Recent Developments in Environmental Analysis in Old and New World Archaeology 9780860545361, 9781407346977

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Recent Developments in Environmental Analysis in Old and New World Archaeology

edited by

R. Esniee Webb

BAR International Series 416

1988

B.A.R. 5, Centremead, Osney Mead, Oxford OX2 ODQ, England.

GENERAL EDITORS A.R. Hands, B.Sc., M.A., D.Phil. D.R. Walker, M.A.

BAR -S416, 1988: 'Recent Developments in Environmental Analysis in Old and New World Archaeology' © The Individual Authors, 1988 The authors’ moral rights under the 1988 UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act are hereby expressly asserted. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be copied, reproduced, stored, sold, distributed, scanned, saved in any form of digital format or transmitted in any form digitally, without the written permission of the Publisher. ISBN 9780860545361 paperback ISBN 9781407346977 e-book DOI https://doi.org/10.30861/9780860545361 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library This book is available at www.barpublishing.com

P REFACE T his v olume p ublishes a s eries o f p apers most o f which were p resented i n a s ymposium e ntitled ' Recent d evelopments i n e nvironmental a nalysis i n t he O ld a nd N ew Worlds ' o rganised a s p art o f t he f iftyfirst a nnual meeting o f t he S ociety f or American A rchaeology h eld i n N ew O rleans i n A pril 1 986 . D uring t he many y ears I h ave b een c onducting f ieldwork i n N orth America I h ave b ecome p ainfully aware t hat r esearche rs o n both s ides o f t he A tlantic d o n ot r ead e ach o ther 's l iterature, l et a lone t hat f rom t he a ntipodes , a s m uch a s t hey s hould . H ence t here i s a t endancy t o r einvent t he s quare wheel, i n t he many duplicated t rials o f t echniques a lready s hown t o b e u nproductive e lsewhere . My a im i n o rganising t he s ymposium was t herefore t o e ndeavour t o r ectify t his s ituation a s f ar a s p ossible a nd r educe t he amount o f wasted e ffort . A ll t he p apers g iven i n t he s ymposium a re p rinted h ere . I n a dditi on p apers b y G ary H aynes , B rian H esse a nd A nne R oss , w ho were u nable t o p articipate i n t he a ctual s ession a t N ew O rleans, a re i ncluded s ince t hey were i ntended t o f orm a n i ntegral p art o f t he o riginal c onception . On a b rief v isit t o Australia i n 1 985 I was much i mpressed b y t he q uantity a nd s ophistication o f r esearch i nto p ast Australian e nvironm ents , I was t herefore d elighted t hat S andra B owdler c ould b e p ersuaded , b y t he p romise o f g ood j azz a nd C ajun f ood, t o l eave h er s outhern f astnesses t o a ct a s d iscussant . H er p aper s urveying b oth t he s ymposium t opic a nd t he c urrent s tate o f t he a rt, f or i t i s n o very p recise s cience , i n a ntipodean e nvironmental a nalysis i s n icely c omplemented b y t he o ther A ustralian p aper . I t i s h oped t hat t he r esultant v olume i s n ot a p oorly-integrated h odge-podge o f p apers o f n o ue t o a nyone b ut t hat i nstead i t c ollects t ogether a s ample o f t he r esearch a ims a nd methods c urrently b eing p ursued i n b oth h emispheres o f t he O ld a nd N ew Worlds, i n which a ll t hose i nterested i n t he a nalysis o f e nvironmental evidence will f ind s omething o f i nterest . I wish t o t hank t he a uthors b oth f or r esponding t o m y i nitial c all f or c ontributions t o t he o riginal s ymposium i n N ew O rleans a nd e nsuring i ts s uccess b y t heir p articipation a nd f or s ubmitting t heir m anuscripts i n g ood t ime t o p ermit t he s peedy p ublication o f what I h ope w ill p rove t o b e a r elatively e phemeral v olume , f or t hat w ill m ean t hat t he f ield h as a dvanced

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w hich w as m y a im i n o rganising t he o riginal s ymposium .

M y t hanks a re a lso d ue t o A nthony H ands a nd D avid Walker f or a ccept ing t o p ublish t hese p apers and t heir p atience with d elays, b oth i nevitable a nd a voidable ,

i n t he p roduction o f t he f inished t ext .

T he a bstracts were t ranslated b y H ubert B erke, D aniel Carlson , Joachim H ahn, Martin Wobst a nd myself, whose F rench was c hecked b y D ominique V aughan . M y t hanks t o a ll o f t hem f or t heir e fforts . F inally , Iw ish t o t hank dive O rton w ithout whose g enerous a ssista nce t his v olume would n ever h ave b een p rinted . E sm6e Webb

111

P reface

i ii

Willy G 1( ) F MAN-van WAATER t E : N ew t rends i n p alynoarchaeology i n n orthwestE urope , o r t he

1

f rantic s earch f or l ocal p ollen d ata B ruce B ENZ : ite a s ad epositional c ommunity T he a rchaeological s

2 1

M argaret D EITH : n a ppraisal o f t he o xygen i sotope S hell s easonality : a t echnique

3 7

C heryl CLAASSF 2: T echniques a nd c ontrols f ort he d etermination o f s easonality

5 1

i n s helifishing a ctivities C atherine C ARL : A n e valuation o f f ishg rowth a nnuli f or s easonality

6 7

d etermination. E e WEBB I nterpreting t he f aunal d ebris f ound i n c entral E uropean s ites

7 9

o ccupied b y N eandertals H ubert BERKE : B utchering marks o n h orse b onesf rom t he M agdalenian s ite o f P etersfels,

1 05

s outhwest G ermany

B rian H ESSE a nd Arlene R OSEN : T he d etection o f c hronological m ixing i n s amples f rom s tratified

1 17

a rchaeological s ites D avid H UEISB 1X K : F aunal r emains a nd t he identification o f s ocial g roups i n t he

1 31

a rchaeological r ecord G ary HAYN ES : S tudies o f e lephant d eaths a nd d ie-offs :

p otential a pplications

1 51

i n u nderstanding m ammoth-bone a ssemblages Anne R OSS : G eomorphological e vidence f or a c ulturally c aused c hange i n s ite u se a nd s ettlement p atterns i n s outheast A ustralia S andra BOWD IER : R ecent d evelopments i n e nvironmental a nalyses i n t he O ld a nd N ew

1 71

1 85

Worlds : a n A ntipodean p erspective 1 97

R sun s Z usammenfassungen

2 01

V

NEW TR ENDS I N P ALYNa ARC HADD IDGY I N M)Rf l JWFST E UROPE OR T HE F RANTIC S EARCH F OR L OCAL P OLLEN D ATA

W illy G roe rinan-van W aateringe A lbert Egges v an G iffen I nstituut v oor P rae-e n P rot t historie U niversity o f A mst erdam S ingel 4 53, 1 012 WP Amsterdam , T he N ether lan ds

A bstract T he a im o f t his a rticle i s t o r eview t he m ost s ignificant s tages i n t he d evelopment o f p alynoarchaeology i n t he H olocene i n n orthwest E urope . I t i s a bove a ll a p ersonal a ssessment o f h ow t his d evelopment h as b een s een b y t he a uthor d uring t he l ast 2 0 y ears . T he a rticle d eals with t he f ollowing t opics: a n i ntroductory h istorical s urvey ; t he c urrent s tate o f t he d ebate o ver t he e lm d ecline ; t he r elative s ignifi cance o f l ocal v ersus r egional p ollen d ata ; t he i mportance o f ab etter u nderstanding o f t he e vidence f or h uman a ctivity a nd i ts q ualitative a nd q uantitative i nfluence o n v egetation ; s tudies i n t he d eposition o f r ecent p ollen c ompared w ith a gricultural s ystems k nown i n t he h istorical p eriod; f inally, r esearch i nto p ollen p reservation i n d ifferent s oil t ypes.

I ntroduction A lthough t he c onsequences f or a rchaeology o f p alynological d ata were r ecognised f rom t he b eginning o f s ystematic a nalytical pollen r esearch, o nly r arely d id a r eal c o-operation b etween t he two d iscipl ines o ccur . A s B erglund ( 1985:84 ) s aid f or S candinavia, but i t h olds t rue n ot j ust f or t hat a rea : ' It h as t o b e a dmitted t hat i n g eneral p alaeoecologists h ave b een working i ndependently o f a rchaeologists a nd a rchaeol ogical p oints a t i ssue O nly i n t he i nterpretation p art .. .. h ave d iscussions w ith a rchaeologists o ccurred ' . T he f ew e xceptions t o t his g eneral r ule a re t hose c ases where p alynologi sts b elong t o a rchaeological t eams , a s i s t he c ase f or e xample i n t he N iedersächsjcheg L andesinstitüt f ür Marschen-u nd Wurtenforschung i n W ilhelmshaven , W est G ermany , o r i n t hose i nstitutions i n t he N etherlands where t he p rehistory o f western E urope i s s tudied o r i n t he D anish N ational Museum i n K q Sbenhaven . F or a l ong t ime d ating was s een a s t he m ain s ervice p alynology c ould o ffer a rchaeology . W hen o nce t he v egetati onal d evelopment o f t he H olocene i n p articular was k nown , a rchaeologica l p henomena c ould b e a scribed t o t he c limatological/vegetation alp hases a lready d etermined f or t he l ate a nd p ostglacial: B oreal, A tlantic , e tc .

1

( Firbas 1 949 ;

I versen 1 960 ).

A n i mportant s tep f orward i n t he h istory o f p alynoarchaeology w as a p ublication b y F irbas ( 1937 ), i n which h e i ndicated t hat w ild a nd c ulti vated g rasses c ould b e d iscriminated, b ased o n d ifferences i n s ize, e xcept i n c oastal a reas . G rohne ( 1957 ) a lso s tudied t his p roblem . T he t echnique was l ater r efined b y B eug ( 1961 ) a nd A ndersen ( 1979 ). T hus f or t he f irst t ime i t s eemed p ossible t o e stablish h uman p resence , a nd e specially t he a ctivity o f c ereal c ultivation , i n p ollen d iagrams . T he n ext s tep was a publication by I versen ( 1941 ), e laborated i n 1 949, i n which h e n ot o nly p ointed t o i mportant c hanges i n f orest c ompo sition during t he S ub-Boreal p hase, but g ave p articular a ttention t o t he e asily i dentifiable pollen o f c ertain h erbaceous p lants, which i ndicated a d irect l ink w ith h uman a ctivities, f or e xample t he s o-called weeds o f c ultivation : P lantago l anceolata, A rtemisia c f . vulgaris, C henopodiaceae a nd R umex a cetosa/acetosella . F luctuations i n t hese p ollen t ypes c oupled w ith f luctuations i n f orest d ensity s hould r eprese nt c hanges i n a gricutural i ntensity . T his l ed t o ag rowing i nterest i n t he i dentification o f h erbaceous p ollen a nd t o a r efining i n t he i denti fication o f d ifferent p ollen t ypes w ith t he h elp o f c omparative p ollen c ollections a nd i dentification k eys . I versen a nd T roels-Smith ( 1950 ), F aegri a nd I versen ( 1950 ), E rdtman , B erglund a nd P raglowski ( 1961 ) a nd M oore a nd Webb ( 1978 ) a re s ome o f t he m any g eneral a nd s pecialised works s ubsequently p ublished o n p ollen i dentification . T he p rospects f or p alynoarchaeology were w idened n ot o nly b y t he i mprovement o f t he m ethods u sed t o i dentify m ore p ollen t ypes b ut a lso b y t he e nlargement o f t he t otal n umber o f p ollen g rains c ounted i n t he s amples i n o rder t o f ind r are h erbaceous p ollen t ypes . One o f t he f inest e xamples o f t his d evelopment was t he s tudy b y T roels-Smith ( 1955 ) o f t he p alynology o f N eolithic l ake dwellings i n Switzerland . T he work o f I versen ( 1949 ) a nd T roels-Smith b rought i nto s cientific d iscussion , i n a rchaeology a s well a s i n p alynology , t he e ffect o n t he l andscape and v egetation o f human a ctivities a s r eflected i n p ollen d iagrams , p articularly i n r egard t o a griculture . Both o ccupied t hems elves with t he e lm d ecline . T his was o riginally i nterpreted a s t he r esult , a t l east i n D enmark , o f c limatological c hanges ( Iversen 1 941 ). A lthough F aegri ( 1940 ) s uggested f or N orway t hat t he c ause was t he u se o f e lm l eaves a s f odder . T roels-Smith ( 1954, 1 955 ), f ollowing i n F aegri 's f ootsteps, a scribed t he e lm d ecline t o t he p ractices o f N eol ithic f armers , who would h ave k ept t heir c attle p ermanently i n s tables a nd f ed t hem w ith y oung e lm b ranches . T he n ature o f t he e lm d ecline i s s till u nder d iscussion . O ne o f t he main p roblems b eing t he l arge e xtent o f t he p henomenon, which a ppears t o b e c entred a round t he A tlantic/Sub-Boreal t ransition , a bout 5 000BP i n c onventional r adiocarbon y ears . T his d iscussion i s c arried o n n ot j ust b y p alynologists .

E lm d ecline R ecently t he p roblem o f t he e lm d ecline h as r e-entered d iscussion n ainly f or q uantitative r easons ( Groenman-van W aateringe 1 983 ). F rom a p urely l ogistic p oint o f v iew , R ackham ( 1980 ) h as c alculated t hat p olla rding a s ac ause o f t he e lm d ecline over s uch a small a rea a s E ngland

2

a lone would h ave k ept s ome 5 00,000 a dults busy f or t he e ntire s ummer . I f t his c alculation i s c orrect , i t would i mply a p opulation d ensity a t l east s ome t en t imes h igher t han i s p resently a ssumed . I n h is words : ' a p opulation m uch l arger a nd m ore e lm-centred t han a ny a rchaeologist h as h itherto p roposed ' ( 1980 :206 ). R owley-Conwy ( 1982 ) a lso a pproaches t he p roblem f rom t he q uantitative a ngle . H e c alculated t he n umber o f c ows w hich c ould h ave e aten t heir way t hrough t he a nnual e lm l eaf h arvest a nd a lso a rrives a t u nthinkably h igh f igures f or t he N eolithic . D isease h as r ecently r eturned t o t he f ore a s a n a lternative e xplana tion f or t he e lm d ecline . C ertainly , t his would e xplain t he r apidity a nd s cale o f v egetational c hange a s p erceived i n c ertain r egions o f A merica ( Davis 1 981 ). U sing p ollen d iagrams s eparated b y u pto 1 500km , s he i dentified a d ramatic d ecline i n T suga ( hemlock ) p ollen, i n s ome c ases f rom 3 0% t o 5 % , a round 4 800BP . T he r apidity o f t he d ecline p leads a gainst a c limatic c ause , w hilst h uman a ctivity a cross a r egion o f s ome 5 00,000 s quare km, which a t t hat t ime was o nly t hinly populated by m ostly n on-agricultural I ndians w ithout d omestic a nimals , i s e ven l ess a cceptable . D avis , t herefore , a scribes t he h emlock d ecline t o a w ides pread o utbreak o f ap athogen , c omparing i t t o t he h istoric C astanea d entata ( chestnut ) b light which o ccurred b etween 1 904 a nd 1 950 . I n t he E uropean c ontext , t he o bvious p athogenic c andidate i s D utch E lm d isease . T his i s c aused b y a n a scomycete f ungus C eratocystis u lmi a nd i s p ropagated p rimarily b y two b eetles, S colytus s colytus a nd S . m ultistriatus . O nce t he f ungus h as r eached t he r oots, i t c an b e s uck e d u p d irectly i nto t he t ree a nd s preads quickly t o o ther t rees o f t he c lone . T he t ree d ies v ery r apidly a fter r oot i nfection , whilst b eetle i nfection l eads t o a s low d eath , b ranch b y b ranch . E lms which s hoot o ut v igorously a fter p ollarding a re e specially p rone t o i nfection . T hus h uman a ctivity would c ertainly s timulate t he p ropagation o f t he d isease . U nequivocal e vidence f or a d isease h aving c aused t he e lm d ecline i s n ot a vailable . A lthough n umerous wood-decaying b eetles d o o ccur a t t he A tlantic/ S ub-B or eal t ransition , t hese a re n ot t he i nsects which a re n ow t ypical o f d ecaying e lms ( Girling 1 982 ). R ecently t he b eetle S . s colyt us h as b een f ound i n a p eat l ayer d ated t o t he Atlantic/Sub-Boreal t ransition ( Girling a nd G reig 1 985 ). T he b eetle i s, h owever , m erely t he c arrier o f t he d isease a nd n ot e ven t hat i n t he c ase o f t he m ore d rastic r oot i nfection . Only a n i ncrease i n t he a ctual p athogen , t he f ungus, c an i nfluence t he c ourse o f t he d isease . A nalysis o f f ungal s pores ( van G eel 1 978 ) m ight o ffer a s olution h ere , d espite t he f act t hat i dentifica tions a re a s y et p redominantly r estricted t o t he s pores o f l ocally p resent b og s pecies . Analyses f rom a small p eat bog would s eem t o b e c alled f or i n o rder t o i ncrease t he c hances o f l ocating s pores f rom t he s urrounding v egetation . T he analyses p resently available ( van G eel 1 978; v an G eel, B ohncke a nd D ee 1 980-1 ) h ave n ot p roduced a ny evidence f or t he o ccurrence o f t he f ungus C . u lmi a t t he t ime o f t he e lm d ecline . E xamination o f s pores i n two l aboratory c ultures o f t his f ungus m ade i t c lear t hat , b ecause o f t heir s ize ( 5-7 m icrons ) a nd t ransparency , t hey will o nly b e f ound i n a rchaeological s amples by u sing p hase c ontrast m icroscopy . A ccording t o v an G eel ( personal c ommunication ) t he s pore wall o f t his s pecies i s n ot o f at ype t o f ossilise e asily a nd, even i f i t d id, i t i s q uestionable whether i t would s urvive t he a cetolysis t reatment e ssential i n p rocessing s ediment f or p ollen a nalysis . A lthough a n e xclusively anthropogenic e xplanation o f t he e lm d ecline s eems i mprobable , i t n evertheless would a ppear t hat a n umber o f p lants i ndicative o f h uman i nterference with t he n atural v egetation

3

a ppear f irst a t t he t ime o f t he d ecline, b oth d irect e vidence f rom c ereals, s eeds a nd weeds o f c ultivation and i ndirect f rom a pophytes . H owever, r adiocarbon d ating h as l ong a lerted u s t o t he f act t hat i n w estern E urope a whole r ange o f N eolithic c ultures b lazed t heir a gricult ural a ctivities i nto t he p ollen r ecord l ong b efore t he e lm d ecline a t t he Atlantic/Sub-Boreal t ransition . A s a r esult o f t he i ncreasing r eliability o f p ollen a nalysis, a p roduct o f c ounting l arger n umbers o f g rains a nd u sing f iner i ntervals i n c ore s ampling , a g rowing n umber o f p ollen d iagrams d isplay p re-elm d ecline a gricultural a ctivity . T hough t his i s s till a r elatively i nfrequent o ccurrence ( Groenman-van W aater inge 1 983; E dwards a nd H irons 1 984; G öransson 1 984 ). T his h as s omet imes l ed t o t he i nterpretation o f t hose p re-elm d ecline o penings i n t he f orest c over which a re o bserved i n B ritish p ollen d iagrams a s ar ef l ecti on o f t he a ctivities o f M esolithic p eople ( Bradley 1 978 :6 ). H owever , s uch a n a scription r ests p rimarily o n t he ' absence o f r eliable a rable i ndicators s uch a s c ereals, a nd, p robably more s o, t o r espect f or t he p revailing Neolithic c hronology ' ( Lynch 1 981:117 ). Coles a nd O rme ( 1983 ) a ssumed t hat s ome o f t he e vidence f or f orest c learance m ight b e d ue t o l arge-scale a ctivities b y b eavers c reating o pen s paces a nd p onds which were a lso a ttractive f or h uman h abitation . Why , f or e xample , s hould t he d etection o f p re-elm d ecline a gricult ure b e s o h ard , o r f or t hat m atter , t he e vidence o f N eolithic a gricult ural a ctivities i n g eneral b e s o r estricted i n p ollen d iagrams? D etect ion o f evidence f or e arly N eolithic a griculture i n t he p ollen r ecord will b e d ifficult i n t he f irst p lace b ecause f orest c learings b eing f armed were p robably small a nd s cattered d ue t o t he l ow population d ensity t hen, a nd a lso d ue t o t he d ispersion p atterns o f t he pollen i tself ( Tauber 1 965 ). P ollen p roduced b y p lants i n f orested a reas , e ven a nemophilous o nes , would n ever h ave s tood m uch c hance o f b eing c arried f ar f rom t he c learings i n which t he p lants s tood ( Coles 1 976 :65 ). Much o f t he p ollen would l odge i n t he f orest t runk s pace , a ll t he m ore i f t he c learings were s urrounded b y i mpenetrable t horny h edges t o p rotect t he c rops f rom wild a nimals ( Groenman-van Waateringe 1 978 ). T he c hance o f c ereal p ollen b eing d etected i s e ven l ess l ikely s ince N eolithic wheat a nd b arley were s elf-pollinating . S o c ereal p ollen c an o nly b e e xpected a t e xceptionally f avourably s ited s ampling p oints . V uorela ( 1973 ) h as s hown t hat most p ollen f rom c leistogamous c ereals i s t o b e f ound n ot o n t he f ields t hemselves but i n t he s ettlement, where t he pollen s till r etained o n t he c haff i s f reed d uring w innowing . R obinson a nd H ubbard ( 1977 ) m ake a s imilar p oint . When , a s i s u sually t he c ase , t he s ampling s ite i s a l arge p eat b og a t ac onsiderable distance f rom t he s ettlement , t hen i t i s f utile e ven t o e xpect t o f ind c ereal p ollen . I n t hose c ases where p re-elm d ecline f orest c learance c an b e t raced t he p ollen s ample a lmost i nvariably c ame f rom a s mall p eat-filled d epression i n o r n ear a s ettlement s ite . T his d ispersion pattern f or c ereal p ollen s hould b e k ept i n mind when r eading R owley-Conwy ( 1981 ) who d enies t he p ractice o f s lash a nd b urn a griculture i n t he N eolithic o f n orthwest E urope b ecause h e e xpects t o s ee t he c reation o f s mall c learings r eflected i n t he p ollen d iagrams . I nstead t he p ollen r ecord s hows o ne l ong-lasting g eneral t rend o f f orest c learance a nd a l ow b ut c ontinuous p resence o f c ereal p ollen a nd o ther p ollen t ypes i ndicative o f a gricultural a ctivity . H owever , a ll t hat i s r eflected i n ar egional p ollen d iagram where a l ake b asin o r p eat bog was t he s ampling a rea, i s a gricultural a ctivity i n g eneral, n ot t he evidence f rom o ne s pecific s pot . I n s uch d iagrams, h erbaceous p ollen s uch a s c ereals a nd weeds f orms a k ind o f b ackground n oise r eflecting

4

t he c oncentration o f p ollen f rom m any s mall c learings , whose p ositions c hanged e very s o o ften a nd whose c ontribution t o t he g eneralised p ollen r ain c annot b e d isentangled i n t he s ample s ite . T he c ontemporaneity o f t he e lm d ecline with t he ' first ' c ereal p ollen , weeds o f c ultivation , p asture p lants a nd a pophytes m ay b e c onv incingly e xplained by t he s upposition t hat f ollowing t he s udden d ecrease o f e lm , f or what e ver r eason , p ollen f rom t he t iny f ields a nd p astures i n t he f orest c learings a s well a s f rom t he a pophytes which h ad b een p resent a ll a long, a fter a ll Mesolithic p eople had a lso moved a round i n t he f orests , c ould t hen b e c arried m ore f reely t hroughout t he woodland f rom t heir point o f o rigin . The a pparent i ncrease i n t his p ollen t hen a t t he s ame t ime a s t he e lm d ecline i s t hus a n i llusion , s ince , a lthough t he amount o f p ollen f rom a rable a nd m eadow v egetation d id i ndeed i ncrease i n t he r elevant d eposits t his was n ot d ue t o a n i ncrease i n a gricultural a ctivity . I t must b e s aid , h owever , t hat h uman a gency m ay well b e t o b lame f or t he f act t hat t he e lm was n ever a ble t o r egain i ts f ormer l evels a fter i ts i nitial d ecline a bout 5 000BP . The a dvantages o f o pen a reas on t hose s oils most s uited t o h is n eeds will n ot h ave e scaped t he Neolithic f armer whose a gricultural a ctivities would h ave p revented f orest r egeneration . I t i s a lso p ossible t hat i n c ertain a reas , d epending o n c limate a nd s ituation , e rosion a nd l eaching m ay h ave s o a ltered l ocal s oil c onditions t hat c omplete r egeneration o f f orest c over was i mpossible a fter t he e lm d ecline a nd o nly a n i mpoveri shed v egetation c ould g row t here t henceforward . T hose r are c ases where t he o riginal f orest c over , i ncluding e lm , s eems t o h ave r e-established i tself s uccessfully m ight b e e vidence o f ah uman p opulation s o s mall a s t o b e u nable t o k eep a c leared a rea p ermanently o pen .

Reg ional v ersus l ocal p ollen d ata B ecause m ost o f t he p alynological s tudies u ndertaken t o d ate were c arried o ut i ndependently o f a rchaeology, s pecific a rchaeological q uestions were n ot c onsidered b y t he p ollen a nalyst . R ecently , h owever , p alynologists working i n c loser c o-operation with a rchaeologists have t urned f rom t he r egional a pproach which c an o nly y ield g eneralised i nformation , t o t he m ore l ocal i nformation t o b e l earned f rom s maller c atchment a reas which i t i s m ore p ossible t o l ink t o as pecific c ultural p hase o r p henomenon ( Ploeger a nd G roenman-van Waateringe 1 964 ; A ndersen 1 978, 1 985; Andersen , Aaby a nd Odgaard 1 983; B ehre a nd K u an 1 986; B ottema ( personal c ommunication )). F ollowing t he work o f T auber ( 1965 ) a nd o thers i t was r ealised t hat o nly u nder c ertain c ircumstances would t he i nfluence o f a small Neolithic s ettlement, l ocated i n al andscape s till h aevily f orested , b e d etected i n t he p ollen r ecord : T hese c ircums tances a re r elated t o t he s ize o f t he s ettlement, a nd t hus t he open s pace a vailable a t t he t ime o f o ccupation , t he d istance o f t he s ettlement f rom t he s ampling s ite and t he v egetation g rowing at t he t ime b etween t he s ettlement a nd t he s ampling s ite . T he s tudy o f pollen c atchment a reas t hen b ecame t he v ogue ( Vuorela 1 973; E dwards 1 982 v G reig 1 982 ). E ven more l ocal i nformation d irectly l inked t o a s pecific p reh istoric c ulture o r p hase i s t o b e g ot f rom t he a nalysis o f s oil s amples w ithin a s ettlement , a lthough i t m ay p rove d ifficult t o f ind s uitable material f or s ampling . S uitable material c an, however, be f ound f or e xample i n d itches o r p its , g radually o r s uddenly i n-filled , p ostholes b ackfilled with humic t opsoil, a rable l ayers c overed by b lown s and , t urves u sed f or b uilding p urposes , e tc . R ather g ood c ircumstances f or p ollen p reservation e xist u nderneath p rehistoric burial mounds i n t he

5

a cidic P leistocene s ands o f n orthwest E urope . T his k ind o f p alynologi cal r esearch h as b een e specially d eveloped i n t he N etherlands a nd h as l ed t o m uch i nformation c oncerning t he d ifferent ways i n which p rehisto ric p eople d ealt with t heir s urroundings ( Casparie a nd G roenman-van Waateringe 1 980 ). D imbleby ( 1985 ) c arried o ut s imilar work i n E ngland , but with t he h andicap t hat most o f t he s oils f ound u nderneath b urial mounds i n England p reserve p ollen badly . I n G ermany and S candinavia, where s oil c onditions s imilar t o those i n t he N etherlands c an b e f ound , t his k ind o f p ollen a nalysis was s carcely p racticed at a ll u ntil r ecently ( Groenman-van Waateringe 1 979 ). P alynologists do not much l ike analysing t hese k inds o f s amples b ecause t hey o nly p rovide d etails o f s egments o f t ime , r arely s equences . T he p reservation o f t he p ollen i s m ostly n ot g ood , t he g rains a re o ften l ying i n ac rumpled, u nrecognisable position which c an b e improved , h owever , b y u sing a s ieve w ith a m esh s ize o f 4 -10 m icron d uring p repa ration t o g et r id o f t he many . mineral, s oil a nd s ometimes c harcoal p articles which c an o bscure t he p ollen g rains a nd m ake a r eliable c ount i mpossible . T he r esults f rom s uch s amples h ave o nly a v ery r estricted i nterpretative v alue , s ince t hey r eflect o nly t he s trictly l ocal h istory o f t he s ite ( Groenman-van Waateringe 1 986a ). I t i s small wonder t hat t he a nalysis o f s amples f rom s oils b eneath burial mounds began a t t he i nstigation o f a n a rchaeologist P rofessor A .E . v an G iffen . N ow t hat we h ave more o pen m inds t owards t his l ocal a spect o f t he v egetation a s a d irect r eflection o f t he r estricted l ocal i nfluence o f prehistoric s ettlement p atterns , i t i s h oped t hat t his k ind o f a pproach w ill g ain i n i nterest . Human h abitation was n ot r estricted t o t he wetlands a lone . A nalysing o nly s amples f rom s uch a reas , d espite t he g ood p ollen p reserva tion t hey p rovide , h as g iven u s a o ne-sided p icture o f h u m an b ehaviour ( Madsen 1 985 c ontra B erglund a nd Emanuelsson 1 985 ). R aw h umus l ayers f rom f orests where t here was g ood p ollen p reserva tion have b een a nalysed t o t race l ocal f orest h istory by Andersen ( 1979 ), D imbleby ( 1985 ), I versen ( 1958 , 1 964 ) a nd S tockmarr ( 1975 ). I n a ll t hese e xamples one has t o r ealise t hat t he i nformation o btained i s o f p urely l ocal r elevance a nd c annot b e u sed t o g eneralise o ver l ong d istances o r d isparate t ime p eriods . O nly i f a c ertain p henomenon i s f ound over a nd over again i n d ifferent s ites s pread over a wide a rea c an a g eneralisation b e m ade .

