Inner Asian agro-pastoralism as optimal adaptation strategy of Wupu inhabitants (3000–2400 cal BP) in Xinjiang, China

The Holocene ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 095968362094113
Author(s):  
Lijing Wang ◽  
Yongqiang Wang ◽  
Wenying Li ◽  
Michael Spate ◽  
Kuerban Reheman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Foxtail Millet ◽  
Populus Euphratica ◽  
Local Environment ◽  
Northwest China ◽  
Adaptation Strategy ◽  
Environment Interaction ◽  
Faunal Remains ◽  
Human Environment

Exploring ancient socio-economic adaptation is a basic issue of human-environment interaction. Xinjiang in northwest China is a region of high geographic diversity. Past human adaptations to this arid marginal area is a current focus of research interest but still lacks in-depth study. This article presents data from the Wupu Cemetery, located in the extremely arid Hami Basin in the eastern Tianshan Mountains. Archaeobotanical analysis is used to reconstruct the local environment niche and the subsistence economy of inhabitants. Radiocarbon dating results indicate the cemetery was occupied between 3000 and 2400 cal BP, during the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age. In total 16 species of the plant remains are identified, including four cereal crops, foxtail millet ( Setaria italica), broomcorn millet ( Panicum miliaceum), naked barley ( Hordeum vulgare var. coeleste), wheat ( Triticum aestivum) and 12 wild types. The riparian plant Populus euphratica and aquatic plant Typha sp. indicate inhabitants lived in an oasis near the cemetery. Environmental interpretation of this data compares well with other seven sites in arid southern Xinjiang. In addition to faunal remains from the site, it is assumed that a flexible system of multi-crop farming and herding was the subsistence pattern around Wupu. This system was widespread across Inner Asia and appears to have played a central role in adapting to different marginal environments during the Bronze Age and Iron Age.

The impact of early trans-Eurasian exchange on animal utilization in northern China during 5000–2500 BP

The Holocene ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 095968362094116
Author(s):  
Guanghui Dong ◽  
Linyao Du ◽  
Wenyu Wei
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Local Environment ◽  
Northern China ◽  
Late Neolithic ◽  
Human Environment ◽  
Wild Mammals ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Animal Utilization ◽  
Human Subsistence ◽  
The Bronze Age

Transcontinental exchange emerged and intensified in northern China since the late fifth millennium BP (Before present), especially in the arc, which was the core area of the eastern part of the trans-Eurasian exchange during the Late Neolithic and the Bronze Age. In the arc, the exchange profoundly affected the human subsistence strategy and human-environment relationship. Relative to the crop patterns and human diets during the Bronze Age in northern China, systematic investigations of zooarcheological data based on broad spatial and temporal framework to understand the influence of introduced livestock and indigenous livestock on human subsistence are lacking. To show the spatial-temporal variation in animal utilization patterns and its relation to prehistoric trans-Eurasian exchange, the zooarcheological data from 40 sites in northern China dated between 5000 and 2500 BP were analyzed. The strategy of animal utilization in northern China changed substantially from 5000 to 2500 BP, with notable spatial features in different chronological phases. From 5000 to 4300 BP, wild mammals and indigenous livestock (pig, dog) use dominated in the arc and the North China Plain (NCP). During 4300–3500 BP, the importance of introduced livestock (cattle, sheep/goat, horse) exceeded that of indigenous livestock in the arc, whereas indigenous livestock continued to dominate in the NCP. Indigenous livestock acted as the most important animal subsistence in northern China, although the exploitation of introduced livestock increased during 3500–2000 BP. These spatio-temporal differences in animal utilization appear to be closely associated with the prehistoric trans-Eurasian exchange, but were also affected by local environment, agriculture development, and climate change.

scholarly journals Archaeology and Zooarchaeology of the Late Iron Age-Roman Transition in the Province of Raetia (100 bc–100 ad)

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 431-450 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Trixl ◽  
Bernd Steidl ◽  
Joris Peters
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Temporal Analysis ◽  
Faunal Remains ◽  
Late Iron Age ◽  
Burial Customs ◽  
La Tène ◽  
Alpine Foreland ◽  
La Tene ◽  
Transitional Phase

