News

Publication date: October 2016Source:Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 74 Author(s): Jacqueline Pitt, Phillipa K. Gillingham, Mark Maltby, John R. StewartIntroduced into Europe during the Bronze- and Iron Ages as an exotic, non-native species, very little is currently understood about the origins and spread of early domestic fowl, Gallus gallus domesticus. Ecological niche modelling of extant Red Junglefowl, Gallus gallus, presents a unique opportunity to examine historical ecological implications associated with its descendant, the chicken, in early stages of domestication. We model the environmental conditions associated with Red Junglefowl populations both in south-east Asia, where the bird originates, and populations transported further afield as a consequence of human interaction. This allows us to establish the full extent of the ecological tolerance of the ancestor bird. We show that potential for suitable sets of environmental conditions for Red Junglefowl in Europe ranges from poor to limited, based on both current climate and when projecting to mid-Holocene (ca. 4000BCE) climate simulations. This suggests that human intervention played a vital contribution during early domestication to ensure the future widespread success of the chicken. These conclusions offer new insights into the archaeological evidence. We identify areas in the native range as the probable location of first domestication, and not China as has been suggested. We suggest that a dispersal route into Europe via the Mediterranean offers the best ecological potential to aid survival for a recently domesticated version of this species. Identifying the environmental tolerances of Red Junglefowl may also aid future conservation of this species, now highly endangered in its true wild form.

Publication date: Available online 17 August 2016Source:Journal of Archaeological Science Author(s): Mike W. MorleyTropical Southeast Asia is a critically important region for addressing the major questions and grand challenges that concern us today regarding Late Pleistocene hominin dispersals across the Old World. Geoarchaeological science is widely employed in many regions of the world to contextualise archaeological material and provide an environmental backdrop against which to explore archaeological narratives. However, in Southeast Asia there is an apparent lag in the routine use of this Earth-Science approach despite the abundance of archaeological sites important in explicating past hominin dispersals to and from the region. In this review of the state-of-the-art of geoarchaeological research in Southeast Asia, I examine the role of the discipline in addressing the important issues in archaeology today. I identify where geoarchaeology is being used and to what effect, highlighting gaps in the geoarchaeological dataset. From a methodological point of view it is imperative that archaeologists and geoarchaeologists working in Southeast Asia (and other humid tropical regions of the world) fully appreciate how to interpret the geoarchaeological signatures associated with this climate regime so that methods and practice can be refined. A series of steps that will serve to drive forward geoarchaeological research in the region are also proposed.

Publication date: Available online 17 August 2016Source:Journal of Archaeological Science Author(s): Mike W. MorleyTropical Southeast Asia is a critically important region for addressing the major questions and grand challenges that concern us today regarding Late Pleistocene hominin dispersals across the Old World. Geoarchaeological science is widely employed in many regions of the world to contextualise archaeological material and provide an environmental backdrop against which to explore archaeological narratives. However, in Southeast Asia there is an apparent lag in the routine use of this Earth-Science approach despite the abundance of archaeological sites important in explicating past hominin dispersals to and from the region. In this review of the state-of-the-art of geoarchaeological research in Southeast Asia, I examine the role of the discipline in addressing the important issues in archaeology today. I identify where geoarchaeology is being used and to what effect, highlighting gaps in the geoarchaeological dataset. From a methodological point of view it is imperative that archaeologists and geoarchaeologists working in Southeast Asia (and other humid tropical regions of the world) fully appreciate how to interpret the geoarchaeological signatures associated with this climate regime so that methods and practice can be refined. A series of steps that will serve to drive forward geoarchaeological research in the region are also proposed.

Publication date: Available online 16 August 2016Source:Journal of Archaeological Science Author(s): D. Cuenca-Solana, I. Gutiérrez-Zugasti, A. Ruiz-Redondo, M.R. González-Morales, J. Setién, E. Ruiz-Martínez, E. Palacio-Pérez, C. de las Heras-Martín, A. Prada-Freixedo, J.A. Lasheras-CorruchagaMuch of our knowledge of the symbolic world of Upper Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers is based on the study of the graphic representations found in Western European caves. However, to date, few studies have been conducted on rock art apart from chronological and stylistic characterisation. Altamira Cave (northern Iberia) is characterised by an outstanding rock art ensemble, whose representations cover practically the whole Upper Palaeolithic. The site is equally important for the rich Upper Palaeolithic deposits in the cave entrance, which contain large shell assemblages. Traditionally, the presence of shells in hunter-fisher-gatherer settlements has been interpreted as part of the diet and/or the symbolic world (through the creation of ornaments) of these groups, regardless of their possible use as an instrument. In this paper we utilise use-wear methodology, chemical analysis and analytical experimentation to verify the initial hypothesis that shells in the archaeological deposits of Altamira were used to obtain the ochre powder utilised to produce the magnificent and diverse rock art ensemble in the cave. The results provide new information on the process of obtaining pigments for the realisation of paintings and confirm that the use of shells to obtain ochre was a systematic activity throughout the whole study period. Finally, our conclusions support the explanatory model that highlights the role played by marine resources for Upper Palaeolithic human populations.

