Micromorphological Study of Concotto Surfaces Protected by the Avellino Eruption in 3945 ± 10 cal. BP at the Early Bronze Age of Afragola Village in Southern Italy

ABSTRACT

The term Concotto refers to fragments or patches of hard heated clay that derive from living surfaces, walls, and ovens. Concotto fragments are found throughout the Italian peninsula and date from the Neolithic to the Iron Age. Current studies express contradictory opinions about whether or not the Concottos on living surfaces represent intentionally constructed surfaces or the secondary products of the contact between hot embers and sediments. This study uses micromorphological analysis to investigate the function and composition of Concotto surfaces from several domestic structures at the Early Bronze Age village of Afragola in southern Italy. Afragola is an exceptionally preserved agricultural village that was covered by almost 1?m of volcanic ash during the Vesuvius eruption in 3945?±?10 cal. BP. The Concottos at Afragola are hard, red surfaces that are typically associated with burned materials. Micromorphological analysis reveals that the Concottos were intentionally made by laying down patches of clay and then heating them to create a hard, flat surface. This study explores the potential uses of the Concotto as cooking surfaces during the Early Bronze Age of southern Italy.     

Hierarchical tendencies and functional patterns among Mainland China’s megaregions

This paper presents an empirical analysis of hierarchical tendencies and functional patterns in the development of Mainland China’s space-economy by operationalizing the concept of “megaregions.” Drawing on the burgeoning literature on megaregions, we first argue that under conditions of economic globalization the megaregion concept does indeed present an effective tool to study the spatial agglomeration of the key components of China’s economic development. Second, we analyze the development status and the key functional characteristics of 16 prospective Chinese megaregions by constructing an index system consisting of 5 functions and 36 indicators. Third, we calculate an entropy index to rank megaregions according to their overall development status and reveal functional differences by applying cluster analysis. We find that the Yangtze River Delta, Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei Metropolitan Area, and the Pearl River Delta stand out, identify different varieties of megaregions according to their dominant functional characteristics, and explore the main policy dimensions of the persistent west–east divides observed. The paper is concluded with a discussion of potential avenues for future research.     

Revealing the Monastic Kitchen: Chemical Analysis of the Soil Inside the Monastery of Cornellana (North‐West Spain)

The residues deposited on the floor of the kitchen of the monastery of Cornellana (Asturias, Spain), while it was still in use in the 18th century, have been analysed using different techniques, including the Kjeldahl method, phenol – sulphuric acid assay, FT–IR, SEM–EDX and LOI. This has allowed us to determine the areas of concentration of proteins, carbohydrates, fatty acids, phosphorus and carbonates, and thus approach the interpretation of the layout of the different areas of activity related to the treatment and cooking of foodstuffs in the kitchen. In any case, and regardless of the fact that this is the first time that these techniques have been applied to study a monastic kitchen in the Iberian Peninsula, the aim of this research is to demonstrate their applicability to other case studies of this integrated set of analytical techniques, some of which are not used very often in the analysis of concentrations of residues and analysis of areas of activity on archaeological soils.     

Daily urban systems explained from the household perspective: an exploratory research on how the spatial interactions of the individual households shape the structure of daily urban systems

The concept of the Daily Urban System (DUS) has gained relevance over the past decades as the entity to examine and explain the functionality of the urban landscape. Daily Urban Systems are usually defined and measured by the strength of commuter or shopper flows between the nodes of the system. It is important to realize that these Daily Urban Systems are the accumulated pattern of individuals making frequent, recurring trips to other localities than their own. Understanding the microeconomic decisions behind these spatial interactions will help in assessing the functional and spatial structure of DUS. In this paper is explored how, based on Dutch empirical data, the individual household’s spatial interactions shape the daily urban system and how the destination of these interactions correlates with personal and spatial variables and motives for interaction. The results show that the occurrence of non-local spatial interactions can be explained by the size-based Christallerian hierarchy of the localities of residence, but that it is the regional population – or market potential – that explains and moderates the sorting of households and the intensity and direction of their spatial interactions in the DUS, matching agglomeration theory.     