The incorporation of the region north of the Alpine divide and its foreland into the Imperium Romanum initiated major changes in economic and social structure and in everyday life in the newly-founded province of Raetia. Controversy exists, however, about the continuity of local La Tène traditions into early Roman times, since the archaeological evidence recorded to date tends to give the impression that the northern Alpine foreland was largely unpopulated at the time of the Roman conquest in 15 bc. However, ongoing excavations in this region are gradually enhancing the archaeological visibility of this transitional phase. Compared to early Roman provincial populations settled along the Via Claudia Augusta and its hinterland, a culturally unique community stands out: the Heimstetten group. This group is located in the eastern Raetian hinterlands and dates to around 30–60 ad. Its building tradition, settlement structure, and burial customs show close affinities with the La Tène culture, thus suggesting continuity in autochthonous culture at the time of the early Roman occupation. Since faunal remains can potentially act as cultural markers, additional insights can be gained from a spatial-temporal analysis of livestock composition and breeding practices. The results presented here clearly show that, during the Iron Age, marked regional differences in species composition are visible, implying the possibility of distinct developments during early Romanization. In addition to evaluating faunal developments in the study area between c. 100 bc–100 ad, the issue of cattle breeding—traditionally the mainstay of livestock economies in many regions and especially in the Munich Gravel Plain at least since the Bronze Age—is addressed in greater detail.

Some recent Discoveries of Millet (Panicum MiliaceumL. andSetaria italica(L.) P. Beauv.) at Excavations in Turkey and Iran

1988 ◽  
Vol 38 ◽  
pp. 85-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Nesbitt ◽  
G. D. Summers
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Near East ◽  
Foxtail Millet ◽  
Late Bronze Age ◽  
Grass Family ◽  
Plant Remains ◽  
Full Discussion ◽  
Northwestern Iran ◽  
The Rich

Although a relatively unimportant crop in the Near East, millet has an especially interesting history that may throw some light on the cultural relationships of the Middle–Late Bronze Ages and the Iron Age. Thus the prompt, separate, publication of a large deposit of foxtail millet (Setaria italica(L.) P. Beauv.), recently identified from an Iron Age level at Tille Höyük, seems justified. This is the first find of the cereal in such large quantities—definitely as a crop—from the Near East or Greece. The rest of the plant remains from this level will be published in conjunction with the rich samples that are expected to be found in the massive Late Bronze Age burnt level at Tille. The opportunity is also taken in this paper to present other previously unpublished millet samples, from second millennium B.C. levels at Haftavan Tepe, northwestern Iran, and from Hellenistic, Roman and Medieval levels at Aşvan Kale, eastern Turkey.A full discussion of these criteria will be included in the first author's forthcoming publication of the Aşvan plant remains. Knörzer (1971) has published a useful key to millet seeds. Three genera of millets (all belonging to the tribePaniceaeof the grass family) have grains of the relatively wide, large embryoed type discussed here.

scholarly journals Animal husbandry from the Middle Bronze Age through the Iron Age in the Shephelah—faunal remains from the new excavations at Lachish

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shyama Vermeersch ◽  
Simone Riehl ◽  
Britt M. Starkovich ◽  
Katharina Streit ◽  
Felix Höflmayer
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Animal Husbandry ◽  
Faunal Analysis ◽  
Faunal Remains ◽  
Southern Levant ◽  
Subsistence Strategies ◽  
Iron Age Ii ◽  
Middle Bronze Age ◽  
Synchronic Comparison

AbstractLachish (Tell ed-Duweir) is located in the southern part of the Judean foothills, known as the Shephelah, and is one of the larger and most extensively excavated multi-period sites in the southern Levant. We present the faunal results of the first three seasons of the most recent excavations, the Austrian-Israeli Expedition to Tel Lachish. The expedition focusses on two areas of the tell encompassing the Middle Bronze Age III through the Iron Age II, area S (deep section) and area P (palace area). The aims for the faunal analysis are threefold: comparing the results between the two areas, seeing how our results compare to previous analyses, and comparing Lachish to other synchronous sites in the Shephelah. We observe differences in subsistence strategies between the areas in addition to diachronic differences. Ovicaprids dominate all assemblages, but we see shifts in the sheep to goat ratio and mortality profiles through time indicating changes in subsistence strategies. Our new results largely agree with the results from previous analyses, showing the value of previous studies and their potential compatibility with newer research. A synchronic comparison of Lachish within the Shephelah shows the occupants of the site were largely self-sufficient but possibly engaged in an exchange of resources in the vicinity.

Tradition and Innovation in Textile Technology in Bronze Age Europe and the Mediterranean

Światowit ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-12
Author(s):  
Agata Ulanowska ◽  
Małgorzata Siennicka
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Social Relations ◽  
Cultural Transmission ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Faunal Remains ◽  
Textile Production ◽  
Textile Technology ◽  
Textile Manufacture ◽  
The Mediterranean

The papers collected in the present volume of the ‘Światowit’ journal examine developments in textile production in Bronze and Iron Age Europe and the Mediterranean by tracing both traditional and innovative elements in textile technology. The issue comprises 11 original contributions that resulted from the session ‘Tradition and Innovation in Textile Technology in Bronze Age Europe and the Mediterranean’ organised in 2016 by Agata Ulanowska and Małgorzata Siennicka during the 22nd Annual Meeting of the European Association of Archaeologists in Vilnius. The papers discuss available archaeological evidence of textiles, textile imprints, textile tools and textile iconography, as well as botanical and faunal remains related to textile manufacture and dyeing. The papers examine the types of social relations and cultural and economic processes which may have enhanced developments in textile technology and impacted on cross-cultural transmission of textile knowledge and skills in the Bronze and Iron Ages.

