Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences最新文献

The Bazman district constitutes one of the four regions of Iranshahr in the Sistan and Baluchistan province southeast of Iran. This study examines the behavior of arsenic copper alloy deterioration in chloride environments. Electrochemical methods were used to investigate the corrosion rate of some laboratory-made of Cu-As coupons versus five antique As-alloys from Spidej Cemetery in Bazman. Tafel plots (LSV) were used to determine corrosion rate, corrosion current density, and Cyclic voltammetry method for oxidation conditions. The data obtained by the (LSV) method show that the corrosion rate is variable in different concentrations. Electrochemical investigations were conducted on the pH of the soil solution in the area. The results of cyclic voltammetry data show the occurrence of pitting corrosion in the pH solution caused by the burial conditions of the Spidej over time. The behavior of chlorides on the corrosion of these alloys was investigated via soil solution sampling of Spidej Bazman at pH 10.85 with both manufactured and ancient alloys. Four types of corrosion morphology were identified in the arsenic bronze objects. To test corrosion behavior, the linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) technique was achieved. Electrochemical testing using line scan voltammetry demonstrated that the rise in chloride promotion efficiency led to greater migration of the arsenic element from the alloy. At pH 10.17 and 10.85, the minimum corrosion rate for laboratory-made alloys is similar to ancient alloys. Different percentages of the alloy showed different corrosion rates.

Sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) has become one of the standard applications in the field of paleogenomics in recent years. It has been used for paleoenvironmental reconstructions, detecting the presence of prehistoric species in the absence of macro remains and even investigating the evolutionary history of a few species. However, its application in archaeology has been limited and primarily focused on humans. This article argues that sedaDNA holds significant potential in addressing key archaeological questions concerning the origins, lifestyles, and environments of past human populations. Our aim is to facilitate the integration of sedaDNA into the standard workflows in archaeology as a transformative tool, thereby unleashing its full potential for studying the human past. Ultimately, we not only underscore the challenges inherent in the sedaDNA field but also provide a research agenda for essential enhancements needed for implementing sedaDNA into the archaeological workflow.

Hódmezővásárhely–Gorzsa is a multi-period tell settlement in South Hungary in the centre of the Great Hungarian Plain, about 15 km southwest of the city of Hódmezővásárhely. The thickest section of the settlement belongs to the Late Neolithic Tisza Culture period. In total, 1061 macrolithic artefacts were unearthed, a quarter of which was polished, and three quarter of which were ground stone tools. Half of the ground stones were made of different types of sandstone, including (1) red-, (2) grey micaceous-, (3) calcareous-, (4) white meta sandstones, and (5) other sandstones and metasandstones were identified. The red sandstones are further categorised into four subgroups based on optical microscopy. This examination is the first systematic multi-analytical investigation (i.e. optical microscopy, whole-rock geochemistry and mineral chemistry), carried out on these ground stone tool types. The goal is to identify and precisely locate the raw material types, in which heavy minerals and the tourmaline mineral chemistry play the key role. To determine the provenance of each of these subgroups, samples were collected from seven geological localities (i.e. primary outcrops and secondary presences, such as river drainages or terraces) for a comparative study. Based on our results, the alluvium of the Maros River can be considered as a possible source for the ‘Red – 3’ type of Gorzsa, while the results for the rest red sandstone types (‘Red – 1’, ‘Red − 2’ and ‘Red – 4’) are inconclusive in terms of provenance.