Two a pplications o f l ocal pollen data I n t he 1 960s a l arge a rchaeological p roject was s tarted i n n orthwest Germany ( Schmid 1 978 ) on t he g eest i sland o f F lögeln . G eest i s s andy a nd l oamy d eposits o f P leistocene a ge . F lögeln i s c alled a n i sland b ecause i t i s s urrounded by p eat bogs . Behre ( 1976a ) a nalysed c ores t aken a t d ifferent d istances , 3 00m , 5 00m a nd 4 000m , f rom t he e dge o f t he p eat bog n orth o f t he s ettlement a rea . T hese p rovided i n t he f irst p lace a p icture o f t he r egional d evelopment o f v egetation . E vide nce f or o ccupation a nd a griculture was c learest i n t he c ore n earest t he s hore o f t he i sland, much l ess s o i n t hat f rom t he m iddle o f t he l arge bog . I n o rder t o g et more d etailed i nformation on t he e conomy o f t he d ifferent o ccupation phases, which s pread a ll over t he e ntire g eest i sland a nd c overed t he t ime f rom t he middle Neolithic ( TRB ) p eriod o nwards, p eat c ores were a nalysed f rom t he p ingos f ound a ll over t he i sland . T hese c ores p rovided t he s ame g eneral p attern o f v egetational

6

Plate 1 : S ection t hrough a p laggen s oil beneath one o f t he f ew r ye f ields s till e xisting i n t he P rovince o f N orth B rabant , T he N etherlands . ( Photo courtesy o f I .P .P . )

7

d evelopment a s t hose t aken f rom t he p eat b og , but i n d etail t here are g reat d ifferences , e specially i n t he p icture t hey y ield o f h uman i nterf erence . T he d etails a re s ometimes m uch c learer i n o ne d iagram a nd l ess s o i n a nother , d ependent o n t he t ime s pan b eing s ampled a nd t he s ite o f t he p ingo s ampled r elative t o t he l ocation o f t he o ccupied o r e xploited a rea ( Behre a nd K u an 1 986 ). Another n ew a pplication o f p ollen analysis i n a rchaeology i s t he s tudy o f s o-called p laggen s oils ( Plate 1 ). O ver l arge a reas o f n orthwest Europe, p articularly on t he p oor P leistocene s andy s oils, a n ew a gricultural p ractice came i nto u se f rom a bout 1 000AD onwards ( Pape 1 970; B ehre 1 976b, 1 980; Heidinga 1 984a, 1 987 ). T he s urface o f t he f ields was r aised by t he a ddition o f h eather s ods o r p laggen , s traw , f orest l itter , e tc ., which was m ixed w ith d ung . T his was m eant n ot o nly t o enrich t he s oil, but a ccording t o Heidinga ( 1984a , 1 984b , 1 987 ) m ainly t o i ncrease t he moisture c ontent o f t he s oil . O ne way o f m ixing t he p laggen o r o ther m aterial w ith t he m anure was t o b ring t he p laggen a nd s traw i nto t he s tables during t he winter a nd when t he f irst l ayer was s oaked w ith d ung a nd u rine , t o a dd a f resh l ayer , a nd s o o n . A t t he e nd o f t he w inter t he a nimals p ractically h ad t heir h eads s craping t he b arn r oof ! I n t he s pring t he s tables were d ug o ut a nd i n t he a utumn t he mulch was s pread o n t he f ields . I n t he c ourse o f t ime t he s urface l evel o f t he f ields was p robably r aised a m etre o r m ore . T hese r aised p laggen s oils were i n u se f rom t he e leventh t o n ineteenth c enturies , m ainly f or winter r ye c ultivation , a lthough o ther c rops s uch a s p otatoes a nd b uckwheat were a lso g rown t here but, a t l east i n t he f inal p eriod , n ot t he m ore d emanding c ereals s uch a s wheat a nd o ats . T he h u r nic n ature a nd l ow p H o f t hese p laggen s oils p rovide e xcellent p reservation c onditions f or pollen , i n c ontrast t o a rable l ayers i n g eneral ( Fig . 1 ). T hus i t i s p ossible t o s tudy t he c rops a nd t heir a ccompanying weed f lora i n d etail . T he p ollen c ontent o f t he p laggen s oils r eflects , h owever , n ot o nly t he c rops g rown o n t hem p lus t heir weeds , b ut a lso c onsists o f t he p ollen o f t he p laggen t hemselves a nd t hat d erived f rom t he f ood o f t he a nimals which p roduced t he d ung ( Groenman-van Waateringe 1 987 ). P laggen c ould c ome f rom a nywhere : h eath , meadow , s tream v alleys , e tc . ( Bakels 1 987 ). I f s traw was u sed a s t he b inder t hen t he p ollen o f a ny o f t he c ereals c ould h ave b een preserved, n ot j ust t hat o f t he c rop g rown on t he p laggen s oil ( Groenman-van Waateringe 1 987 ).

Cultural i r icators q ualitative I n a n a ttempt t o s harpen t he i nterpretation o f t he p resence o f s oc alled c ultural i ndicators i n p ollen d iagrams , B ehre ( 1981 ) p ublished a s ynopsis o f t he r elevant s pecies o r pollen t ypes . H e d iscriminated b etween t hose s pecies c haracteristic o f w inter c ereals, s ummer c ereals and r oot c rops a nd t hose s pecies a ssociated with f allow g round, dry pasture, wet meadows, g razed f orest , f ootpaths, r uderals and n atural c ommunities, e specially bogs . S ince t hat i nitial s tudy, h e r ecently o rganised a s ymposium f or t he I NQUA C ommission f or t he s tudy o f H olocene o n t he t opic o f ' Methods o f i nterpretation o f a nthropogenic i ndicators i n p ollen d iagrams ' (B ahre 1 986 ). T he a im o f t his meeting was t o e stabl ish b etter c riteria t o d istinguish, i n t he i nterpretation o f pollen d iagrams , t he d ifferent t ypes o f a griculture a ssumed t o h ave e xisted i n p re-a nd protohistory . A lthough t he u se o f c ertain p lant s pecies and p ollen t ypes a s c ultural i ndicators i s q uite c ommon , t he f actual b asis

8

C u c t r a e r r e

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.

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.

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A s election o f pollen s pectra f rom a p laggen s oil o n t he

T he N etherlands .

( Drawn b y I .P .P . )

S amples 3 -11 a re f rom two s uperimposed d itches d ug i nto t he s ubsoil f rom t he o ld s ettlement l ayer . S amples 9 -10 a re f rom a n a nimal b urrow , w hich was n ot r ecognised d uring s ampling . S amples 1 2-13 a re f rom t he 1 2-13th c entury s ettlement l ayer. S amples 1 4 -15 a re f rom b lown s and . S amples 1 6-22 a re f rom t he L ate M ediaeval p laggen s oil. P ollen o f

( late )

M ediaeval p laggen s oils i s c haracterised b y e xcel-

l ent p reservation b ecause o f t heir h ighly humic n ature and l ow p H . T hese s oils a re v ery r ich i n p ollen . T he p ollen c omposition c omprises p ollen d erived f rom t he vegetation o f t he p laggen and other material u sed f or r aising t he l evel o f t he f ields a nd pollen , mainly S ecale, d eriving f rom c ereal c ultivation o n t he ‚ p laggen s oils , t hat i s s pecies c haracteristic o f S ecalietea o r w inter c ereal c ultivation . T his r esults i n ah igh d iversity o f p ollen t ypes .

f or s uch u sage i s s till r ather small a nd f ar t oo g eneralised . I t was h oped t o r elate p ollen d ata f rom s ites where t he a gricultural s ystem was e ither s till i n u se o r well-recorded i n h is 1 orical s ources, s uch a s s lash a nd burn , h eath e xploitation , p laggen t echniques a nd f orest g razi ng , t o t he k nown v egetational p attern . T he m ain a im was n ot a g eneral h istory o f t hese s ites, but t o improve our i nterpretation o f t he d ata a lready a vailable f rom o lder s ites . P apers were p resented on s uch t opics a s t he management o f h eathl ands i n Norway a nd t he p lant s pecies c haracteristic f or d ifferent management t echniques ( Kaland 1 986 ). For e xample, P otentilla i s a n i ndicator o f b urnt h eathiand , while Empetrum a voids burned g round , b ut

9

t hrives u nder m owing r egimes . V asari a nd V nen ( 1986 ) d iscussed t he u se i n n orthern F inland o f w etlands f or t he p roduction o f w inter f odder f or c attle by i nundating mires a nd t he c hanges i n t he v egetation , a s r eflected i n p ollen d iagrams , t hat r esult f rom t his p ractice . B erglund a nd Emanuelsson ( 1986 ) r eported o n t he r elation b etween t he a ctual v egetation r ecorded i n a reas o f s outhern Sweden where t he l and h as b een e ither g razed o r mown f or hundreds o f y ears a nd t he r esulting p ollen r ain . Id iscussed t he p ossibility o f f orest g razing g iven t he amount o f l ight t ransmitted t hrough t he c rown c over , t he amount o f f odder p lants n ecessary a nd t he i ntensity o f g razing , b ased o n g razing e xperiments i n t he h etherlands G roennan-van W aateringe 1 986 ). V uorela ( 1986 ) r eported o n t he evidence f or s lash a nd d urn t echniques a s r eflected i n p ollen d iagrams f rom s outhern F inland a nd c ompared i t with h istorical e vidence . P ott ( 1985, 1 986 ) d iscussed t he i ntegration o f vegetation and p ollen d ata t o d etermine s uch t echniques o f f orest e xploitation a s c oppicing , g razing a nd b ark s tripping , a s u sed i n western G ermany . T urner ( 1986 ) o utlined t he p ossibility o f i dentifying g roups o f a nthropogenic i ndicato rs b y means o f a p rincipal c omponents a nalysis o f p ollen s pectra . q uantitative I n 1 983 a c onference o f t he A ssociation f or E nvironmental A rchaeol ogy was d edicated f or t he f irst t ime t o t he p roblem o f t he r elative i mportance o f p lants a nd a nimals i n r egional e conomies ( Jones 1 983 ). A multidisciplinary a pproach was m eant t o b e n ecessary t o t ackle s uch a t opic . Contributions were p resented not only by p alynologists but workers f rom s uch o ther f ields a s e ntomology , z ooarchaeology , e thnobota ny a nd p edo l ogy . T he c alculation o f t he a rable/pastoral r atio , o r t he q uantitative i f r elative a pproach , c annot b e s eparated f rom t he q ualitative q uestion o f which t axa a re r egarded a s b eing i ndicators f or a rable a nd which f or p asture . S ince S teckhan 's p ioneering work ( 1961 ), s everal a rable/ p astoral r atios h ave b een u sed b y d ifferent a uthors . T heir m erits a re d iscussed by Maguire ( 1983 ). S ome workers even g oing s o f ar a s t o a ssume a 1 :1 r elationship between c ereal pollen a nd a rable l and o r pollen o f P . l anceolata a nd pastoral a ctivities ( Lange 1 971 ). A s l ong a s t he c riteria f or i dentifying a rable a nd p astoral i ndicators a re n ot c learly d efined , b ased o n f acts n ot t heories , a nd d irectly r elevant t o p rehistoric a griculture , i t i s i mpossible t o e xpect t o b e a ble t o t ransl ate a n a rable/pastoral r atio i n t erms o f p ast e conomies o r s ubsistence p ractices . I t i s a lways p ossible t hat t he s ame s pecies , u nder c ertain c ircumstances , m ight b e a n i ndicator f or a rable while u nder o ther c ondi tions i t could i ndicate p astoral. P rincipal c omponents a nalysis, a s r eported b y T urner ( 1986 ), s eems t o o ffer u s a b etter i nterpretation o f o ur d ata i n t his r espect . P articularly s ince t he g reat d ifferences t hat o ccurred i n a gricultural p ractice s uch a s t he u se o f t he a rd o r t he p lough, burning, manuring o r doing n othing t o f ertilise t he s oil, variations i n s owing t ime, t he cultivation o f winter v ersus s ummer c ereals, was t he whole p lant r eaped o r j ust t he e ars, e tc ., may h ave a ffected t he c omposition o f t he weed f lora . T he p resence o r a bsence o f c ertain t axa i n p rehistoric t imes m ay h ave a ffected c ompetition among t he weeds .

R ecent p ollen a ssemblages T he p roblems i nvolved i n t he d efinition o f a n a rable/pastoral r atio

1 0

d emand t hat b asic r esearch o n h ow l and m anagement t echniques a nd v egeta tion p atterns a re r eflected i n t he l ocal a nd r egional p ollen r ain b e u ndertaken . U ntil n ow l ittle work h as b een done i n t his f ield . T he I NQUA s ymposium a t W ilhelmshaven was a s tart . O f c ourse , t he r elations hip b etween vegetation and pollen r ain h as been s tudied f or a l ong t ime . T he work o f t he D anish p alynologist Andersen , who c alculated n umerical c orrection f actors f or t he p ollen p roducing c apabilities o f t he main t ree s pecies p resent i n t he Holocene o f n orthwest Europe, i s e specially worth m entioning ( Andersen 1 970, 1 980 ) . No s uch data a re a vailable f or h erbaceous p lants . What i s n eeded i s a s tudy o f t he l ocal a nd r egional r epresentation o f t he p lants considered i ndicators f or g razing a nd c ereal c ultivation . B ehre and K u an ( 1986 ) h ave s hown c learly t hat e ach p ollen t ype has i ts own characteristic f all-off p attern . A s tudy s uch a s t he o ne G rabandt made i n Colombia ( 1985 ), i n which s he s tudied t he r elationship b etween m ainly h erbaceous p lants a s t hey o ccurred i n t he vegetation and i n t he pollen r ain, i s n eeded f or E urope ( Berglund a nd Emanuelsson 1 986 ). B y c omparing h istorical r ecords f or t he p ast 3 50-400 y ears f or an a rea i n t he n orthern boreal f orest z one with p alynological d ata, Hicks ( 1985 ) p resents u s with a k ey f or d istinguishing d ifferent k inds o f h uman i nterference i n p ollen d iagrams i n t hat a rea , s uch a s p ermanent v ersus s emi-permanent s ettlement , f orest g razing s lash-and-burn cultivation v ersus cultivation on p ermanent f ields and n atural m eadow v ersus s own hayfields . T he n ature o f t he s ampling s ite a nd i ts d istance f rom t he s cene o f a ctivity d etermines t he r epresentation o f t hese a ctivities i n t he p ollen s pectra , which a re i n a ny c ase , o nly d istinguishable within a bout 2 00m f rom t he s ource . R ecently I h ave s tudied t he e ffects o f i ntensive v ersus e xtensive g razing by c attle i n o pen f orests, g rassland and h eathland a s i t i s r eflected i n t he p ollen r ain ( Groenman-van Waateringe 1 986 ). A g rassl and i ntensively g razed b y c attle , a nd t hus k ept l ow , p roduces much l ess p ollen t han u ngrazed o r e xtensively g razed g rassland . H eather d emonstra tes t he o pposite b ehaviour . Y oung h eather p lants f lower more a bundantl y when h eavily g razed b ecause t he g razing p revents t he h eather b ecoming o ld a nd woody a nd, s ince heather i s mainly g razed i n l ean p eriods, e specially winter , f lowering a nd p ollen p roduction a re n ot h ampered . I n t his p roject I am working with e cologists who a re s tudying t he g razing b ehaviour o f H ighland c attle , a s turdy u nspecialised r ace . I n e xperiments concerning t he e ffect t he c attle have on t he v egetation o f a g rassy f orest t he d evelopment o f t his v egetation i s c ompared w ith t hat i n s o-called e xclosures , where n o g razing i s a llowed ( Plate 2 ). O ne o f t he q uestions we a re t rying t o a nswer i s which v egetational c omponents , i n p articular with r egard t o t he p ercentage o f g rasses , a re g razed more i ntensively . P ollen f rom t he A o l ayer i n t he d ifferent a reas i s a nalyse d a nd r elated t o t he d ata f rom t he g razing e xperiments ( Fig . 2 ) .

Pollen p reservation i n s oil s amples A spects o f p ollen p roduction s uch a s t he c orrection f actors g iven by Andersen ( 1970, 1 980 ) f or t he t ree s pecies o r t he c alculation o f R v alues , t hat i s t he r elationship o f t he p ollen r epresented t o t he v eget ational c over , a re o nly o ne s ide o f t he c oin . I n t he a nalysis o f s oil s amples , h owever , t he p roblem o f d ifferential p ollen p reservation h as t o be t aken i nto a ccount . S ince 1 954 Havinga ( 1962 ) h as s tudied t his s ubject and r ecently h e published t he r esults o f e xperiments h e had c arried o ut o n p ollen p reservation b y b urying k nown amounts o f p ollen o f d ifferent s pecies i n d ifferent s oil t ypes, f or example c lay , p eat o r

1 1

1 2

70 *

*

60

*

50

X 40 C I , *

0 C L 30

X X X

20 *

x20

x

I0 ,x

0

1 000

2000

3000

Graz ing i n min/ha Figure 2 : C omparison b etween g razing p ressure . and p ollen p ercentages f or g rasses i n s urface s amples f rom I mbos . ( Drawn b y I .P .P . ) T he d ata o n g razing p ressure f or t he t otal l ength o f t he e xperiment were p rovided b y D r . S . v an Wieren , I nstituut v oor M ilieuvraagstu i ckef l , V rije U niversiteit , Amsterdam . S amples 1 8 a nd 2 0 were t aken f rom l ocati ons which o riginally s upported open a nd l uxuriant g rassland but have r ecently b een d ensely c overed b y y oung b irch a nd p ine t rees .

P late 2 : Imbos, Veluwe, The Netherlands . T op : f orest g razing b y S cottish H ighland c attle M iddle : p asture g razed i ntensively b y t hese c attle B ottom : u ngrazed e nclosure i n t he s ame ' Scottish ' p asture . ( Photos c ourtesy o f S .T .

G roenman ) 1 3

podzol. H e excavated part o f t he buried s ample a nnually t o obtain a s eries o f e xamples o f t he i ncreasing s usceptibility t o c orrosion w ith t ime o f d ifferent p ollen t ypes ( Havinga 1 984 ). T he p ollen t ypes s tudied i ncluded t he c ommon n orthwest E uropean t rees p lus L ycopodium , T araxacum , Myrica and P olypodium . T he d egree o f corrosion d iffered f or t he s ame pollen t ype d ependent u pon t he s oil t ype u sed i n t he e xperiment , but g eneral t rends were r ecognisable . The more r esistant s pecies were Lycopodium, P inus, T araxacum, T ilia, A lnus, Myrica and Corylus, l ess r esistant s pecies were Q uercus , U lmus , P opulus , J uniperus a nd F raxinus , while S alix , T axus a nd P olypodium were h ighly s usceptible t o d eteriora tion .

Conclusions T his paper s hould be c onsidered a s a p ersonal v iew o f t he main r ecent developments i n palynoarchaeology, p articularly f or Holocene d eposits , i n western E urope . I h ave c ertainly n ot t ried t o b e c ompreh ensive , b ut h ave o nly d iscussed t rends a s Ih ave e xperienced t hem o ver t he l ast 2 0 y ears . I n t he l ast f ew y ears i n p articular t here h ave b een many d evelopments . A t l ong l ast p alynologists a re s tudying s mall b asins a nd s oil s amples, c onvinced t hat t he g eneral, t hat i s r egional, p icture o f t he d evelopment o f v egetation we h ave d efined s o f ar i s t oo g enerali sed f or a rchaeological p urposes a nd o ften g ives o nly a weak r eflection o f a ctual h uman b ehaviour a s m irrored i n t he p ollen r ecord . T he i nflue nce o f Neolithic p eople was l ocal a nd d id n ot r esult i n l arge-scale v egetation changes . T hese h appened only g radually a nd , i n western E urope , n ot u ntil l ate I ron A ge o r e ven R oman t imes . F rom t hen o nwards t he l andscape b ecame s o o pen t hat a t rue p icture o f v egetational c hange c an b e o btained f rom r egional p ollen d iagrams .

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B AKEL S , C .C . 1 987 P ollen f rom p laggen s oils i n t he P rovince o f N orthe rn B rabant , t he N etherlands . i n G I«)ENMAN-van WAATERINGE , W . a nd ROBINSON, M .A . ( eds ) Man-made s oils . B ritish Archaeological R eports I nternational S eries , O xford . ( in p ress ). B EHRE, K -E . 1 976a Pollenanalytische Untersuchungen z ur Vegetations u nd S iedlungsgeschichte b ei F lögeln und im Ahienmoor ( Eib-WeserWinkel ). Probleme der K üstenforschung i m s üdlichen N ordseegebiet 1 1:101-118. B EHRE , K -E . 1 976b B eginn u nd F orm d er P laggenwirtschaft i n Nordwestd eutschland n ach p ollenanalytischen U ntersuchungen i n O stfriesland . N eue A usgrabungen u nd F orschungen i n Niedersachsen 1 0 :197-224 . B EHRE , K -E . 1 980 Z ur m ittelalterlichen P laggenwirtschaft i n Nordwestdeutschland und angrenzenden G ebieten n ach b otanischen U ntersuchungen . i n BECK, H ., D ENECKE, D . and J ANKUHN, H . ( eds ) Untersuchu ngen z ur e isenzeitlichen u nd f rdhmittelalterliChef l F lur i n M ittele uropa u nd i hrer Nutzung , T eil I I . Abhandlungen d er A kademie d er Wissenschaften i n G öttingen , P hil .-Hist . K lasse 3 , F olge 1 16 :30-44 . BEHRE, K -E .

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E nglish e dition i n p reparation ). H EIDINGA , H .A . 1 984b I ndications o f s evere d rought during t he t enth c entury AD f rom a n i nland dune a rea i n t he c entral Netherlands . G eologie e n M ijnbouw 6 3:241-8 . H EIDINGA , H .A . 1 987 C limate a nd p lagqen s oils , i n G ROENMAN-van WAAT hRINGE , W . a nd R OBINSON , M .A . ( eds ) M an-made s oils . B ritish A rcha eoeloqical R eports I nternational S eries , ( in p ress ). H ICKS , S . 1 985 P roblems a nd p ossibilities i n c orrelating h istorical/ a rchaeological a nd p ollen-analytical e vidence i n a n orthern b oreal e nvironment : a n e xample f rom K uusamo , F inland . F ennoscandia A rch aeologica 2 :51-84 .

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I VERSEN, J . 1 941 Land o ccupation i n Denmark 's s tone age . G eologiske U nders gelse r aekke 2 , n o . 6 6 .

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I VERSEN , J . 1 949 T he i nfluence o f p rehistoric man on v egetation . D anmarks G eologiske U nders gelse r aekke 4 , b and 3 , n o . 6 . I VERSEN, J . 1 958 P ollenanalytischer N achweis d es R eliktencharakters e ines j i 1tischen L indenMischwaldes . Veröffentlichungen d es g eob otanischen I nstituts R 1bel i n Z urich 3 3 :137-144 . I VERSEN, J . 1 964 R etrogressive d evelopment o f a f orest e cosystem d emonstrated b y p ollen d iagrams f rom f ossil mor . O ikos s upplement 1 2:35-49. I VERSEN , J . a nd T ROE T -SMITH , J . 1 950 P ollenmorphologische D efinitione n u nd T ypen . D anmarks G eologiske U nders gelse r aekke 4 , b and 3 , n o . 8 . JONES, M . ( ed ) 1 983 I ntegrating t he s ubsistence e conomy . A rchaeological R eports I nternational S eries 1 81 , O xford .

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MADSEN , T . 1 985 Comments on e arly a griculture i n N orwegian A rchaeological R eview 1 8 :91-3 a nd 1 02-5 . MAGUIRE , D .J . 1 983 T he i dentification o f a gricultural pollen analysis . i n JONES, M . o p . c it . , pp . 5 -18 .

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R OBINSON , M .A . a nd H UBBARD, R .N .L .B . 1 977 T he t ransport o f pollen i n t he b racts o f hulled c ereals . Journal o f A rchaeological S cience 4 :197-9. R OWLEY-CONWY, P . 1 981 S lash and burn i n t he t emperate European Neol ithic . i n M ERCER , R .J . ( ed ) F arming practice i n B ritish P rehist8 5-96 . E dinburgh U niversity P ress , E dinburgh . o ry , pp. R DWLEY-CONWY , P . 1 982 F orest g razing a nd c learance i n t emperate E urope with s pecial r eference t o D enmark, an a rchaeological v iew , i n B ELL , M . and L IMBREY , S . ( eds ) Archaeological a spects o f woodland e cology , pp. 1 99-215 . B ritish A rchaeological R eports I nternational S eries 1 46, O xford . S CHMID , P . 1 978 N ew a rchaeological r esults o f s ettlement s tructures ( Roman I ron A ge ) i n t he n orthwest-German c oastal a rea . i n C UNLIFFE , B . a nd } DWLEY , T . ( eds ) L owland I ron A ge c ommunities i n E urope , p p . 1 23-145 . B ritish A rchaeological R eports I nternational S eries 4 8, O xford. S TECKHAN , H .U . 1 961 P ollenanalytisch-vegetationsgeschichtliche U nters uchungen z ur f rIhen S iedlungsgeschichte i m Vogelsberg , K r ll u nd S olling . F lora B 150 :514-551 . S IOCKMARR , J . 1 975 R etrogressive f orest d evelopment , a s r eflected i n a mor pollen d iagram f rom Mantingerbos, D renthe, t he Netherlands . P alaeohistoria 1 7 :38-51 . T AUBER , H . 1 965 D ifferential p ollen d ispersion a nd t he i nterpretation o f p ollen d iagrams . D anmarks G eologiske U nders gelse r aekke 2 , n o . 8 9. T } JE 1 -SMITH ,

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TROELS-SMITH, J . 1 955 Pollenanalytische U ntersuchungen z u e inigen s chweizerischen P fl ahlbauproblemen . i n G UYAN , W . ( ed ) D as P fahlb auproblem ,

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VASARI, Y . and V NÄNEN, K . 1 986 S tratigraphical i ndications o f t he f ormer u se o f wetlands . i n BEHRE, K -E . ( ed ) o p . c it ., pp . 6 5-71 . V UORELA , I . 1 973 R elative p ollen r ain a round c ultivated f ields . B otanica F ennica 1 02 :1-27 .

