A Discussion on the Emergence and Development of Ancient Chinese Artificial Barium Copper Silicate Pigments from Simulation Experiments

The ancient Chinese barium copper silicate minerals mainly comprise Chinese purple (BaCuSi₂O₆) and Chinese blue (BaCuSi₄O₁₀), which were widely used from the late Warring States Period to the late Eastern Han Dynasty. In order to clarify the raw material of the pigment, a series of simulation experiments was conducted to produce Chinese purple pigment under varying mineral conditions. The minerals that we applied in the experiment were quartz as the source of silicon, malachite and copper oxide as the sources of copper, barite and witherite as the sources of barium and lead oxide as the source of lead. Simulation experiments showed that the barium copper silicate minerals and the purple pigment can be produced easily when witherite is used as the barium‐containing raw material. From the perspective of mineral resources, the birth of the ancient Chinese pigment associated with a unique barium mineral resource. The Chinese copper‐based pigments are assumed to have been developed independently and are presumably an outcome of historical developments in glazing techniques.     

Distinguishing sheep and goats using dental morphology and stable carbon isotopes in C4 grassland environments

Distinguishing between sheep and goats in C₄ grass environments using new dental morphology criteria and enamel bioapatite stable carbon isotope ratios (δ¹³C) was tested on 35 modern individuals from the Central Rift Valley of Kenya. Two morphological criteria on the second and third lower molars, one of which had been previously partially described by Halstead et al. [Journal of Archaeological Science 29 (2002) 545], were found to be highly reliable in this population. Identification of species using carbon isotope ratios is made possible in some circumstances by differences in the feeding behavior of sheep, which are mainly grazers, and goats, which are mainly browsers. In environments where C₄ grasses predominate, sheep include a higher proportion of C₄ plants in their diet, and thus have higher δ¹³C values than goats. In the present study, the annual range and seasonal variation of carbon isotope ratio of diet of sheep and goats was measured from intra-tooth sequential analysis. Although the ranges of goat and sheep δ¹³C values overlap, those higher than −3.4‰ all belong to sheep; values lower than −5.2‰ all belong to goats. There is no overlap of the mean δ¹³C values by tooth, which range from −11.8‰ to −4.2‰ for goats, and from −3.1‰ to −1.3‰ for sheep. These results suggest that carbon isotope analysis of bone collagen and/or apatite will also distinguish sheep from goats in tropical C₄ grasslands. Application of the δ¹³C criteria to archaeological material must be restricted to C₄-dominated environments, and where potential access to C₃ plants (mobility, foddering) can be assessed. The utility of these morphological and isotopic criteria for differentiating sheep and goat breeds in other regions remains to be evaluated.     

Ancient DNA Analysis of Anatolian Goat Remains Excavated from a Urartian Castle in Eastern Turkey

In recent years, mitochondrial diversity of goats has been extensively studied, in order to shed light on domestication processes. There are limited studies on genetic diversity and demographic history of Anatolian goat breeds, and these studies have focused only on modern goats. Until today, no research has been conducted on DNA analysis of ancient Anatolian goats. In the present study, seven ancient DNA samples of goat remains from Van‐Yoncatepe archaeological site in Eastern Anatolia, Turkey, dating 1000 BC, were successfully extracted and amplified for the first time. A 230‐bp fragment of mitochondrial DNA Hypervariable Region 1 of the samples was analyzed. All of the ancient sequences belonged to haplogroup A, which is the most widely distributed and frequently encountered haplogroup in modern goats. The results also pointed out that Anatolian ancient goats might have contributed to the genetic structure of modern goats in the Near East, the Mediterranean Region and South‐Southeastern Asia. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