This study aims at establishing a historically based model of animal husbandry in urban and rural settlements, in the Southern Levant. This type of model is required in the field of zooarchaeology, to better analyze and study ancient faunal remains. It also applies a non-traditional method to study and differentiate between urban and rural economies. For this aim, we used British Mandate tax files and village statistics. These are the best available historical documents for this period, that recorded herds management statistics in all settlements of Palestine. We selected only settlements inhabited by the indigenous population and divided the data into four environmental regions. We analyzed the livestock abundance and herd demography in each region. Each urban center was considered independently, while the rural villages were classified into three groups, based on the most common livestock (cattle, sheep, or goats). Results show economic variations between urban and rural settlements as well as regional trends, such as in pastoralism and agricultural management. In addition, meat industries were common in most urban centers, being the primary difference from rural economies. We applied this model to two large zooarchaeological case studies, dating from the Early Islamic to the Ottoman period; Mount Zion, located in the urban city of Jerusalem, and Tel Beth Shemesh (East), whose size and nature were not historically recorded. We found that the economic variations reflected in the model were also present in the faunal assemblages.

The iron sword and knife industry was highly developed during the Han dynasties in Chinese history. However, there is not much clarity regarding its presence in the capital. In this paper, we analyzed fragments of seven iron swords and three iron knives excavated in Xi’an city (the capital of Han dynasties) using non-destructive neutron techniques of neutron resonance capture analysis (NRCA) and neutron diffraction (ND) for the first time in China. The results indicate that the hand guards were cast from Cu-Sn-Pb-As alloys, while one knife’s scabbard was made of pure copper. Furthermore, we obtained quantitative results for carbon content, micro-strain and texture effect in different regions of each sword or knife for the first time. This suggests that these iron blades are hypoeutectoid steel, and likely underwent intentional processing such as carburization, decarburizaition and hammering. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the archaeometallurgy related to Han iron swords and knives, which supplements the results obtained from traditional experimental methods. Additionally, it is also significant for further application of neutron techniques in China’s cultural heritage.

The creation of rock art in the deep areas of caves was one of the most unique symbolic activities of Magdalenian societies in southwestern Europe between 13.5 and 21 thousand years ago. Previous research has suggested that these works of art were not placed in caves at random but rather their location corresponds to a pre-established structure. However, despite the suggestive idea of pre-planning the decoration of the endokarst, it is challenging to demonstrate the relationship between different works and between them and their immediate spatial context due to the lack of common objective criteria. In this study, we have examined the iconographic and spatial characteristics of 500 Magdalenian graphic units in nine caves in the Cantabrian and Pyrenees mountain ranges (southwestern Europe) to identify patterns of graphic construction based on their cave location. We designed a workflow that includes geomorphological analysis for a virtual reconstruction of the state of the caves during the Magdalenian, analysis of graphic units (GU) through geographic information systems (GIS) using a Python script, and multivariate statistical study of the spatial and iconographic parameters of these figures. This has allowed us to identify different groups of figures: some were specifically created to be seen, using various techniques and selecting locations with good visibility, accessibility, or capacity to accommodate people, while others sought the opposite. There is also a correlation between the techniques used and their location in caves, perhaps aiming for resource economization. These data support the existence of different uses for the deep sectors of caves during the Magdalenian period.

This study aims at reconstructing foodways in the north-east (NE) of the Iberian Peninsula, focusing on lipid residue analysis of utilitarian vessels and using as case studies the sites of Puig Castellar of Biosca (180–120 BCE) and Guissona (120 BCE-third century CE). In total, fifty vessel fragments of different types and origins were analysed with techniques such as gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and gas chromatography-combustion-isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC-C-IRMS). As some vessel fragments were recovered from waterlogged contexts, they had excellent lipid preservation, which enabled the detection of various compounds that are rarely reported in archaeological contexts in Iberia. Analyses revealed both animal and plant products in the vessels, suggested that a variety of food resources was consumed, and that vessels had multiple uses. The detection of levoglucosan in some extracts, along with other heat markers, further suggested the presence of cellulose or starchy products in contact with fire as well as the heating of animal fats. Combined with available bioarchaeological and palaeoenvironmental studies from both sites, the analyses indicated a continuity in diet across the time periods during which the sites were occupied. Some differences were also observed, including the possible use of tubers until the first century CE. The results are then contextualised and compared with other available organic residue studies from the Roman Iberian Peninsula. The study demonstrates how the combination of multiple bioarchaeological proxies and biomolecular approaches can provide a holistic means to approach Roman foodways.

