Let them eat cake? Status-based differences in diet in medieval Denmark

The goal of this research is to explore status-based differences in diet of the peasants, monks and elites interred at the medieval Cistercian monastery of Øm Kloster. In order to accomplish this task bone samples were taken from 98 individuals from the monastery for the stable isotopic analysis of carbon and nitrogen found in both bone collagen and apatite. Significant differences were found in the diet of these three groups. Elites demonstrated significantly enriched δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C values and had the smallest δ¹³C_coll-ap spacing in comparison to the peasant and monastic population. Although there were no changes in the diet of the elite or peasant population through time, the monastic diet shifted from resembling the diet of the peasant population early in the period to more closely matching that of the elites at the close of the period, although small sample size precluded the significance testing of this shift. This research suggests that social status played a considerable role in the types and quantity of food resources available to a given individual in society and that there were some socially based differences in the medieval Danish diet.     

Lidar mapping and surface survey of the Izapa state on the tropical piedmont of Chiapas,Mexico

Recent lidar and pedestrian surface surveys have remapped the well-known Mesoamerican site of Izapa and the surrounding Soconusco piedmont. These data document: 1) occupation from the surrounding piedmont environment, 2) significantly larger estimates of the site's size during both the Formative and Classic periods as well as 3) new architectural features from the monumental site core. Methodological issues are outlined for combining high precision lidar mapping with ground truthing and pedestrian survey that focuses on surface collection of temporally diagnostic artifacts. Results are presented for 670 mounds documented in an area of 43.1 sq km in and around the ancient capital of Izapa.     

Settlement structures and cemetery at Wadi Shab-GAS1, Sultanate of Oman: Report on the 2002 and 2003 field seasons

Many chronological and cultural facets of Early and Middle Holocene Prehistoric Oman are still unclear. Archaeological excavations of settlements and cemeteries are adding new data to the reconstruction of a chronological and cultural framework. Wadi Shab-GAS1 is a Middle Holocene site found at the beginning of the 1980s and later destroyed by urbanisation. It is located in a rich environmental niche, on a cliff facing the sea and near a permanent freshwater source. Three years of fieldwork at this site brought to light structural remains, a cemetery and interesting material culture.     

论中世纪英格兰庄园的运输役

中世纪英格兰运输役起源于庄园领主的物资供应需求,随着12、13世纪市场的激增以及运输条件的改善,市场型运输役逐渐普及。运输役一般由农民上层承担,其运输距离、目的地、运输种类等都受习俗制约。运输役衰落的原因主要有直营领地的衰落、运输的专职化以及私下交易的流行。运输役的兴衰与中世纪英格兰市场培育密切相关,是市场已有一定发育但还不太成熟的产物。     

Avorio d'ogni ragione: the supply of elephant ivory to northern Europe in the Gothic era

This article accounts for the hitherto unexplained increase in the availability of ivory in mid-thirteenth-century France through an alteration in the medieval trade routes that brought elephant tusks from Africa to northern Europe. A newly-opened passage through the Straits of Gibraltar allowed a small amount of luxury goods to be shipped together with bulk materials necessary to the flourishing textile industries of northern Europe.