A cta

V UORELA , I . 1 986 P alynological a nd h istorical e vidence o f s lash-andburn cultivation i n s outh F inland . i n B EHEE, K -E . ( ed ) op . 5 3-64. c it., pp.

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T HE AW HA EDLOGICAL S ITE A S A B IOTIC D EPOSI TIONAL C OMMUNITY

B ruce B enz D epartmen t o f B otany U niversity o f W isconsin-Madison M adison , W isconsin 5 3706, U SA

A bstract Botanical r emains i n and a ssociated w ith a rchaeological d eposits r epresent t he e ffect o f p eople o n t he e nvironment a t s ome t ime i n t he p ast . A rchaeological a ssemblages s hould t hus c ontain m aterials r eflecti ng t he e xploitative s trategy o f h umans i n t heir b otanical e nvironment a s well a s t he r esponse o f t he p lants t o t he h abitat-altering p henomenon o f h uman o ccupation . R ealising t hat c ertain b otanical materials, f or e xample s eeds , a re t he m eans t hrough which p lants p erpetuate t hemselves , t he p resence o f n on-carbonised s eeds a nd/or f ruits i n a rchaeological d eposits c an b e i nterpreted a s d ispersal i n t ime and n ot s imply a s r ecent o r p rehistoric c ontaminants t hat h ave n o p lace i n u nderstanding what t he a rchaeological s ite r epresents . T he r ecent p re-eminence o f s ite f ormation processes i n a rchaeological t heory h as n ot considered p lant c ommunity s uccession a s a m eans o f u nderstanding t he o rigins a nd c ontent o f a rchaeological a ssemblages a nd t hereby h as j ustified t he p revailing d ogma i n e thnobotanical r esearch .

I ntroduction A ll a rchaeologists would a gree t hat i n environmental s etting, d epositional e nvironment a nd p reservational p otential, every a rchaeol ogical s ite i s d ifferent . Y et, t here h as b een an i ncreasing t rend i n r ecent y ears t o c onstruct g eneralisations a bout t he n ature a nd c ontent o f a rchaeological d eposits . Much o f t he c urrent work i n t his a rea h as f ocussed o n c ultural m aterial s uch a s l ithic d ebitage o r f aunal r emains , while m uch l ess a ttention h as b een g iven t o p lant m aterial . T he work o f a f ew i ndividuals p rovides t he t heory f or e xamining h ow c ultural m ateri al c omes t o b e d eposited , a rranged a nd r earranged , b y i dentifying t he b iases i nherent i n h uman d iscard p atterns and i n t he f ormation a nd p reservation o f a rchaeological d eposits ( Collins 1 975 ; S chiffer 1 976 ; B inford 1 978 ). An a rea o f i nvestigation which r emains r elatively u nexplored i s t hat w hich c onsiders t he b asis f or t he i ncorporation o f b otanical m ateri al, p articularly s eeds, i nto a rchaeological d eposits . A n umber o f a rticles h ave a ppeared r ecently t hat a ttempt t o p rovide a t heoretical f ramework f or i nterpreting t he p lant m aterial i n a rchaeological s ites ( Keepax 1 977; Minnis 1 981; L opinot a nd B russel 1 982). T hese a uthors

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h ave s ought t o d evelop a r ationale f or d eciding which m aterials s hould b e i ncorporated i nto t he a nalysis o f p rehistoric human o ccupation a nd which s hould b e d iscounted f rom f urther c onsideration i n t he e xamination o f t he p rehistoric e conomy o f t he s ite . A s a working hypothesis i t would s eem l ikely t hat t he majority, t hough n ot a ll, o f t he b otanical m aterial p resent i n a rchaeological d eposits i s t here d ue t o h uman o ccupa tion o f t he l ocale . Questions a sked s ince t he l ate 1 960s r egarding t his m aterial i nclude : w hat p art o f t he a rchaeobotanical a ssemblage c an b e a ttributed t o h uman u se ; what p art c an b e a ttributed s imply t o h uman o ccupation ; a nd h ow m uch , i f a ny , o f t he a ssemblage c an b e a ttributed t o m ore r ecent m odification o r c ontamination o f t he a rchaeological d eposits b y n on-human a gencies . I t i s my b elief t hat a better understanding o f a rchaeobotanical r emains a nd t heir r elevance i n p rehistory i s gained b y e xamining a n a rchaeological s ite a s a d epositional c ommunity . T his c an b e d efined s imply a s t he a ccumulation o f l iving and n on-living b iotic m aterial a ssociated with h uman o ccupation i n a s pecific o ccupy a l ocality t hey c reate a d isturbance a nd ,

l ocality . When h umans i n e ffect , m odify t hat

l ocality a nd i ts s urrounding e nvironment . I t c an b e a ssumed t hat t here will b e a r esponse t o t his p erturbation by t he a ffected b iota o f t he l ocal e cosystem . B ecause t his r esponse s hould b e d etectable i n t he s ediments at t he l ocality , p roviding o f c ourse t hat e rosion d oes n ot r emove t he e ntire d esposit , o ne n eeds t o u nderstand what k inds o f o rgani sms will r espond a ctively t o h uman o ccupation , h ow t hey w ill r espond a nd how t heir r esponse m ight be i ndicated i n t he a rchaeological d epo sits. R ecognising t he p otential o f t his ' mirror ' o f t he i nterface b etween p eople a nd t he e nvironment , i nvestigators s hould a nticipate d ata c ollection and r ecovery by d etermining where s uch e vidence c ould b e e xpected t o o ccur i n a rchaeological d eposits a nd what b ehaviours , h uman a nd e nvironmental,

i t m ight r epresent .

W ith t his i n m ind I w ill e xamine c ritically a c ontroversial t opic i n c urrent e thnobotanical r esearch : why d o n on-carbonised a rchaeobotani cal r emains , p articularly s eeds , o ccur i n a rchaeological d eposits? A r eview o f t he a rchaeobotanical l iterature i s f irst n ecessary t o i dentify t he b iases i nherent i n t hose works which a dvocate d ismissing a ll n onc arbonised s eeds f rom c onsideration i n s tudies o f p rehistoric s ubsiste nce a nd h uman i nteraction with t he e nvironment . T hen I will b riefly c onsider s ome o f t he e cological f actors i nvolved i n t he f ormation o f a rchaeological s ites . A fter having i dentified r elevant p arameters i n t he e cology o f s ite f ormation , Iw ill c onsider t he o rganisms w hose s eeds a re most o ften d isregarded i n a rchaeobotanical i nquiries . T hen , Iw ill d iscuss how and why t he d isseminules o f t hese o rganisms m ight b ecome i ncorporated i nto a rchaeological d eposits, why t hey a re r elevant t o u nderstanding t he h uman o ccupation o f a s pecific l ocality a nd h ow t heir p resence might be i nterpreted . F inally , a brief e valuation o f t he g uidelines u sed t o s ample p rehistoric d eposits w ill b e m ade a s a b asis f or s ome c onsistency i n u nderstanding t he u ncharred m aterial f ound i n a rchaeobotanical a ssemblages .

L iterature r eview D imbleby ( 1978, 1 985 ) p reservation o f b otanical b asis o f work u ndertaken materials v ary g reatly i n

c onsidered t he f actors r esponsible f or t he materials i n a rchaeological s ites, o n t he i n t he l ate 1 960s and 1 970s . F irst, p lant t heir r esistance t o d ecay . S econdly, s oil

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c onditions d egrade p lant material d ifferentially . B ecause D imbleby i mplicitly b elieved t hat a ll n on-carbonised p lant m aterials would e ventu ally b e c omminuted by s oil f auna a nd f lora, h e c onsidered most p lant materials o btained f rom a rchaeological s ites t o b e t hose p arts u sed a nd/or s tored b y p eople . D imbleby r ecognised t he p ossibility t hat s ome s eeds m ight r emain d ormant i n t he s oil f or d ecades , o r e ven c enturies , but h e c onsidered t hese s eeds e xceptional a nd u sually n ot t he s orts f ound i n a rchaeological s ites . G oodyear ( 1975 ) d emonstrates a s imilarly b iased v iewpoint . More r ecently K eepax ( 1977 ) h as a rgued t hat a l arge p roportion o f t he s eeds o btained f rom a rchaeological d eposits t hrough t he u se o f f lotation a re o ften o f modern o rigin . S he b elieved i t h ighly u nlikely t hat s eeds r ecovered f rom t he I ron A ge d eposits s he d escribed would b e p reserved, e xcept u nder exceptional c ircumstances , a nd s uggested t hat t he s ubsequent g ermination o f t he s eeds r ecovered f rom t hese d eposits i s s trong e vidence i n s upport o f h er s uspicion t hat t hey a re modern i ntrusi ons . S he a ttributes t he p resence o f u ncharred s eeds i n t hese d eposits a s t he r esult o f an umber o f c ontaminating p rocesses : a erial c ontaminati on i ntroduced while t he t he d eposit was exposed ; c ontamination f rom e arlier s amples p rocessed i n t he s ame f lotation a pparatus ; c ontamination o ccurring i n t he a rchaeological d eposits p rior t o t heir e xcavation . With r egard t o t he l atter , s he l ists f our p ossible m eans b y which s eeds o f modern o rigin m ight be i ntroduced i nto a rchaeological d eposits: p loughing; t hrough r oot holes a nd d rying c racks; l oose-textured s oil would a llow t he i ntroduction o f small p articles s imply t hrough d ownwashing ; a nd e arthworm d isturbance . I n b elieving t hat o nly u nder e xcept ional c ircumstances , s uch a s i n water-logged d eposits , w ill u ncharred s eeds b e p reserved f or a ny l ength o f t ime , s he s tates t hat ' it i s o ften a s imple m atter t o r eject a ll n oncharred s eeds a s m odern i n o rigin , a nd t o r etain o nly t he c harred material a s g enuine . T his s electivity u nd oubtedly d oes m uch t o r educe t he amount o f m odern c ontamination which must b e considered ' ( 1977:227, emphasis mine ). S he t hus d ismisses a s a rchaeologically i rrelevant a ll n on-carbonised s eeds o n t he p remise t hat t hey a re a t t he m ercy o f s oil f auna a nd f lora a nd will n ot p reserve . K aplan a nd Mam a ( 1977 ) s uggested a s lightly d ifferent t ack b e t aken i n i nterpreting t he p resence o f n on-carbonised s eeds i n a rchaeol ogical d eposits . T hey s uggest t hat t here i s a s trong p ossibility t hat s uch s eeds will r emain i ntact i n t he s oil l ong a fter d eposition . T hey c ite D r B eal 's l ongevity e xperiment ( Kivilaan a nd B andurski 1 981 ) where , t hough s eed v iability d id d ecrease o ver t he c entury-long e xperiment , t he majority o f t he s eeds d id n ot d ecompose while i n t he s oil during t his p eriod . K aplan and Mam a attempted t o evaluate t he p ossibility t hat n on-carbonised s eeds w ere i n f act c ontaminants i n t heir a rchaeological s amples by l ooking a t t he populations o f s eeds i n t he s ediments f ound a djacent t o , b ut away f rom , t he a rchaeological s ite . T heir a nalysis o f t his m aterial i ndicated t hat n on-carbonised s eeds o f t wo g enera o ccurr ing i n t heir a rchaeological d eposits were a lso p resent i n t he o ff-site s oil s amples . T hey a rgued f rom t his t hat u ncarbonised s eeds a nd s eed f ragments m ay r emain i n a rchaeological d eposits f or a c onsiderable t ime a nd , t herefore , a re r elevant t o t he i nterpretation o f c ultural d eposits . I n a w ide-ranging a rticle M innis a ddressed many o f t hese c oncerns d irectly . H e a grees w ith K eepax t hat ' the c ontamination o f t he a rchaeol ogical d eposit b y n aturally d eposited s eeds p rior t o e xcavation i s t he m ost s erious p roblem ' ( 1981 :145 ). H e i s p articularly c oncerned w ith t he p rehistoric s eed r ain . T hat i s , t he i ntroduction o f s eed i nto a rchaeo-

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l ogical d eposits w ithout t he p lants o r t heir s eeds h aving e ver b een u sed b y p eople . H e p osits t hat t he b etter t he c onditions f or p reservation o n ag iven s ite , t he g reater t he p ossibility t hat p rehistoric s eeds w ill b e p resent i n a n u ncharred c ondition . U nfortunately , h e g oes o n t o d ismiss t he work o f Odum ( 1965 ), who c ontended t hat t he l ongevity o f u ncharred s eeds i n a rchaeological d eposits m ight b e c onsiderable . M innis a rgues i nstead t hat once s eeds h ave d ied, t hey would t hen b e s ubject t o t he n atural p rocesses o f d egradation . I n j ustifying h is c onclusion, h e a rgues t hat g iven t he e normous p roduction o f s eeds , i f o ne b elieves t hat m ost s eeds a re i ndeed n ot d egraded , t hen t he s oil s hould b e e ssentially a ll s eeds . However, H arper ( 1977 ), H all and Swaine ( 1980 ) and F enner ( 1985 ) g ive a q uite d ifferent i mpression with v ery l arge e stimates f or t he s ize o f t his s eed b ank . M innis b elieves , l ike K eepax a nd D imblely , t hat i t i s i mprobable t hat m any p rehistoric s eeds will s urvive u ncharred o ver c ommon ( sic ! ) a rchaeological t ime s pans . H e s uggests t hat c onside ration o f u ncharred s eeds f rom a rchaeological s ites w ill o nly i ncrease t he ' noise ' i n o ur s earch f or p atterns i n a rchaeobotanical a ssemblages . T his i s , Ib elieve , m isguided b ecause we must f irst s eek t o u nderstand why c ertain o rganisms m ight b e p resent a nd a ssociated w ith h umans b efore we i gnore e vidence which we c onsider t o b e u ninterpretable . A s o thers h ave a rgued ( Toll 1 981 ), a nd t his would s eem t o b e o f i mportance t o t he d evelopment o f e thnobotanical t heory , i gnoring t he u ncharred s pecimens c ompletely d ismisses t he p ossibility o f l ooking f or p atterns which t he n on-carbonised s eeds a lone o r i n c oncert w ith t he r est o f t he a ssemblage m ight p resent . T he most r ecent c ontribution t o t he c ontroversy s urrounding t he r elevance o f u ncharred s eeds i n a rchaeological d eposits i s t he work o f L opinot a nd B russel ( 1982 ) h o c ritically e xamined t he d istribution o f c arbonised a nd n on-carbonised s eeds r ecovered f rom m esic a rchaeological s ediments a t a m ulti-component s ite i n s outh-central I llinois . T hey a re q uick t o p oint o ut t hat t he t axa o f n on-carbonised s eeds i n t hese d epo sits c ompared f avourably w ith t he c ultivated f ield f lora p resent o n t he s ite while i t was b eing e xcavated a nd t hat t he a rchaeological d eposits were , f or t he m ost p art , l ocated i mmediately b elow t he p lough z one . T o t hem i t would s eem l ikely t hat t he i ntroduction o f n on-carbonised s eeds i nto t hese a rchaeological d eposits would h ave o ccurred with r ecent d isturbance, ( i .e . c ultivation ) o f t he s ite e nvirons . T he question o f a rchaeological c ontamination i s a ddressed b y t hose i nvestigators who a ttempt t o s how t hat t hese n on-carbonised s eeds a re a lso v iable . T hey a rgue t hat i f n on-carbonised s eeds a re o f m odern o rigin , t he e xpectation would b e t hat t he m ajority o f t hem would g erminate u nder t he a ppropriate c onditions . T heir t est i s b ased o n t he B eal s eed v iability e xperiments ( Crocker 1 938 ; K ivilaan a nd B andurs i ci 1 981 ) i n which n umerous s pecies , t hree o f t hem t he s ame a s t hose t ested b y L opinot a nd B russel, were t ested f or l ongevity b y b urying a nd l ater e xhuming b ottles o f s ediment c ontaining known q uantities o f s eeds . B ea Us s eeds s howed a s harp d ecrease i n v iability a fter a p eriod o f o nly 4 0 y ears . T hus g ermination o f a ny s eeds o btained f rom t hese a rchaeological d eposits s hould d emons trate t heir modern o rigin . While a small p roportion o f t he s eeds o f Amaranthus d id g erminate, t hose o f t he o ther two s pecies f ailed t o d o s o . L opinot a nd B russel a rgue t hat g iven t he n umerous f actors i nvolved i n s eed g ermination , t he r elatively l ow p ercentages o f t heir n on-carboni sed s eeds which d id g erminate c ould b e d ue t o a ny o f a number o f f actors : t he i nability o f e xperimental c onditions t o o vercome a ny o f t he e ndogenously c ontrolled g ermination m echanisms ; t he s eeds h ad p reviously b een i nduced t o g erminate b ut h ad f ailed t o p roduce a s eedling a nd w ere t herefore i nviable ; s ome o f t he s eeds were i n f act v ery o ld . U nfortun-

2 4

a tely , t hey d id n ot r eacf l what would s eem t o b e t he i nescapable c onclusi on : t he u se o f a g ermination t est d oes n ot n ecessarily p rovide a s uita ble m eans b y which n on-carbonised a rchaeologically d erived s eeds m ight b e t ested f or t heir p otentially m odern o rigin . A s w e s hall s ee b elow , v iability c onsidered b y i tself c onfuses r ather t han c larifies t he i ssue . F rom t his s hort r eview, i t s hould b e evident t hat t here a re a n umber o f a ssumptions o n which m ost p revious i nvestigations h ave b een b ased . F irst, t hat except u nder e xceptional c ircumstances n onc arbonised s eeds s hould b e e xpected t o d ecompose . S econd, t hat n onc arbonised s eeds which , when s ubjected t o ag ermination t est , d o i n f act g erminate a re m odern . F inally , t hat b ecause n on-carbonised s eeds a re e xpected t o d ecompose m ore o r l ess r eadily , o r i f p resent a re c onsidered modern , t hey a re i rrelevant t o t he i nvestigation o f t he p rehistoric o ccupation f rom which t hey were o btained . T here i s a g ood t heoretical b asis ( Harper e t a l. 1 970; H arper 1 977; Cook 1 980 ) f or r ealising t hat t hese a ssumptions a re i nvalid . T hough d ata a re f ew , t heory f rom p lant p opulation a nd c ommunity e cology s uggests t here i s g ood r eason t o e xpect n on-carbonised s eeds t o b e p reserved a nd o ften t o r emain v iable f or e xtended p eriods ( Johnson 1 975 ; Moore a nd Wein 1 977 ; R abinowitz 1 981 ). I will a ddress t hese t hree a ssumptions b elow . F irst, by a ttempting t o i llustrate t hat t he d ecomposition o f s eeds c annot b e a ssumed a nd t hat u nder m any c ircumstances u ncarbonised s eeds a re e xactly what we s hould e xpect t o f ind i n a rchaeological s ediments . S econd, t he v iability o f s eeds i s d ifficult t o d emonstrate u sing t he g ermination t est a lone . Moreover, i n a nd o f i tself, t he a bility t o g erminate d oes n ot make a s e e d modern . F inally , I will s uggest t hat u ncarbonised s ceds a re p arti cularly r elevant f or u nderstanding t he p rehistoric d eposit f rom which t hey were o btained . T o a ddress t hese c oncerns , we must f irst l ook a t t he p rocesses o f a rchaeological s ite f ormation . Iw ill l imit m yself h ere t o t he e nvironm ental c ontext i n which l ocales a re c olonised a nd , f rom t his , a ttempt t o d iscern a n umber o f g eneralisations t hat p ermit u s t o a ppreciate m ore f ully what t he b otanical a ssemblages o btained f rom a rchaeological s ites r epresent.

E cology o f a rchaeological s ite f ormation : t he d epositional c ommunity A n a rchaeological s ite i s l ittle m ore t han a s patial c lustering o f a rtefacts . F ew would a rgue with t his d efinition, t hough most would r efine i t s omewhat . I ndeed , o ur r ecognition o f a g iven l ocality a s o ne i n which p rehistoric o ccupation t ook p lace i s based o n our i dentifica tion o f t he d istributional l imits o f a rtefacts on a nd i n t he g round . We c an t ake t his d efinition o ne s tep f urther and s uggest t hat t he d istribution s hould i nclude n ot o nly t he t ypical c eramic s herds , c hipped a nd g round s tone t ools a nd f laking d ebris a nd o steological m aterial b ut a lso c ertain p lants . F or e xample, both Y arnell ( 1965 ) a nd Minnis a nd L eBlanc ( 1978 ) s uggest t hat t he d istributional p atterns o f c ertain p lant s pecies i n t he American S outhwest a re a nthropogenic . I n t his c ontext n ot o nly i s t he d istribution o f t hese p lants a n a rtefact , b ut i ndeed t he p lants t hemselves may b e a rtefacts, t hat i s, g enetically modified by p eople, ( see C lark ( 1968 ) f or a c ontrary o pinion ). I n o ccupying a l ocality , h umans willingly a nd/or u nwittingly modify i t . T hey a ccumu late a llochthonous m aterials a nd , where p lant o r a nimal h usbandry i s p racticed, b ring o rganisms i nto n ew a ssociations, t hereby c reating a nthropogenic h abitats . Importantly, t hey modify t heir l ocality b y

2 5

a ltering t he existing v egetation e ither t hrough u se, e xtirpation by t rampling o r b y p roviding c onditions s uitable f or c olonisation b y s hortl ived , p oorly c ompetitive s pecies , t he s o-called r s trategists . P eople o ccupying a l ocality c reate what A nderson ( 1957 ) c alled o pen h abitats. I n a ssessing t he quality o f t hese o pen habitats i t i s n ecessary t o consider t he i ntensity a nd duration o f t he h uman o ccupation . F or e xample, how much o f t he n ative v egetation h as been r emoved o ver how l arge a n a rea? Which s pecies o f p lants a nd a nimals h ave b een i ntroduced i nto t he l ocality b y t he h uman o ccupation? H ow d oes h uman o ccupation o f t he a rea m odify t he p hysical s ubstrate? D oes t he s oil o n which p eople a re e ncamped b ecome c ompacted o r o verturned? What was t he d uration a nd i ntensity o f t he o ccupation? T hese a re important c onsiderations , when s een i n t he l ight o f p lant c ommunity s uccession, because s uch f actors d ictate which s pecies will b e a ble t o c olonise a nd o ccupy t hat p articu lar l ocality . Humanly-disturbed habitats a re u sually unstable and e phemeral . T hey t end n ot t o b e c onsistently a vailable which p revents t he e xtended p rocess o f c ommunity s uccession f rom r unning i ts c ourse . C ertain o rganisms a re b etter a ble to c ope with d isturbance t han abitat t o b e o pen o thers . T he d egree t o which a n o rganism c onsiders a h i s r elative . A h abitat which i s c onsidered o pen b y o ne p lant m ight n ot be open t o a nother . F rom a botanical p erspective, h abitats o pened by humans a re s uitable f or c olonisation by only a n arrow r ange o f s trate gists . T hose p lants which t hrive o n d isturbance a re o ften r eferred t o a s weeds o r r uderal s pecies . I n t he p lant e cology l iterature t hey a re c alled f ugitive s pecies ( Harper e t a l . 1 970 ; H arper 1 977 ). I t i s t hese o rganisms which a re p articularly r elevant h ere b ecause , i n t he m ain , t he p lants whose s eeds a re f requently e ncountered i n a rchaeological d eposits i n ac arbonised o r n on-carbonised s tate , a re s pecies c ommonly c onsidered t o b e r uderal f orms well-adapted t o c oping w ith d isturbed/open h abitats , a s c an be s een i n T ables 1 and 2 . H ow s uch p lants a re a dapted t o l ife i n d isturbed h abitats a t o nce b ecomes a r elevant c onsideration . T hese p lants h ave a n umber o f c haract eristics i n c ommon : a ll p roduce v ast q uantities o f u sually s mall s eeds ; a ll e xhibit r apid g rowth a nd d evelopment ; a ll h ave b road h abitat t olera nces ; a ll s how d evelopmental p lasticity ( Stevens 1 963 ; B aker 1 974; C ook 1 980 ). T hey a re a ll c onsidered e arly s uccessional s pecies . T he g enera lised s uite o f a ttributes o r s trategies which characterise t hem i s b elieved t o b e t he p roduct o f s election f or c olonising a bility . Let u s consider f or a moment t he d isseminules p roduced by t hese p lants , b ecause n ot o nly a re t hey t he f ocus o f t he c ontroversy d iscussed h ere , b ut a lso t he s eed a ttributes a re o ne p art o f a n a daptive s yndrome or s trategy which a llows r uderal s pecies t o p erpetuate t hemselves i n d isturbed h abitats . A s n oted a bove , s eeds o f d isturbed h abitat p lants a re u sually q uite s mall . G enerally t hey a re n ot a ccompanied b y a ccesso ry s tructures t hat a id i n d ispersal . H ence , r elative t o t he b rightly coloured o r nutritionally r ewarding d isseminules o f t he p lants more commonly e ncountered i n more s table habitats, t hese s eeds a re poorly d ispersed i n s pace ( Cook 1 980 ). S econdly , t hey a re v ery v ariable i n t he s culpturing , t hickness a nd c olour o f t he s eed c oat . I ntraspecific s eed c oat p olymorphism h as b een d emonstrated t o b e s trongly a ssociated w ith v aried g ermination r equirements ( Williams a nd H arper 1 965 ; F enner 1 985 ). T ogether t hese c haracteristics p rovide t he o rganism w ith a v ariety o f o ptions f or c olonising d isturbed h abitats . S mall s eed s ize a llows t he p lant t o p roduce t hem i n g reater n umbers . B ecause t he s eeds a re p oorly d ispersed i n s pace , t hey a re s ubject t o i ntense p redation . T heir s mall

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T able 1 : V iable s eeds o f selected s pecies r ecovered f rom a rchaeological d eposits b y Odum ( 1965 ). Nomenclature a nd h abitat i nformation f ollow T utin e t

j .

( 1964 ).

s ite s pecies C openhagen p ork m arket C henopodium r ubrum L odsgarden H yoscyamus n iger M alva s ilvestris S tellaria m edia U rtica u rens Sm ell h ouse E uphorbia p eplus L apsana c o r nmunis R umex c ripsus S tellaria m edia H irsholm P 0l ygonum a viculare H ammershus A rtemisia a bsinthiu r n B allota n iger H yoscyamus n iger L amium a lbum S ambucus n iger U rtica d ioeca V erbascum t hapsus A ebelholt m onastery G lechoma h ederacaea L amium a mplexicaule P olygonum a viculare S onchus o leraceus S tellaria m edia H erulfsholm L amium p urpureur n S ambucus n iger U rtica d ioeca B ishop 's h ouse T rifolium r epens B rassica c ampestris C erastium f ontanu r n R annunculus r epens S tellaria m edia V erbascu r n t hapsus T araxacum v ulgare V esterwig C henopodium a lbum S pergula a rvensis

a ge o f d eposit

g rowth h abit

p referred h abitat

a nnual

d isturbed g round

a nn/bienn b ienn/ p erenn a nnual a nnual

d isturbed d isturbed d isturbed d isturbed

g round g round g round g round

a nnual a nnual p erennial a nnual

d isturbed d isturbed d isturbed d isturbed

g round g round g round g round

a nnual

d isturbed g round

p erennial p erennial a nn/bienn p erennial p erennial p erennial b iennial

d isturbed g round d isturbed g round d isturbed g round d isturbed g round c ultivated g round d isturbed g round d isturbed/old f ields

p erennial a nnual a nnual a nnual a nnual

d isturbed d isturbed d isturbed d isturbed d isturbed

a nnual p erennial p erennial

d isturbed g round c ultivated g round d isturbed g round

p erennial b iennial b ienn/ p erenn p erennial a nnual b iennial p erennial

d isturbed/old f ields d ist/cult/old f ields d isturbed g round d isturbed/old f ields d isturbed g round d isturbed g round d isturbed g round

a nnual a nnual

d isturbed g round d isturbed g round

7 0yrs i lüyrs

l 8üyrs

2 40yrs 2 50yrs

5 30yrs g round g round g round g round g round 5 80yrs

6 50yrs

2 7

1 400yrs

Table 2 : Conditions o f s eeds o f d isturbed h abitat p lants f rom a nd a ssociated w ith a rchaeological d eposits .