Publication date: September 2016Source:Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 73 Author(s): Justin Pargeter, John Shea, Benjamin UttingThe invention of the bow and arrow was a milestone in Late Pleistocene technological evolution. Preservation biases and methodological problems imped our ability to detect its presence in the archaeological record. Currently, South Africa has the earliest suggested evidence for arrowheads, amongst others, small quartz backed tools dating 65–60 ka. These artefacts’ inferred function is based on their small size, micro and macro wear traces and micro-residues recorded on quartz segments from Sibudu Cave. Experimental support for these inferences, or to show that similar artefacts are associated with bow hunting, are however lacking. Here we describe breakage patterns on 150 quartz backed tools hafted as transverse arrowheads and hand-cast spearheads in simulated hunting experiments. These experiments controlled for hafting variability to test the effects of propulsion velocity on the types, patterns and area of diagnostic impact fractures (DIFs). Our results show step terminating bending fracture, spin-off fracture and impactburination frequencies, DIF locations, and ventrally situated DIF frequencies to be robust means of distinguishing arrowheads from spearheads. Our experiments verify previous observations that overall DIF frequencies differentiate between these weapon types. Importantly, we confirm that DIF size is linked to weapon propulsion velocity, but that fracture area is affected by tool area. These findings provide methods for future testing of the hypothesis that bow and arrow technology was in use at least 65 ka in southern Africa and in other regions where quartz was used to tip weapons.

Publication date: September 2016Source:Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 73 Author(s): A.S. Sokolov, A.V. Nedoluzhko, E.S. Boulygina, S.V. Tsygankova, F.S. Sharko, N.M. Gruzdeva, A.V. Shishlov, A.V. Kolpakova, A.D. Rezepkin, K.G. Skryabin, E.B. ProkhortchoukThe North Caucasus region is rich in early Bronze Age sites, with burials yielding many artifacts, including those from the Chekon, Natukhaevskaya, Katusvina-Krivitsa kurgan groups (at Krasnodar Krai, Russia) and Klady kurgan (near Novosvobodnaya Village, Republic of Adygea, Russia). According to the mainstream archaeological hypothesis, these sites belong to the Maikop culture (3700–3000 years BC), with Novosvobodnaya communities representing an offshoot of Maikop ancestry. However, due to specific differences in Novosvobodnaya artifacts, the Maikop and Novosvobodnaya assemblages could represent two synchronous archaeological cultures living in almost sympatry but showing independent ancestry, from the Near East and Europe respectively. Here, we used target-enrichment together with high-throughput sequencing to characterize the complete mitochondrial sequence of three Maikop and three Novosvobodnaya individuals. We identified T2b, N1b1 and V7 haplogroups, all widely spread in Neolithic Europe. In addition, we identified the Paleolithic Eurasian U8b1a2 and M52 haplogroups, which are frequent in modern South Asia, particularly in modern India. Our data provide a deeper understanding of the diversity of Early Bronze Age North Caucasus communities and hypotheses of its origin. Analyzing non-human sequencing reads for microbial content, we found that one individual from the Klady kurgan was infected by the pathogen Brucella abortus that is responsible for zoonotic infections from cattle to humans. This finding is in agreement with Maikop/Novosvobodnaya livestock groups, mostly consisting of domestic pigs and cattle. This paper represents a first mitochondrial genome analysis of Maikop/Novosvobodnaya culture as well as the earliest brucellosis case in archaeological humans.

Publication date: June 2016Source:Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 70 Author(s): Gwenaëlle Goude, Michel FontugneStudies on Holocene periods in France and Liguria over the past 15 years provide an important isotopic database (δ13C and δ15N) on human and animal bone collagen during the Neolithic period (ca. 5500–3100 BC cal.; n = 573). The distribution of archaeological sites (n = 30) along a latitudinal transect from the Mediterranean to the Channel offers a broad data base reflecting a variety of environments and potential cultural practices. We propose a new insight into δ13C and δ15N data to understand the variability in both environment and human diet at the onset of farming. Statistical comparisons highlight significant geographical variation in both δ13C and δ15N ratios in most of the examined species and particularly in wild herbivores (Δ13C = 3.8‰; Δ15N = 8.5‰). Higher δ15N and lower δ13C ratios are found in samples from northern France. Conversely, lower nitrogen and higher carbon isotopic ratios are present in samples from the Mediterranean area. Results indicate the probable strong influence of natural factors impacting soil and plant isotopic ratios and passing this variation further on into the whole food chain. Our data indicate that the isotopic baseline depends on the local environmental particularities which must be taken into account in reconstructing human palaeodiets.

