midshaft). Thus, genetic sexing obviates the problem of finding an accurate gold standard for the elaboration of discriminant functions for ancient bones. This method could be applied to other populations of different antiquity and different ethnicity.     

Cropmarks in main field crops enable the identification of a wide spectrum of buried features on archaeological sites in Central Europe

Buried (syn. sunken, sub-surface and sub-soil) archaeological features on arable land can frequently be discovered due to visually detectable changes in crop growth termed cropmarks. The aim of this paper was to demonstrate the range of features identified through cropmarks on aerial photographs in stands of main field crops in the Czech Republic.     

Comparing the survival of osteocalcin and mtDNA in archaeological bone from four European sites

The small mineral-binding bone protein, osteocalcin, has been applied in a number of studies on ancient bone due to predictions of its long-term stability. However, the intact protein has not been shown to survive in ancient bone devoid of DNA, which is a much more phylogenetically informative biomolecule. In this investigation, the survival of osteocalcin is directly compared to the amplification of mtDNA in a set of 34 archaeological samples from four sites throughout Europe. We also present unpublished osteocalcin sequences of seven mammalian species in addition to the 19 published sequences to highlight phylogenetic limitations of this protein. The results indicate that the intact osteocalcin molecule survives less in archaeological samples than mtDNA and is more subject to the temperature of the archaeological site. Amino acid analyses show the persistence of the dominant protein collagen in samples that failed both osteocalcin and mtDNA analyses. The implications these findings present for biomolecular species identification in archaeological and palaeontological material are that, although proteins do survive beyond ancient DNA, osteocalcin does not appear to be the most ideal target.     

Development and evaluation of geochemical methods for the sourcing of archaeological maize

Strontium (Sr)-isotope values on bone from deer mice pairs from 12 field sites in the Chaco Canyon area, New Mexico, were compared with isotope values of synthetic soil waters from the same fields. The data indicate that mice obtain Sr from near-surface sources and that soil samples collected at depths ranging from 25 to 95 cm contain Sr that is more accessible to the deep roots of maize; thus, synthetic soil solutions provide better data for the sourcing of archaeological maize. However, the Sr-isotope composition of mice may be more valuable in sourcing archaeological remains of animals such as rabbit, turkey, and deer.     

Incremental banding in dental cementum: Methods of preparation for teeth from archaeological sites and for modern comparative specimens

Analysis of incremental banding in dental cementum is a well-established means of determining the age and season of death of wild mammals. The dental cementum of domesticated mammals likewise can indicate age and season of death. Methods of preparation applicable to archaeological teeth differ from those used for modern specimens, however, and this paper describes two methods that have given excellent imaging on teeth of Bos taurus; one for modern teeth and the other for teeth from archaeological sites.     

MtDNA haplotype identification of aurochs remains originating from the Czech Republic (Central Europe)

Abstract

This study presents the results of the analysis of mtDNA bone samples morphologically determined to be aurochs (Bos primigenius) from four various archaeological finds in the Czech Republic (Central Europe). The results from two of them — the Pleistocene sample from Praha-?eporyje and the Neolithic sample from Vedrovice — probably represent contamination by modern DNA. Sequences identified in the Eneolithic Kutná Hora-Denemark site (～5 thousand BP) confirm the presence of haplogroup P in the geographically partly isolated Czech basin. This finding (the first of its kind within the Czech Republic) is consistent with other published findings showing the domination of this aurochs haplogroup line in Europe. The combination of large individual size and ‘domestic’ mtDNA suggest, if inconclusively, that the Early Medieval fourth sample from Vy?ehrad could potentially represent an aurochs/domestic cattle hybrid.     

Fuel, Fire and Heat: an experimental approach to highlight the potential of studying ash and char remains from archaeological contexts

As in traditional societies today ancient societies probably selected different fuels to meet specific heat requirements. Char and ash, the end products of fire, are often found in abundance in archaeological contexts. These end products can provide information regarding (i) the original fuel resource and type, (ii) the characteristics of the fire and (iii) combined with other archaeological evidence shed further light on possible socio-economic activity(-ies) associated with that fire. The three main fuel resources would have been (i) modern vegetation, (ii) fossil fuel and (iii) animal by-products. Local availability and abundance would have influenced the choice made.In this study an experimental approach was adopted to try and distinguish between the three different fuel resources that are known to have been used by ancient societies (and continue to be used by traditional societies today) from their char and ash remains to help determine original fuel-type and understand the relative heating properties. For this end one fuel-type from each fuel resource listed above, namely wood, peat and cow dung, was chosen.     