C henopodium a lbum

( annual)

c arbonised a nd n on-carbonised i n a rchaeological d eposits , c arbonised i n s urface d eposits M alva s p . ( annual o r b iennial)

n on-

c arbonised i n a rchaeological d eposits , n on-carbonised i n s urface d eposits S tellaria s p . ( annual o r p erennial ) c arbonised a nd n on-carbonised i n a rchaeological d eposits , n onc arbonised i n s urface d eposits K eepax Amaranthus s p. ( annual) n on-carbonised i n a rchaeological C henopodium s p. ( annual? ) n on-carbonised i n a rchaeological D escurnia s p . ( annual ) c arbonised a nd n on-carbonised i n c arbonised i n s urface d eposits P ortulaca s p . ( annual) n on-carbonised i n a rchaeological

( 1977 )

a nd s urface d eposits a nd s urface d eposits a rchaeological d eposits,

n on-

a nd s urface d eposits T oll

( 1981 )

C henopodium s p . ( annual? ) c arbonised i n a rchaeoldgical d eposits , n on-carbonised i n s urface d eposits P olygonum a viculare ( annual ) c arbonised i n a rchaeological d eposits P ortulaca o leracaea ( annual ) n on-car bonised i n s urface d eposits, p artially c arbonised i n a rchaeological d eposits K aplan a nd M am a C henopodium s p . ( annual? ) c arbonised a nd n on-carbonised g rowing o n t he s ite G alium s p . ( annual? ) c arbonised a nd n on-carbons i ed P hytolacca a mericana ( perennial ) c arbonised a nd n on-carbonised P olygonum l apathifoliu r n ( annual ) c arbonised a nd n on-carbonised P ortulacca s p . ( annual ) c arbonised a nd n on-carbonised g rowing o n t he s ite

( 1982 )

i n a rchaeological d eposits a nd

i n a rchaeological d eposits i n a rchaeological d eposits i n a rchaeological d eposits i n a rchaeological d eposits a nd L opinot a nd B russell

( 1982 )

s ize m ight , i n a ddition t o i ncreasing f ecundity , b e a n a id t o a voiding p redators ( Cook 1 980 ; F enner 1 985 ). S eed c oat p olymorphism i s b elieved t o a llow f or a g reater v ariety o f s timuli p romoting g ermination . I t t hus r educes i ntra-cohort c ompetition while a t t he s ame t ime d ictating t hat s ome s eeds will o nly e ventually g erminate a fter e xposure t o t he

2 8

e ntire s uite o f c onditions r equired f or g ermination ( Baskin a nd B askin 1 985 ). H ence, t hese s pecies a re g enerally c haracterised b y what what C ook ( 1980 ) c alls d ispersal-in-time . T his h e d efines a s s elf-perpetua tion t hrough t he i ntroduction o f l arge q uantities o f o ffspring , s eeds , i nto t he e nvironment , t he s oil o r s eed b ank . By k eeping t he s eeds h idden f rom p redators u ntil f avourable c onditions p resent t hemselves, r ecolonisation would b e p ossible a nd t he p referred o ption . F or t he s eeds o f d isturbed h abitat p lants , d ormancy i s t he c haract eristic method by which t hey p erpetuate t hemselves ' in t ime '. There a re g enerally b elieved t o b e t hree m ore o r l ess d istinct t ypes o f d orma ncy : i nnate d ormancy , a lso c alled a fter-ripening , which r efers t o t he i nability o f as eed t o g erminate i mmediately f ollowing d ispersal e ven i f p resented w ith a ppropriate c onditions ; e nforced d ormancy which i s t he p revention o f g ermination by u nfavourable e nvironmental c onditions; i nduced d ormancy which i s a n a cquired s tate brought a bout by t he e xposure o f a s eed t hat p ossesses no i nnate dormancy t o u nfavourable c onditions which f orce i t i nto a s tate o f d ormancy . E nforced d ormancy i s an important means by which a rchaeological d eposits may b ecome ' contaminated '. A ccording t o R oberts ( 1972b ) a nd B ewley a nd B lack ( 1985 ), t here i s s ubstantial v ariation i n t he t ype o f d ormancy e xhibited by t he s eeds f rom even a s ingle p lant . I t i s t herefore a ppropriate t o d iscuss s ome o f t he f actors which p romote d ormancy b ecause i f t hese c an b e s hown t o exist i n a rchaeological s ites, t he o ccurrence o f n onc arbonised s eeds t here m ight b e b etter u nderstood . F actors which e nhance d ormancy o r i nhibit g ermination i nclude: a bsence o f l ight , l ower o xygen a nd h igher c arbon d ioxide c oncentrations and, d epending upon t he s pe ies, s ufficient o r i nsufficient moisture . T hough n o s ingle f actor c an be s hown t o b e s ufficient b y i tself t o s timulate g ermination , t he s eed will r emain d ormant w ithout e xposure t o a variety o f s uitable c onditions . I t h as been widely d ocumented t hat t he s eeds o f many s pecies c an b e i nduced t o g erminate s imply when b rought t o t he s oil s urface a nd e xposed t o l ight ( Roberts 1 972a , 1 972b ; B askin a nd B askin 1 985 ). H owever , i t i s a lso a pparent t hat m any f actors m ake g ermination p ossible . T he r elevance o f g ermination t o t his d iscu ssion o f n on-carbonised s eeds i n a rchaeological s ites i s b ased o n t he well-established f act t hat g ermination , a nd n ot p redation o r c omminu tion , i s t he p rimary c ause o f t he l oss o f s eeds f rom t he s oil s eed b ank ( Harper 1 977 ; F enner 1 985 ). H ence , i f c onditions s uitable f or g ermination p revail, t he bulk o f t he s eed b ank population will b e ' lost ' because o f t heir r elease f rom dormancy . I n t he c ase o f d isturbed h abitat s pecies , i f c onditions i ll-suited t o g ermination e xist , t he s eed i s p repared o r adapted t o wait u ntil f avourable c onditions p resent t hemselves a t s ome t ime i n t he f uture . T his t hen i s c alled d ispersali n-time. F inally i t i s n ecessary t o evaluate how a s eed r esists d ecay a nd f or h ow l ong s eeds , p articularly o f weed s pecies , a re p reserved i n t he s oil when c onditions s uitable f or g ermination do n ot e xist . T here i s s ome v ery s uggestive e vidence ( Odum 1 965 ; L erman a nd C igliano 1 971 ; C ook 1 980; K ivilaan and B andurski 1 981; F enner 1 985 ) t hat s eeds, whether v iable o r i nviable, will r emain i n t he s oil f or considerable p eriods, d ecades i f n ot c enturies . S eed v iability e xperiments a nd s tudies o f t he s eed b ank c ontents o f s oils c onducted by i nvestigators i nterested i n p lant c ommunity s uccession a nd d isseminule l ongevity i ndicate t hat t he l ife s pan o f s eeds , v iable o r n ot , must b e c onsiderable f or t hem t o h ave r emained i ntact i n s oils o n which q uite d ramatic s uccessional c hanges

2 9

have o ccurred ( Johnson 1 975; Moore a nd Swain 1 977; L eck and Gavelin 1 979; Hall a nd Swain 1 980 ). Longevity e xperiments i ndicate t hat t he s eeds o f c ultivated p lants d o n ot r emain i n p rolonged d ormancy . T his i s undoubtedly b ecause t hey h ave been s elected f or s ynchrony o f g ermina tion . O n t he o ther h and , t he s eeds o f weed s pecies a re o ften m arked b y prolonged d ormancy c apabilities, a s s hown i n T able 1 ( Lerman a nd C igliano 1 971; H arper 1 977; S pira and Wagner 1 981; F enner 1 985 ). Both p rolonged d ormancy a nd e xtended p reservation c an b e a ttributed t o t he s eed c oat o r t esta . T his, o r t he s imilarly t hickened a nd i ndurated f ruit wall l ayers o f o ther t ypes o f d isseminule, would s eem t o be t he s eed 's p rimary l ine o f d efence . M ature s eed c oats a re v ariously i mpregn ated w ith w axy d eposits a nd u sually s trengthened b y i ndurated o r l igni fi ed t issues which might even be mineralised ( Esau 1 965; Webb and A rnott 1 983 ). G iven c onditions u nsuited t o g ermination , which a re a lso r elatively d evoid o f p redation p ressures , i t i s n ot d ifficult t o b elieve t hat t he s eeds o f d isturbed habitat s pecies a dapted f or d ispersal i n t ime m ight l ast a lmost i ndefinitely . T hough n ot c ompletely i mmune t o p redation a nd d egradation , s eeds s hould b e s een a s a n e ffective m eans b y which a p lant a voids many e nvironmental v icissitudes .

ites : surfaces and features Archaeological s E thnoarchaeological i nvestigation o f a rchaeological s ite f ormation i ndicates t hat a r elationship e xists b etween t he d uration a nd i ntensity o f o ccupation a nd t he s ize o f t he s ite a rea ( Yellen 1 977 ). A s anyone who h as v isited a n on-western s ettlement would a dmit , i n most i nhabited l ocalities t he c entre o f d omestic a ctivities, t he p laza o r p atio and e specially t he h ouse i tself , i s u sually c ompletely d evoid o f v egetation s ave f or a f ew cultivated o r t olerated s pecies . T hus, i f s eeds a re b eing i ncorporated i nto s ite d eposits , t hey must b e c oming f rom s omewhere o ff-site . T he i ntensity o f e nvironmental d isturbance c reated b y human o ccupation c ould b e e xpected t o d ecrease proportionally a s o ne moves f rom t he c entre o f o ccupation . I n a gricultural s ituations, a lthough t he i ntensity o f d isturbance i s a s g reat a t s ome d istance f rom t he c entre o f d omestic a ctivities , t he v egetation p resent i s s till q uite d istinct f rom t he s urrounding ' native ' v egetation a nd i s more s imilar t o t hat i mmediately s urrounding t he s ettlement , which r epresents what will e ventually b ecome t he p erimeter o f t he a rchaeological s ite . B ecause t he c entre o f domestic a ctivities i s f or t he most p art d evoid o f v egetation , a ny b otanical m aterial p resent i n t his a rea will b e t here b ecause i t was t ransported o nto t he s ite . I t s eems l ikely t hat t his m aterial will h ave b een d erived a t l east i n p art f rom t he v egetati on a t t he s ite p erimeter . I t might b e a n i nteresting ethnobotanical e xperiment t o e valuate t he r elationship b etween t he f requency with which ap lant 's s eeds a re r epresented i n c ultural d eposits and t he r elative d ensity a nd d istribution o f t he p arent o rganism i n t he v icinity . T his g eneralisation i s s imilar t o D imbleby 's p roposition t hat a ll a rchaeob otanical m aterial s hould b e r egarded a s a p roduct o f t he h uman o ccupa tion . H owever , while D imbleby s tressed u se a nd s torage a s t he p rimary means b y which botanical r emains might b e i ntroduced i nto cultural d eposits , t hese a re o nly t wo p ossible m eans b y which s eeds m ight b ecome i ncorporated i nto t he a rchaeological r ecord . Minnis ( 1976 ) a lso s tresses t he m yriad ways i n which s eeds m ight b ecome i ntroduced i nto a d omestic a rea, a lthough h e considers o nly t he c harred s pecimens a s a rchaeologically r elevant . H is g reatest c oncern , a s i t i s a lso t hat o f K eepax ( 1977 ), i s with t he s pecimens which a re c harred a nd n ot a p roduct

3 0

o f h uman u tilisation o f t hat s pecies , b ut a p roduct o f t he n atural s eed r ain . B oth M innis a nd K eepax p rimarily r estrict t heir c onsideration o f t he s eed r ain t o t he i ntroduction o f s eeds i nto a rchaeological d eposits s ubsequent t o h uman o ccupation . I would a rgue t o t he c ontrary t hat much o f t he b otanical m aterial p resent i n a nd o n m ost a rchaeological s urfaces i s m ost l ikely t o b e t he r esult o f i ntr o duction d uring h uman o ccupation . C ertainly t he s ediments d eposited s ubsequent t o h uman o ccupation c ould b e e xpected t o c ontain s ubstantial q uantities o f b otanical m aterial i n a s much a s t he o ccupation s urface might be colonised by d isturbed h abitat s pecies . H owever , t he s ediments f orming t he o ccupation s urface i tself , t hat l ayer o f c ompacted s ediments o n which t he o ccupants l ived , s hould a lso b e e xpected t o c ontain a m easurable q uantity o f s eeds t hat eet and c lothing were b rouqht i nto t he s ite e ither t o b e u sed o r o n t he f o f t he o ccupants t hemselves . T hese s eeds might b e d erived f rom t he d isturbed g round s pecies g rowing a djacent t o t he s ite . I ncorporation o f t hese s eeds i nto t he a rchaeological s urface could a lso be expected t o s uffice f or t heir p reservation i n t hat s uitable g ermination c onditions w ould n ot e xist. O f course, not a ll s urfaces could be expected t o p reserve s eeds . T hose a reas s ubject t o c ontinued t rampling i nside h ouses o r work r ooms m ight p articularly e nhance p reservation b ecause t hey would b e o ccasiona lly r esurfaced and s omewhat ' protected ' f rom conditions p romoting g ermination b y walls a nd a r oof u ntil c overed b y r efuse a nd/or r oof o r wall c ollapse . E xterior o ccupational s urfaces o n t he o ther h and would h ave g reater potential f or t he eventual p rovision o f s uitable g ermina tion c onditions b ecause t hey would b e u nprotected . H owever , e ven t hese a reas m ight b e e xpected t o h ave i ncorporated i nto t hem s eeds a nd p lant p arts which a re not r eadily d egraded due t o t he p rotection o ffered by t he c ompacted s ediments . T he a rchaeobotanical c ontent o f p its o f various s orts i s o nly u nderstood with d ifficulty b ecause t he c ultural a ctivities r esponsible f or t heir c ontents a re o ften n ot e asily d iscerned . T he i ntegrity o f s uch a rchaeological d eposits i s o pen t o question due t o t he many and v aried ways i n which t hese p its m ight become f illed . T heir c ontents o ften r epresent a mixture o f cultural behaviours and ' non-cultural ' p rocesses . C onsequently , c oncern f or c ontamination o f p it d eposits b y n on-cultural p lant material i s warranted but s hould n ot l ead t o t he a p riori r ejection o f material t hat may well be g enuine . I t s hould b e a pparent f rom t he p revious d iscussion t hat t he c ondition o f t he b otani cal material, s eeds f or t he most p art, i s not an i ssue, e xcept where a lteration o f t he n atural c ondition , c arbonisation , i s t o b e e xpected . H ence, hearths, f ire p its, ovens a nd t he l ike s hould b e expected t o c ontain c arbonised m aterial o nly i f t hey h ave b een u sed s olely f or t he p urpose o f h eating, f iring, a nd c ooking . However, s uch f eatures a re o ften i nterpreted i n t he a rchaeological r ecord a s h aving h ad many u ses . F or e xample , o vens which l ater s erved a s r efuse p its . T he s eeds p resent i n a f eature must f irst be a ssociated i ndubitably with i ts f unction b efore t heir condition i s a ssumed t o r eflect t hat f unction . For e xample, c arbonised s eeds i n a s torage p it t hat s hows n o evidence o f b urning s hould b e i nterpreted with c are b ut n ot i gnored s olely b ecause t heir c ondition d oes n ot m atch t heir c ontext . T heir c arbonisation d oes n ot n ecessarily i ndicate t hat t he p it was n ot u sed f or s ome h eat-related a ctivity . S imiliarly , n on-carbonised s eeds i n a h earth o r s imilar f eature m ay i ndicate t hat n ot j ust h eat o r f ire-related a ctivities t ook p lace t here . N on-carbonised s eeds p resent i n s torage p its t hat s how n o e vidence o f b urning s hould n ot b e i mmediately d isregarded a s i ntrusive ,

3 1

but r ather t aken t o s uggest t hat s ome s torage-related a ctivity m ight e xplain t heir p resence . T hese e xamples c annot d o j ustice t o t he m ultif acetted n ature o f f eature c ontents . I nterpreting t heir f unctional r ole d uring t he p rehistoric o ccupation may b e v ery complex . I nstead, t his d iscussion i s m eant t o p oint o ut t hat d isregarding b otanical m aterial f rom a rchaeological f eatures s olely b ecause o f i ts c ondition i s s imply i nadequate . More a ttention s hould b e g iven t o a rchaeological f eatures a nd t heir u se h istory i n t he i nterpretation o f t heir contents r ather t han i gnoring t he c ontents b ecause t hey f ail t o meet s ome a rtifical a nd i ll-founded c riterion o f l egitimacy . E vidence p resented a bove s uggests t hat g ermination a lone d oes n ot i ndicate t hat a s eed f rom a n a ncient d eposit i s modern . D ormancy i s a n a daptation b elieved t o b e c haracteristic o f t he s pecies which i nhabit f requently d isturbed h abitats . H ence, t hese d isseminules s hould b e e xpected t o o ccur i n c ontexts where c onditions s imulating g ermination a re n ot p resent . Archaeological c ontexts s uch a s p acked f loors a nd p rotected f eatures p rovide t hese n ecessary c onditions f or s urvival .

C oncl usion T his p aper was i ntended t o d raw a ttention t o t he s implicity o f t he c urrent a nd widely-held d ogma t hat a ll n on-carbonised s eeds a re i rrelevant when evaluating a rchaeobotanical a ssemblages f or e nvironmental r econstruction o r e vidence o f s ubsistence . T here a re i ndeed m any s itua tions where n on-carbonised s eeds m ight i n f act b e r ecent i ntroductions i nto t he s ediments o btained , f rom a rchaeological c ontexts : i f i nsuffici ent c are was t aken when t he s ediment s ample was o btained t hrough l ack o f a s terile t echnique ; f lotation a pparatus was e ither n ot c leaned a ft 'r p rocessing s urface s amples o r was u sed i n t he v icinity o f s eedd isseminating s pecies; i f t he p rehistoric d eposit i s e ither t he p resent g round s urface o r o nly i mmediately b eneath i t ( Keepax 1 977 ). H owever , n on-carbonised s eeds c an j ust a s e asily b e d irectly a ssociated w ith t he p rehistoric o ccupation . A s d iscussed a bove , t he m ajority o f t he s pecies whose s eeds h ave b een r ecovered f rom a rchaeological s ites i n c harred a nd u ncharred s tates , a re c olonising s pecies t hat c haracteristically t hrive i n d isturbed h abitats . I n o ccupying a n a rea, humans modify i t and t hereby p rovide a habitat s uitable f or c olonisation by t hese s pecies . T he a ssociation o f t he two , humans a nd d isturbed habitat s pecies, i s g enerally a cknowledged . What r emains t o b e s tudied i s how we c an u se t his a ssociation t o u nderstand m ore a bout h uman b ehaviour . T his d iscussion s hould n ot b e c onstrued a s ap lea t o c onsider a ll n on-carbonised s eeds f rom p rehistoric d eposits a s p rehistoric, but r ather t hat n on-carbonised s eeds s hould b e e xpected t o o ccur i n a rchaeol ogical d eposits with r egularity . I t i s c ontingent u pon t he a rchaeob otanist t o r ecognise t he r elevant c onditions a nd s pecies p articularly s uited t o p reservation i n t hem . T his k nowledge must t hen b e i ncoLpora ted i nto u nderstanding what t he n on-carbonised s eeds s ignify i n t hat p articular a rchaeological c ontext . I t i s e asy t o i gnore s omething which i s poorly u nderstood, but t o s eek t o understand what i s g enerally i gnored i s o ften e nlightening . P erhaps t he non-carbonised s eed will p rovide u s with a m eans b y which we c an d etermine h ow i ntensively a s ite was o ccupied , o r what p roblems c ultivators f aced i n c ontinually f arming a s ingle l ocality . T o d o t his we n eed t o understand t he o rganisms r epresented i n t he a rchaeological d eposits a nd h ow a nd why t hey t urn u p i n o ur s creens a nd f lotation s amples .

3 2

No-one s aid t hat d oing e thno-

botany was e asy, but p erhaps by b ecoming f luent i n t he l anguage o f botany a nd u sing i t i n o ur a nalysis o f a rchaeological material we may m ake t he t ask o f t ranslating what t he s eeds a re t elling u s e asier .

or archaeobotardcal material P ostscript : s ampling f T he s trategies u sed t o o btain s ediment s amples f rom a rchaeological c ontexts will d epend u pon t he q uestions t o b e a sked a nd t he a vailability o f c onditions s uitable f or p osing t hem . Av ariety o f s ampling s trate gies a re currently i n v ogue: e ither s ystematic o r s tratified with r espect t o a rchitectural u nits, f eature t ypes o r a rbitrary e xcavation u nits . Taking ' control s amples ' ( Bohrer a nd A dams 1 977; Adams and G asser 1 981 ) h as r ecently b ecome c ommonplace a s a m eans o f d etermining whether t he a rchaeobotanical a ssemblages o btained f rom f eature s amples a re s ignificantly d ifferent f rom t hose o btained i n c ontemporaneous, a ssociated n on-feature c ontexts . O bviously f or t he p urpose o f m aintaini ng c onsistency t here i s a n eed t o f ollow a f airly well-established s ampling design . Control s amples a re a s tep i n t his d irection . U nfortunately o ther t heoretical c onsiderations h ave n ot k ept p lace with t his d evelopment . F or e xample , when a n e xcavator s elects a f eature t o b e s ampled f or s ediment t hat will be processed by f lotation , a re any p recautions t aken t o e nsure t hat t he s ample i s f ree o f contamination f rom a ssociated p reviously excavated c ontexts? F urthermore , c an t he e xcavator b e r easonably c ertain t hat t he p articular c ontext i s u ndistu rbed, o r i f d isturbed, c an t he extent o f t he d isturbance b e known and u nderstood? B ecause s eeds a re small e nough t o b e v irtually i nvisible during e xcavation , t he e xcavator 's j udgement o f t he i ntegrity o f t he d eposit t o b e s ampled a nd t he c are t aken i n o btaining t he s amples a re o f c ritical importance . F ollowing t hese s imple g uidelines will d o much t o a lleviate f ears o n t he p art o f a nalysts a nd c ritics t hat u ncharred s eeds f rom a rchaeological s ites a re i ntrusive .

Ackn c Mledgen nts My t hanks a re due t o R . R iggs, W . Green and C . A rzigan f or r eading t houghtfully a nd c ommenting o n a n e arlier d raft o f t his p aper . Much o f my t hought on t his s ubject c ame a bout while working on t he Dolores A rchaeological P rogram , D olores , C olorado , where I r eceived much e ncoura gement f rom M . Matthews . I gratefully a cknowledge t he f inancial s upport I r eceived while p reparing t his m anuscript f rom P ioneer H i-Bred I nternational I nc ., i n t he f orm o f t he E . Anderson Ethnobotanical F ellowship .

R eferences A DAMS ,

K .R .

a nd G ASSER ,

R .E .

1 980

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i cal s ites : r esearch c onsiderations, a pproaches . T he K iva 4 5 :293-300 .

a nd s ampling t echniques a nd

A NDERSON , E . 1 957 M an a s a m aker o f n ew p lants a nd n ew p lant c ommuni ties . i n T HOMAS, W .L ., J r . ( ed ) Man 's r ole i n c hanging t he f ace 4 63-477 . U niversity o f C hicago P ress , C hicago . o f t he world , pp. B AKER ,

H .G .

1 974

T he e volution o f weeds .

3 3

A nnual R eview o f E cology a nd

S ystematics 5 :1-24 . BASKIN , J .M . a nd C .C . 1 985 T he annual dormancy cycle i n buried weed s eeds : a c ontinuum . B ioscience 3 5 :492-8 . B INFORD , L .R . Y ork .

1 978

Nunamiut e thnoarchaeology .

Academic P ress, N ew

BEWLEY , J .D . and BLACK, N . 1 985 S eeds, p hysiology o f d evelopment and g ermination . P lenum P ress , N ew Y ork . BOHRER , V .L . and ADAMS, K .R . 1 977 Ethnobotanical t echniques and a pproaches a t S almon R uin , N ew Mexico . E astern N ew Mexico U niversi ty C ontributions i n Anthropology 8 , P ortales . C AVERS , P .B . a nd H ARPER , J .L . 1 966 c rispus a nd R umex o btusifolius .

G ermination p olymorphism i n R umex J ournal o f E cology 5 4 :367-382 .

CLARK , A .B . 1 968 V egetation o f a rchaeological s ites c ompared w ith n ons ite l ocations a t Walnut Canyon , F lagstaff, Arizona . P lateau 4 0:77-90. COLLINS, M .B . 1 975 Sources o f bias i n processual d ata: an a ppraisal. i n M UELLER , J .W . ( ed ) S ampling i n A rchaeology , p p . 2 6-32 . U niversi ty o f A rizona P ress , T ucson . COOK,

R .E .

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The b iology o f s eeds i n t he s oil,

i n SOLBRIG, O .T .

( ed ) D emography and evolution i n p lant populations, pp . 1 07-129 . U niversity o f C alifornia B otanical Monographs 1 5 , B erkeley . C ROCKER ,

W .

1 938

D IMBLEBY , G .W . L ondon .

L ife-span o f s eeds . 1 978

D IMBLEBY , G .W . 1 985 P ress, N ew Y ork . E SAU ,

K .

F ENNER ,

1 965 M .

G OODYEAR , H ALL ,

F .N .

P lants and Archaeology ,

1 977

1 980

Baker,

A cademic

W iley a nd S ons, N ew Y ork .

C hapman a nd H all, L ondon .

A rchaeological s ite s cience .

J .B . a nd SWAINE , M .D . B iotropica 1 2 :256-263 .

HARPER , J .L . L ondon .

( 2nd e dition ).

S eed e cology .

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( 2nd e dition ).

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B otanical R eview 4 :235-274 .

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N ew Y ork .

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Academic P ress,

HARPER , J .L ., LOVELL , P .H . and MOORE, K .G . 1 970 T he s hapes and s izes o f s eeds . A nnual R eview o f E cology a nd S ystematics 1 :327-356 . JOHNSON , E .A . 1 975 Buried s eed populations i n t he s ubarctic f orest e ast o f G reat S lave L ake , N orthwest T erritories . C anadian J ournal o f B otany 5 3 :2933-2941 . K APLAN, L . and MAINA, S .L .

1 977

Archaeological botany o f t he Apple

3 4

C rcck s ite ,

I llinois .

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K EEPAX , C . 1 977 C ontamination o f a rchaeological d eposits b y s eeds o f modern o rigin with particular r eference t o t he u se o f f lotation m achines . J ournal o f A rchaeological S cience 4 :221-9 . K IVIL MN , A . a nd B ANDURSKI, R .S . 1 981 T he o ne h undred-year p eriod f or D r . B eal 's s eed v iability e xperiment . American J ournal o f B otany 6 8:1290-2. L ECK,

M .A . and GRAVELINE, K .J . 1 979 The s eed bank o f a f reshwater t idal m arsh . American J ournal o f B otany 6 6 :1006-1015 .

L ERMAN, J .C . and C IGLIANO , E .M . 1 971 New Carbon-14 evidence f or s ix h undred y ears o ld C ana c ompacta s eed . N ature 2 32 :568-9 . LOPINOT, N .H . a nd BRUSSELL , D .E . 1 982 Assessing uncarbonised s eeds f rom o pen-air s ites i n m esic e nvironments . J ournal o f A rchaeologi cal M INNIS,

S cience P .E .

9 :95-108 .

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S eeds i n a rchaeological s ites:

i nterpretive p roblems .

s ources a nd s ome

American A ntiquity 4 6 :143-152 .

M INNIS, P .E . and LEBLANC, S .A . 1 976 A s tudy o f t he s ite s pecific d istribution o f A gava parryi i n e ast c entral Arizona . T he K iva 4 1:299-308. M (X )RE ,

J .W .

a nd WEIN ,

R .W .

1 977

V iable s eed p opulations b y s oil d epth

a nd potential s ite r ecolonisation a fter d isturbance . J ournal o f B otany 5 5 :2408-2412 . Ø DUM ,

S .

1 965

G ermination o f a ncient s eeds .

Canadian

D ansk B otanik A rkiv 2 4 :1-

7 0. R ABINOWITZ, D . 1 980 B uried v iable s eeds i n a North American t all-grass p rairie : t he r esemblance o f t heir a bundance a nd c omposition . O ikos 3 6:191-5. R OBERTS , E .H . 1 972a S torage e nvironment a nd t he c ontrol o f v iability . i n ROBERTS, E .H . ( ed ) Viability o f s eeds, pp. 1 4-58. S yracuse U niversity P ress ,

S yracuse ,

N Y .

