Plant remains and amphorae from the Roman harbour under Flacius Street in Pula (Istria,Croatia)

The aim of this archaeobotanical and archaeological research is to expand knowledge about Roman diet and plant cultivation in Istria and to compare it with similar localities on the Eastern Adriatic coast. We have also tried to find some new information about maritime trade routes in the Mediterranean area in ancient times. Out of 27 samples collected from an excavated Roman port in Flacius Street in Pula, in total, 9809 plant macrofossils were recovered, identified and analysed. The results of the analysis show that most of the plant remains belong to the group of fruit trees and nuts. The most abundant are the remains of Ficus carica, Pinus pinea, Vitis vinifera subsp. vinifera, Rubus fruticosus agg. and Olea europaea subsp. europaea. These are all species that are widespread in the Mediterranean area and have likely always been consumed by the local population. The number of ruderal and weed species found is relatively high (31) in comparison with other plant categories (fruit trees and nuts; fruit collected from the wild; cereals; condiments; oil crops; vegetables and tubers; plants of fresh water environments; elements of maquis), but as they came to the site accidentally and not by targeted human activity, there are far fewer macrofossils of such plants than those of cultivated species. There were a few elements of evergreen forest vegetation and plants of aquatic habitats at the site (2 + 1), which suggests the existence of this type of vegetation in the area of the site in Roman times. Archaeobotanical comparisons of the site in Flacius Street with similar coastal Roman sites—Verige Bay on Veli Brijuni (first-fifth century ad), the port of Zaton near Nin (first-third century ad) and Caska Bay on the island of Pag (first and second century ad)—reveal considerable similarities, confirming the uniformity in nutrition and plant growth in the wider coastal area. Together with the two Roman ships, during the archaeological excavations of the Roman harbour and its layers, we collected over 2000 different archaeological artefacts out of which a large number was almost perfectly preserved. Some of the mentioned artefacts include ceramic amphorae, ceramic table- and kitchenware, ceramic lamps, different usable objects made of glass, wooden use objects, parts of ship’s equipment and other wooden tools, architecture elements from the nearby port as well as residential structures and remains of stone monuments. Because of the large amount of artefacts found at the site, the analysis of the artefacts and data processing are still in progress. As a contribution for recognizing organic remains, we isolated the amphorae whose purpose was the storage and maritime transportation of different food products and ingredients.     

The chert abundance ratio (CAR): a new parameter for interpreting Palaeolithic raw material procurement

Raw material provenance and procurement studies are an essential research line to infer landscape exploitation, mobility dynamics and territorial management among prehistoric hunter-gatherer groups. This paper proposes an original and intuitive method, the chert abundance ratio, aimed at quantifying lithic resource occurrence in the landscape while considering the geological natural factors of an area (chert-bearing formation extent, thickness, occurrence index, size and chert content). The resource availability can be statistically compared to any archaeological assemblage distribution to define the procurement strategies, whether generalist or selective, and the mobility patterns. The study area, the north-east of the Iberian Peninsula, focused in the Prades Mountains, represents a regional scenario with high chert disposal shared by several Late Upper Palaeolithic occupations. The discrimination of the procurement areas is used as a parameter for outlining the foraging radius and the territorial range, contributing to an understanding of several aspects of the settlement, such as site functions, occupation length or intensity and group size.     

Probabilistic models of seasonal <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bison</Emphasis> exploitation based on fetal prey osteometry and reproductive phenology

Seasonality studies are a staple of Great Plains archaeology, but obtaining evidence for seasonal food procurement is challenging. This study explores seasonality through the lens of fetal bison remains. A method is developed that produces intra-annual probability distributions for the date of fetal death. These distributions are informed by osteometric data from fetal bison in archaeological contexts, fetal skeletal growth curves, and data-driven models of bison conception dates. Probabilities can be assigned to seasonality hypotheses by examining date intervals across these intra-annual distributions. This method is implemented through an R program and applied to seasonality hypotheses at three archaeological sites containing fetal bison remains: Big Goose Creek (Wyoming), Baker Cave III (Idaho), and the Upper Tucker Site (Texas). Unlike previous efforts to infer seasonality from fetal bison remains, this method provides explicit probabilities showing the level of agreement between the osteometric data and seasonality hypotheses. This probabilistic approach could be extended to seasonality studies involving other animal taxa both within and outside of North America.     