Agricultural terraces have a number of attributes that make them useful for managing erosion, shaping hydrology, and enhancing agricultural productivity. These characteristics, as well as their widespread construction by pre-industrial agricultural societies, have made them popular elements of plans to develop "sustainable" agriculture, both through the rehabilitation of relict terraces and the construction of new terrace systems. However, many of these projects have met with limited success and have been abandoned or sidelined soon after their implementation. Here, we attribute some of these challenges to a lack of alignment between the mechanical benefits of terraces and the motivations and goals of contemporary farmers. In turn, we suggest that the mismatch between solutions and problems may be rooted in the fact that NGOs and researchers have insufficiently considered the social, economic, and environmental contexts of past and present agriculture and overprioritized technological solutions to socioeconomic and political problems. As a case study, we investigate histories of terraced agriculture in the Middle Utcubamba Valley (MUV) of northeastern Peru, located within the Chachapoya cultural region. We demonstrate that the long-term viability of terracing in the MUV before the sixteenth century Spanish invasion of the region was dependent on a particular combination of socioeconomic circumstances and agricultural logics, which are no longer present today. Based on this history, we argue that terraced agriculture is––in and of itself––neither "sustainable" nor "unsustainable." Rather, its effectiveness depends on how it operates within dynamic sets of socio-natural relations.

From the second part of the 6th millennium BC onwards, pottery manufacture is attested throughout the western Mediterranean. The study of the functional and use of vessels has become a valuable source of information on the culinary patterns and subsistence practices of past societies. In the present study, we have analyzed the organic residues of a total of 37 ceramic vessels from the first Neolithic settlements in the Central Pyrenees. Results from lipid analysis using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC–MS) and GC-stable carbon isotope ratio analyses (GC-IRMS) revealed that from the earliest phases, the use of pottery was related to the exploitation of dairy and meat products, as well as plant resources. The data obtained are contextualized within the general frame of the Pyrenees and the western Mediterranean.

The human fibular shape has been scarcely analyzed in anthropology. However, studies on athletes and human archaeological samples suggest the importance of including fibular structural properties to reconstruct mobility patterns in past populations. This study analyzes human fibular variation in relation to mobility patterns, environmental conditions, subsistence economies, and shoe use to further explore the role of this bone in reconstructing mobility patterns in past populations.

The sample consists of 173 individuals from Italian archaeological and modern skeletal collections spanning the Mid-Late Upper Paleolithic to the twentieth century and includes hunter-gatherers, agriculturalists, herders, and post-industrialists. Virtual three-dimensional models of left fibulae were acquired by computer tomography and surface scanning. Fibular proximal and distal epiphyseal morphologies were investigated through 3D semilandmark-based geometric morphometric methods and compared among populations and mobility categories.

Our analysis reveals a trend separating groups based on their subsistence strategy and chronology. Some fibular traits (e.g., horizontal proximal tibiofibular joint and tilted distal talofibular articular surface, robust interosseous membrane, broad malleolar fossa, projecting m. biceps femoris insertion) indicate greater mobility of fibular joints and load sharing during ankle and knee excursion in foraging groups, which are presumably highly active, frequently traversing uneven terrain with absent/minimalist foot coverings. Stiffer fibular joints (e.g., obliquely oriented tibiofibular and vertical talofibular articular surfaces) are observed in sedentary populations, which may suggest a restricted ankle excursion and limited lower limb loading and use, consistent with their sedentary lifestyle in plain urban settlements with hard-shoe coverings. Other fibular traits (e.g., shorter subcutaneous triangular surface, projecting and anteriorly-facing malleolus, concave peroneal groove and proximal peroneal insertion) might indicate for mobile groups a more everted foot posture with increased moment arm in eversion, more efficient for barefoot/minimal footwear running in a forefoot-strike gait and concurring in the stabilization of the first metatarsophalangeal ray. These results further stress the functional role of fibular morphology and its importance in studies investigating past population mobility patterns.