The Study of Osteological Materials in the Plains

1956 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 401-404 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theodore E. White
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Animals ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
American Antiquity ◽  
The People ◽  
Animal Bones ◽  
Cultural Implications ◽  
Fair Degree ◽  
Game Animals

Many archaeological sites in the Missouri Valley have produced large quantities of unworked animal bones. Most of these “food” bones are mammalian, with some bird, turtle, and fish. Recent studies by Lehmer (1952; 1954) and the series of studies by the author in American Antiquity (Vols. 17, 19, and 21) indicate that this material has important cultural implications which should not be overlooked. First of all, it is desirable to review briefly some of the questions which can be answered by study of the unworked bone.1. Did the people exercise any choice in the age of the animals they killed? This question can be determined with a fair degree of probability only with the mammals. An estimate of the age can be determined from the teeth (whether they are deciduous or permanent, and by the amount of wear) and from the relation of the epiphyses to the diaphyses. Criteria for these estimates, applicable to the larger game animals, are given in standard textbooks of the anatomy of the domestic animals.

Diet and Chronology of Neolithic-Eneolithic Cultures (from 6500 to 4700 cal BC) in the Lower Volga Basin

Radiocarbon ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 60 (5) ◽  
pp. 1597-1610 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Vybornov ◽  
M Kulkova ◽  
P Kosintsev ◽  
V Platonov ◽  
S Platonova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Lipid Analysis ◽  
Domestic Animals ◽  
Volga Region ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Lower Volga Region ◽  
Lower Volga ◽  
Animal Bones ◽  
Ancient People ◽  
Cooked Food

ABSTRACTDuring the last several years, new multi- and single-layered archaeological sites, in which the most ancient Neolithic pottery in the Eastern Europe had been found, were excavated in the region of Lower Volga. Animal bones and organic materials were sampled from these sites for radiocarbon (14C) dating and diet investigations. The evidence from these studies suggests that the first domestic animals in the Lower Volga region appeared in the Cis-Caspian culture of the Early Eneolithic. Lipid analysis of food crusts from pottery allowed the cooked food to be characterized. The detailed chronology from Neolithic (6500–5400 cal BC) to Eneolithic (5300–4700 cal BC) cultures, as well as the diet of these ancient people, were reconstructed.

Ethnohistorical Archaeology and the Mythscape of the Naga in the Chiang Saen Basin, Thailand

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Piyawit Moonkham
Keyword(s):  
Social Space ◽  
Local Communities ◽  
Building Construction ◽  
Local People ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Historical Period ◽  
The People ◽  
Divine Retribution ◽  
The Town

Abstract There is a northern Thai story that tells how the naga—a mythical serpent—came and destroyed the town known as Yonok (c. thirteenth century) after its ruler became immoral. Despite this divine retribution, the people of the town chose to rebuild it. Many archaeological sites indicate resettlement during this early historical period. Although many temple sites were constructed in accordance with the Buddhist cosmology, the building patterns vary from location to location and illustrate what this paper calls ‘nonconventional patterns,’ distinct from Theravada Buddhist concepts. These nonconventional patterns of temples seem to have been widely practiced in many early historical settlements, e.g., Yonok (what is now Wiang Nong Lom). Many local written documents and practices today reflect the influence of the naga myth on building construction. This paper will demonstrate that local communities in the Chiang Saen basin not only believe in the naga myth but have also applied the myth as a tool to interact with the surrounding landscapes. The myth is seen as a crucial, communicated element used by the local people to modify and construct physical landscapes, meaning Theravada Buddhist cosmology alone cannot explain the nonconventional patterns. As such, comprehending the role of the naga myth enables us to understand how local people, past and present, have perceived the myth as a source of knowledge to convey their communal spaces within larger cosmological concepts in order to maintain local customs and legitimise their social space.

scholarly journals COMMENTARY: Bioarchaeology of Oaxaca: It’s About the People

2020 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Danny Zborover
Keyword(s):  
Occupational Stress ◽  
Social Relationships ◽  
Daily Activities ◽  
Mortuary Practices ◽  
Contextual Approach ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Ethnic Affiliation ◽  
The People ◽  
Animal Bones ◽  
Global Connections

<p>Bioarchaeology is clearly all about the people. A human bone, although technically an artifact, is conceptually different than ceramic sherds, lithics, or even animal bones. It is us. The notions of embodiment and culturally-embedded interpretation intersects all the articles in this special issue, where authors take a detailed contextual approach to tackle diverse and complex themes such as mortuary practices, pre- and postmortem treatment, corporeal and skeletal modifications, individual and corporate identities, ethnic affiliation, social memory, violence and interpersonal conflict, trauma, gender and childhood, ancestral veneration, daily activities, nutritional and occupational stress, social organization, social relationships, and local, regional, continental, and global connections.</p>

Observations on the Butchering Technics of Some Aboriginal Peoples Numbers 7, 8, and 9

