Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory最新文献

The expansion of the Neolithic way of life triggered the most profound changes in peoples’ socioeconomic behaviors, including how critical resources for everyday life were managed. Recent research spearheaded by ancient DNA analysis has greatly contributed to our understanding of the main direction of Neolithisation spreading from western Anatolia into central Europe. Due to the diverse processes involved in Neolithisation, which resulted in a high diversity of regional and local phenomena, the underlying mechanisms of these developments are still largely unexplored. One of these mechanisms is economic behavior and resource management. Neolithic economic behavior is the result of social processes involving the physical actions of the procurement, processing, use, discard, and distribution of raw materials as well as finished products for utilitarian needs and to create and maintain social relations. Within this continuum, the key for tracing meaningful behavioral patterns is the identification of raw material procurement. Since stone tools are among the most ubiquitous and stable finds at Neolithic sites, they are ideally suited for this endeavor. Here, we present the results of a case study from the Neolithic site of Çukuriçi Höyük in western Anatolia tracing lithic raw material procurement. We employ a novel approach using geochemical provenance analyses coupled with quantitative technological and econometric methods. The key finding of this diachronic study covering almost 700 years revealed patterns of socioeconomic dynamics undetectable through conventional analytical approaches. We demonstrate that technological concepts fluctuate over time and are subject to innovations, whereas raw material procurement remains a stable element.

This paper presents taphonomic data from the medieval Portuguese site of Largo Cândido dos Reis that contains the presence of both Christian (n = 217) and Islamic (n = 422) burials. The presence of two faith communities with differing funerary customs utilizing the same geographic space offers a unique opportunity to conduct a comparative approach and examine the extent to which funerary rites influence preservation in human skeletal remains within the same cemetery complex. A sub-sample of 363 individuals was analyzed for taphonomic factors including erosion, cracking and flaking, and skeletal preservation using the anatomical conservation index (ACI) and bone representation index (BRI). These latter two indices were then used to calculate the proportion of well-preserved skeletons (WPS) and well-represented skeletons (WRS) by funerary group. Results demonstrated that, on average, skeletons from Islamic burials exhibited ACI scores of ~ 32% while those from Christian contexts exhibited ACI scores of ~ 44%, respectively. The proportion of well-preserved skeletons from Islamic burials was also significantly lower than those from Christian burials. Elements from Islamic burials also exhibited significantly higher severity of erosion and higher prevalence of malacofaunal remains compared to their Christian counterparts. Results are interpreted in relation to ethnohistoric context, specifically how grave construction varied between Islam and Christianity in central Portugal during the medieval period. These results are an important step in understanding the biocultural dimensions and taphonomic trajectories that funerary behaviors can have, especially in spaces where urban development and sub-surface construction are frequent risk factors.

Plants are a crucial part of the human diet, serving as a primary source of micronutrients, fiber, and carbohydrates, providing readily available energy. Beyond the consumption of cooked and raw edible plants, early humans also developed methods for plant processing for delayed consumption, to de-toxify/improve bioavailability, and perhaps for flavor. In later prehistory delayed consumption includes preservation processes for storage. The processing of plants through sprouting, fermentation, cooking, and roasting has not only expanded the variety of consumable plant species but also enhanced their nutritional value. There are few methods for detecting fermented foods in the early prehistoric diet. Based on the hypothesis that the microbes active in fermentation change the nitrogen and carbon isotope ratios of plant foods, our pilot study lays the groundwork for further research, offering a promising direction for understanding the complexities of human-plant interactions throughout history. This study focuses on these four plant treatment methods, which have both contemporary relevance and archaeobotanical evidence of use. We aimed to explore how these treatments might affect stable isotope values, such as carbon (δ¹³C) and nitrogen (δ¹⁵N), which are crucial for reconstructing ancient diets. Through an experimental approach involving 12 plant species, our findings suggest that while sprouting and roasting had minimal impact on isotopic values, fermentation and cooking showed more variable effects depending on the plant species. These preliminary results provide new insights into the influence of plant processing on isotopic compositions and underscore the importance of considering these factors in dietary reconstructions.