Oldest meiolaniid turtle remains from Australia: evidence from the Eocene Kerosene Creek Member of the Rundle Formation,Queensland

Poropat, S.F., Kool, L., Vickers-Rich, P. &; Rich, T.H., September 2016. Oldest meiolaniid turtle remains from Australia: evidence from the Eocene Kerosene Creek Member of the Rundle Formation, Queensland. Alcheringa 41, XX–XX. ISSN 0311-5518.

Fossil meiolaniid turtles are known only from South America and Australasia. The South American record is restricted to the Eocene, and comprises two genera: Niolamia and Gaffneylania. The Australasian meiolaniid record is more diverse, with three genera known (Ninjemys, Warkalania and Meiolania); however, the oldest known specimens from this continent are significantly younger than those from South America, deriving from upper Oligocene sediments in South Australia and Queensland. Herein, we describe the oldest meiolaniid remains found in Australasia to date. The specimens comprise a posterior peripheral, a caudal ring, and an osteoderm, all of which derive from the middle–upper Eocene Rundle Formation of The Narrows Graben, Gladstone, eastern Queensland. Despite their fragmentary nature, each of these specimens can be assigned to Meiolaniidae with a high level of confidence. This is particularly true of the partial caudal ring, which is strongly similar to those of Niolamia, Ninjemys and Meiolania. The extension of the Australasian meiolaniid record to the Eocene lends strong support to the hypothesis that these turtles arose before South America and Australia detached from Antarctica, and that they were consequently able to spread across all three continents.

Stephen F. Poropat*^? [stephenfporopat@gmail.com], Australian Age of Dinosaurs Natural History Museum, The Jump-Up, Winton, Queensland 4735, Australia; Lesley Kool*^? [koollesley@gmail.com] and Thomas H. Rich [trich@museum.vic.gov.au], Melbourne Museum, 11 Nicholson St, Carlton, Victoria 3053, Australia; Patricia Vickers-Rich [pat.rich@monash.edu], Monash University, Wellington Rd, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia. *These authors contributed equally to this work. ^?Also affiliated with Monash University, Wellington Rd, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia.     

Reconstructing age distribution,season of capture and growth rate of fish from archaeological sites based on otoliths and vertebrae

The growth increments of otoliths and vertebrae of plaice (Pleuronectes platessa) derived from a 15th century single depositional event at Raversijde (Belgium) are analysed with the aim of reconstructing (a) the age distribution of the population, (b) the season of capture, and (c) the growth rate. Otoliths and vertebrae give slightly different age distributions but it is possible to arrive at similar seasonality estimations in both structures when information from the literature and our own data from monthly captures of plaice from the North Sea are taken into account. These modern data show that the timing of annulus formation in otoliths and vertebrae is more or less similar. Back‐calculations on vertebrae and otoliths yield similar growth curves. The age distribution, the edge condition of both vertebrae and otoliths, and the growth rate obtained on the material from Raversijde all show that the plaice from the studied assemblage were captured during spring in the southern part of the North Sea. Vertebrae are commonly preserved in archaeological sites whereas otoliths rarely survive. Although they are more difficult to read than otoliths, vertebrae of plaice can be used for growth increment analyses, and the growth rates obtained from vertebrae from archaeological sites can, therefore, be compared in the future to growth data from modern otoliths studied in sea fisheries research. Archaeozoological material predating industrialized fishing since the 19th century can hence serve as a reference in the study of the compensatory response of commercially important species to heavy exploitation. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Neolithic dogs: A reappraisal based on evidence from the remains of a large canid deposited in a ritual feature

A canid skull and mandible, dated to the late neolithic, produced a series of measurements which indicate an animal significantly larger than any dog recovered from this period. The skull showed evidence of healed trauma with associated asymmetry. Metrical and morphological criteria have been applied to identify the remains as those of wolf Canis lupus, and the results of these tests are inconclusive. The possibility that the remains are of a large dog, Canis familiaris, is discussed, together with the implications that this may have for the archaeological consideration of this species.     