周陵贺家战国秦墓出土紫色八棱柱的科学检测

目前,对我国出土的紫色八棱柱形文物的研究内容主要集中在材质和制作工艺上,对其形制来源、功能用途等方面的系统论述相对较少。为探究周陵贺家战国秦墓出土的一件紫色八棱柱器物的表面特征、颗粒形态、材质成分、制作工艺等信息,利用超景深三维视频显微系统、偏光显微镜、X射线荧光光谱仪(XRF)、X射线衍射仪(XRD)、激光拉曼光谱仪(Raman)等分析方法进行了检测。并在此基础上对八棱柱形制的来源与演变、材质的来源、功能用途等方面进行初步推测,结果表明该紫色八棱柱微观形态为紫色和黄色晶体颗粒夹杂分布,主要成分为中国紫(硅酸铜钡),推测为二到三次烧制而成。通过文献查阅及梳理,推测八棱柱的形制受中国本土道家文化的影响较大,其主要功能为口含或窍塞。本工作对于我国出土紫色八棱柱的系统研究具有重要的借鉴意义。     

我国草原旅游研究进展

本文通过对已有草原旅游文献的主要研究内容、研究地域、研究方法的分析,认为现有的草原旅游研究内容多集中于开发研究,地域集中,定性方法居多,尚处于起步阶段。今后草原旅游研究应进一步拓展和深化,加强总结,方法多样化,并关注几个重要问题:①草原旅游差异化的开发与科学文化内涵的提升;②草原旅游中相关利益群体的研究;③草原旅游市场与游客行为的研究;④草原旅游与环境保护的协调开发与可持续发展。     

Shepherds,cowherds and site function on middle Neolithic sites of the Rhône valley: An archaeozoological approach to the organization of territories and societies

Our understanding of the organization of the territories and the Neolithic societies of the north-western Mediterranean region remains incomplete because of the preference long accorded to caves and rock shelters in archaeological research, and because these sites are closely linked to one taxon, the sheep and goats. In the middle valley of the Rhône, comparison of the pastoral practices specific to cattle and to sheep and goats, in relation to cave as well as open-air occupations, enables definition of the relations that existed between the sites during the late phase of the Chassean culture. It is demonstrated that the different stages of the annual pastoral cycle were distributed among several sites, whether for sheep and goats or for cattle, and that the large open-air sites had distinct functions according to the species exploited. The discovery of a specialization of places and of practices (general for the caves, partial for the large open-air sites) then leads us to propose the existence of a specialization of individuals or at least small groups (shepherds and cattle herdsmen) as of the beginning of the fourth millennium BC in this region. These elements suggest that population movements of different kinds occurred in the Chassean period in the middle Rhône Valley.     

Ages of epiphyseal closure in feral and domestic goats and ages of dental eruption

The bones of 53 goats of known age, sex, and breed were examined to determine the ages of epiphyseal closure, and the mandibles of 36 of them were examined for ages of dental eruption. The ages of epiphyseal closure varied greatly according to the sex and breed of the animal, feral goats being about a year behind domestic goats, and castrate males being anything up to 4 years behind females. In all goats, maturation is much later than in the modern sheep. Ages of dental eruption agreed with earlier findings on the live animal and showed no similar discrepancies.     

Dispersion of chirp pulses by the ionosphere

Nonlinearity of the phase time delay vs frequency of the ionospheric channel results in frequency dispersion. This distorts wideband signals and leads to amplitude reduction and ‘elongation’ of narrow pulses. Its effect on frequency modulated continuous wave signals (FMCW or chirp) is to broaden the width of the compressed pulse and to produce a chirp signal at the output of the detector instead of the ideal sine function. Several workers have studied this distortion and derived expressions which related the width of the compressed pulse to the first order derivative of the group time delay vs frequency. These expressions are limited to the case when the bandwidth of the channel is greater than the bandwidth of the transmitted chirp signal. In this paper a generalized expression for the time-bandwidth product of the chirp signal at the output of the detector is derived. Numerical calculations for the width of the compressed pulse vs its time-bandwidth product for various window functions are presented. The results are then applied to experimental data obtained over a short skywave radio link.     