Archaeological human skeletal remains are displayed in many museums across Thailand, under glass in exhibit halls, and as part of open-air displays where skeletons are partially excavated but remain in situ. This form of outdoor exhibit is a notable component of public archaeology initiatives and local educational outreach, but the potential long-term implications for bone preservation have raised concerns. This study investigated patterns of diagenesis at the Ban Pong Manao Archaeological Site and Community Museum in Lopburi Province, central Thailand, where some ancient skeletons are curated indoors in the on-site antiquities archive, and others are displayed outdoors in covered open-air excavation units. We applied a biogeochemical approach to investigate diagenesis, using methods from stable isotope analysis and Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy to assess post-excavation taphonomic processes. Results from this study revealed no statistically significant differences in values for bone collagen or bioapatite preservation indices between in situ and curated skeletons. However, we observed lower collagen yields and higher bioapatite carbonate yields among in situ skeletons that suggested processes of diagenesis may be accelerated by partial exposure in open-air display contexts. After roughly 20 years, differences between post-excavation contexts are not yet substantial but over time may increase if current taphonomic trajectories are maintained. We consider the implications and limitations of these results and examine partial excavation and exposure as simultaneously deleterious and additive in the context of cultural heritage management in Thailand.

This paper presents a pioneering analysis of a distinctive engraved motif from the Pilbara region: the fat-tailed macropod (kangaroo). This stylistic analysis has used a combination of conventional qualitative and multivariate techniques with less commonly deployed geometric morphometrics analysis (GMA). Focusing on a distinctive engraved motif in Australia’s northwest, this study has quantified the stylistic characteristics of the fat-tailed macropod depictions by identifying the significant attributes that contribute to this motif’s schema. By using both multivariate analysis and GMA software, we have developed a more nuanced understanding of the synchronic and diachronic dimensions of this deep-time indigenous artistic tradition. Differing levels of stylistic homogeneity across this region are interpreted as distinctive signalling intentionality by the artists. Based on the precepts of information exchange theory, stylistic homogeneity is interpreted as indicating an open social system, while stylistic heterogeneity represents people signalling social difference(s). The geographic distribution of this distinctive motif, and its specific placement within sites demonstrates different inscribing behaviours across the Pilbara. This is interpreted as evidence for intentional identity production by Pilbara artists. GMA identifies that a major contributing factor to the variability in this motif form is in the distinctive depictions of posture and gait. Indigenous knowledge of kangaroo behaviours is demonstrated in these iconic Pilbara motifs.

Taphonomic studies of osteoarchaeological human assemblages have mainly focused on establishing recognisable markers that allow us to discriminate between humanly induced modifications from natural causes, or how to differentiate cannibalism from secondary burial. Less attention has been dedicated to recognise specific taphonomic patterns associated with the different motivations for cannibalism. In this paper, I present a review of archaeological human assemblages whose induced modifications have been interpreted either as survival or ritualistic cannibalism, based on their association with historic and ethnographic evidence. The broad range of different butchery and modification patterns observed for these assemblages suggests that the osteological evidence and the frequency of taphonomic traits alone cannot be used to unequivocally identify different forms of cannibalism. However, the environmental, historical and archaeological contexts can offer indications on the type of cannibalism practiced. In particular, the strongest arguments for cannibalism as a survival event are found within the environmental context and the opportunistic behaviour associated with the cannibalistic act. On the other hand, evidence for ritualistic cannibalism comes from its recurrent appearance within a historical context, as a widespread activity over time and as an established customary behaviour for the group involved.

Paleolithic archaeologists study regional variation among assemblages of stone tools in order to delineate cultural boundaries and reconstruct mechanisms of cultural transmission in the deep past. Structured population models are especially suited to aid in this endeavor, for they teach us how cultural evolutionary forces—copying error, intergroup transmission, drift, and selection imposed by functional constraints or biased cultural transmission—affect regional cultural variation. We use an agent-based model to address how copying error, intergroup transmission, and time-averaging affect the degree to which regional archaeological assemblages differ at a selectively neutral discrete trait passed from “experienced” to “naïve” individuals via one of four mechanisms of cultural transmission in a structured population of toolmakers. The results of our simulation experiment illustrate why researchers who use time-averaged archaeological data to identify past cultural boundaries or infer mechanisms of cultural transmission should be more mindful of the nature of the cultural trait(s) available for study. In light of our results, we discuss seven questions archaeologists ought to address before attempting to infer cultural boundaries or cultural transmission mechanisms from between-assemblage variation.

