Trends in pig product processing at British Neolithic Grooved Ware sites traced through organic residues in potsherds

Gas chromatography (GC), GC-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and GC-combustion-isotope ratio MS (GC-C-IRMS) analyses of absorbed and surface lipid residues preserved in potsherds were used to explore the extent of pig product processing exploitation in the later British Neolithic Grooved Ware tradition. Assessments were made regarding whether porcine lipids were associated with specific Grooved Ware traits, i.e. decoration, substyle, geographical area and type of site. Two hundred and twenty-two Grooved Ware potsherds were analysed, 70% of which contained lipid concentrations considered significant (>5 μg g⁻¹). All the lipid residues were dominated by animal fats, although plant and beeswax were also detected in a small number of extracts. δ¹³C values of the major fatty acid components of degraded animal fats (C_16:0 and C_18:0) were determined for 126 extracts and used to assign ruminant or porcine origins to the residues; 16% of these were found to have a predominantly porcine isotope signature. Statistical associations with pig exploitation were shown to exist with substyle, geographical area and site type, whereas, no relationship was seen between decoration and the type of commodity processed. Intact triacylglycerols were preserved in 19% of the sherds; half of these had distributions consistent with the identifications based on δ¹³C values, the remainder differed either due to the presence of mixed commodities or because lower molecular weight homologues had been lost due to degradation. In addition to the detection of pig exploitation, results from lipid residue analysis showed a good correlation with faunal assemblages, suggesting that stable isotope analysis may be used as a proxy for animal exploitation at sites where bones have not survived.     

A stable isotope method for identifying transatlantic origin of pig (Sus scrofa) remains at French and English fishing stations in Newfoundland

From the 16th century onward, various European nations shared fishing spaces off the coast of Newfoundland in an effort to provide salt-fish products to supplement increasing European demand. Faunal remains excavated at seasonal and permanent Newfoundland fishing stations indicate that pigs were the primary mammal species consumed by cod fishermen. It is not clear whether these pig remains derive from salt pork and/or live pigs imported from Europe or, rather, from pigs bred and raised in Newfoundland. Based on the notion that Newfoundland-raised pigs would have had greater access to marine-derived foods from nearby fisheries compared to their European-raised counterparts, we analyzed stable carbon and nitrogen isotope values from 28 pigs and 117 other faunal specimens from Dos de Cheval (EfAx-09) and Ferryland (CgAf-02) in order to identify individuals with marine or terrestrial isotope dietary signatures. Results indicating two distinct groups of pigs with mean δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N values differing by ∼6‰ and ∼9‰, respectively, suggest differing pig-product origins at each site. This method for identifying the transatlantic origin of pig remains has potential to shed light on patterns in the provisioning of the early European transatlantic fishing industry and inter-community relations. It may also allow for the development of more sophisticated body part representation models for zooarchaeological reconstruction of barreled salt pork use.     

The use of strontium isotopes as an indicator of migration in human and pig Lapita populations in the Bismarck Archipelago,Papua New Guinea

This paper examines the potential use of strontium isotopes (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr) for identifying migration within Lapita populations and their commensal animals, specifically the pig (Sus scrofa). Lapita people (ca. 3300–2200 BP) were the initial colonists of the island groups to the east of the Solomon Islands, spreading from Papua New Guinea to Tonga and Samoa within a few centuries. Mobility is assumed to have been an important mechanism for maintaining cultural solidarity between Lapita communities. It has been previously argued that Lapita populations became progressively more sedentary over time after the initial colonising events. Two Lapita sites, Kamgot and Balbalankin, from the Anir Islands in the Bismarck Archipelago are included in the analysis and fall within the Early (ca. 3300–3000/2900 BP) and Middle (ca. 3000/2900–2700 BP) Lapita periods respectively.