Assessing the reliability of criteria used to identify mandibles and mandibular teeth in sheep, Ovis, and goats, Capra

Criteria developed to distinguish between the mandibles and mandibular teeth of sheep and goats are evaluated using modern specimens from the collections of the National Museum of Natural History and the Field Museum of Natural History. Certain teeth prove to be quite reliable in this regard (dP3, P3, P4). Other dental elements, however, are not reliable and should not be used in dental based identifications of these closely related species (dP4, M1, and mandibular bones). Overall, the identification of sheep dentition using these criteria is more reliable than it is for goats. However, the generally greater likelihood of incorrect identification of goat teeth and mandibles means that specimens identified as sheep are likely to contain high proportion of misidentified goats. Both the proportion of remains that can only be classified as ‘Ovis-Capra’ and the proportion of incorrectly identified teeth and mandibular bones varies with age, with identifications of younger and older animals less reliable than those of animals in the 1.5–6 year age range. Reliability of identifications increases when more criteria and more elements are used. Identifications based on whole mandibles with complete tooth rows are quite reliable. However, the proportion of specimens likely to be classified as ‘Ovis-Capra’ also increases in whole mandible identifications, especially in goats. Systematic differences in the proportions of indeterminate and incorrect identifications have a significant impact on species-level dentition-based harvest profiles. Recommendations are made for the use of dentition and long bone based harvest profiles in the study of sheep and goat exploitation strategies.     

留在草原上的记忆——内蒙古美术遗产述要

内蒙古草原文化遗产分布广泛,美术品种类有岩画、动物风格的青铜器、建筑、壁画、石人等多种,是草原游牧民族生活、文化风习、审美形态的历史记忆。草原文明从发生到绵延盛大的历史,因随逐水草的游牧方式,文化素质具有明显的周期性特征。因地缘文化的关系,留存的美术品一方面表现出与中原文化间的交流与互动,另一方面又与欧亚草原的文化形态相呼应。本文试以各时段具有代表性的美术遗迹为纲目,参用具体的作品实例,诠释波澜壮阔的草原文明背景下的美术面貌,由一斑而略窥全豹。     

A Metrical Analysis of a Collection of Modern Goats (Capra hircus aegargus and C. h. hircus) from Iran and Iraq: Implications for the Study of Caprine Domestication

A critical comparison of two commonly used markers of initial animal domestication, size reduction and demographic profiling, is presented. A metrical analysis of a large collection of modern wild and domestic goats (Capra hircus aegargus and C. h. hircus) from Iran and Iraq clearly demonstrates that sex is by far the most significant factor affecting size in goats. In all post-cranial bones examined, those of males, even the unfused bones of males over 1 year of age, are absolutely larger than the bones of females. Region also plays a significant role in the size of these animals, but domestic status seems to have little impact. Similarly, a re-analysis of archaeological assemblages from Upland Sites the eastern fertile crescent shows no evidence of population-wide size reduction over a period that encompasses the transition from hunting to herding goats in the region, from the Middle Palaeolithic to the Early Neolithic. The apparent rapid reduction in the size of caprines during the early phases of domestication noted in earlier studies is likely attributable to a shift in the sex ratio of the adult breeding population of managed herds towards female domination, plus the differential destruction and loss of the bones of male animals killed at younger ages, as well as biases introduced by standard methodological practices. Building on the earlier work of Hesse, and using the empirical understanding of the factors influencing size in modern goats gained in this study, a new approach is proposed that combines both size and long-bone fusion data to construct high resolution, sex-specific age profiles of male and female goats that can be used to detect the hunting to herd management transition which marks the initial stages of the domestication process.     

Assessing the reliability of criteria used to identify postcranial bones in sheep, Ovis, and goats, Capra