R OBERTS , E .H . 1 972b D ormancy : a f actor a ffecting s eed s urvival i n t he s oil. i n ROBERTS, E .H . ( ed ) Viability o f s eeds, pp. 3 21-360 . S yracuse U niversity P ress , S CHIFFER ,

M .B .

1 976

S yracuse ,

NY .

B ehavioral A rchaeology .

A cademic P ress ,

N ew Y ork .

S PIRA , T .P . and WAGNER , L .K . 1 983 Viability o f s eeds u p t o 2 11 y ears o ld e xtracted f rom a dobe b rick b uildings o f C alifornia a nd n orthern M exico . American J ournal o f B otany 7 0 :303-7 . S TEVENS, O .A . 1 932 T he n umber and weight o f s eeds p roduced by weeds . American J ournal o f B otany 1 9:784-794 . T OLL ,

M .S . 1 981 F lotation a nd m acro-botanical a nalyses a t 2 9SJ629 : a P ueblo I -II v illage i n Chaco Canyon . Castetter L aboratory f or E thnobotanical S tudies T echnical S eries 4 9. B iology D epartment,

3 5

U niversity o f New Mexico ,

A lbuquerque .

TUTIN, T .G ., HEYWOOD, V .H ., BURGES, N .A ., VALENTINO, D .H ., WALTERS, S .M . and WEBB, D .A . ( eds ) 1 964 F lora Europaea, vols . 1 -5. Cambridge U niversity P ress, Cambridge . WEBB, M .A . and ARNOTT, H .J . 1 983 microscopy of s eed coats. Journal 1 4:13-8 . W ILLIAMS , i on .

Castles, s clerids, crystals a nd t he Texas Scanning E lectron Microscopy

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Y ARNE IL , R .A . 1 963 Implications o f d istinctive f lora o n Pueblo r uins . American Anthropologist 6 7 :662-674 . YELLEN , J .E . 1 977 Archaeological approaches t o t he p resent . P ress, New York .

3 6

A cademic

S HELL S EASC ALITY : A N APPRAISAL O F T HE O XYG EN I SOTOPE T ECHNIQUE

M argaret D eith G odw in l aboratory f Cambridge U niversity o F ree S chool L ane, C ambridge CB2 3 RS, U K

A bstract T he a im o f t his p aper i s t o d iscuss how r eliable t he t echnique o f o xygen i sotope a nalysis i s i n d etermining t he s eason i n which s hellfish were collected , t he k ind o f r esolution i t c an o ffer a nd under which c ircumstances i t f unctions m ost e ffectively . T hree c ases s tudies a re d escribed , o ne where t he t echnique was s uccessful, , o ne where i t was n ot a nd one i n which t he a nalysis o f s hells f rom a n e stuary, c ommonly an u nfavourable s ituation , p roduced p atterned d ata which m ay b e s easonally d etermined . C onclusions a s t o t he d egree o f r esolution , t he l imitations a nd t he p otentialities o f t he o xygen i sotope t echnique a re m ade .

Oxygen i sotope a nalysis T he r atio o f t he s table i sotopes o f o xygen , 1 60 a nd 1 80 , i n c arbo nate which i s p recipitated i n e quilibrium w ith t he m edium i s d etermined b y t emperature , T = 1 6.9

-

s uch t hat : 4 .2( c

-

w )

+

O .13(Cc

-

6 w )1

where 6 c i s t he g180 v alue o f t he c arbonate and 6w t hat o f t he water ( Epstein e t a l. 1 953; C raig 1 965 ). I f a mollusc i s g rowing i n water o f u nchanging i sotopic c omposition, t he r atio o f s table i sotopes i n i ts s hell will v ary a ccording t o t he c hanges i n water t emperature t hrough t he year . Analysis o f a s equence o f s amples t aken a long t he a xis o f g rowth s hould t herefore p roduce a s eries o f values t hat p arallel t he a nnual s ea t emperature curve . We s hould t hus expect t hat molluscs l iving i n a f ully marine e nvironment would contain s uch a r ecord o f f luctuating t emperature i n t he c omposition o f s hell m aterial which i s l aid down s equentially a nd t hat molluscs l iving i n water o f varying i sotopic c omposition would b e u nsuitable f or t his k ind o f a nalysis . F or e xample , e stuaries c ontain b oth f resh a nd s alt water i n q uantities which v ary o n a d aily a nd s easonal b asis . S ince t he i sotopic c omposition o f f resh water d iffers s ubstantially f rom t hat o f s ea water, i t would b e d ifficult t o e stablish whether c hanges i n t he i sotopic c omposition o f t he s hell c arbonate r esulted f rom s alinity o r t emperature c hanges o r b oth. B roadly s peaking ,

t hese t wo e xpectations a re f ulfilled ,

3 7

b ut n ot i n

e very c ase . F or e xample , d ifferent s pecies v ary i n t heir s ensitivity t o t he e nvironment . J ust a s s ome t rees a re s uitable f or d endrochronologj c31 work a nd s ome a re n ot , s o with molluscs . B aseline d ata f rom a c omparable e nvironment p rovide u seful c ontrols f or d etermining t he s uita bility o f m idden s hells f or a nalysis . T hree c ase s tudies o f t he t echnique a re d escribed b elow , o ne s ucc essful, o ne u nsuccessful a nd a n e stuarine s ituation which p roduced p atterned d ata which m ay b e s easonally d etermined .

A c ase

o f seasonal resolution

T he f irst e xample c oncerns t opshells, Monodonta l ineata ( da C osta ), c ollected f rom t he n orth c oast o f S pain . T hese m olluscs g row o n r ocky s hores a long t he o pen c oast . T hey a ppear i n many c oastal m iddens, e specially i n t he e arly H olocene ( Gonzalez Morales 1 982 ). F igure 1 s hows t he m ean m onthly s ea t emperatures f or t his a rea a nd , s et a gainst t hem, a s equence o f i sotopic r atios o f s amples t aken a long a s hell a t 2 mm i ntervals , f rom t he e arliest t o t he m ost r ecently d eposited m ateri al . T he i sotope r atios v ary i n p arallel with t he s ea t emperature .

o c

81 8 0

0 .0-

-20 1 .0-

1 5 2 .0-

1 0 3 .0 A

M

J

J

A

S

O

N

D

J

F

M

A

F igure 1 : Mean monthly s ea t emperatures f or n orthern S pain ( broken l ine ) a nd i sotopic p rofile o f a s pecimen o f M onodonta l ineata ( da C osta ) ( solid l ine ), c ollected on 1 9 A pril 1 974 . E rror bars o n t he April a nd O ctober m easurements r epresent s tandard d eviations o n e dge m easurements o n 2 2 s hells c ollected o n a s ingle d ay i n A pril a nd o n 3 0 s hells c ollect ed o n a s ingle d ay i n O ctober .

3 8

T his s hell was c ollected i n April, when s ea t emperatures were b eginning t o r ise a fter t he winter . T he f inal v alue i n t he s equence r epresents t he l ast c arbonate d eposited a nd r ecords t he A pril u p-turn i n t emperature . T his p articular a nimal was y oung a nd g rowing f ast , a nd i s t hus a s ensitive i ndicator o f t emperature c hange . T he l ast s ample o f c arbonate t aken f rom t he s hell o f a n o lder a nimal, which would b e g rowi ng m ore s lowly , o ften c ontains s ome winter g rowth a s well a s t hat l aid d own i n t he s lightly warmer conditions o f e arly s pring ( Bailey , D eith a nd S hackleton 1 983; D eith 1 983 ). A f iner s easonal r esolution c an t hus b e o btained f rom y ounger a nimals . H ow much v ariability i s t here , i n f act , i n t he v alue o f t he g rowing e dges o f s hells c ollected o n t he s ame d ay? T he v ariation i s p robably a t i ts g reatest i n April b ecause g rowth i s v ery s low a t t his t ime o f y ear ( Gaillard 1 965 ). T he e rror bar o n t he April measurement i n F igure 1 r epresents t he s tandard d eviation o f e dge v alues i n a g roup o f 2 2 s hells c ollected o n t he s ame d ay a s t he o ne whose p rofile i s s hown . T he e rror b ar o n t he O ctober m ean m easurement s imilarly r epresents t he s tandard d eviation o f e dge values i n ag roup o f 3 0 s hells g athered on a s ingle d ay a t a t ime o f y ear when g rowth i s r apid . T he v ariability i s c onside rably smaller i n O ctober t han i t i s i n A pril . T hese e rror b ars p rovide s ome i ndication o f t he k ind o f r esolution a nd c onfidence l imits f or d ata f rom t opshells l iving o n t he n orth c oast o f S pain . A s triking f eature o f t he g raph o f i sotope v alues i s t he r apid r ate o f g rowth i n s ummer , when i sotope r atios a re r elatively d epleted i n 1 80 . T he i rregularity o f t he curve h ere i s ar eflection o f i ntra-seasonal t emperature v ariation , which i s g reater i n s ummer t han i n o ther s easons . I t i s a lso more l ikely t o be p icked up by s ampling b ecause t he s hells a re g rowing f aster a nd h ence p ermit g reater r esolution o f m easurements . T his f eature i llustrates a p roblem i n i nterpreting s hells f rom a rchaeol ogical s ites . I f a m ollusc was g athered d uring o ne o f t he t emperature d own-turns within t he s ummer i rregularites , i t i s n ot p ossible t o k now whether t his was a r esponse t o t he b eginning o f a utumn o r s imply p art o f t he s ummer f luctuations . T hat whole s ection o f t he g raph, u p t o t he p oint a t which any d own-turn cannot p ossibly b e part o f t he z one o f f luctuating s ummer values, must be considered a s a s ingle c ategory s ummer . A ny s cheme f or i nterpreting a rchaeological d ata must t ake t his i nto a ccount . A f uller d iscussion o f t his p roblem i s f ound i n D eith a nd -

S hackleton

( in p ress ).

T opshells s eem t o work well f or t he determination o f t he d ate o f c ollection, but even t he data p resented h ere i ndicate t hat d etermina tions c an o nly be made t o t he s easonal l evel, n ot t o t he month o f c ollection a s s uggested b y K illingley ( 1981 ).

A c ase o f s pecies s uitability T he s econd e xample c oncerns l impets ( Patella v ulgata L . ) f rom t he t iny i sland o f O ronsay o ff t he west c oast o f S cotland . N o l ess t han s ix l impet m iddens d ating t o t he s ixth m illennium B P h ave b een f ound w ithin t he 4 s quare k ilometres t hat c omposed t he i sland i n Mesolithic t imes ( Mellars 1 978 ). A lthough s ubstantial p roblems h ad b een e ncountered i n a p revious s tudy o f l impets f rom n orthern S pain ( Bailey, D eith a nd 3 hac rlet :on 1 983; D eitf l a nd S hackleton 1 936 ), a d ifferent s pecies o f l impet f rom S outh A frica, P . t abularis K rauss, g ave g ood r esults ( Shackleton 1 973 ).

L impets f orm a s ignificant p ortion o f s hell

3 9

m idden

material a nd, i n v iew o f t he impossibility o f u sing t he g rowth-line t echnique on P . v ulgata ( Deith 1 985 ), i t s eemed worth while t o m ake a m ore d etailed s tudy o n m odern s pecimens . F our s ets o f l impets were g athered f rom t he r ocks o n t he o pen s hore i n F ebruary 1 978, April 1 979, July 1 978 a nd S eptember 1 973 . F our q uestions were a sked o f t hese s amples : i s t he e dqe v alue t he s ame a ll r ound e ach s hell? d oes t he p osition i n w hich t he m ollusc g rew i n t he i nter-tidal z one a ffect t he i sotopic c omposition? h ow homogeneous a re e dge v alues o f s hells collected o n t he s ame d ay? h ow f ar i s i t possible t o d istinguish molluscs c ollected i n o ne s eason f rom t hose c ollected i n a nother? i ntra-shell v ariability F igure 2 s hows t he 6 180 v alues o f s amples t aken f rom f our p oints a long t he e dges o f e ach o f n ine l impet s hells . T here i s g enerally g ood a greement b etween t he s amples f rom a ny o ne i ndividual s hell, e xcept f or

+2

+3

I

S he l ln o : 1

I

I

I

I

I

I

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

F igure 2 : 6180 v alues o f c arbonate s amples t aken f rom f our s eparate p oints a long t he g rowing e dges o f e ach o f n ine s hells o f P atella v ulgata L . S hells 1 -6 were c ollected i n F ebruary 1 978 and s hells 7 -9 i n A pril 1 979. 4 0

s hell 9 . I n t his s hell, two s ampling p oints have v alues a round + 2 p er m il, while t he o ther t wo h ave v alues h igher t han + 3 p er m il . T he l atter s amples were t aken f rom a reas o f n ew g rowth o n t he s hell, which a ppears t o h ave b een g rowing i n s ome d irections b ut n ot o thers . L impets r eturn t o a ' home base ' a fter f eeding , b efore t he t ide g oes out a nd e xposes t hem ( Orton 1 929; J ones 1 948 ; C ook e t a l . 1 969 ). T he s hell must a ccomm odate i tself t o t he s hape o f t he h ome b ase , s o t hat t he a nimal d oes n ot b ecome d esiccated when i t i s e xposed b y t he t ide . I t m ay t hus g row i n s ome d irections a nd n ot i n o thers , e specially o n a n i rregular p iece o f r ock . I t i s c learly e ssential t o s ample t he most r ecently d eposited c arbonate. A part f rom t his o bvious e xception , t he i ntra-shell v ariability i s t olerable . N evertheless , t he d egree o f v ariation i s m uch g reater t han c ould b e a ccounted f or b y m achine e rror . Machine m easurement i s p recise , while t he t o within ± 0 .06 p er m il, e quivalent t o a d ifference o f 0 .3 °C v ariation b etween s amples i n a n i ndividual l impet may b e a round a n o rder o f m agnitude l arger , e quivalent t o a d ifference o f 3 °C . T hese r esults a re i n c ontrast with u npublished s imilar m easurements a long t he g rowing e dge o f Monodonta a nd C erastoderma s hells, which gave s ets o f values w ithin t he m argins o f m achine e rror . p osition on t he s hore T he e dges o f h igh-a nd l ow-shore s hell s amples c ollected i n J uly 1 978 a nd S eptember 1 973 were a nalysed . S tudent 's t -tests i ndicated t hat t here was no s ignificant d ifference b etween t he h igh- a nd l ow-shore s amples: July 1 978: S eptember 1 973 :

P >0 .5, t = 0 .5 @ 5 7df p > 0 .5, t = 0 .7 @ 2 9df

h omogenei ty o f s amples A lthough t here i s ar easonable d egree o f i nternal c onsistency i n t he 6 180 v alues f or e ach i ndividual, t here i s l ittle c onsistency b etween s hells collected o n t he s ame day , a s c an b e s een i n F igure 2 . F igure 3 i ndicates t he v ery l arge r ange o f v alues within e ach s easonal c ollecti on . There i s a s pread o f 1 .60 p er mil i n t he s ets o f winter- a nd s pring-collected s hells and 1 .35 p er mil i n t he s ets o f s ummer- a nd a utumn-collected s hells . T hese r anges a re e quivalent t o a v ariation o f 7 -8° C i n molluscs c ollected o n a s ingle d ay . t emperature and s alinity A nnual m ean m onthly s ea t emperatures f or t he n earest d ata c ollect ion p oint t o O ronsay , a t K eppel P ier , M illport , s how a n a nnual r ange o f 7 °C over t he p eriod 1 969-1978 ( Moore 1 980 ). T he expected r ange o f v alues f or t he entire y ear i s t hus within t he r ange o f e ach mollusc s ample c ollected o n a s ingle d ay . T he a ttribution o f a ll v ariation i n 5 180 v alues i n s hell c arbonate t o t emperature v ariation p resupposes c onstant s alinity . B ecause s alini ty values i n t he waters a round O ronsay a re e ssentially c onstant, a t 3 4 p er mil ( Lee and R amster 1 981 ), t he e xplanation o f t he i sotopic v ariability d oes n ot l ie i n a f luctuating s alinity . F resh water i nput f rom r ainwater r un-off m ight s eem a p ossibility b ut P . v ulgata a voids f resh water b y c lamping down h ard on t he r ock, i n t he s ame way a s i t

4 1

L impe t E dge V a lues

61 8 0

0/ 0

t o P D B

0 .0

2 .0 -

3 .0 -

4 .0

L

I

S pr ing

S ummer

I

A u tumn

W in te r

Figure 3 : R anges o f e dge values i n s hells o f P atella vulgata L . c olle cted i n A pril 1 979, July 1 978, S eptember 1 973 a nd F ebruary 1 978 .

a voids d esiccation ( Arnold 1 957 ). Moreover , h igh-a nd l ow-shore a nimals d iffer i n t heir t olerance o f d iluted s ea water and i n other metabolic adaptations t o t he upper s hore ( Segal 1 965; D avies 1 966, 1 967, 1 969 ). S ince n o d ifference i s f ound b etween h igh- a nd l ow-shore i ndividuals, t hese p otential c auses o f v ariability d o n ot s eem r elevant . At t he l evel o f t he i ndividual s hell, t herefore, t here i s n o r eli able way o f determining t he s eason o f c ollection o f a s hell o f P . vulgata f rom Oronsay by analysing t he o xygen i sotope r atios . Af ifth q uestion t hus b ecomes p ertinent: c an s easonality b e d efined s tatistically? s tatistically d efined s easonality F igure 3 m akes v ery c lear t hat v ariation i n t he 1 180 r atios b etween t he winter and s pring mollusc s amples i s n egligible, a s i t i s b etween t he s ummer a nd a utumn s amples . S tudent 's t -tests c onfirmed t hat t here was n o s tatistically s ignificant d ifference b etween t he f irst a nd t he s econd s ets o f r atios : w inter/spring P s u m mer/autumn P

= =

0 .1, t > 0.5, t

= =

1 .18 @ 1 9df 0 .65 @ 8 8df

A t -test on t he F ebruary and July s ets, s ignificant t -value : F ebruary/July P < 0.001, t

=

h owever,

3 .55 @ 6 3df

4 2

produced a h ighly

T hat i s, a d istinction could b e made a t t he l evel o f t he s tatisti cal s ample b etween t he c rude c ategories o f ' summer-collected ' and ' winter-collected ' molluscs. T herefore, i f a s ample i s known t o b e s easonally d istinct , i t s hould b e p ossible t o c haracter ise i t a s c ollect ed i n s ummer o r winter . O n t he o ther h and , i f t he s ample i s s easonally m ixed o r t here i s n o p rior k nowledge o f whether i t i s s easonal o r m ixed , t he a ssemblage c ould n ot b e r eliably a ssigned t o a s eason o f c ollection .

A c ase o f h abitat s uitability S pecies which a re t hemselves s uitable f or s table i sotope a nalysis may b e f ound i n unsuitable habitats . One s uch t ype o f h abitat i s t he e stuary , where f resh a nd s aline water mix t hrough t he t idal cycle a nd y ear i n varying p roportions . S ince two variables, t emperature and s alinity , a re a t p lay h ere, t hey may c ancel e ach o ther out o r enhance e ach o ther . Ap ilot s tudy has b een undertaken on c ockles ( Cerastoderma e dule L . ) f rom t he S ado e stuary i n P ortugal, where t here i s a s eries o f M esolithic m iddens , s ome w ith p redominantly a nimal r emains o f r ed d eer a nd p ig a nd s ome with p redominantly f ish a nd o ther m arine r esources . A h ypothesis f or d ifferential s easonal u se o f t hese s ites has b een adv anced b y t he e xcavator ( Arnaud i n p ress ). S amples o f cockles were collected on 2 April, 2 6 May and 2 9 July 1 984 f rom t he s ame point a long t he e stuary ( Fig . 4 ). T he mean e dge v alues o f t he s hells within e ach s ample were e xtremely c onsistent : 2A pril 1 984 2 6 M ay 1 984 2 9 J uly 1 984

+ 1.20 + 0 .20 p er m il + 0.80 + 0 .16 p er m il 0.45 + 0 .07 p er m il

n n n

= = =

5 0 4 0 2 7

T he g reater p art o f t he a nnual p recipitation f alls i n t he winter , e specially i n D ecember and J anuary, i n t his p art o f P ortugal. T he maximum p recipitation o ccurs i n J anuary , 1 10 .6mm, and t he minimum i n J uly, 3 .1mm, with i ntermediate amounts i n s pring and autumn ( Lin s E scard6 1 970 ). T his m eans t hat t he s alinity o f t he e stuary i s l ower i n t he m ore h umid a nd c older winter t han i t i s i n s ummer a nd t hat t he water i s d epleted i n 1 80 i n winter , r elative t o s ummer . H owever , t emperature c reates t he o pposite e ffect , s o t hat c arbonate p recipitated i n winter i s e nriched i n 1 80 , r elative t o s ummer . T he d egree t o which t hese o pposing f actors c ancel e ach o ther out c an be s een by examining t he i sotopic p rofiles o f s hells c ollected f rom t he e stuary . I f t here were s ufficient d ata a vailable , 6 180 v alues m ight b e p redicted u sing t he f ormula : 6c180 =6w180

-

( t

-

1 0 )/4

+

0 .2

( S

-

2 0 )

where 6 c i s t he v alue o f t he c arbonate a nd 1w t hat o f t he water ( Erlenk euser , Wefel a nd T emple p ersonal c ommunication ). U nfortunately , o nly l imited d ata e xist f or t he S ado e stuary . Mean monthly v alues over a s equence o f y ears a re n ot a vailable . Two d etailed s tudies, i n July a nd D ecember 1 978 ( Michel 1 978a, 1 978b ), g ive v alues f or t emperature , s alinity , d issolved o xygen , e tc . a t 2 -minute i ntervals t hroughout o ne t idal c ycle , f or d ifferent s tations a long t he e stuary . D epth m easurements i ndicate t hat t he S ado i s a wellm ixed e stuary . T he water c olumn was homogeneous i n July, but i n

4 3

A r e a o f t h e S a d o e s t u a r y ,

f r o m w h i c h c o k i e s ( C e r a s t o d e r m

I

4 J

1 3 4

0

I.

I

4 4

D ecember t he s urface w ater was 1 -2 p er m il l ess s aline t han t he b ottom water , a s a r esult o f a n i ncrease i n t he f reshwater c omponent . T empera tures were v ery s imilar i n b oth s easons t hroughout t he water c olumn . Within a s ingle d ay, however, both t emperature and s alinity may vary q uite c onsiderably . F or t he c ollecting a rea , a t t he i nnermost e nd o f t he T roja p eninsula ( Fig . 4 ), t he t emperature m ay v ary i n J uly b y a s he s alinity by 2 .82 p er m il i n a s ingle d ay ; i n much a s 5 .55 ° C and t , a lthough D ecember t he t emperature v ariation i s r elatively s mall, 0 .71° C t he s alinity v aries r ather more s ubstantially , b y 2 .12 p er m il . T hese small-scale variations a re c ancelled o ut by t he f act t hat t he s ize o f t he s hell s ample , a bout 0 .3mg , c overs s everal d ays ' g rowth . T his s tudy d emonstrates t hat c aution i s r equired i n a ccepting s ingle d ata points f or t emperature a nd s alinity which d o n ot t ake i nto a ccount s uch d aily f luctuations. T he d ifference b etween mean s alinities on 1 July 1 978 a nd 1 D ec-

1 80 value ember 1 978 i s 2 .4 p er m il . T his would e ffectively c hange t he E by a bout 0 .5 p er mil, whereas t he mean t emperature d ifference o f 6 .1°C i s e quivalent t o 1 .2 p er mil variation i n 6 180 value i n t he c arbonate . E vidently t emperature d ominates s alinity i n s haping t he i sotopic p rofi les . I ndeed, t he f igures f or April, May and July s how a n i ncreasing d epletion i n 1 80 with r ising t emperatures . F igure 5 r epresents a s hell c ollected on 2 6 May 1 984 . I t i s t ypi cal o f s hells c ollected on t hat d ay . T he most r ecently d eposited m aterial s hows a s mall d ownward t urn , t owards v alues e nriched i n 1 80 , which p resumably c annot be a ccounted f or by t emperature c hange . T he amplitude o f t he c ycle , a bo t it 2 p er m il, i s g reater t han was p redicted a bove b y t he 1 978 o bservational d ata . T hus , t here i s c ertainly p atterni ng i n t he d ata a nd t he c onsistency i n p rofile a nd e dge v alues s uggests t hat i t would be possible t o i nterpret i t, g iven e nough modern s hell s amples , p referably c ollected a t monthly i ntervals o ver a t l east t wo o r t hree y ears . I f t he p attern i s r egular a nd c onsistent , weil d ocumented b y t he a nalysis o f s hells c ollected o n k nown d ates a nd t aking a ccount o f s ome a lteration i n e nvironmental v ariables f rom y ear t o y ear , i t i s n ot n ecessary f or t he p attern to be exactly t he s ame s hape a s t he t empera ture c urve . I f t he i nteraction b etween t emperature a nd s alinity c an b e predicted with r easonable c onfidence, i t c ould b e equally u seful a s a t ool

f or a ssessing s easonality .

C onclusions F rom t he material i llustrated a bove , af ew b rief c onclusions c an b e d rawn concerning t he value o f t he oxygen i sotope t echnique i n s hell s easonality work , i ts r esolution a nd i ts l imitations . E ven i n c ircumstances where t he t echnique i s m ost e ffective , r esolu tion i s g enerally a t t he s easonal r ather t han t he monthly l evel, a lthough t his p artly d epends o n t he t ime o f y ear . I sotope a nalysis i s a n e xpensive t echnique a nd a j udicious c ombina tion o f a l arge s ample o f e dge analyses with a smaller n umber o f d etailed s hell p rofiles s eems t o b e t he most e fficient u se o f r esources . T he c hoice o f s hells f or d etailed a nalysis s hould b e g uided by t he r esults o f t he e dge a nalyses ( Deith i n p ress ).

4 5

0 .0 -

0 0

. 0-

i

May

0

0

C O

z o

2 .0 -

I I I I I I

I I I I

S amp l ing I n te rva l 1 m Figure 5 : I sotope p rofile o f a s hell o f C erastoderma e dule L ., colle cted f rom t he S ado e stuary on 2 6 May 1 984 .

A lthough t he e ffects o f t emperature a nd s alinity m ay c ancel e ach other out i n e stuarine s ituations, t his i s not i nevitably s o, but d epends on t he r elative values o f t he two v ariables . There may , i n f act , b e a r egular a nd c onsistent s easonal p atterning i n t he d ata . F inally, a nd most importantly , n ot a ll s pecies r espond t o t he environment i n t he s ame way . T he u se o f modern control material i s e ssential i n e stablishing t he u sefulness o f a rchaeological s hells f or s easonality d eterminations b y t his o r a ny o ther t echnique .

4 6

A ck r M1edgemef lts I s hould l ike t o t hank a ll t he a rchaeologists who c ollected m odern s hells a s c ontrol m aterial: Jose Morais Arnaud , Geoff B ailey, G ale C anvin a nd P aul M ellars . T he p rojects d escribed h ere were f unded b y t he S cience and Engineering R esearch Council o f t he U nited K ingdom . I am p articularly g rateful t o N ick S hackleton a nd Mike H all o f t he Godwin Laboratory , C ambridge, f or d iscussions o f p roblem a reas and f or h elp with t he a nalyses, r espectively . T he p aper was written while I was a n h onorary R esearch A ssistant i n t he D epartment o f A rchaeological S ciences, U niversity o f B radford . I t hank Arnold A spinall a nd t he D epartment s taff f or t heir g enerous h ospitality . D uring t he writing , I h ave very much appreciated t he c omments o f T jeerd van Andel, G eoff B ailey a nd M ina Weinstein-Evron .

R eferences A RNAUD , J .M .M . i n p ress T he M esolithic c ommunities O f t he S ado v alley , P ortugal, i n t heir e cological s etting . i n BONSALL , C . ( ed ) The Mesolithic i n E urope : P roceedings o f t he T hird I nternational S ympo sium ,

E dinburgh 1 985 .