Agriculture and exploitation of wild plants at Chalcolithic (4th to 3rd millennium cal BC) sites in Sardinia (Italy)

This paper present the results of archaeobotanical analysis carried out at two open-air sites dated to the first phase of the Copper Age, “Chalcolithic” (4th to 3rd millennium cal BC) in Sardinia. The sediment was systematically floated, a total of 3142 l was sampled and 4014 charred plant remains were identified. Chalcolithic agriculture in Sardinia was primarily based on the cultivation of Hordeum vulgare, H. vulgare var. nudum and Triticum aestivum/durum. Possible cultivated legumes of Vicia/Lathyrus, Vicia/Pisum and cf. Pisum sativum were identified. Linum sp. was also present, which may have been cultivated and exploited in Sardinia by the Chalcolithic community. The diet of the Chalcolithic community was complemented by the consumption of edible fruits such as Ficus carica, Sambucus sp. and Vitis vinifera subsp. sylvestris. Typical Mediterranean shrubs such as Pistacia lentiscus, Juniperus sp., Cistus sp., Malva sp. and Thymelaea hirsuta were also found.     

Extracting residues from stone tools for optical analysis: towards an experiment-based protocol

The identification of residues is traditionally based on the distinctive morphologies of the residue fragments by means of light microscopy. Most residue fragments are amorphous, in the sense that they lack distinguishing shapes or easily visible structures under reflected light microscopy. Amorphous residues can only be identified by using transmitted light microscopy, which requires the extraction of residues from the tool’s surface. Residues are usually extracted with a pipette or an ultrasonic bath in combination with distilled water. However, a number of researchers avoid residue extraction because it is unclear whether current extraction techniques are representative for the use-related residue that adheres to a flaked stone tool. In this paper, we aim at resolving these methodological uncertainties by critically evaluating current extraction methodologies. Attention is focused on the variation in residue types, their causes of deposition and their adhesion and on the most successful technique for extracting a range of residue types from the stone tool surface. Based on an experimental reference sample in flint, we argue that a stepwise extraction protocol is most successful in providing representative residue extractions and in preventing damage, destruction or loss of residue.     

Mitochondrial DNA diversity in a Transbaikalian Xiongnu population

Xiongnu was a confederation of nomadic pastoral tribes (~200 bc–100 ad) that founded the first nomadic empire in Central Asia. According to archeological and historical data, the tribes played a key role in ethnic and cultural processes in Central Asia and adjacent regions of Eurasia. Genetic studies of the Xiongnu published to date have focused on remains from burial grounds in present-day Mongolia, in the southern part of the ancient Xiongnu area. However, paleoanthropological materials from numerous Xiongnu cemeteries and settlements in Transbaikalia (the southern region of Eastern Siberia, Russia) in the northern part of the Xiongnu Empire have not been examined genetically. Here, we analyzed mitochondrial DNA variation in a Transbaikalian Xiongnu population based on ancient DNA obtained from skeletal remains (n = 18) at four burial grounds to complement available Xiongnu genetic diversity data. We detected 16 mitochondrial DNA haplotypes belonging to seven East Eurasian haplogroups (A, B5, C, D4, G2a, N9a, and Y) in the Transbaikalian Xiongnu series. We observed substantial similarity between Transbaikalian and Mongolian Xiongnu series with respect to main haplogroup composition and frequencies. We observed several mitochondrial DNA clusters (N9a, Y, B5, and A16) and 11 of 16 haplotypes that were previously undetected in the Xiongnu gene pool. We also observed high similarity between the Xiongnu and contemporary indigenous populations of eastern Central Asia, particularly Mongolian-speaking groups. These findings extend our knowledge of Xiongnu genetic diversity.     

