Environmental Archaeology. The journal of human palaeoecology

Volume 8, Number 1, Published April 2003

Research Papers

Prehistoric Landscapes and Settlement Geography Along the Wadi Hasa, West-Central Jordan. Part II: Towards a Model of Palaeoecological Settlement for the Wadi Hasa

Joseph Schuldenrein and Geoffrey A. Clark

Abstract

An earlier essay (Schuldenrein and Clark 2001) presented the palaeoenvironmental background to changing prehistoric site distributions in the Wadi Hasa, the principal drainage of west Central Jordan. Evidence for over 100,000 years of human settlement is preserved in discrete locations and within specific sediment packages associated with the ancient landscapes of the drainage. This essay explores the systematics of settlement geography by filtering out preservation mechanisms and comparing other regional (Levant wide) models of human settlement with the Wadi Hasa Palaeolithic and Neolithic site distributions. Three regional paradigms of transhumance are tested. While Pleistocene Lake Hasa (70,000-12,000 B.P.) was the central feature for earlier human settlement, subsequent geomorphic activity has obliterated much of the later prehistoric record. Henry's (1995) model of transhumance is a relatively accurate predictor of site characteristics and location for much of the Hasa distributions, but the dynamics of long-term landscape change preclude de facto projection of the data set to any existing paradigm.

Keywords: TRANSHUMANCE, PALAEOECOLOGY, LEVANT, QUATERNARY, ETHNOHISTORY, SETTLEMENT, GEOGRAPHY

Joined-Up Archaeology at Old Scatness, Shetland: Thin Section Analysis of the Site and Hinterland
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Erika B. A. Guttmann, Ian A. Simpson and Stephen J. Dockrill

Abstract

Excavations on the multi-period settlement at Old Scatness, Shetland have uncovered a number of Iron Age structures with compacted, floor-like layers. Thin section analysis was undertaken in order to investigate and compare the characteristics of these layers. The investigation also draws on earlier analyses of the Iron Age agricultural soil around the settlement and the midden deposits that accumulated within the settlement, to create a 'joined-up' analysis which considers the way material from the settlement was used and then recycled as fertiliser for the fields. Peat was collected from the nearby uplands and was used for fuel and possibly also for flooring. It is suggested that organic-rich floors from the structures were periodically removed and the material was spread onto the fields as fertilisers. More organic-rich material may have been used selectively for fertiliser, while the less organic peat ash was allowed to accumulate in middens. Several of the structures may have functioned as byres, which suggests a prehistoric plaggen system.

Keywords: IRON AGE, AGRICULTURE, PLAGGEN SOILS, SHETLAND, FLOORS, MICROMORPHOLOGY

The Use of Pollen, Magnetic and Carbon Analyses in Identifying Agricultural Activity and Soil Erosion from the Neolithic to the Iron Age - A Study of Two Lake Sediment Cores from Jæren, South-Western Norway

Lisbeth Prøsch-Danielsen and Per Sandgren

Abstract

Sediment cores from two small lakes, Alvevatn and Hanalandstjønn, both situated in the coastal heathland in Jæren, south-western Norway, were investigated with respect to microfossil analyses of pollen, spores and charcoal. The two lakes are situated close to prehistoric sites and monuments ranging in time from the Mesolithic to the Medieval Age. The microfossil analyses clearly reflect abrupt deforestation from closed mixed deciduous forest to heathland at approximately 3800 BP (ca. 2500-2200 cal BC). This event coincides with the generally accepted introduction of an agro-pastoral economy in the area at the Middle Neolithic II/Early Late Neolithic transition (MN II/ELN). However, at both localities, weak signals of agrarian impact are traced earlier by. In recent years conclusions based on weak palynological signals have been criticised severely. In this investigation the tenability of the palynological method has been tested by applying independent methods to sediments from the same cores, viz. mineral magnetic and carbon analyses, which are likely to be proxy records for anthropogenic activity. The close agreement between the different methods support the conclusion that an agrarian economy was introduced prior to 4300 BP in the coastal heathland in Jæren.