1955 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 170-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theodore E. White
Keyword(s):  
South Dakota ◽  
North Dakota ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Aboriginal Peoples ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
American Antiquity ◽  
Raw Data ◽  
Large Animals

The Following 3 papers continue a series of brief articles on this subject appearing from time to time in American Antiquity (Vols. 17, 19). Each paper presents a group of raw data with some brief suggestions for their interpretation. All but one are the result of the study of materials recovered from archaeological sites excavated by the River Basin Surveys program of archaeological salvage in the Missouri Basin. That one (No. 6) dealt with an elk specimen from Michigan. Paper Number 1 was concerned with the analysis of the antelope bone from 2 sites in the Angostura Reservoir, South Dakota. Number 2 dealt with the bison bone from 2 earth-lodge villages sites in the Oahe Reservoir near Pierre, South Dakota. Number 3 compared the use of small and large animals as food in one site in the Garrison Reservoir, North Dakota. Number 4 was a comparison of the treatment of bison bone from 3 earth-lodge villages, 2 in Oahe Reservoir and one in Garrison Reservoir.

Flotation Techniques for the Recovery of Small-Scale Archaeological Remains

1968 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 353-362 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuart Struever
Keyword(s):  
Small Animal ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Water Separation ◽  
Small Plant ◽  
Animal Remains ◽  
Animal Bone ◽  
Animal Bones ◽  
Plant Remains ◽  
Flotation Technique

AbstractThis paper outlines the procedures and equipment necessary for applying a simple flotation technique to recover animal bone, seeds, and other small cultural remains lost in the normal screening of soils from archaeological sites. Soil is initially processed in the field by a water-separation technique. The resulting concentrate is later treated, in the laboratory, by chemical flotation, to separate faunal from plant remains.This simple, inexpensive technique enables processing of soil in quantity, thereby allowing recovery of small plant and animal remains from midden or feature fills where they occur in very low densities.It is argued that, without use of such a flotation procedure, inferences about prehistoric subsistence patterns from faunal and floral remains are sharply biased in favor of larger animals and in favor of hunting, over natural plant food collecting, since conventional screens are not adequate for recovery of most plant remains or small animal bones.

Kill-off Patterns in Sheep and Goats: the Mandibles from Aşvan Kale

1973 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
pp. 281-303 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Payne
Keyword(s):  
Seasonal Variation ◽  
Weight Gain ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Meat Production ◽  
Young Males ◽  
Animal Bones ◽  
Relative Value ◽  
Mandibular Teeth

Reports on animal bones from archaeological sites often include information about the “kill-off pattern” for each species – i.e. the relative representation of different age-groups in the sample. Osteologists believe that this information can be used as evidence for whether an animal was wild or domesticated, and, if domesticated, about the way in which man managed the animal. In this paper a method is described for recording such data for sheep and goat using mandibles and mandibular teeth; the analysis and interpretation of such data is discussed using excavated samples from Aşvan Kale.When people keep sheep or goats, the age at which the animals are slaughtered depends on a range of factors: on the relative value placed on the different products, on the characteristics of the stock, and on a range of environmental factors – in particular, seasonal variation in the availability of grazing and feed. If meat production is the aim, most of the young males are killed when they reach the optimum point in weight-gain, only a few being kept for breeding.

scholarly journals Food Security and Socio-Economic Uplift of Camel Herders in Southern Punjab, Pakistan

Land Science ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. p8
Author(s):  
Asim Faraz
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Arid Zone ◽  
Economic Status ◽  
Domestic Animals ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Extension Education ◽  
Socio Economic Status ◽  
The People ◽  
Valuable Product ◽  
Semi Arid

This study belongs to project “Rural development by livestock extension education in Southern Punjab”. A survey was conducted in Multan and Muzaffargarh districts of Southern Punjab by using a pretested questionnaire to collect the information regarding food security and socio-economic status of cameleers in study area. It has been shown from the results that the socio-economic status of camel herders has improved a lot in last decade mainly due to the knowledge about camel and its products. Definitely camel plays an indispensable role in the food security of people of arid zone. Now the people are getting conscious about consuming the camel milk and products as in earlier time there was a taboo to use the camel products and the people did not get their taste developed. Due to increasing health reasons and by the initiatives taken by government departments the people are getting familiar with the camel products. Now the camel has shifted its place from “ship of the desert” and “beast of the burden” to a “food security animal” with great potential to produce a valuable product even in those areas of harsh climatic conditions where there seems difficult for the other domestic animals to produce. The camel herders value the ethno-veterinary practices and still use these for the treatment in camels. Mainly the camel browse on the roadsides but also stallfed with fodder by cut and carry system. The camel plays a pivotal role in the life sustainability of cameleers where they mainly depend on this specie for their livelihood. Hence; this is an integral part of pastoral ecosystem in arid, semi-arid and deserted lands.

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