This paper presents a study of outdoor settlement spaces through the interdisciplinary analysis of combustion structures as key elements. It explores the use of outdoor public spaces and their complexity, multifunctionality, and dynamic contribution to the formation of Neolithic societies. The study focuses on two designated and adjacent outdoor spaces at the Late Neolithic settlement Kleitos 1 in Kozani (north-west Greece). The selected venues indicate everyday domestic and possibly craft practices that may have fostered shared cooking events and culinary traditions. The main objective of the paper is to employ an integrated methodology to study social dynamics through different daily, craft, or exceptional tasks in the settlement and thus build variable archaeological narratives about the dynamics of diverse social processes in Neolithic communities. Our analysis demonstrates that a diverse range of household routines and craft operations were conducted publicly in outdoor spaces during the Late Neolithic period in Greece. It suggests that the designated areas examined—the central space and the area west of building A—were two well-organised, polyfunctional, possibly shared spaces, which could have served as potentially communal public venues in Kleitos 1 used for food-processing and craft activities. Additionally, it highlights the impact of development-led excavations on archaeological research and contributes to the advancement of methodology, both in the field and in the laboratory, supporting a pre-emptive, research-based, knowledge-producing approach, centred on documentation and interpretation.

The Neolithic site of the Knowe of Rowiegar chambered cairn, Orkney, was excavated in 1937 as part of a campaign that saw the excavation of various chamber cairns on the island of Rousay, Orkney (Davidson & Henshall, 1989). Osteological and isotope research undertaken in recent years has reignited interest in the site. The research presented here focuses on mortuary practices, principally through histotaphonomic analysis. Human remains at Rowiegar were characterised by disarticulation, disorder and fragmentation (Hutchison et al., Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 145, 41–86, 2015), as is commonly observed in Neolithic Orkney. In recent years, histological analysis has become more widely used in reconstructing mortuary treatment. This relies on the degree and nature of bacterial attack, often termed bioerosion, and other modifications to bone microstructure as a proxy for early post-mortem treatment. Histological analysis was undertaken on 13 of the 28 individuals from the Rowiegar site. The results presented diverse patterns of bioerosion in the bone microstructure suggesting different mortuary practices. Furthermore, these results suggest that remains were placed in the chambered cairn at different stages of decomposition, with some individuals buried immediately after death and others likely subject to a more complex, multi-stage mortuary rite. There remains uncertainty about the origins of bacterial bioerosion in bone, and future experimental work may necessitate interpretative revision. However, based on current understanding, the research provides a new perspective on mortuary practice at Rowiegar, evidencing diverse, and sometimes complex, pre-depositional mortuary practices.

In the history of the “Danubian Neolithic” society, monumental ceremonial centers appeared around 4800 BCE and lost their importance around 300 years later. Among them, one of the most distinctive forms are rondels. However, it is worth remembering the contemporary Rosheim-type circles and Passy-type tombs. The name “rondels” refers to the currently preserved architectural form, dominated by concentric ditches. The article presents an analysis of the biography of a rondel from Nowe Objezierze (north-western Poland). For this purpose, the chaîne opératoire method was used, which is a very effective tool for reconstructing the full sequence of events including the construction, use and abandonment of the examined monument, in its historical and social context. Thanks to this, it was possible to draw attention to previously little-explored details of planning construction works, the skills of ritual leaders and the seasonal availability of some construction materials. As a consequence, the construction and use of rondels can be presented as a complex ceremonial cycle, stretched over time and interrupted by festivals. When the rondel was ready, the cycle began with renovating the surrounding wall and digging the ditch, most likely reaching its culmination on the day of the winter solstice. The celebrations ended with a ceremony of backfilling of the ditch.