scholarly journals The Occurrence of Cultivated Plants in the Region of Styria from the Palaeolithic till the Middle Ages

Agricultura ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 9-17
Author(s):  
Andrej Paušič ◽  
Andrej Šušek
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Middle Ages ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Late Antiquity ◽  
Juglans Regia ◽  
Foxtail Millet ◽  
Time Frame ◽  
Cultivated Plants ◽  
Einkorn Wheat ◽  
Proso Millet

The aim of this review study was to analyse large paleo-botanical datasets derived from investigations of 35 archaeological sites and published during a longer time period. The presence of 18 selected crop taxa has been monitored in the region of Styria. Our results indicate that in the Copper Age, the cultivation and usage of proso millet (Panicum miliaceum) and the einkorn wheat (Triticum monococcum) was present. From the Bronze Age period, the most commonly grown taxa are barley (Hordeum vulgare), proso millet, emmer wheat (Triticum dicoccum) and spelt wheat (Triticum spelta). In the Iron Age, some new crops emerged along with the already common foxtail millet (Setaria italica) and common flax (Linum usitatissimum), a species first found in Styria during this exact period. The importance of Roman period for Styria lies in the introduction of new taxa like the Persian walnut (Juglans regia), of which remnants were also found in the studied area. The late Antiquity and Middle Ages are a wide time frame where all important cereal taxa were already known from previous periods and were also grown in the studied area, with the exception of oat (Avena sativa) and durum wheat (Triticum durum), of which remnants were absent from this period.

Environmental Archaeology at Mikindani, Tanzania: Towards a Historical Ecology of the Southern Swahili Coast

2014 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Pawlowicz ◽  
John Stoetzel ◽  
Stephen Macko
Keyword(s):  
East Africa ◽  
Historical Ecology ◽  
Human Populations ◽  
Environmental Archaeology ◽  
Environment Interaction ◽  
Anthropogenic Influences ◽  
Faunal Remains ◽  
Human Environment ◽  
Swahili Coast

The historic port town of Mikindani is situated along the southern portion of the Swahili coast. Archaeological investigations in this region of coastal East Africa yield evidence of occupation since the last centuries BCE and intensive settlement since the middle of the first millennium CE. This long settlement history suggests that people in the region have had an expansive, wide-ranging impact on local ecological conditions in the region. This paper takes a historical ecology approach in evaluating the nature and degree of anthropogenic influences on the environment in and around Mikindani. The evaluation is based on evidence from contemporary botanical communities, faunal remains, macrobotanicals, phytolith residues, isotope analysis of archaeological sediments, and soil chemistry. This research also looks to define an environmental component that contributes to a previously defined mercantile culture that characterizes Swahili communities in the region. We argue that this interdisciplinary analysis yields evidence of several long-term anthropogenic influences in Mikindani, including: a long-term reduction in forests and woody vegetation, reliance on shifting agriculture as a subsistence strategy, and the continued reliance on marine resources to meet subsistence needs. These patterns of human-environment interaction help suggest reasons for certain developments in Mikindani’s history, perhaps most notably its early second millennium CE absence from Indian Ocean trade networks. Our results contribute to a growing literature in East Africa which acknowledges that modern environments of East Africa derive from a recursive relationship with human populations that has continued for thousands of years.

The Excavation of a Settlement of the Later Bronze Age and Iron Age at Myrehead, Falkirk District

1983 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-71 ◽  
Author(s):  
G J Barclay
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Farming System ◽  
Activity Period ◽  
Limited Evidence ◽  
Ring Groove ◽  
Domestic Activity ◽  
First Millennium ◽  
First Millennium Bc ◽  
Actual Settlement

SUMMARY Myrehead has revealed the eroded remnants of activity from the Beaker period (Period A) onwards, with actual settlement evinced only from about the early first millennium be. The three houses and the cooking pits of Period B may have been constructed and used sequentially. This open settlement was probably replaced during the mid first millennium bc, possibly without a break, by a palisaded enclosure (Period C), which may have contained a ring-groove house and a four-post structure. Continued domestic activity (Period D) was suggested by a single pit outside the enclosure, dated to the late first millennium bc/early first millennium ad. The limited evidence of the economy of the settlements suggests a mixed farming system.

From the bronze age to the iron age

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheila Grecian ◽  
Safwaan Adam ◽  
Akheel Syed
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
The Bronze Age
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