Publication date: Available online 26 July 2016Source:Journal of Archaeological Science Author(s): Ximena S. Villagran, André Strauss, Christopher Miller, Bertrand Ligouis, Rodrigo OliveiraFew archaeological sites in the Americas contain high concentrations of human burials dating back to the early Holocene. The tropical karstic region of Lagoa Santa, in central Brazil (state of Minas Gerais) is one of the richest bioanthropological records available to study the behaviors and funerary practices of early Holocene South Americans, with more than 200 skeletons found so far. One of the key locations to examine the history of human settlement in Lagoa Santa is the site of Lapa do Santo, a rockshelter known to contain the oldest rock art and the earliest evidence of funerary complexity in the continent. In this geoarchaeological investigation we focus on the early Holocene settlement at Lapa do Santo (7.9–12.7 cal kyBP) applying high-resolution geoarchaeological techniques, such as micromorphology, organic petrology and μFTIR, on both archaeological, modern reference and experimental samples. This is the first time that a micro-contextual approach integrated with experimental geoarchaeology has been applied to study the formation of rockshelter deposits in a tropical setting. Our results show that the stratigraphic sequence formed under the dual influence of anthropogenic sedimentation—through continuous combustion activities—and geogenic sedimentation in the form of oxisol aggregates which fell from above the limestone cliff into the rockshelter. Intact hearths and remobilized combustion debris, possibly hearth rake-out, are close to the graves suggesting repeated burning activities as part of the ritual behavior of early Holocene South Americans. Large amounts of ash are intermixed with heated and unheated oxisol aggregates. Heated termite mound fragments were also found mixed within the sediments. Post-depositional alteration of the site includes limited bioturbation and localized, low energy surface water and sub-surface concentrations of moisture, leading to precipitation of dense, secondary carbonates. The age inversions can be attributed to the human action of reworking the ashy sediments and not to post-abandonment processes. Despite this, the overall preservation of the sediments is good and most human burials can be considered to be in primary context.

Publication date: June 2016Source:Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 70 Author(s): Joan Negre, Facundo Muñoz, Carla LancelottiMaps representing the distribution of chemical residues over anthropogenic floors are the main diagnostic tools used by archaeologists for addressing the identification of geochemical signatures of past actions. Geostatistics allows producing these maps from a sample of locations by modelling the spatial autocorrelation structure of these kind of phenomena. However, the homogeneity of the prediction regions is a strong assumption in the model. The presence of barriers, such as the inner walls of domestic units, introduces discontinuities in prediction areas. In this paper, we investigate how to incorporate information of a geographical nature into the process of geostatistical prediction. We propose the use of cost-based distances to quantify the correlation between locations, a solution which has proved to be a practical alternative approach for archaeological intrasite analysis. The cost-based approach produces more reliable results avoiding the unrealistic assumption of the homogeneity of the study area. As a working example, a case study of the distribution of two specific chemical signatures in domestic floors is presented within a controlled ethnographical context in Northern Gujarat (India). On a broad disciplinary scale, the benefits of using our approach include improved estimates in regions with complex geometry and lower uncertainty in the kriging predictions.

Publication date: August 2016Source:Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 72 Author(s): Michael Holton PriceI extend Metcalfe and Barlow’s field processing model to account for the opportunity cost of home labor and test the model using ethnographic observations of clove harvesting, cacao harvesting, and sago processing on the island of Seram in eastern Indonesia. The ethnographic observations are consistent with the opportunity cost of home labor time being between 0.58 and 0.96 that of field labor time. Since the Metcalfe-Barlow model assumes that the opportunity cost of home labor is zero, this refinement of the Metcalfe-Barlow model is warranted in the social and ecological context in which the data was collected and in archaeological contexts where the opportunity cost of home labor cannot clearly be ignored. The extended model predicts a lower threshold than the Metcalfe-Barlow model for the critical transport time beyond which field processing should occur, which has broad implications for recognizing and explaining archaeological and paleoecological signatures of subsistence transitions. I illustrate this by showing that for sago processing the extended model predicts a threshold that is less than half that predicted by the Metcalfe-Barlow model. This low threshold suggests that sago is unlikely to be processed at home. Given this and the perishable nature of both sago starch and traditional containers used to transport it, the limited evidence for sago in archaeological assemblages should not be taken as evidence that it was an unimportant resource in prehistory.