Yaping Zhang , Jianjun Yu , Keliang Zhao , Junchi Liu , Guanhan Chen , Xuan Li , Krishna Hu , Xinying Zhou , Xiaoqiang Li
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Being a crucial subsistence strategy for the steppe communities, transhumant pastoralism has played a pivotal role in facilitating early communication of East and West civilizations. However, despite its significance, there remains a paucity of research regarding how and when transhumant pastoralism emerged at the eastern end of the Eurasian Steppe. Situated at the crossroads of East-West exchanges, the Tongtian Cave site has yielded a diverse range of archaeological materials, including sheep bones, sheep coprolites, and the earliest remains of wheat and barley in China. In order to explore the herding strategies employed at the Tongtian Cave, the microfossil contents from site's stratigraphy and the sheep coprolites are investigated in this study. Analytic results reveal the presence of elm tree pollen and probably phytoliths within the coprolites, suggesting that the site once served as a spring pasture. Wheat remains recovered from the same stratum as the coprolites date the transhumant practice at the site as far back as ca. 4300 B.P., establishing the Tongtian Cave as not only the earliest pastoralist site in China but likely also in the eastern Eurasian Steppe. Overall, our studies of the Tongtian Cave materials provide crucial evidence that deepens our understandings of the timing and mechanism of the eastward expansion of transhumant pastoralism across prehistoric Eurasia. The methodological potential of pollen and fungal spore analyses in revealing the seasonality of ancient site use is also explored in this article.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Archaeological Science is aimed at archaeologists and scientists with particular interests in advancing the development and application of scientific techniques and methodologies to all areas of archaeology. This established monthly journal publishes focus articles, original research papers and major review articles, of wide archaeological significance. The journal provides an international forum for archaeologists and scientists from widely different scientific backgrounds who share a common interest in developing and applying scientific methods to inform major debates through improving the quality and reliability of scientific information derived from archaeological research.