Criteria developed to distinguish between selected postcranial elements of sheep and goats are evaluated using modern specimens from the collections of the Field Museum of Natural History, the National Museum of Natural History, and the Museum of Anthropology and the Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan. Elements considered are: the distal humerus, proximal and distal radius, distal tibia, distal metapodials, astragalus, calcaneus, and the first and second phalanx. This evaluation includes an assessment of 1385 elements from 49 goat and 84 modern sheep skeletons. It also includes a blind test on elements drawn from 20 specimens taken by six analysts with differing levels of experience. Overall, the criteria evaluated are highly reliable, especially in goats and only slightly less so in sheep. A major exception is the distal tibia, where diagnostic criteria tested proved substantially less reliable than other criteria evaluated here. Strongly positive results were also obtained when the sample was partitioned by sex, domestic status, and age. Results of the blind test show some variability depending on the level of experience of the analyst, underscoring the need for training and access to adequate modern reference collections before attempting to apply these criteria to archaeological assemblages. The results of this assessment stand in stark contrast to those obtained in an earlier assessment of the reliability of criteria used to distinguish between mandibles and mandibular teeth of sheep and goats. In all but a few teeth, dental criteria proved to be much less reliable, especially in goats. They were also significantly less reliable in the identification of both younger and older animals. Unlike dental criteria, there are no biases introduced by variable reliability of postcranial criteria that distort taxon-specific harvest profiles based on long-bones.     

建立我国草原生态环境补偿机制的政策建议

尽管草原退化的趋势逐年加剧,但在目前仍然存在着重林轻草,重政府投入,轻民间参与,重有形价值轻无形生态,重单项治理轻综合治理的倾向,草原生态系统加剧恶化的趋势在相当长地时间内还会作为一种常态存在,寻求长期的、社会多方参与利益共享的、生态生活生产同步的生态环境补偿机制已非常迫切。本文通过对我国草原退化现状和草原与森林生态价值的对比分析,提出了政策建议。     

Mitochondrial DNA Analysis of Ancient Domestic Goats in the Southern Caucasus: A Preliminary Result from Neolithic Settlements at Göytepe and Hacı Elamxanlı Tepe

This study presents preliminary results of mitochondrial DNA analyses of modern and ancient domestic goats in the southern Caucasus in order to examine their phylogenetic relationship with modern and ancient goats. For this purpose, seven ancient samples were obtained from two early agricultural villages in west Azerbaijan (Göytepe and Hacı Elamxanlı tepe, dated to ca. 6000–5500 cal bc , the Pottery Neolithic period), in addition to five modern goat samples in the same region. In the study, mitochondrial DNA segments of the control region (216 bp for the Neolithic samples and 481 bp for the modern samples) were amplified, and phylogenetic analyses were performed using previously published reference DNA sequences. As a result, all the haplotypes found in this study were grouped in the haplogroup A of goats. The finding of the haplogroup A among domestic goats in the southern Caucasus in the early sixth millennium bc can be interpreted as part of the geographic expansion of this lineage from the areas of initial domestication to surrounding areas that include also South and Southeast Europe. In the southern Caucasus, the haplogroup A probably continued to be a major lineage among domestic goats since their emergence in this area to the present. In contrast, this lineage has not been detected among local wild goats including Capra aegagrus , indicating the external origin of domestic goats. This possibility is consistent with archaeological records that indicate sudden appearance of agricultural lifeways in the southern Caucasus and cultural connections with northern Mesopotamia. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

‘Burning Back with the Snow’: Traditional Approaches to Grassland Management in Tasmania

High altitude grasslands in northwestern Tasmania respond positively to periodic disturbance through grazing and burning. The major issue in considering the value of these activities as management tools, how-ever, is understanding their dynamics. Too much or too little disturbance may create adverse impacts. Yet, many of the most diverse grasslands have long traditions of active management by Tasmanians for hunting and grazing. Interviews with a number of these graziers and hunters reveal the existence of a coherent system of grassland management which has been applied for generations. These traditional management techniques may well derive from traditional Aboriginal methods and have considerable value for modern grassland management.     

