HONEY AND DRIPPING: NEOLITHIC FOOD RESIDUES FROM RUNNYMEDE BRIDGE

Summary. This paper illustrates the prospects for a fuller understanding of ancient foodstuffs by applying a range of analytical techniques to charred food residues on pottery. The relevant techniques of organic chemistry are briefly described. First results on Neolithic material from Runnymede stand amongst few for prehistoric Europe. They demonstrate the potential importance of such analyses both in redressing imbalances present at the site level and in opening wider issues, such as the functions attached to particular pot forms. The identification of beeswax in a British Neolithic context prompts an enquiry into the nature of early bee management and the suggestion that 'forest beekeeping'may have been widespread in temperate Neolithic Europe.