Keywords: POLLEN ANALYSIS, MINERAL MAGNETIC ANALYSES, CARBON ANALYSIS, SOIL EROSION, AGRARIAN ACTIVITY NORWAY

Dog Cockle Shells as Occasional Finds in Romano-British Shell Middens from Newquay, North Cornwall, UK

Jan Light

Abstract

At archaeological sites, concentrations of marine mollusc shells, which are known to be edible species, can often be interpreted with little ambiguity as food refuse. It is a recurring feature that such concentrations may also contain other shells whose condition, even allowing for the degradational processes which may have affected the deposit, suggests that they were brought to the site in worn condition, or they may have been subjected to man-made modification after collection. Analysis of shell middens from a Romano-British site at Fistral Bay in north Cornwall, England, and comparison with the species present in the modern day environment there, shows that the 6 taxa (3 genera) which dominate the middens (Patella spp., Mytilus spp. and Nucella lapillus) also dominate the mollusc populations living on the shore, and worn, sometimes holed, Glycymeris glycymeris valves which are present in the archaeological assemblage, dominate the dead shell assemblage which litters the present-day beach. Glycymeris is a taxon for which worn shells have been reported from archaeological sites throughout the Mediterranean area and the Iberian Peninsula, but rarely from the British Isles. A high proportion of these shells bear a hole in the umbo; various processes may account for these holes. The use and significance of Glycymeris shells as artifacts are considered.

Keywords: ROMANO-BRITISH, CORNWALL, GLYCYMERIS, SHELL MIDDEN, HOLED SHELL, ORNAMENT

An Investigation of Agricultural Consumption and Production Models for Prehistoric and Roman Britain

Chris J. Stevens

Abstract

The paper examines the two existing models for identifying arable 'producers' and 'consumers' using archaeobotanical data from sites in southern England. Both models attribute variation between charred assemblages to the role of sites as primary arable producers or those receiving harvested crops. The testing of the models demonstrated that many charred archaeobotanical samples rather than relating to single specific processing activities can be attributed more generally to the waste generated from the routine processing of crops taken from storage throughout the year. The identifiable processing stages seen from most samples composition then represent only those stages conducted after storage. Variation between site assemblages can therefore be attributed to different amounts of processing carried out after harvest before crops were put into storage rather than distinguishing between sites that grew crops and those that did not. As harvesting and processing prior to storage are labour demanding, charred assemblages have the potential to reveal differences within the social organisation of past farming communities. Two patterns were distinguished: one where the organisation of agricultural labour appeared to be conducted at a household level, the second where larger scale or communal organisation appeared to be present.

Keywords: ARCHAEOBOTANY, CONSUMER, PRODUCER, PASTORALISM, THAMES VALLEY

Short Contributions

Organisation and Management of Seed Reference Collections

Mark Nesbitt, Sue Colledge and Mary Anne Murray

Abstract

Reference collections of accurately identified, recent seeds are an essential resource for seed identification in archaeobotany, agronomy, palaeoecology and studies of wildlife diet. Recommendations are given for sourcing of seed materials and storage systems. The usefulness of computer databases for cataloguing of seed collections is emphasised, and 18 core data fields (based on the HISPID data standard for herbarium collections) are proposed.

Keywords: FRUIT, MACROFOSSIL, ARCHAEOBOTANY, IDENTIFICATION, DATABASE, DATA STANDARD

Unusual Use of Freshwater Mussel (Unio sp.) Shells During the Early Bronze Age at Tell es-Sa'idiyeh, Jordan

Caroline Cartwright

Abstract

Amongst the marine, land and freshwater molluscs from the Early Bronze Age at Tell es-Sa'idiyeh, Jordan, is a group of freshwater mussels which shows evidence of distinctive working. These Unio bivalves have been examined using the scanning electron microscope in order to characterise the patterns of modification. Despite the fact that their precise function remains enigmatic, the range of possibilities has been better understood as a result.

Keywords: TELL ES-SA'IDIYEH, JORDAN VALLEY, FRESHWATER BIVALVE, UNIO CF. ELONGATULUS, EARLY BRONZE AGE