On Narco‐coyotaje: Illicit Regimes and Their Impacts on the US–Mexico Border

Many have debated whether or not human smugglers, known as coyotes, are involved with drug trafficking organizations. Scholars have largely rejected so‐called “narcocoyotaje”, however; we hope to problematize this narrative by adding a new theoretical layer to the discussion. Namely, we explore the ways in which different criminal activities produce hierarchies and control illicit activities within the clandestine geography of the US–Mexico border. These “illicit regimes” operate against the State, creating a hierarchy that dominates other illicit activities in order to maximize profit, avoid detection and consolidate power. While other studies have explored the relationships between the State and illicit practices this article takes the relationship between two illicit industries as its object of study. Doing so will help us move past the simply binary question about whether or not coyotes are involved with drug cartels, and allows us to understand what is being produced by this relationship, and its consequences for everyone involved.     

SHIFTING SETTLEMENT PATTERNS IN THE SOUTHERN JORDAN VALLEY AND DESERT FRINGES OF SAMARIA DURING THE EARLY BRONZE AGE I PERIOD

Abstract

This study deals with the unprecedented settlement activity during the Early Bronze Age I that has been recently recorded in the Jordan Valley and the desert fringes of Samaria. The increase in the number of sites primarily characterises the latter part of the period (Early Bronze Age IB), and is accompanied by two other important phenomena: population inroads into new regions, and the first appearance of fortified sites. A profound crisis at the end of the period resulted in the almost complete abandonment of the valley sites and the concentration of settlement along the eastern foothills of Samaria.     

The fruits of migration: Understanding the ‘longue dureé’ and the socio-economic relations of the Early Transcaucasian Culture

The appearance of the Early Transcaucasian Culture (ETC) across large portions of the Near East in the 3rd millennium BC is commonly cited as one of the best archaeologically documented and broadly studied cases of a prehistoric migration. This study uses the ETC to develop a model of what happens when migrants move into regions that are already inhabited by emerging or complex societies. In particular, this study focuses on how immigrant populations can integrate themselves into indigenous communities in a physical, socio-political and economic sense, and how a migrant group’s identity can be constructed and maintained alongside these indigenous communities.     

Pollen and non-pollen palynomorphs in organic residue from the hoard of ancient Vani (western Georgia)

An investigation of pollen and non-pollen palynomorphs in the organic material in bronze objects found in Vani provides evidence that, in the first half of the first century BC, the climate of the area was cooler and much more humid than nowadays. The local population was engaged in cattle-breeding and agriculture, and both viticulture and horticulture were also well developed. The analysis of the contents of an oil lamp showed that the lamp was in use for a long time and was filled with flax oil. Large pieces of beeswax found in the hoard provide evidence of the existence of local bronze-casting industry. The palynological studies of the recent and fossil soil of Vani have shown that only in soil spectra large quantities of spores of various fungi were found, which distinguishes them from the domestic dust spectra. On the basis of this argument it was established that most part of the studied fossil material is not contaminated by the soil where the hoard of bronze objects was buried.     

Nursing mothers and feeding bottles: reconstructing breastfeeding and weaning patterns in Greek Byzantine populations (6th–15th centuries AD) using carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios

Traditionally, documentary evidence (mainly medical works and the vitae and miracles of saints) served as the primary source of information for perinatal nutrition in the Byzantine era. In the last decade, however, stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratio analysis has also been applied for the reconstruction of Byzantine breastfeeding and weaning practices. This paper reviews the documentary evidence for Byzantine weaning and compares it to isotopic data for eight Greek Byzantine skeletal samples from the sites of Eleutherna, Kastella, Messene, Sourtara, Stylos, Nemea, Petras and Servia (6th–15th centuries AD). The documentary evidence suggests that Byzantine children were weaned at a relatively late age. The age patterning of the stable isotope data is not as clear as normally seen at single sites. However, the presence of a higher proportion of elevated values in juveniles aged three years or less suggests that weaning was completed by the fourth year—a pattern consistent with the written sources. The data available from this study allow us to make some tentative suggestions about cultural and temporal differences in weaning, and to recommend directions for further research. A comparison of the Byzantine data presented here to data published for Roman-era sites from the Mediterranean and Western Europe suggests that the Byzantines maintained a Roman-era practice of relatively late weaning. In contrast, medieval data for Western Europe and the few measurements made on post-Byzantine Greek material suggest more variation, with some groups weaning late and others weaning earlier, by two years of age.