A RNOLD, D .C . 1 957 T he r esponse o f t he l impet, P atella vulgata, t o waters o f d ifferent s alinities . J ournal o f t he M arine B iological A ssociation o f t he U nited K ingdom 3 6 :121-8 . BAILEY, G .N ., D EITH, M .R . and S HACKLETON, N .J . 1 983 Oxygen i sotope a nalysis a nd s easonality d eterminations : l imits a nd p otential o f a n ew t echnique . COOK,

American A ntiquity 4 8:390-8 .

A ., BAMFORD, O .S ., F REEMAN, J .D .B . a nd T EIDEMAN , D .J . 1 969 A s tudy o f t he h oming h abit o f t he l impet . A nimal B ehaviour 1 7 :330-9 .

C RAIG , H . 1 965 T he m easurements o f o xygen i sotope p alaeotemperatures . i n ' I ONGIO I I, E . ( ed ) S table i sotopes i n o ceanographic s tudies a nd p alaeotemperatures , P isa.

p p .

3 -24

. C onsiglio N aziona le

d elle

R icherche ,

D AVIES , P .S . 1 966 P hysiological e cology o f P atella . I : T he e ffect o f b ody s ize a nd t emperature o n m etabolic r ate . J ournal o f t he Marine B iological A ssociation o f t he U nited K ingdom 4 6 :647-658 . D AVIES, P .S . 1 967 P hysiological e cology o f P atella . I: E ffect o f I environmental a cclimation on t he metabolic r ate . J ournal o f t he Marine B iological A ssociation o f t he U nited K ingdom 4 7 :61-74 . D AVIES , P .S . 1 969 P hysiological e cology o f P atella . II: D esiccation I e ffects. Journal o f t he Marine B iological A ssociation o f t he U nited K ingdom 4 9 :291-304 . D E I [TH , M .R . 1 983 S easonality o f s hell c ollecting , d etermined b y o xygen i sotope a nalysis o f m arine s hells f rom A sturian s ites i n C antabria . i n GRIGSON , C . a nd C LU I 'ON-BROCK , J . ( eds ) A nimals a nd A rchaeology : 2 : s hell middens, f ishes a nd b irds, p p . 6 7-76. B ritish A rchaeol ogical R eports I nternational S eries S 183, O xford .

4 7

D EITH , M .R . 1 9 5 S easonality f rom s hells: a n e valuation o f two t echn iques f or s easonal d ating o f marine molluscs . i n F IET , TFR , N .R .J ., G ILBERTSON, D .D . and RALPH, N .G .A . ( eds ) Palaeoenvironmental 1 19-130 . B ritish Archaeological i nvestigations: p alaeobiology , pp. R eports I nternational S eries S 266, Oxford . DEITH, M .R . ( in press ) Coppa Nevigata: u n s ito s tagionale? Nota p reliminare s ulle c onchiglie . i n A tti d ella X XVI R iunione S cienti fica dell 'Istituto I taliano d i Preistoria e P rotoistoria, i l N eolitico i n I talia ,

F irenze 1 985 .

D EITH, M .R . and S HACKLETON, N .J . ( 1986) S easonal exploitation of marine molluscs : a r eport o n t he o xygen i sotope a nalysis o f s hells f rom La R iera. i n S TRAUS, L .G . and CLARK, G .A . ( eds ) L a R iera c ave : s tone a ge h unter-gatherer a daptations i n n orthern S pain , 2 99-313. A rizona S tate U niversity P ress , T em p o . DEITH, M .R . and SHACKLETON, N .J . i sotope analysis o f marine

pp .

( in press ) A report on t he oxygen molluscs f rom Franchthi c ave , i n

JACOBSEN, T .W . ( ed ) Marine molluscan r emains f rom F ranchthi c ave, f ascicle 4 , c hapter 9 . I ndiana U niversity P ress, B loomington . EPSTEIN, S ., B UCHSBAUM, R ., LOWENSTAM, H .A . and U REY, Revised carbonate-water i sotopic t emperature s cale . t he G eological S ociety o f America 6 4 :1315-1326 .

H .C . 1 953 B ulletin o f

ERLENKEUSER , H ., WEFER , G . and TEMPLE, R . 1 980 Growth of b ivalves, g astropods a nd f oraminifera r ecorded i n t heir 1 80 a nd 1 3C p rofiles . U npublished poster presentation a t t he XV European Symposium on Marine B iology , GAILLARD ,

J .M .

K iel,

1 965

G erman F ederal R epublic ,

1 980 .

A spects q ualitatifs e t q uantitatifs d e

l a c rois-

s ance de l a coquille de quelques e sp ces de mollusques p rosob ranches e n f onction d e l a l atitude e t d es c onditions e cologiques . Mémoires du Muséüm National d 'Histoire Naturelle Nouvelle S rie P aris 3 8:1-155 . GONZALEZ MORALES, M .R . 1 982 E l Asturiense y otras culturas l ocales . M inisterio d e Cultura , S antander . JONES,

N .S .

1 948

Observations

and experiments

on

t he

b iology

o f

P atella vulgata at Port St . Mary, I sle o f Man . Proceedings and T ransactions o f t he L iverpool B iological S ociety 5 6:60-77 . K ILLINGLEY, J .S. 1 981 S easonality o f mollusk collecting determined f rom 0 -18 p rofiles o f m idden s hells . American A ntiquity 4 8:152-8 . LEE, A .J . and RANSTER , J .W . ( eds ) 1 981 Atlas of t he s eas a round t he B ritish I sles. Ministry o f Agriculture, F isheries and Food, Her Majesty 's L INES E SCARD6 ,

S tationery O ffice , A .

1 970

London .

The c limate o f t he

I berian peninsula ,

WALl iEN , C. C . ( ed ) C limates o f n orthern a nd western E urope , 2 39 . E lsevier , Amsterdam .

p . p

i n 1 95-

MELLARS, P .A . 1 978 Excavation and economic analysis o f Mesolithic s hell m iddens on t he i sland o f Oronsay ( Inner Hebrides ). i n MELLARS,

P .A .

( ed )

T he early postglacial s ettlement o f n orthern

4 8

E urope ,

p p .

3 71-396 .

D uckworth ,

London .

M ICHEL, D . 1 978a R io S ado: campagne de mesur e s j uillet 1 978. R apport t echnique i n dit r 6alis6 p ar l e L aboratoire d 'Oceanographie -

d e

l 'Universit6 L ibre d e B ruxelles .

MICHEL , D . 1 978b R io S ado: campagne d e mesures déce iubre 1 978. R apport t echnique i nédit r éalisé p ar l e L aboratoire d 'Oceanoqraphie -

d e MOORE,

l 'Université L ibre d e B ruxelles . P .G .

1 980

S ea s urface t emperatures at Miliport,

1 959-1979.

Western N aturalist 9 :53-61 . ORTON, J .H . h abits .

1 929 Observations on Patella vulgata . II: Habitat and I J ournal o f t he Marine B iological A ssociation o f t he U nited

K ingdom 1 6:277-288 . S EGAL, E .

1 956

i ntertidal S HACKLETON ,

N .J .

Adaptive d ifferences i n water-holding capacity i n an g astropod . 1 973

E cology

3 7:174-8 .

Oxygen i sotope a nalysis a s a m eans o f d etermin-

i ng s eason o f o ccupation o f p rehistoric m idden s ites . 1 5:133-141.

4 9

A rchaeometry

T ECHNIQUES A ND C (N I B) IS F OR T HE DETERMINATION O F S EAS M JITY I N S B MEISHING ACTIVITIES

Cheryl C laassen

f Anthropology D epartment o A ppalachian S tate U niversity B oone, North C arolina 2 8608, U SA

A bstract I f t he d eath d ate o f molluscs f ound o n a m idden c an b e d etermined t hen t he s eason a t which p eople went s hellfishing c an b e i nferred . T he methods, counting g rowth l ines, population s tatistics , s table i sotope a nalysis , a vailable f or d etermining s easonality i n s eashells a re c ritica lly r eviewed . T he n eed f or f ully d ocumented c omparative c ontrol c olle ctions i s emphasised . T he a uthor h as e stablished s uch a c ollection o f Mercenaria mercenaria f rom North Carolina which n ow covers t hree c alendar y ears . S everal o f t he t echniques o utlined i n t he f irst p art o f t he p aper h ave b een t ested a gainst t his c ontrol s ample t o c ompare t heir a ccuracy.

I ntroduction S hell s easonality i s t he d etermination o f when , d uring a twelvemonth c ycle, s hellfishing o ccurred on any g iven a rchaeological s ite . T his a spect o f s hellfishing e conomics h as r eceived t he m ost a ttention , both s peculative and a nalytical, f rom r esearch workers . A s o f 1 985, d eterminations o f t he s easonality o f s hellfishing b ased o n a nalysis o f m idden material h ave b een a ttempted o n s amples f rom o ver 1 40 s ites o n t he Atlantic c oast o f t he United S tates, 2 8 s ites on t he P acific c oast o f t he U nited S tates a nd Canada, 2 8 s ites on t he American coast o f t he G ulf o f Mexico , 2 4 s ites i n t he U nited S tates which p roduced f reshwater s hellfish and t hree c oastal s ites i n Mexico . I will d iscuss h ere t he t echniques u sed , t he c ontrols a vailable a nd t he l ogic b ehind t he m ethodo logies employed . I t i s my a im t o s ummarise t he t echnical v ariations i n u se i n t he U nited S tates, a lert t he r eader t o t he n ecessity f or and i nadequacies o f c ontrol s amples a nd t o d emonstrate h ow a c ontrol c olle ction which s pans s everal years c an a lter a n i nterpretation o f p reh istoric b ehaviour o riginally b ased o n a o ne-year c ontrol s ample . M olluscs g row b y d epositing s hell a s t he m antle i s e xtended . T his d eposition i s a ffected b y ah ost o f p eriodic environmental v ariables, f or e xample t idal r egimes . T he s hells o f many molluscan s pecies c ontain , t herefore, d etailed r ecords o f t he p assage o f d ays; p arts o f d ays; n eap a nd/or s pring t ides; s ynoptic months; g roups o f months a nd y ears ( Pannella a nd McClintock 1 968 ).

5 1

B iologists, malacologists a nd

f isheries b ureau workers r ecognised t he a nnuli c reated b y t hese p eriodic events on t he s urface o f many molluscan s pecies prior t o t he c lose o f t he n ineteenth c entury . T hese annuli were f irst s tudied i n c rosss ection a s e arly a s 1 914 ( Isely 1 914 ). Management o f s hellfish p opulati ons i nitially f or t he f reshwater s hell button i ndustry a nd l ater f or t he s eafood i ndustry has r elied o n g rowth-line data t hroughout t his c entury t o r egulate e xploitation . T here a re c urrently i n u se t hree c lasses o f t echniques f or d etermi ning t he t ime o f d eath o f a g iven a rchaeological s ample o f s hellfish : g rowth l ines ; d emography ; s table i sotopes . O f t hese g rowth l ines h ave b een u sed m ost o ften while d emographic c haracteristics a re t he e asiest t o m easure .

T echniq i s f or d etermining s easonality g rowth l ines Growth l ines c an be e xpressed i n a wide variety o f ways . T hey may i nvolve c hanges i n s urface morphology , s hell s truct ure, o rganic content, s hell t ransparency, d irection o f . . g rowth , o r e ven t race e lement o r i sotopic c omposition . T he g eneral d efinition s uggested b y C lark ( 1974 ) s eems t o s atisfy t hese r equirements . H e d efines growth l ines a s ' abrupt o r r epetitious c hanges i n t he c haracter o f a n a ccreting t issue ' . ( Dillon a nd C lark 1 980 :396 ) Two a rchaeologists s imultaneously p ublished g rowth-line a nalyses o n a rchaeological s hell i n 1 969 . Weide and C hace s eparately e xamined T ivela s tultorum f rom O ra 8 2 i n s outhern C alifornia a nd p ublished t heir r esults i ndependently . B oth r esearchers u sed t he s ame t echnique f or d etermining g rowth i ncrements a nd d eriving c alendrical t ime . T hey e xami ned t he s urface o f t he s hell a nd a ssumed t he t ranslucent s hell a t t he m argin e qualled d eep winter . N o c ontrol c ollections w ere made . S hell a dded s ince t he t ranslucent b and was t hen e ither p hysically o r v isually m easured a nd c ompared a gainst p revious g rowth i n t he m ollusc t o p redict t he d eath t ime f or t hat i ndividual a nimal . I nvestigators h ave c ontinued t o u se s ubjective i mpressions o f h ow much g rowth would a ccrue i n e ach c alendar m onth , e ach t rimester o r e ach q uarter o f t he y ear . T his t echn ique, l abelled S urface 1 , has been u sed b y Butler ( 1974 ), Carter ( 1978 ), C hace ( 1969 ), C larke and C larke ( 1980 ), D rover ( 1974 ), Ham ( 1982 ) a nd Weide ( 1969 ). A m athematical v ariation o f t his m ethod h as r eceived v ery l ittle 7 .03 which a cceptance . Lyons ( 1978 ) p roposed a f ormula Y 12 .13 Lnt + 1 p redicted t he n umber o f r idges t hat would f orm b etween a nnuli i n e ach t rimester o f t he year i n t he g enus C hione . A c ritique o f t his t echn ique, s pearheaded by K oerper ( Koerper, C erreto a nd R eitz 1 984 ) has e nsured i ts o bsolescence . T he m ost s ophisticated o f t he t echniques f or d etermining s easonali ty which r elies o n t he i dentification o f g rowth l ines b ased o n s urface o bservation, i s t hat d evised by A ten ( 1981 ) f or R angia cuneata f rom T exas a nd Louisiana m iddens . B eginning with a previously c alculated a ge :length t able f rom which t he n umber o f a nnuli o n t he a rchaeological s pecimen i s d etermined , t he l ast c omplete y ear o f l ife i s f ound , m easure d a nd d ivided i nto t hirds . T he d eath y ear g rowth i s s ubsequently

5 2

m easured a nd t hat v alue c ompared t o t he f inal c omplete y ear a nd a d eath t rimester a ssigned . A c ulturally m eaningful s et o f s hellfish a re t hus c haracterised a nd t he p roportion o f i ndividuals d ying d uring t he e arly , m iddle o r l ate t rimester o f t he d eath y ear a re d isplayed a s h istograms t ogether with t he u nassignable s hells . A c ontrol c ollection m ade o ver s everal y ears a nd f rom s everal l ocalities i s t reated i n l ike manner . U sing t hese two s ets o f h istograms, one c an t hen a ssign t o a ny g iven a rchaeological s ample a two week i nterval f or d eath by comparing t he a rchaeological h istogram with t he f ortnightly h istograms d erived f rom t he c ontrol s ample . T his t echnique h as b een l abelled S urface 2 . Wessen ( 1982 ) u sed a s imilar t echnique i nvolving a control s ample and t he s urficial i dentification o f a nnuli . Aten 's Surface 2 t echnique i s more r eliable t han t he S urface 1 t echnique b ecause h e a ccumulated a c ontrol c ollection .

R ecognising t hat

d ifferent m olluscs g row a t d ifferent r ates , h e p inned t he c alendrical a ge a ssignment i n a p opulation o f s hellfish t o g rowth c haracteristics r ather t han a ssuming u niform g rowth a nd a ssigning e ach m ollusc a d eath t ime . T hese a dvantages a re , u nfortunately , l ost i n a pplying t he t echn ique . S urficial i ndications o f g rowth a re e xtremely c onfusing o n m any s pecies, i ncluding R . c uneata . A host o f n on-periodic p henomena a lso c ause i nterruptions i n s hell d eposition and a re r egistered on t he s urface o f t he s hell . F rom e xperience , I c an s ay t hat t he r ecognition o f a nnuli o n t he s urface o f t his s pecies i s e xtremely c onfusing a nd t he r esults a re h ighly s uspect . A ten 's s olution t o t he p roblem o f i dentifying a nnuli was t o g auge t he nu i ber o f annuli t o b e f ound f rom t he l ength o f t he s hell. H e a ssumed t hat s hell l ength c orrelated with a ge . H owever, h e c ould p rovide no s tudy o f R . c uneata t hat d emonstrated t his l ink without a ssuming t he a bility t o r ecognise a nnuli . O ne o f t he s tudies h e c ited was a p rediction o f t he s ize p er y ear o f l ife ( Wolfe a nd P etteway 1 968 ), n ot a f ield o bservation , a nd t he o ther two s tudies c ounted a nnuli o n t he s urface t o d etermine a ge ( Hopkins , A nderson a nd H orvath 1 973 ; a rchaeol ogical d ata f rom 4 1Bo12 a nd 4 1Hr86 ). The d ata h e g ave t o s upport t he a ge :length r elationship were t he s ame d ata a s were u sed t o g enerate t hat r elationship . T hey h ad b een d erived i n a p roblematical way , by t he r ecognition o f annuli . I n o rder t o c onstruct s uch a t able i t would b e n ecessary t o t ransplant s pat and o bserve t heir g rowth annually . Even t hen , g rowth ( length ) i n d ifferent c alendar years a nd i n d ifferent l ocalities c ould d iffer f rom t he t able . I n f act , a ll s easonality s tudies which r ely o n t he i dentification o f a nnuli f rom s urface o bserva tion a re h ighly s ubject t o e rror due t o t he misidentification o f a nnuli. Cross s ectioning s hells p rovides better visual s eparation o f g enuine f rom f alse a nnuli . S ectioning o f a rchaeological s hells was f irst p erformed b y F erguson ( 1975 ) a nd H am a nd I rvine ( 1975 ) o n s hells f rom t he c oast o f t he P acific n orthwest o f America . P ay ( 1977 ) r eported t he f irst s easonality work o n a rchaeological f reshwater s hells , u sing a cetate p eels . C lark , ag eologist , i ntroduced t he t hin-sectioning o f m ollusc s hells t o a rchaeologists working o n t he e ast c oast o f t he U nited S tates ( Clark 1 979). T he t echnique which I c all Cut 1 i s, e xcept f or t he r eading o f i nternal g rowth l ines , i ndistinguishable f rom t he S urface 1 t echnique d escribed a bove . C ontrol c ollections a re u nusual, s hell g rowth i s a ssumed t o b e u niform a nd i ndividual s hells a re g iven i ndividual d eath

5 3

t ime a ssessments . H ydrochloric a cid i s o ccasionally u sed t o e tch t he s hell g rowth z ones . Authors c ite t he u se o f o ne a nd averages o f two , t hree a nd f our y ear g rowth m easurements t o g enerate t he e xpected g rowth f or t he f inal y ear o f l ife . T his v ersion o f s easonality a nalysis h as b een u sed b y B arber ( 1982 ), B ryant ( in D umond 1 977 ), C lark ( 1979 ), F erguson ( 1975 ), H am a nd I rvine ( 1975 ), K een ( 1979 ), Lobdell ( 1980 ) a nd Monks ( 1977 ). A r ather more t echnical v ersion o f C ut 1 has b een p resented b y M anzano ( 1985 ) f or t he f reshwater s pecies Cclonaia t uberculata . A nnuli measurements f rom 7 9 modern s pecimens were t aken, a g rowth i ndex c omputed ( based on t he mean o f f our y ears ' g rowth p rior t o d eath ), p lotted a nd t hen r egressed a gainst t he week o f c ollection . F rom t hese d ata , M anzano d eveloped a t able o f g rowth i ndices a nd t heir c orrespondi ng week i n t he y ear . Many weeks a nd s everal months were n ever c olle cted , s o t he values were o ften p redicted . B lind t ests u sing 1 1 s pecimens were l argely s uccessful: d eath t ime o f s ix s pecimens was p redicted t o within a month o f c ollection ; two s pecimens within two months o f c ollection ; but t hree were more t han two months wrong . T herefore , t he s eason o f c ollection was c orrectly i det itified f or 8 o ut o f 1 1 i ndividual s hells . O ther a nalysts h ave r ecognised t hat s hell g rowth i s n ot u niform i n a g iven p opulation o f m olluscs . C ontrol c ollections h ave m ade g rowth v ariability a pparent . T his v ariability i s m odelled i n s ome f ashion a nd t hen u sed t o d istinguish s pecific months o r g roups o f months i n t he g rowth y ear . B ecause i t i s g rowth t rends i n ap opulation t hat a re b eing modelled , t he g rowth p atterns i n s ets o f a rchaeological s hells c an b e i nterpreted f rom t he model but n ot t he g rowth pattern o f i ndividual s hells . T he m ost p revalent t echnique f or m odelling g rowth variability s orts s ets o f c ontrol s hells a nd a rchaeological s pecimens o n t he b asis o f c olour a t t he s hell margin i n c ross s ection i nto two s ubsets: m olluscs d ying d uring t he f ast g rowth p eriod a nd t hose d ying d uring s low g rowth ( Plate 1 ). T his t echnique h as b een d ubbed C ut 2 a nd i s t hat u sed by H am ( 1982 ), C laassen ( 1983, 1 986 ), H ancock ( 1984 ), O 'Brien a nd P eter ( personal c ommunication ), S piess a nd H edden ( 1983) a nd Q uitmyer, H ale a nd J ones ( 1985 ) . T he S urface 1 a nd C ut 1 t echniques r ely o n t he f allacious a ssumpt ion t hat a ll s hells grow u niformly . S ome p ractitioners o f t he Cut 2 t echnique m ake t he s ame m istake . When t he c ontrol s ample i s e xpressed i n t erms o f population s tatistics, t his f allacy i s avoided . H owever, t he a rchaeological s amples must t hen a lso b e s elected f rom d istinct p opulations o r i ndividual d eath a ssemblages . T his p recondition p oses a p roblem i n s hell m idden e xcavation s ince i t r equires t he i dentification o f m icrostratigraphic u nits w ithin t he a rchaeological s ite , a c riterion which o ften c annot b e m et i n e xcavation . O ne s olution t o t his p roblem i s t o a nalyse only small, s ealed s hell f eatures. T he e xcavation p rog ramme o n S an Juan I sland, Washington, under t he d irection o f Julie S tein , i s r emoving m idden m aterial b y f acies . G iven t he s oil s edimento logy d ata, t he small e xtent o f t he s hell d eposits a nd t he s ingle s pecies r epresented i n m ost f acies, i t c ould b e a rgued t hat e ach f acies r epresents a monospecific d eath a ssemblage . Another a pproach i s t o c ollect s hells i n c olumn s amples a bout 2 5cm s quare a nd 5 -10cm d eep t o a pproximate d istinct d eath a ssemblages .

5 4

P late 1 : T he C ut 2 t echnique i dentifies whether a m ollusc d ied d uring f ast o r s low g rowth b y e xamining t he m argin o f t he s hell . T his s pecimen , m = m argin ) d ied d uring f ast g rowth . ( u = umbo

5 5

d en qraphy S ome m olluscan s pecies a re v ery s hort-lived . F or t hese s ize a lone c an b e u sed t o i ndicate t he month o f l ife a t t he t ime o f d eath . T his t echnique h as b een u sed o n t hree s pecies t o d ate . D onax v ariabilis h as a 1 7 month l ife s pan . Miller ( in C laassen 1 986 ) u sed a f our month c ontrol s ample f rom n orthwestern F lorida c ited i n t he malacological l iterature t o i nterpret m idden s pecimens f rom t he A tlantic c oast . B arber ( 1982 ) i nterpreted a rchaeological s pecimens o f L ittorina s axati lis f rom t he Atlantic c oast o f t he U nited S tates u sing p ublished s tudies o f a ge: l ength: month c orrelations f rom p opulations i n B rittany . I f ound t hat s everal s mall s ize c lasses o f R angia c uneata i n L ouisiana h ad b een o bserved by a malacologist f or c ertain months a nd t hat t hose o bservations were s ubstantiated i n c ontrol c ollections f rom P ensacola , F lorida . T hese d ata s erved a s t he b asis f or a s easonal i nterpretation o f B . c uneata f rom two M ississippian m iddens i n E scambia B ay , F lorida ( Claassen 1 986 ). T his t echnique h as b een c alled S ize 1 . While t he u se o f d emographic c haracteristics c ircumvents t he p robl ems o f s ection ing , g rowth l ine i dentification a nd m easuring , t he n eed f or c ontrol c ollections i s n ot e liminated . a Kyg en i soto pe s T he p rinciple behind t he a nalysis o f s table i sotopic r atios i n m ollusc s hells h as b een s ummarised b y D eith a s f ollows : ' Two f actors d etermine t he r atio o f 1 60 t o 1 80 i n c alcium c arbonate, t he i sotopic r ation o f t he water i n which t he c arbonate was p recipitated a nd a f ractionation c oefficient which i s d ependent o n t he t emperature o f t he water t o a k nown d egree ( Shackleton 1 973 ). I f t he f irst v ariable , t he i sotopic c omposition o f t he water , i s c onstant , a s i t i s f or e xample i n s ea water , a ny v ariation i n t he s ignal s hould b e a ttributable t o t emperature v ariations ' . ( 1985:123 ) K illingley ( 1981, 1 983 ) h as c laimed t hat t he t echnique was c apable o f m onthly r esolution . H owever , B ailey , D eith a nd S hackleton ( 1983 ) a nd D eith ( 1983 ) r esponded with d etails o f c ontrol s ample a nalyses t hat s eriously c hallenged t his c laim . D eith a nd o thers h ave d emonstrated t hat d ifferent s pecies v ary i n t heir s ensitivity t o t he e nvironment w ith r espect t o o xygen i sotope u ptake , v ary i n t he t emperature e stimates t hat c an b e d educed f rom t he i sotopic r atios r ecorded i n t heir s hells e ven t hough t hey were c ollected o n t he s ame d ay , a nd t hat t he m onthly r anges i n e stimated t emperature overlap f or d ifferent s pecies ( Deith 1 985 ). I sotope work i s e xpensive a nd , u nlike g rowth l ine a nalysis o r d emog raphy , c an only b e p erformed i n a s uitably e quipped l aboratory by t rained p ersonnel. D eith ( 1985:124-5 ) s tates t hat t he f undamental r equirements f or o xygen i sotope a nalysis a re : s ufficient a nnual v ariation i n water t empe rature t o b e r eflected i n t he i sotopic r atio i n t he s hells; t he d elta v alue o f t he water s hould b e c onstant ; p ost-mortem i sotopic e xchange m ust n ot h ave o ccurred i n t he a rchaeological s pecimens . T he v ast m ajority o f s hells i n t he world 's m iddens c ome f rom e ither r ocky c oast o r e stuarine e nvironments . O xygen i sotope a nalysis i s v ery p roblematic o n e stuarine s hells, most o f which a re b ivalves, many o f

5 6

which h ave p roved t o b e e xcellent f or u se i n s low/fast g rowth l ine work . R ocky s hore s pecies, with t he e xception o f l impets, barnacles and m ussels a re r arely u sed f or g rowth l ine work , a lthough t heir p otential f or s uch a s tudy r emains l argely u nexplored . Rocky c oast s pecies a re m ore t ypically u sed b y K illingley a nd D eith f or o xygen i sotope a nalysis . I n f act , t he n umber o f s pecies which h ave b een u sed f or g eneral g rowth l ine s tudies f ar e xceeds t hose u sed i n i sotopic a nalysis t o d ate . T rading p atterns , c limatic c hange , c hanges i n c ollecting l ocale a nd t idal h eight h ave a ll b een d etermined o n a rchaeological s pecimens u sing o xygen i sotopes . G rowth l ine a nalysis h as , i n a ddition t o s easonality , b een u sed t o d etermine t he n umber o f d ays o ver which a f eature a ccumula ted ( Koike 1 980 ); t he number o f s helifishing s easons i n a midden ( Claassen 1 983 ); s torms a nd r ed t ides ( Sandweiss p ersonal c ommunicat i on ); s ea water t emperatures o ver t he l ife o f t he s pecimen ( Jones 1 981 ); c ontemporaneity o f s pecimens ( Dillon a nd C lark 1 980 ) a nd d eposit d istu rbance ( Koike 1 980 ). C learly b oth t echniques c an p rovide a t remendous amount o f i nformation t hat i s l argely c omplementary .