Goats (Capra hircus), the Khoekhoen and Pastoralism: Current Evidence from Southern Africa

The current archaeological evidence for the presence of goats among herder societies in southern Africa is reviewed. Presumably, the Khoekhoen obtained goats from Bantu-speaking farmers, but the exact timing of diffusion is still unknown. Archaeological evidence for the presence of goats in the Western Cape remains, to date, elusive, despite historical reference to goats. It is very often impossible to distinguish sheep from goat based on fragmentary archaeological remains such as those commonly found in southern Africa. Intrinsic physiological characteristics make goats suitable farm animals, and they may commonly have acted as sheep-leaders during prehistoric times, a practice noted amongst the Khoekhoen during the early part of the 19th century. Acting as sheep-leaders might have required herders to deliberately keep goat numbers low. There are few depictions of goats in southern African rock art. Résume La preuve archéologique actuelle pour la présence de chèvres parmi les sociétés de berger dans Afrique méridionale est réexaminée. Vraisemblablement, le Khoekhoen a obtenu des chèvres de fermiers parlant Bantu, mais le moment exact de diffusion est toujours inconnu. La preuve archéologique pour la présence de chèvres dans les restes de Cap de l’ouest, dater, insaisissable, malgré la référence historique aux chèvres. C’est très souvent impossible de distinguer le mouton de la chèvre basée sur les restes archéologiques fragmentaires tels que ces ordinairement trouvé dans Afrique méridionale. Les caractéristiques physiologiques intrinsèques font des chèvres les animaux de ferme convenables, et ils ont pu servir ordinairement des mouton-dirigeants pendant les temps préhistoriques, une pratique réputée parmi le Khoekhoen pendant la première partie du 19e siècle. Servir des mouton-dirigeants pourrait avoir exigé que les bergers aient exprès gardé le niveau bas de nombres de chèvre. Il y a peu de représentations de chèvres dans l’art de rocher Africain méridional.     

Patterns of pastoralism in later Bronze Age Kazakhstan: new evidence from faunal and lipid residue analyses

Current research themes relating to prehistoric Central Asian pastoralism are discussed, and the Neolithic to Bronze archaeological sequence in Kazakhstan is briefly outlined. The results of new faunal analyses of six later Bronze Age sites in Central and Northern Kazakhstan are presented. These studies are based upon the analysis of 63,529 bone fragments, of which 27,023 were identifiable to species and element. These assemblages are compared with 16 other sites in Central and Northern Kazakhstan, and the Trans-Ural region. The herd structures at the final Bronze Age site of Kent are discussed in detail. Analyses of absorbed lipid residues from four sites are also presented. In total, 140 pottery sherds were analysed, of which 73 provided sufficient residues for stable isotope ratio determinations. It is concluded that species proportions are highly variable regionally. Cattle are most prevalent in the forest steppe zone, whilst caprines become more common in semi-arid steppe regions. Proportions of horse are particularly variable, even within environmentally similar areas. Lipid residue results indicate the high prevalence of ruminant dairy products in pottery vessels, whilst faunal data from Kent suggests that cattle husbandry might have been particularly focussed on milk, in comparison with sheep and goats. The significance of horses within prehistoric pastoralism is discussed.     

New Evidence of the Purple‐Dye Industry at Tel Shiqmona,Israel

Pottery sherds stained with purple dye were found in the excavations at Tel Shiqmona, and were dated to the Iron Age II period. Analysis by HPLC‐DAD identified the dye as ‘true purple’, derived from the Hexaplex trunculus sea snail, which is associated with the purple‐dye industry that flourished in the coastal area at that time. This result is compatible with the classification of over 1000 Muricidae shells that were found in the excavation. Hexaplex trunculus constitutes 80% of this group, indicating that it was the most commonly used species in the dye production at Tel Shiqmona.     

“北胡”“西域”盐色与丝路交通地理

汉代以来盐史记忆中已经可以看到中原人对远方奇异盐产的印象。多处盐产地盐的异样色彩,与内地以往经济生产与饮食生活中的观察体会及消费经验有所不同。关于宿沙氏“煮海”传说盐色“五样”的情节,学者以为“异闻”。许多文献资料可见所谓“紫盐”“青盐”“黄盐”“赤盐”“黑盐”等记录。这些对于远方盐色的体会,是以长途交通实践为发现条件的。而早期丝绸之路史的记录,与相关盐史迹象存在某种关联。这一情形,值得交通地理与文化交流史研究者关注。