Combined application of pansharpening and enhancement methods to improve archaeological cropmark visibility and identification in QuickBird imagery: two case studies from Apulia,Southern Italy

Launch of Very High Resolution (VHR) satellite sensors meant a significant evolution for Remote Sensing archaeological applications since data with high spatial resolution may be used to identify signals related to buried archaeological remains (e.g. cropmarks, soilmarks, dampmarks) in very extended territories. The aim of this work is to develop a suitable image processing workflow to improve the cropmark visibility in the VHR satellite images. The workflow implemented consists of two steps: first the panchromatic and multispectral images have been pansharpened in order to merge the two images, then some Enhancement methods have been applied on the pansharpened image. As a result of the several tested pansharpening techniques, the Principal Component Resolution Merge yields images of very good quality useful not only for visualization but also as input for further processing. Among the different enhancement methods taken into consideration, the Spatial Enhancement, carried out by applying the Wallis Adaptive filter further improve the visibility and recognition of the archaeological signals.     

Comment on ‘A Bayesian approach to ageing perinatal skeletal material from archaeological sites: implications for the evidence for infanticide in Roman Britain’ by R.L. Gowland and A.T. Chamberlain

In 1993, I published a paper noting that the age distribution of perinatal infants for some Romano-British sites did not conform to a natural mortality pattern but rather showed a pronounced peak at a gestational age corresponding approximately to a full term infant. I interpreted this as suggestive of infanticide, given that the deed is generally carried out immediately after birth. Gowland and Chamberlain have recently published in this journal (J. Archaeol. Sci. 29 (2002) 677) a reconsideration of the problem of Roman infanticide in which they suggest that the peak I observed in the Romano-British perinatal age at death distribution may have been an artefact of the particular ageing technique I used, and they hence call into question the evidence for Roman infanticide. In this comment I argue that their work is seriously flawed and, using a re-analysis of my 1993 data, I demonstrate that the perinatal peak I observed in the Romano-British age distribution is a robust result that supports an interpretation of infanticide.     

Diversity of cultivars and other plant resources used at habitation sites in the Llanos de Mojos, Beni, Bolivia: evidence from macrobotanical remains, starch grains, and phytoliths

Although sparsely populated today, the Llanos de Mojos, Bolivia, sustained large sedentary societies in the Late Holocene (ca. 500 to 1400 AD). In order to gain insight into the subsistence of these people, we undertook macrobotanical and phytolith analyses of sediment samples, and starch grain and phytolith analyses of artifact residues, from four large habitation sites within this region. Macrobotanical remains show the presence of maize (Zea mays), squash (Cucurbita sp.), peanut (Arachis hypogaea), cotton (Gossypium sp.), and palm fruits (Arecaceae). Microbotanical results confirm the widespread use of maize at all sites, along with manioc (Manihot esculenta), squash, and yam (Dioscorea sp.). These integrated results present the first comprehensive archaeobotanical evidence of the diversity of plants cultivated, processed, and consumed, by the pre-Hispanic inhabitants of the Amazonian lowlands of Bolivia.     

Solifluction-induced modifications of archaeological levels: simulation based on experimental data from a modern periglacial slope and application to French Palaeolithic sites

The taphonomic study of Petit-Bost, Croix-de-Canard and Cantalouette II, three Palaeolithic sites that were recently discovered near Périgueux and Bergerac (Dordogne, France) in a colluvial context, has enlightened the difficulty of adequately appreciating the relative role of cultural and natural processes in site spatial patterning. Periglacial solifluction was thought to have played a significant role in site formation. Because the nature of the modifications induced by solifluction was still poorly understood, a simulation was made using data of soil movement recorded at La Mortice (French Southern Alps, 3100 m in elevation) in a modern periglacial environment. The results show that, for a knapping location, the first steps of deformation are typified both by a downslope translation of the location center and by an anisotropic diffusion of the artifacts. The knapping spot becomes elongated along the slope, with a dense relic concentration of artifacts in the upslope portion. This type of pattern has been obtained after 100–200 years of simulated displacement according to the climatic and soil conditions that characterise the La Mortice site. The ultimate stages of deformation show that the artifact distribution tends to homogenise on larger surfaces and resemble a random distribution. The ability of the simulated patterns to closely fit those observed in archaeological contexts is evaluated at three sites from Southwestern France. At Petit-Bost, the hypothesis of limited solifluction explains accurately the association of both cultural (artifact concentrations) and natural (artifact preferred orientation) features. At Croix-de-Canard, long-term solifluction can be proposed. By contrast, the simulated patterns do not describe the structures observed on the steeper slopes at Cantalouette II, where the knapping spot transforms into distinct solifluction lobes.