Control c ollections T he collection and p rocessing o f c ontrol s pecimens i s a bsolutely e ssential before undertaking a s easonality s tudy r egardless o f t he t echnique t o be employed . Molluscan s hell g rowth i s h ighly variable even within t he s ame c ommunity and s pecies . I t i s a s erious overs implification t o a ssume t hat g rowth i s u niform i n ap opulation o r a t a l ocality . I nterpretations based on s uch a n a ssumption will be f alse . I t i s o nly s lightly l ess d isabling t o m ake c ontrol c ollections o f av ery f ew a nimals f or a v ery f ew months . T he major o bstacles t o t he g eneral a pplication o f s easonality t echniques t o a rchaeological s amples a re t he s mall s ize o f c ontrol s amples , t he l ack o f c omplete a nnual s equences a nd t he l ack o f collections s panning two o r more years . I nvestigators, t herefore , d erive b y a nalogy e ither r atios o r g rowth p ercentiles , f rom what data t hey h ave t o c haracterise e ach month . F igures f or n onc ollected months a re e xtrapolated , small c ontrol s ample s izes r aise d oubts when u sed t o i nterpret l arger s ets o f a rchaeological s hells a nd t he expected r ange o f variation i n t he f igures f or any one month i s u nknown . T able 1 s ummarises t he c ontrol c ollections a vailable f or American r esearchers a s o f A ugust 1 986 . N ot a ll o f t hese h ave b een p rocessed o r r epresent c ross-sectioned a nimals . G iven t he l ack o f c ollections m ade o ver s everal y ears which p ermit a ssessment o f t he v ariability i n a nnual g rowth f or a ny o ne m onth , m any i nvestigators o ffer i nterpretations o f t he a rchaeological d ata t hey h ave a nalysed which a re o nly p recise t o t he n earest q uarter o f t he y ear . B ailey ( 1975 ) h as a ppropriately c riticised most s easonality s tudies a s b eing o f l ittle u se g iven t heir t ypically i mprecise t emporal c onclusions . T here a re f our m ajor p roblem a reas i n s hell s easonality w ork: C ontrol c ollections m ade p rior t o S eptember 1 985 c omprise ,

without

e xception, s ample s izes t oo small t o y ield a good p icture o f s pecific g rowth p atterns . C ontrol c ollections o f a t l east 3 0 a nimals p er m onth a re n eeded f rom n umerous l ocalities i n t he U nited S tates, Canada and c entral America .

5 7

T able 1 : m arine a nd f reshwater s easonality c ontrol c ollections f or N orth A merica.

L ocality

s pecies

J F

M

A

M

J

J

A

( mar ine ) T ampa b ay , F L A lligator H arb . A lagua, F L

M .C. D .v . R .c.

E scambia b ay , K ings b ay, G A S t . C ath., GA D amarisotta, M A E astha r n , M A S hark i nlet, N J E gg H arbor, N J B ird S hoals, N C B ird S hoals, N C B ird S hoals, N C B ird S hoals, N C N arragansett , R I v arious, T X v arious, T X v arious, T X

R .c. M .M . M .M . M .a. M .M . M .M . M .M . M .m M .M . M .M . M .M . M .M . R .c . R .c. R .c.

various, T X C hesapeake, VA O zette, WA B oundary B ay, B C V eracruz, M exico

R .c. 1 00200100100 X M .M . 1 6 8 12 7 2 1 P .S. 5 5 5 5 v arious 8 1 0 R .m . 4 3 4 0 4 0 4 2 4 0 3 9

f reshwater L aughery C r., I N L .r.l. D uck R ., T N C .t . Y akima R ., WA M .mar.

1 8 1 4 2 2 1 4 1 6 1 7 2 1 2 0 X X X

S

O

N

D

s um

y ear

2 4 3 1 5 5 X 3 6 4 0 4 0 3 7

2 52 ? 1 53 2 59 2 91 6 9 1 39 1 10 1 09 3 6 4 45 9 3 1 96 1 77 4 02 1 00 ? ? ?

1 983-4 ? 1 985 1 986 1 984 1 981-2 ? 1 980 1 981 1 981 1 986 1 981 1 984 1 985 1 986 1 982-3 1 971 1 972 1 974

? 8 9 3 5 1 5 2 84

1 975 1 976-80 1 978-9 1 980-1 1 985-6

9 2 1 79 ?

1 982-3 1 980-3 1 985

4 2 4 2 4 0 3 5 3 5 1 1 6 0 X X X X X se v e r a l 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 2 1 0 1 2 1 1 6 6 4 4 5 9 5 7 4 5 6 0 1 4 2 0 3 3 2 7 2 3 4 1 3 4

3 5 3 0 9 6 3 3 4 0 5 1 X X X X X mo n t h s 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 3 1 3 1 0 1 0 6 6 6 6 6 0 6 0 6 0 1 1 1 1 1 8 3 8 4 8 5 0 4 6 4 3 3 3 3 8 3 4 5 0 5 0 5 0 5 2 5 2 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 1 0 9 9 X X 4 5 X X X X X X X

9

9 X

X X

X X

2 1 6 1 9 2 X X X X X X

X 1 0 1 2 6 9 3 3 9

X

X 1 6 1 0

5

4 9

X X

1 1 X X

6 X X

key : C .t . = Cyclonaias t uberculata; D .v . = D onax v ariabilis; L .r .l. = L ampsilis r adiata l uteola ; M .a . = Mya a renaria ; M .m . = M ercenaria m erce naria ; M .c . e ra; P .s . =

= M . m . c ampechiensis ; M .mar . P rotothaca s taminea; R .c . =

M argaritifera m argaritifR angia cuneata; R .m . = R .

=

m edica.

Only with g reater g eographical coverage will l imits o f a ny o ne c ontrol s ample b e o bservable .

t he g eographical

T he analytical t echniques d iscussed h ere h ave t he potential t o y ield s easonality d ata w ith a t l east monthly i f n ot f ortnightly p recisi on, y et n o c ontrol c ollection has s ampled more t han once a ll twelve m onths n or a re a ll t he m onths r epresented . V ariation i n g rowth f or e ach c alendar m onth , v isible o nly i n c ollections s panning s everal y ears , i s c ompletely u nknown . Most m alacological s tudies o f s hell g rowth u sed b y a rchaeologists i n l ieu o f c ollecting t heir own r eference s amples a lso r epresent o bservations made i n only o ne y ear . Monthly c ollections s panning s everal y ears f rom e ach l ocale a re n eeded i n o rder t o s ample

5 8

g rowth v ariations a dequately i n a ny p opulation o f s hellfish . Each s eparate c ontrol c ollection currently available h as b een a nalysed by only o ne o f t he s everal t echiques available . No one has s ystematically e xamined t he r esult o f a nalysing a n a rchaeological s ample u sing more t han o ne o f t he t echniques outlined a bove, t o a ssess t heir v ariation . To be o f t he g reatest u tility, e ach c ontrol c ollection s hould b e c haracterised u sing a t l east two o f t he t echniques d escribed h ere o r s everal v ariations o f o ne t echnique . B lind t ests s hould b e u sed t o a nalyse t he i nterpretative d ifferences b etween t hem . T o a ddress t hese p roblems,

Ib egan i n S eptember 1 985 a 3 6 month

p rogramme o f collection and analysis funded by t he National S cience F oundation ( Grant n umber B NS-8507714 ). T o c ounter p roblem 1 a bove , 3 05 0 s hells o f M . mercenaria a re r eceived monthly f rom Egg Harbor, New J ersey , a nd f rom B ird S hoals , N orth C arolina , o f R . c uneata f rom A laqua , C hoctawhatchee B ay , F lorida and o f R . mendica f rom Mandingo Bay, V eracruz , M exico . T hey a re t hin-section e d a nd m easured . T his g eographi cal coverage i s c omplemented by e xtant c ontrol c ollections, o f one y ear 's d uration , f rom M aine , C ape C od a nd Naragansett B ay a nd C hesapeake B ay, on t he northeast coast o f t he United S tates, and T ampa Bay, E scambia B ay a nd T exas o n t he G ulf o f Mexico . E ach c alendar month will b e r epresented at l east twice, and most t hree t imes, i n an a ttempt t o c ounter p roblem 2 a bove . I n a ddition , c ollections made i n p revious y ears a t A laqua a nd B ird S hoals mean s ome months will h ave f our , f ive o r e ven s ix v alues . T he most i ntensively c ollected l ocale t o d ate i s B ird S hoals , N orth C arolina , where c ollecting f or s easonality s tudies was b egun , i n 1 980 , f or G .R . C lark . C ollections o f a pproximately 1 0 a nimals were m ade f or h im e very two m onths b y t he D uke Marine B iology L aboratories i n Morehead C ity f rom J uly 1 980 t o D ecember 1 981 . T hese m olluscs p rovided t he f irst g rowth control collection f or t he s outheastern U nited S tates . I t has s erved both a s t he i nterpretive base f or a pproximately 3 0 North and S outh C arolina s easonality s tudies a nd a s t he t heoretical b ase f or t he c ollection o f o ther c ontrol s amples a nd t he e xtra-regional i nterpretati ons I have made ( Claassen 1 982, 1 983, 1 986 ). G iven t he a dditional i nformation n ow a vailable f rom t he y ears during which I h ave b een c olle cting, 1 983-1986, t he c ontrol must b e r evised . T he o riginal 1 981 c ontrol g rowth t rend i s l isted i n T able 2 t ogether with t he r ange o f o bservations d erived f rom m y r evised c ontrol . T hese d ata a re b ased o n t he p ercentiles o f a nimals culled during f ast g rowth u sing t he Cut 2 t echnique . T able 3 a dditionally presents growth percentiles f or e ach month . Ab lind t est o f t he p redictive a ccuracy o f t his control c olle ction was r un u sing a s et o f 3 3 s hells f rom B ird S hoals . Most ( 94% ) o f t he a nimals i n t he t est s et h ad d ied during f ast g rowth, p ercentages r ecorded i n J anuary , F ebruary a nd May . When t he e xpected g rowth t rends were computed u sing o ne o r two-year c ontrol d ata means, t he d erived g rowth p ercentiles s uggested January o r F ebruary a s t he d eath date, whereas c alculations b ased o n t he t hree-year m ean d istribution s uggest j ust F ebruary a s t he d eath d ate a s s een i n T able 3 . a ctually m ade o n F ebruary 1 7 , 1 986 .

T he c ollection was

F our variations o f t he Cut 2 t echnique c an now b e compared f or t heir a ccuracy . T he v ariations t o b e c ompared a re t he f ast/slow g rowth p roportions, based o n c olour, and t he p ractice o f g enerating g rowth f igures with which t he f inal i ncrement i s compared . Various a uthors h ave a rgued f or v arious r easons t he merits o f u sing o nly, e ither t he

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Table 2 : T he B ird S hoals c ontrol s ample, June 1 986 . s hells d ying i n f ast g rowth .

y ear

J

1 981 1 984 1 985 1 986

F

M

A

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8 9

f inal c omplete y ear o r t he l ast 2 , 3o r m ore y ears o f l ife , t o d erive a n e xpected g rowth v alue . G iven t hat g rowth r ates i n m olluscs a re r educed e xponentially t hrough l ife , t he u se o f more t han t he m ost r ecent y ear o f l ife i n g enerating t he expected mean amount o f g rowth will l ead t o a n o verestimate o f t he e xpected a mount a nd , c onsequently , a n u nderestima tion o f c alendar t ime . O n t he o ther h and , t he u se o f two , t hree , f our o r e ven f ive-year g rowth r ate a verages c an c orrect f or t he c ounting o f f alse o r m issing a nnuli . S everal e xamples o f t he v alues d erived a re g iven b elow , t aken f rom a nimals c ollected o n S eptember 1 5 , 1 985, a t B ird S hoals , N orth C arolina .

Table 4 : a chieved g rowth r ates b ased e stimates a t B ird S hoals , N orth C arolina .

md

5 1 6 1 9 2 0 3 3 3 7

p hase

s low sh» i s low s low s low s low

l yr

7 3% 7 8% 6 6% 6 0% 1 07% 9 0%

2 yr m ean

5 4% 7 7% 6 2% 6 9% 9 3% 8 0%

o n one,

two a nd t hree-year

3 yr m ean 4 5% 7 0% 5 7% 5 3% 8 7% 6 7%

A ge a t d eath 7 7 6 5 5 6

T hree p oints c an b e made a bout t his s ample . F irst, with t he e xception o f s hell 2 0, a ll t he s equences s how d eclining v alues o f a chieved g rowth a s t he n umber o f y ears u sed t o g enerate t he e xpected g rowth i s i ncreased . T his i s n ot t he case f or a ll s ets o f s hells, h owever . S ome s ets s how a p attern o f i ncreasing a chieved g rowth v alues, o ther s ets may h ave a s econd y ear r ise l ike t hat i n s hell 2 0 . T he p attern d eveloped i n t hese f igures may a ctually b e i ndicating h abitat n eighbours . S econdly , i t s hould a lso b e a pparent t hat t here i s a g reat d eal o f v ariation i n h ow i ndividuals r espond t o t he e nvironment . S hell 5h ad a r apid d ecline i n a ccumulated s hell i n i ts l ast f our y ears o f l ife, while s hell 1 6 was d epositing s hell a t as teady r ate . T hirdly, v alues t hat e xceed 1 00% o f t he e xpected g rowth r ate a re f ound o nly when t he p rior y ear o f l ife i s u sed a s t he s tandard . T his s uggests t hat m ultiple-year m ean g rowth r ates a re b eneficial f or t hey m ask t he e ffect o f m issing a nnuli . T he f act t hat a ll t hese a nimals d ied while i n s low g rowth i ndicates a d eath d ate s ometime i n t he p eriod J une t hrough

6 1

O ctober. P reparation o f s pecimens f or t his a nalytical t echnique i s e xtremely I t r equires o nly t hat a b roken s hell m argin b e g round u ntil t he a nnuli a re v isible i n c ross-section . T he d etermination o f c olouration a t d eath, white o r g rey, c an b e d one v isually a nd quickly o n j uvenile a nd mature s hells a nd f airly e asily e ven o n s enile a nimals, o r t hose m ore t han e ight y ears o ld i n M . m ercenaria .

e asy .

At t his p oint i n t he d evelopment o f t he c ontrol c ollection, t he f ast/slow t echnique, t he o ne-year a nd t he t hree-year mean a rray o f g rowth c lasses a ll s eem t o p rovide d ifferent k inds o f i nformation a nd a re b est u sed i n t andem . T he a rray o f g rowth r ate p ercentiles l isted i n T able 2 f or e ach m onth o ffers g reater c alendrical p recision f or a ssigni ng a d eath d ate t o a rchaeological a ssemblages t han d oes t he f ast/slow t echnique . M any i ndividual m onths a ppear d istinctive i n t he p resence o f o ne o r m ore c ategories o f g rowth , i n t he t otal n umber o f g rowth c atego ries o bserved a nd/or i n t he d ominant g rowth c ategory ( Table 3 ) . I n t he b lind t est c ollection d iscussed a bove , t he o ne-year a rray r esembles t hat o f o nly two m onths , J anuary a nd F ebruary . T he l argest g rowth c ategory ( 6-11% ) i n b oth t he o ne-year a nd two-year s equence i s n ot d uplicated b y a ny monthly a rray . T he c losest match i s f ound between t he t hree-year mean a rrays o f t he t est data a nd t he F ebruary c ontrol d ata . F ebruary w as i n f act t he month i n which t he b lind t est s et was c ollected . T his t echnique f or c omparing g rowth r ates r equires t hat t he s hells a re t hins ectioned a nd m easured . T he e xpected a nd a chieved g rowth r ates a re t hen c alculated .

A ll t his i s t ime c onsuming a nd e ntails s ome c ost .

A f urther t echnique f or e stimating t he d eath d ate e xists : t he d aily l ine c ount . T he a ccuracy o f t his t echnique m ust a lso b e c onsidered . I t i s t ime c onsuming . An a cetate r eplica o f t he s hell must b e t hins ectioned a nd t he daily l ines c ounted microscopically . Only i f i t p roves t o p redict t he d eath d ate a ccurately t o i ndividual m onths c ould s uch l abour b e merited . Only Hancock ( 1984:126 ) h as a ttempted d aily l ine c ounts i n North America . S he f ound n o overlap i n t he r anges o f c ounts i n h er 1 0 m onthly c ollections o f M . m ercenaria f rom C ape C od , b ut s he i nvestigated o nly a s ingle a nnual r ecord . I t s hould b e o bvious t hat, f ast a nd 1 00% s low g rowth v alues d eath d ate t o i ndividual s hells o ne t hat h as a chieved 1 0% a nd g rowth a t d eath , c ould h ave b een

u nless a population h as u niquely 1 00% f or s everal c alendar y ears , a ssigning a g ives e rroneous r esults . Two s hells, a nother t hat h as 7 0% o f i ts e xpected c ollected o n t he s ame d ay .

T he m ajor a pplication o f t he o ld c ontrol s ample was t o d etermine s hellfishing s easonality on 1 9 s hell m iddens i n Onslow County , North C arolina , ( Claassen 1 983 ). S everal c hanges h ave b een m ade t o t he o rigi nal i nterpretation i n t he l ight o f t he n ew c omparative c ontrol d ata a cquired s ince t hat s tudy w as u ndertaken , a s c an b e s een i n T able 2 . I n t he i nitial i nterpretation t he s hellfishing s eason was c onsidered t o e xtend f rom November t hrough April with t he g reatest a ctivity i n F ebruary t hrough A pril ( Table 5 ) . I would n ow i nterpret t he s hellfishi ng s eason t o h ave b een f rom D ecember t hrough M ay . T he m ost n oticeable d ifference b etween t he t wo i nterpretations, h owever , i s t hat s ome o f t he p roveniences s tudied a re n o l onger c onsidered s uitable f or s easonal p rediction b ecause t hey h ave p roportions o f a nimals d ying d uring f ast g rowth , b etween 2 2% a nd 6 7%, t hat h ave n ot y et b een o bserved i n c ontrol c ollections . H owever, t heir d eath d ate p robably l ies i n t he November

6 2

t hrough May p eriod .

I n m y o riginal s tudy ( Claassen 1 983 ),

Ia rbitrarily

d ivided t he year i nto f our quarters t o a ccount f or unknown monthly g rowth v ariation . T hat i s n o l onger n ecessary . I ncreasing t he n umber o f y ears o ver which a c ontrol c ollection i s m ade h as i mproved t he r eso lution a nd a ccuracy o f p rediction o f t he d eath d ate .

T able 5 : R e-interpretation o f s hell m idden s easonality d ata f rom Onslow C ounty , North C arolina .

s ite a nd l evel

f ast %

1 982 e st .

1 986 e st.

0 n26 0 n26 0 n26 0 n26 0 n26

0 -5 5 -10 1 0-15 1 5-20 2 0-25

7 7 8 6 8 6 6 4 6 7

F eb-April F eb-April F eb-April F eb-April F eb-April

D ecember D ecember D ecember ? D ecember

0 n26 0n26 0n26 0n26

2 5-30 3 0-35 3 5-40 4 0-45

7 9 8 4 9 1 1 00

F eb-April F eb-April p re-Feb p re-Feb

D ecember D ecember M ay F eb-April

c l c l c l c l

0 -5 5 -10 1 0-15 1 5-20

5 8 6 7 7 3 9 1

F eb-April F eb-April F eb-April p re-Feb

? D ecember D ecember M ay

0n31 c 2 0 n31 c 2

0 -5 5 -10

7 5 1 00

F eb-April p re-Feb

D ecember F eb-April

1 0-15 1 5-20 2 0-25 2 5-30

8 7 9 1 1 00 1 00

p re-Feb p re-Feb p re-Feb p re-Feb

D ecember M ay F eb-April F eb-April

0n31 0 n31 0 n31 0 n31

0n31 0 n31 0 n31 0n31

c 2 c 2 c 2 c 2

E fforts t o f ind a growth measure a ccurate t o calendar months c ontinue . D iscriminant a nalysis i s b eing u sed t o c ompare t he d istribu tion o f a chieved g rowth p ercentiles . Procedural methods a re being c ompared . B lind t ests a re b eing r un . A t t he e nd o f t he 3 6 month p eriod f or which I h ave f unding , i t s hould b e p ossible t o s pecify t he a nalyti cal s trength o f t hese t echniques .

R eferences A TEN, L .E . 1 981 D etermining s easonality o f R anqia c uneata f rom Gulf C oast s hell m iddens . B ulletin o f t he T exas A rchaeological S ociety 5 2:179-200. B AILEY, G .N . 1 975 T he r ole o f molluscs i n c oastal e conomies: t he r esults o f m idden a nalysis i n A ustralia . J ournal o f A rchaeological S cience 2 :45-62 . BAILEY ,

G .N .,

D EITH,

M .R .

a nd S HACKLETON,

6 3

N .J .

1 983

Oxygen i sotope

a nalysis a nd s easonality d eterminations : l imits a nd p otential o f a n ew t echnique . American A ntiquity 4 8:390-8 . B ARBER , R .J . 1 982 T he Wheeler 's s ite : a s pecialised s hellfish p rocessi ng s tation o f t he M errimack R iver . P eabody Museum Monograph 7 , H arvard U niversity , C ambridge . B UTLER ,

W .

1 974

T he S an P edro H arbor s ite,

v illage o n t he s outhern C alifornian c oast . l ogical S ociety Q uarterly 1 0(3-4 ):1-83 .

a p rimary subsistence P acific C oast A rchaeo-

CARTER , C . 1 978 S easonality analysis o f CA-LAn-702. Archaeological S ociety Q uarterly 1 4(2 ): 52-6 .

P acific Coast

CHACE, P .G . 1 969 B iological Archaeology o f s ome c oastal m iddens, O range C ounty , C A . P acific C oast A rchaeological S ociety Q uarterly 5 (2 ) : 65-77. CLAASSEN , C .P . 1 982 S hellfishing patterns: a n analytical s tudy o f p rehistoric s hell f rom N orth C rolina c oas t al m iddens . P hD t hesis , H arvard U niversity . U niversity M icrofilms , A nn A rbor . CLAASSEN , C .P . 1 983 P rehistoric s hellfishing p atterns i n North Carolina . i n GRIGSON , C . and CLUTTON-BROCK, J . ( eds ) Animals and 2 11-224 . Archaeology 2 : S hell middens, f ishes a nd b irds, pp. B ritish A rchaeological R eports I nternational S eries S 183, O xford . CLAASSEN , C .P . 1 986 S hellfishing s easons i n t he p rehistoric s outhe astern U nited S tates . American A ntiquity 5 1 :21-37 . CLARK, G .R . I I. 1 974 Growth l ines i n i nvertebrate s keletons . R eviews o f E arth P lanetary S cience 2 :77-99 . CLARK,

G .R .

I. I

1 979

Annual

S easonal growth variations i n t he s hells

o f

R ecent a nd P rehistoric s pecimens o f M ercenaria m ercenaria f rom S t . C atherine 's I sland , G eorgia . A nthropological P apers o f t he Ameri can Museum o f N atural H istory 5 6 :161-172 . CLARKE, L .R . and A .H . 1 980 Z ooarchaeological analysis o f mollusc r emains f rom Yuquot, British Columbia . H istory and Archaeology 4 3:37-57. CROOK,

M .R .

1 978

Mississippian period c ommunity O rganisation o n t he

Georgia coast . P hD t hesis, M icrofilms , A nn A rbor .

U niversity o f F lorida .

U niversity

D EITH , M .R . 1 983 S easonality o f s hell c ollecting , d etermined b y o xygen i sotope a nalysis o f marine s hells f rom A sturian s ites i n C antabria . i n GRIGSON, C . and CLUTTON-BROCK, J . ( eds ) Animals i n Archaeology 6 7-76. B ritish A rchaeo2 : S hell m iddens, f ishes and b irds, pp. l ogical R eports I nternational S eries S 183, O xford . D EITH , M .R . 1 985 S easonality f rom s hells : a n e valuation o f two t echn iques f or s easonal d ating o f m arine molluscs . i n F IE T . 1F .R , N .R .J ., G ILBERTSON , D .D . a nd R ALPH , N .G .A . ( eds ) P alaeobiological i nvestiga tions , p p . 1 19-136 . B ritish A rchaeological R eports I nternational S eries S 266, Oxford .

6 4

D ILLON , J .F . a nd CLARK , G .R . I I. 1 980 Growth l ine analysis a s at est f or c ontemporaneity i n populations . i n RHOADS, D .C . a nd L UTZ, R .A . ( eds ) S keletal g rowth o f a quatic organisms, P lenum P ress , N ew Y ork .

pp .

3 95-415.

D ROVER , C .E . 1 974 S easonal e xploitation o f C hione c lams o n t he s outhe rn C alifornia c oast . J ournal o f C alifornian Anthropology 1 :2242 31. D UMOND , D . 1 977 F aunal a nalysis . i n C LARK , J . ( ed ) A rchaeology o n t he A laska p eninsular: t he c oast o f S helikof S trait, 1 962-1965, pp . 1 05-9 . U niversity o f O regon A nt hropological P apers 1 3, E ugene . F ERGUSON , R. S . 1 975 S easonality s tudy o f p rehistoric b ivalves f rom t he B oardwalk s ite ( GbTo-31 ), P rince R upert , B ritish C olumbia . M anus cript o n f ile a t t he N ational Museum o f M an , O ttawa , O ntario . H AM,

L .C . 1 982 S easonality , s hell midden l ayers and c oast s alish s ubsistence a ctivities a t t he C rescent B each s ite , D gRr1 . U npubl ished P hD t hesis , U niversity o f B ritish C olumbia , Vancouver .

H AM ,

L .C . a nd I RVINE , M . 1 975 T echniques f or d etermining s easonality o f s hell m iddens f rom m arine mollusc r emains . S yesis 8 :363-373 .

H ANCOCK , M . 1 984 A nalysis o f a tion . i n MCMANAMON , F .P . Cod I , vol. 2 , pp. 1 21-156 .

s hellfish r emains : s easonality i nform( ed ) C hapters i n t he A rchaeology o f C ape National P ark S ervice, Boston .

HOPKINS, S .H ., ANDERSON, J .W . and HORVATH, K . 1 973 T he brackish water c lam R angia c uneata a s i ndicator o f e cological e ffects o f s alinity c hanges i n coastal waters . U .S . A rmy Engineers Waterways Experi ment S tation C ontract R eport , H -73-1 :1-250 . I SELY , F .B . 1 914 Experimental s tudy o f t he growth and migration o f f reshwater mussels . B ureau o f F isheries D ocument 7 92 , Washington ,

i : c .

J ONES , D .S . 1 981 A nnual g rowth i ncrements i n s hells o f S pisula s olidi ssima , r ecord marine t emperature v ariability. S cience 2 11:165-7. K EEN ,

S .D .

1 979

The g rowth r ings o f c lam s hells f rom two P entlatch

m iddens a s i ndicators o f s easonal g athering . B ranch O ccasional P apers 3 , V ictoria , B C .

H eritage C onservation

K ILLINGLEY, J .S . 1 981 S easonality o f mollusk collecting d etermined f rom 0 -18 p rofiles o f m idden s hells . American A ntiquity 4 6 :152-8 . K ILLINGLEY , J .S . 1 983 S easonality d etermination by oxygen i sotopic p rofile : a r eply t o B ailey e t a l . American A ntiquity 4 8 :399-403 . K OERPER , H ., C ERPETO , R . a nd R EITZ, K . 1 984 Cautionary n otes on t he u se o f a s tatistical method o f s easonality d etermination f rom C hione u ndatella s hells . P acific Coast Archaeological S ociety Q uarterly 2 0(3 ):67-75 . K OIKE, H . 1 980 S easonal d ating by g rowth-line counting o f t he c lam, M eretrix l usoria : t owards a r econstruction o f p rehistoric s hellc ollecting a ctivities i n J apan . U niversity o f T okyo B ulletin 1 8 ,

6 5

T okyo. L DBDFL T 1 , J .E . 1 980 P rehistoric h uman p opulations a nd r esource u tiliza tion i n K achemak B ay , Gulf o f A laska . Unpublished P hD t hesis, U niversity o f T ennessee , K noxville . L YONS , E . 1 978 A s tatistical m ethod o f s easonality d etermination f rom Chione u ndatella . P acific Coast A rchaeological S ociety Q uarterly 1 4(3 ) : 33-42. MANZANO ,

B .L .