Excavations of ironware of the third–fifth century from Marvele necropolis (Lithuania)

This study presents the overview of ironware excavations of the third–fifth century demolished tombs from Marvele necropolis. Three axes, four spearheads, two knives and a clasp were excavated in 2006. Afterwards, a metallographic and chemical analysis as well as mechanical properties of artefacts, also metallurgical slag, clinkers and iron concretions found in the surroundings of tombs were tested and presented in this article. General tests were executed in order to compare results with other archaeological and scientific researches. Metallographic analysis and hardness tests’ results revealed that axes were forged from two separate billets of iron, whilst spearheads and knives from one. The results of chemical analysis have affirmed earlier results of other Lithuanian archaeological sites. Although some differences in chemical composition were observed, this fact shows possible not local origin of some ironware.     

Why does (archaeological) micromorphology have such little traction in (geo)archaeology?

Archaeological deposits are often complex and illustrative of an intricate interplay between geogenic and anthropogenic inputs and formation processes. Even for those archaeologists—particularly prehistorians—who consider the basic principles of natural stratigraphy to excavate their sites, they nonetheless typically underutilize the observations and data available at the microstratigraphic level. The technique of soil micromorphology—or archaeological micromorphology as referred to throughout this paper—has seen an astounding increase in its use to answer archaeological questions and archaeological sediments in the last decades. However, we consider that this tool is still quite underutilized and not as mainstream as other techniques. In this paper, we briefly reflect on what can be some of the causes underlying this situation and how we (that is, both producers and consumers of micromorphology data) can go about to change it. The main idea is that we need to establish a better and more approachable way to present micromorphological results and be better at integrating them with the macroscopic archaeological data and research questions.     

Considering the effects of the Byzantine–Islamic transition: Umayyad glass tesserae and vessels from the <Emphasis Type="Italic">qasr</Emphasis> of Khirbet al-Mafjar (Jericho,Palestine)

The paper reports and discusses data obtained by archaeological and archaeometric studies of glass vessels and tesserae from the qasr of Khirbet al-Mafjar (near Jericho, Palestine). Archaeological contextualisation of the site and chrono-typological study of glass vessels were associated to EPMA and LA–ICP–MS analyses, performed to characterise the composition of the glassy matrix (major and minor components as well as trace elements). Analyses allowed achieving meaningful and intriguing results, which gain insights into the production and consumption of glass vessels and tesserae in the near East during the Umayyad period (seventh–eighth centuries). Within the analysed samples, both an Egyptian and a Levantine manufacture have been identified: such data provide evidence of a double supply of glass from Egypt and the Syro-Palestinian coast in the Umayyad period occurring not only in the glassware manufacture but also in the production of base glass intended to be used in the manufacture of mosaic tesserae. Thus, the achieved results represent the first material evidence of a non-exclusive gathering of glass tesserae from Byzantium and the Byzantines in the manufacture of early Islamic mosaics.     

Red deer (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Cervus elaphus</Emphasis>) skeleton from the Early Bronze Age pit at Brandýs (Czech Republic)

The finding of a male red deer (Cervus elaphus L.) skeleton at Brandýs nad Labem (Central Bohemia, Czech Republic) dated to the Únětice culture (Early Bronze Age), radiocarbon dated to 1881–1679 cal BC (P 93 %), unique in the region, was analysed archaeozoologically. The depositing of a whole, unbutchered and entirely undamaged, but curled up body of a stag in a relatively small pit dug into the bottom of a large storage pit undoubtedly had some kind of special meaning or significance. It is interpreted as the burial of a ritually sacrificed beast. The deer male aged 2.5–3 years, with a withers height ca 129 cm, was in good health and had well-developed antlers. The stag most probably died between January and April, probably more towards the spring, but exactly how it died is unclear. The ritual appears to have been quite complex since it included a fire at the bottom of the storage pit. Deposition in a place designed for storage could suggest a ceremony relating to a sacrifice for prosperity and a good harvest. Despite a lack of evidence for the use of deer in rituals and the symbolic sphere during the Bronze Age, deer burials and the symbolic significance of the stag are known from other archaeological cultures and ethnicities. Interestingly, the entire foreleg of a younger red deer (aged 4–7 months), an isolated humerus of another young fawn (0.5–2 months) and the remains of two dog puppies (3.5–4.5 months) were present in upper horizons of the storage pit, which could also have a special meaning.