1 985

A n empirical a pproach t o a ssessing s easonality f rom

f reshwater mussels . i n WHYTE, T ., BOYD, C . and R IGGS, B . ( eds ) E xploring T ennessee P rehistory , pp. 3 9-49 . U niversity o f T enness ee, Anthropology D epartment, R eport o f I nvestigations 4 2, K noxville. MONKS, G .G . 1 977 An examination o f r elationships between a rtifact c lasses a nd f ood r esource r emains a t D eep B ay , D iSe7 . U npublished P hD t hesis, U niversity o f B ritish C olumbia , Vancouver . P ANNELLA, G . and McCLINTOCK, C . 1 968 B iological and environmental r hythms r eflected i n molluscan s hell g rowth . P alaeontological S ociety Memoir 2 , C hicago . Q UITMYER , I .R ., HALE, H .S . and JONES, D .S . 1 985 P alaeoseasonality d etermination b ased o n i ncremental s hell g rowth i n t he h ard c lam , Mercenaria mercenaria, and i ts implications f or t he a nalysis o f t hree s outheast G eorgia c oastal s hell m iddens . S outheastern A rcha eology 4 :27-40 . RAY , R .H . 1 977 Applications o f a n a cetate p eel t echnique t o a nalysis o f growth process i n b ivalve U nionid s hells . Bulletin o f t he American Malacological U nion , I nc . 1 977 :79-80 . S HACKLEION , N .J . 1 973 O xygen i sotope a nalysis a s a m eans o f d etermini ng s eason o f o ccupation o f p rehistoric m idden s ites . A rchaeometry 1 5:133-141. S PIESS, A .E . and HEDDEN, M .H . P rehistory . Occasional A ugusta.

1 983 K idder P oint and S ears I sland i n Publications i n Maine Archaeology 3 ,

WEIDE, M .L . 1 969 S easonality o f P ismo c lam collecting a t O ra-82. U niversity o f California at Los Angeles Archaeological S urvey A nnual R eport 1 969 :127-141 . WESSEN , G . 1 982 S hell m iddens a s c ultural d eposits : a c ase s tudy f rom O zette . U npublished P hD t hesis, Washington S tate U niversity , P ullman. WOLFE,

D .A .

and P ETTEWAY , E .N .

C hesapeake

S cience

1 968

9 :99-102 .

6 6

Growth o f R angia cuneata Gray .

AN EVALUATI CN O F F ISH G ROW TH A NNULI FOR T HE D J i MINATI ( O F S EAS1 ALIT! I N AR HAEDLOGIC I 'L S ITES

Catherine Carlson D epartment o f Anthropology o f M assachusetts Amherst, Massachusetts 0 1003, U S University

A bstract F ish l iving i n c old a nd t emperate waters e xhibit m arked s easonal r ings i n t heir s keletal s tructures . Considerable optimism has b een e xpressed i n t he a rchaeological c ommunity t hat t hese g rowth a nnuli will p rovide d efinitive e vidence f or t he d etermination o f p rehistoric s easona l s ite o ccupation . E xperimental s tudy o n t he o toliths a nd v ertebrae o f f ish f rom modern s amples and a rchaeological midden s ites i n coastal M aine s uggest o therwise . T he t heoretical a nd m ethodological d ifficulti es i nherent i n t he m easurement o f f ish g rowth a nnuli d ispel t he n otion t hat t he t echnique i s r eliable and c an p rovide cook-book s olutions t o t he e stimations o f s easonality f or a rchaeological s ites .

I ntroduction T he p roblem o f t he d etermination o f s easonality o f o ccupation f or p rehistoric a boriginal s ites i s c urrently o f c onsiderable c oncern i n t he a rchaeology o f northern New England . I t has been s uggested t hat a d iscontinuity i n t he s easonal o ccupation o f t he c oastal z one a s d escribe d f rom e thnohistorical a ccounts o f t he s eventeenth c entury can be d emonstrated f rom f aunal r emains f rom p re-European c ontact a rchaeologi cal s ites ( Bourque 1 975; S anger 1 982 ; Carlson 1 986 ). I nvestigation o f t he e vidence f or t he s easonal o ccupation o f p rehistoric s ites i n M aine a nd t he Maritime P rovinces o f C anada h as i ncluded s tudies o f s easonal g rowth i ncrements i n mollusc s hells and mammal t eeth, combined with i nferences based on t he p resence o r absence o f c ertain s easonally m igratory s pecies ( Bourque 1 975; H ancock 1 982; S anger 1 982; S tewart ( personal communication ); S piess e t a l. 1 983; Yesner 1 983 ). T hese s tudies h ave met with v arying d egrees o f s uccess i n t he d etection o f s easonality o f o ccupation , but t hey do s uggest t he possibility t hat c oastal p opulations were m ore s edentary t han h as b een i nferred f rom t he e thnohistorical a ccounts ( Sanger 1 982 ; S piess e t a l . 1 983 ). F ish r emains a re e xtremely a bundant i n t he c oastal m iddens o f Maine . An e stimation o f t he s eason o f o ccupation a t 2 1 midden s ites, s hown i n F igure 1 , d ating f rom 2 500BP f rom t he Boothbay r egion h as, t herefore , b een a ttempted b y s tudying t he s easonal g rowth i ncrements o n c ertain s keletal e lements i n t hese f ish r emains ( Carlson 1 986 ). T his

6 7

Figure 1 : L ocation o f s ites i n t he B oothbay a rea , r emains d iscussed h ere.

6 8

Maine ,

U SA , w ith f ish

s tudy was l argely a n e xperiment i n t he u se o f t he t echnique o utlined b elow , b ecause while s easonality s tudies u sing t he s keletal e lements o f o ther v ertebrates a nd i nvertebrates h ave b een u ndertaken o n a rchaeologi cal material ( Saxon a nd H ighar n 1 969; C outts 1 970; Coutts a nd H igham 1 971; K ay 1 974; H am a nd I rvine 1 975; S piess 1 976; B ourque e t a l. 1 978; H ancock 1 982 ), t his m ethodology h as o nly b een p roposed f or u se o n f ish r emains ( Casteel 1 972, 1 976 ) b ut h ad n ot b een t ested f or i ts r eliability o n m arine s pecies . T he u se o f a nnual g rowth i ncrements i n f ish b ones f or t he e stimation o f t he s eason o f d eath was t hought t o b e a worthwhile t echnique t o e xplore b ecause i ts r esults c ould b e t ested a gainst i nfere nces o f s easonality b ased o n o ther e vidence, s uch a s t he p resence o r a bsence o f c ertain m igratory s pecies a lso p resent i n t he m iddens .

F ish g rowth a nnuli a s s easonality i ndicators F ish l iving i n c old a nd t emperate waters e xhibit marked g rowth r ings i n t heir s keletons, p articularly t he v ertebrae a nd o toliths, p robably c aused b y s easonal e nvironmental c hanges a ffecting c alcificati on a nd g rowth r ate ( Haskell 1 949 ; M enon 1 949 ; A ppelget a nd Smith 1 950 ; G aitsoff 1 952 ; B ardach 1 955 ; Marzolf 1 955 ; P anella 1 973 ). O toliths , o r e ar s tones , a re s mall c oncretions o f c alcium c arbonate w ithin t he n euroc ranium . Much o f t he l iterature p ertaining t o g rowth a nnuli i n f ish d eals with o toliths b ecause t hese a re t he e lements u sed i n f isheries b iology a geing s tudies . However, v ertebrae a re much more f requently f ound i n a rchaeological a ssemblages t han o toliths, t hereby p roviding l arger s amples . T herefore, i t was h oped t hat t hey c ould b e u sed f or a nnual g rowth s tudies i n a s imilar way t o o toliths . T he p urpose o f t he s tudy I u ndertook ( Carlson 1 986 ) was t o evaluate t he u sefulness a s s easonality i ndicators o f g rowth r ings o n o toliths a nd v ertebrae f rom a rchaeological s amples , p rincipally o f t he c od ( Gadus m orhua ). T he p rinciple u nderlying t his t echnique i s t hat d uring g rowth , t wo z ones w ith d iffering s tructural a nd c hemical a ttributes a re d eposited a nnually o n o toliths a nd o ther s keletal e lements , r epresenting z ones o f s low a nd f ast g rowth . S ections t hrough o toliths a nd t he s urface o f t he c entrum o f v ertebrae a nd o ther s keletal e lements s how p arallel b anding v isible a s a lternating n arrow d ark , o r o paque, a nd wide l ight , o r 2 ). T hese a lternating r ings h ave a lso b een h yaline, b ands ( Plates 1 v ariously c alled t ransparent , white a nd d ark . I nconsistent u se o f t he s tandard t erms , h yaline a nd o paque , h ave i n t he p ast r esulted f rom t he d iffering l ighting c onditions u sed b y v arious workers . W hat s eems t o b e a d ark r ing u nder t ransmitted l ight , a ppears a s a l ight r ing u nder r eflected l ight . P annella ( 1973 :30 ) s uggested t hat t he t erm o paque b e u sed f or t he z ones o f f ast g rowth t hat a re l ight i n c olour i n a cetate r eplicas ( Plate 3 ) a nd hyaline f or t he d ark, s low-growth z ones . T he s low-growth b ands a re d ark i n c olour d ue t o p rotein d eposition , b ut t his p rocess i s n ot well u nderstood ( Simkiss 1 973 :8 ). P annella a lso i solated d aily g rowth r ings i n t he o toliths o f c od l ess t han f our years o ld, s uggesting t hat ' complete s equences o f a nnual c ycles a re f ound a nd c onsist o f a n a verage o f 3 60 g rowth b ands ' ( 1971 :1125 ). A s imilar s tudy b y R adtke a nd W aiwood ( 1980 ) a lso f ound d aily g rowth i ncrements i n t he o toliths o f l arval c od . -

K nowing t hat t he s keletal e lements o f f ish e xhibit a nnual b anding , i n t heory i t s hould b e p ossible t o e stimate f rom t he r ing p attern s een i n a rchaeological s amples a t a pproximately w hat s eason o f t he y ear a n i ndividual s pecimen d ied , b ased o n t he p roportion o f t he a nnual g rowth

6 9

P late 1 :

Modern s pecimen o f a c od

( Gadus m orhua )

v ertebra.

P late 2 : A rchaeological s pecimen o f a c od v ertebra s howing i ncremental g rowth r ings .

7 0

P late 3 : A cetate r eplica o f i ncremental g rowth s tructures i n af ish o tolith . D ark z ones a re p eriods o f s low g rowth . ( Original p hotograph b y G . P annella . R eproduced b y p ermission f rom R .W . C asteel ( 1976 ) F ish r emains i n A rchaeology , A cademic P ress , N ew Y ork ).

P late 4 : mar gins.

A rchaeological s pecimen o f a c od v ertebra s howing t he e roded

7 1

v isible a t t he margin o f t he o tolith o r v ertebra . F or e xample , i f i t s eemed t hat t he margin was i n az one o f s low g rowth, one c ould i nfer t hat t his s pecimen was c aught d uring t he c old s eason when g rowth i s s low . However, i f t he margin s howed a z one o f f ast g rowth, t hen o ne c ould e stimate t he p roportion o f g rowth a ttained r elative t o t he p revi ous y ear a nd i nfer a t what p eriod i n i ts a nnual c ycle t he f ish h ad d ied . T he m ajor a ssumption u nderlying t his t echnique i s t hat g rowth i s l inear b oth b etween y ears a nd w ithin y ears . H owever , i t i s k nown t hat g rowth i s n ot l inear s ince g rowth i s most r apid during t he f irst two y ears o f l ife a nd s lows a s t he f ish g ets o lder ( Bigelow a nd S chroeder 1 953: ). T his s uggests t hat t he g rowth p atterns o f o lder f ish s hould b e m ore r eliable f or s easonality s tudies . I t i s a ssumed t hat g rowth i s l inear w ithin a n a nnual c ycle , h owever t his h as n ever a ctually b een d emonstrated . T herefore, a k nowledge o f t he i nitiation a nd c essation o f e ach g rowth p eriod i s r equired i n o rder t o b e a ble t o e stimate t he s eason o f d eath . W illiams a nd B edford n oted t hat t here i s wide v ariation f rom y ear t o y ear i n t he t iming o f t he f ormation o f t he g rowth z ones ( 1973 :119 ). A lso t he g rowth p attern w ill v ary b etween d ifferent g eographical l ocations o f t he s ame s pecies . F inally t he g rowth p attern will c hange with a ge during t he l ife o f i ndividual f ish . I n g eneral, i t a ppears t hat t he o paque z one b egins f orming e arlier i n t he s eason i n t he s outhern e xtremes o f a s pecies ' r ange a nd becomes progressively l ater i n m ore n orthern d istributions . J udith P entilla o f t he N ational M arine F isheries S ervice , Woods H ole , M assachusetts , h as b een a nalysing t he g rowth p atterns o f s hoal w ater c od i n t he G ulf o f Maine s ince 1 972 . S he h as p repared t he g raph o f a ge a nd r ing f ormation f or t he s outhern G ulf o f M aine s hown i n F igure 2 . F rom t his g raph i t c an be s een t hat i nitiation o f t he f ast g rowth z one may o ccur , d epending o n t he a ge o f t he f ish , b etween l ate F ebruary a nd e arly June a nd c ease b etween m id August a nd e arly O ctober . I n o ther words, t here i s a w ide m onthly r ange . I f s tudies a re l imited t o f ish m ore t han f our years o ld, t hen t he r ange f or t he i nitiation o f t he f ast g rowth p eriod i s m ore r estricted a nd f alls b etween m id May a nd e arly J une a nd f or c essation l asts f rom m id S eptember t o e arly O ctober . I n o ther words, t he f ast g rowth z one l asts f or a p eriod o f a pproximately f our m on t hs . T his s uggests t hat t he r emaining e ight m onths o f t he y ear a re rowth r ing which i s n ot amenable t o r epresented b y t he n arrow Sl O W g p roportional m easurement b ecause i t i s impossible t o d istinguish t he t ime o f d eath w ithin t hat e ight m onth p eriod . T his i s a s evere l imita tion o f t he t echnique . K nowledge o f t he s easonal b ehaviour o f m igrato ry s pecies d uring t his p eriod a ctually p rovides a g reater r esolution o n s easonality .

G rowth a nnuli: m ethods o f s tudy a nd r esults G iven t his k nowledge , Iu ndertook a s tudy o n t he f ew c od a nd t omcod ( Microgadus t omcod ) o toliths r ecovered a rchaeologically f rom m iddens o n t he c oast o f Maine . Ia lso s tudied t he v ertebrae o f c od a nd winter f lounder ( Pseudopleuronectes americanus ) o f w hich t here was a n e xtremely l arge s ample . Ia ttempted t o c ut a nd g rind t he o toliths w ith f ine 6 00g rade e mery p aper s o t hat t he r ing p attern c ould b e v iewed a nd m easured w ith a l ow-power b inocular m icroscope . I v isited t he H untsman Marine L aboratory , a nd t he D epartment o f F isheries a nd E nvironmental S ciences B iological S tation a t S t . A ndrews , N ew B runswick , where o tolith s ectioni ng f or a geing s tudies was b eing u ndertaken . A fter a ttempting t o c ut a nd g rind a n umber o f a rchaeological o toliths, i t b ecame a pparent t o

7 2

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50 ,000 y ears o ld . F ar m ore d ates b ased o n more s uitable r adioisotopic t echniques a re n eeded b efore t he p recise i nterc orrelation o f t hese s ites would b e p ossible ( Webb 1 988a ). T he c onside rable p roxy c limatic i nformation now available f or t his p eriod f rom o xygen i sotope f luctuations p reserved i n d eep s ea f oraminifera ( Shacklet on 1 977 ) c annot y et b e d irectly c orrelated w ith t he f ragmentary t errest rial r ecord . However, r ecourse c an be h ad t o t he l ong a nd d etailed p ollen r ecord f rom G rande P ile ( Woillard 1 978 ) a nd o ther p alaeobotanical work ( Starkel 1 977 ) t o i ndicate t errestrial vegetational c onditions d uring t his p eriod . T his p alynological e vidence s uggests t hat f or most o f t he l ast 1 50 ,000 y ears v egetation i n c entral Europe f luctuated f rom o pen s teppe t undra w ith s ome boreal c oniferous f orest i n t he c older p eriods o r n orthern a reas t o c losed d eciduous t hermophilous woodland i n t he warmer p eriods o r s outhern r egions ( Frenzel 1 979 ). T he e ffects o f s uch v egetational s hifts u pon t he d ependent h erbivorous f auna a re u nk nown s ince n o s imilar b iome c an s till b e o bserved u naltered b y p eople . H owever , t here i s n o e vidence during t he e arlier p art o f t he l ast g laci ation t hat e ither t he h erbivores o r t he p eople a nd o ther c arnivores w ho

8 1

p reyed o n t hem were l imited i n t heir d istribution o r e xploitation s trate gies b y p urely e nvironmental f actors . Moreover , i t n eeds t o b e emphasi sed t hat g iven t he c hronological u ncertainties out l ined a bove, any ' layer ' i n most P alaeolithic s ites p robably f ormed o ver a p eriod o f u nknown d uration a nd t hat t he a rtefacts a nd b ones e xcavated a pparently i n a ssociation may well r epresent a p alimpsest o f s everal d iscrete events which t ook p lace over a considerable p eriod, but which we a re u nable a t p resent t o d isentangle d ue p artly t o t he imprecision o f t he a vailable d ating t echniques .

D iscussion o f t he d ata T his s tudy r epresents a n a ttempt t o r e-assess i n t aphonomic t erms t he f aunal m aterial f rom s ome C entral a nd E astern E uropean M iddle P ala eolithic s ites , m ostly c aves a nd r ockshelters ( shown i n F ig . 1 ) . O pen a ir s ites i n t his r egion and s ome s ites i n S outhwestern E urope a re c onsidered e lsewhere ( Webb 1 988b , 1 988c ). T hese s tudies a re b ased o n a r e-analysis o f p ublished f aunal r eports a nd were u ndertaken t o d emons trate t hat s uch r esearch c an y ield u seful r esults p roviding i ts l imita tions a re r ecognised . U nfortunately , most s uch r eports a re u sually written by p alaeontologists t o be i nterpreted e nvironmentally , c onsequently t hey do n ot n ecessarily s pecify t he r equisite i nformation o n whether bones were f ound a rticulated and i f s o, which bones o f which s pecies, which s keletal p arts were f ound whole , whether a ny b ones were f ragmented and i f s o t he n ature a nd position o f any s urf i cial d amage present . However, i t h as been possible t o i nfer t his i nformation f or a bout 2 0 s ites s cattered t hroughout Europe which I s elected f or t hese a nalyses s imply f or t he q uantity o f f aunal q uality o f t he o riginal f aunal r eport .

m aterial

r ecovered a nd

t he

T he European f auna i s comparatively impoverished, however i t i s worth r eviewing s ome o f i ts a spects . T he p rey a nimals t hat would h ave b een a vailable t o M iddle P alaeolithic p eople i n c entral E urope c omprised t he m ammoth ( Elephas p rimigenius ), woolly r hinoceros ( Coelodonta a ntiq uitatis ), equids, a nd c ervids a nd bovids o f v arious s izes a nd h abits . However, a ll t hese h erbivores would a lso h ave been p reyed o n by t he f elids a nd c anids p resent a t t he t ime , e specially t he wolf ( Canis l upus ) a nd c ave h yaena ( Kurten 1 968 ). T he o nly p ossible e xceptions were a dult m ammoths a nd r hinos which G uérin a nd F aure a rgued ( 1983 ), o n t he b asis o f t heir s urviving b one r emains a lone , i t i s i mpossible t o d emonstrate were e aten , l et a lone h unted , b y N eandertals . J uveniles o f b oth g enera a re h unted b y wolves a nd l ions, who p rey o n t he e dges o f h erds o f c ows , t o which t he o ccasional s olitary m ale r hinoceros will d istantly a ttach i tself . T hese c arnivores p robably r epresented t he m ain c ompetitors t hat p eople would h ave had t o f ace during meat a cquisition ( Turner 1 981 ). T hey a re h ere c onsidered u nlikely t o h ave b een h uman p rey . While i t i s n ot i nconceivable t hat p eople o ccasionally a te c arnivore f lesh, t he u ntested a ssumption i s made h ere t hat t hey p robably only d id s o under c onditions o f e xtreme n eed . P rior t o t he i nvention o f t he bow a nd a rrow, by c omparison with other p redators p eople were d isadvantaged . T hey c annot r un a t h igh s peeds f or l ong p eriods a nd t heir s talking a nd t racking a bilities a re i nferior , b ut t hey a re c apable o f i ntelligent c oo perative p remeditated a ctions s uch a s d riving g ame i nto p itfalls , t raps o r s nares . P eople may h ave made u p i n c unning f or t heir c omparative p hysical d eficiencies . D espite T rinkaus ' a rguments ( 1983a a nd b ) f or t he r obusticity o f N eandertals, t hey were s till o f r elatively s mall b ody s ize a nd t heir s imple t echnology s uggests

8 2

( contra G eist 1 981 )

t hat

Figure 1 : L ocation o f t he s ites mentioned i n t he t ext . 1 . B alverh5h1e , Westphalia ; 2 . Bockstein , S tadel and Vogelherd höhlen, Baden-Württemb erg ; 3 . G rosse Grotte, B aden-WUrttemberg ; 4 . Weinberh5h1en , B avaria ; 5 6 . Repolust and S alzofen H öhlen, Austria; 7 . K ulna and S ipka caves, C zechoslovakia; B ulgaria.

8 . R emete

' felsö ' cave,

8 3

Hungary;

9 . Bacho K iro cave,

without t he a id o f t raps, s nares a nd p its, f or none o f which e vidence h as s urvived , h ealthy a dult h erbivores o f l arge b ody s ize a re u nlikely t o h ave b een d eliberately h unted . C ommon s ense would s uggest t hat g ame small e nough t o b e c arried with e ase was p robably t aken b ack whole t o t he l iving s ite w hile l arger g ame was p rocessed i nto p ortable p arcels a t t he k ill s ite . S uch b ehavioural d ifferences s hould b e r ecorded i n t he s keletal parts s urviving o n l iving s ites . B inford 's work among t he Nunamiut ( 1981 ) a nd N avajo ( Binford and B erman 1 977, B inford 1 980 ) i s s uggestive i n t his r egard . H owever , t he whole p urpose o f t his s tudy i s t o e xamine whether o r n ot s uch a n h ypothesis c an b e s ubstantiated f rom t he b one r emains f ound o n M iddle P alaeolithic s ites . T he i nterpretation o f t he b ear r emains f ound i n c ave d eposits m ainly i n c entral E urope p resents a p roblem . Two s pecies were c ommonly p resent : t he c ave b ear ( Ursus s pelaeus ), which was o f g reat s ize , marke dly s exually d imorphic a nd a lso s eems t o h ave b een l argely h erbivorous , a nd t he l iving b rown b ear ( U . a rctos ), which i s more omnivorous . B ears a nd p eople p referentially e at s imilar f ood r esources b ut i t i s n ot c lear t o what e xtent t hey would have b een i n d irect c ompetition . P eople p robably a te b ear when t hey c ould g et o ne w ith i mpugnity , h owever , i t i s q uestioned whether t hey were d eliberately h unted , e ven a s c ult o bjects . N either b ear i s k nown t o modify b one t o a ny e xtent e xcept b y t rampling p ost-mortem ( charriage a s ec ) t he s keletons o f p revious d en o ccupants d uring p reparations f or h ibernation . T he b one a rrangements o n w hich t he i dea t hat Neandertals p ractised a r itual i nvolving t he c ave b ear a re b ased h ave b een f requently d iscredited ( Spahni 1 954 ), b ut s till p ermeate t he popular l iterature . Moreover, r e-examination o f t he age a nd s ex r atios o f t he bones f ound i n t he c ave a ccumulations ( Musil 1 980-1 ) i ndicates t hat t he m ajority o f t he a nimals were e ither e xtremely e lderly o r very young i ndividuals, l ess t han two y ears o ld, o f t he s ame s ex . B ears t end t o s eparate s exually d uring h ibernation . While i t i s t rue t hat i f b ears were being d eliberately hunted t he v ery o ld a nd young m ight b e p referentially s elected b y h umans a s b eing e asier t o k ill, i t i s a lso t rue t hat s uch t hanatocoenoses c an b e better e xplained a s t he d eaths d uring h ibernation o f weaker i ndividuals . S upport f or t his i dea c omes f rom t he f act t hat s ome o f t he s keletons h ave c learly n ever b een d isturbed a nd a re e ven f ound s till f ully a rticulated . B ones o f t he s maller f ur-bearing s pecies ( Mustelidae , r odents a nd l agomorphs ) a re s ometimes m entioned . T heir a bsence f rom m any r eports d oes n ot n ecessarily r eflect t heir a bsence f rom t he s ite b ut a l ack o f i nterest o n t he p art o f t he o riginal a nalyst . S ome m ay well h ave b een s ought a s f ood, o thers f or t heir p elts t o u se a s c lothing . D ifferent s keletal p arts m ight b e e xpected t o s urvive i n e ach c ase . T he b urrowing s pecies, when p resent o n a rchaeological s ites, a re a n i mportant g uide t o p ossible p ost-depositional s edimentary d isturbance ; while t he p orcupine ( Hystrix s p . ) b oth e xcavates a s leeping n est a nd a lso c ollects a nd s ucks o n b ones c onverting t hem i nto s livers which m imic h umanly-made n eedles ( Brain 1 981 ). I t i s t hus possible both t o s urmise t he p resence o f p orcupine without r ecovering a s ingle bone a nd i ts p resence m ay c ast d oubt o n t he i ntegrity o f t he o ther b ones f ound . While I p refer t he p ossibility t hat Woman-the-Gatherer ( Dahlberg 1 981 ) was t he e conomic f ulcrum o f t he N eandertal s ocial u nit , n one t he l ess U pper P leistocene f aunal evidence s uggests more a n u nexpurgated s cenario f or Man-the-Hunter . I t must be a dmitted t hat i n n orthern t emperate l atitudes w ith a s hort c ool g rowing s eason , e specially u nder g lacial c onditions , p lant f oods were p robably l ess a bundant a nd p ossibly

8 4

l ess n utritious t han t hey a re i n more t ropical r egions . S imply n ot e nough i s k nown o f t he e dible v egetation available i n c entral Europe d uring t he e arly p art o f t he l ast g laciation ( Gamble 1 986 :100-3 ). H owe ver, i t i s r easonable t o s uppose t hat 1 0-20% o f t he t otal d iet c ould h ave b een p rovided b y p lant f oods a t c ertain t imes o f y ear ( Lee 1 968 ). I t i s p robable , b ased o n m odern a nalogies , t hat p eople c ommonly a te t he s tomach c ontents o f h erbivores a s a c onvenient way o f o btaining n ourishm ent . I t i s a lso n ot i nconceivable t hat s uch p artly d igested m aterial m ight h ave b een more n utritious f or h umans t han a r aw f ood s uch a s g rass i s u sally t hought t o b e . I n t he t ables t hat f ollow t he n umber o f i dentified s pecimens ( NISP ) r ecorded i n t he r eport i s g iven t ogether with t he m inimum n umber o f i ndividuals ( MNI ) t hese b ones m ight r epresent . E stimates o f M NI h ave b een t aken a t f ace v alue f rom t he r eports , b ut h ave b een c hecked where p ossible , a nd s hould b e t aken a s a pproximations o nly . T here i s a l arge l iterature o n t he d angers i nherent i n d erived f aunal s tatistics ( Clason 1 972 ; P ayne 1 972b ; G rayson 1 973, 1 978 , 1 979, 1 981, 1 984 ; U erpmann 1 973; C asteel 1 976-7, 1 977; Casteel a nd G rayson 1 977; Turner 1 980; H esse 1 982 ), t he p ertinency o f whose a rguments i s a cknowledged . H owever , s ome m ore p roportional e stimate o f t he r elative f requency o f t he d ifferent s pecies t han t hat g iven b y t he N ISP i s u seful, a s i s amply d emonstrated b y t he l imitations e ncountered h ere i n t he r e-interpretation o f d er S tadel. S everal o f t hese authors h ave emphasised t he b ias i ntroduced i nto MNI c alculations b y v ariations i n s ample s ize , i n p articular when a n a nimal i s r epresented b y o nly o ne o r two b ones . H ere s uch a nimals a re m erely n oted a s p resent r ather t han i nterpreted a s o ne i ndividual . S ome a ccount i s t aken i n t he f inal d iscussion o f r elative b ody s ize i n e stimating t he e conomic p otehtial o f t he a nimals i dentified . T he p roba ble a ge o f i ndividuals a t d eath i s a lso g iven wherever p ossible . A ll t he s ites s tudied p roduced c haracteristically s kewed s pecies d istribu tions : a f ew s pecies r epresented b y m any i ndividuals a nd m any s pecies r epresented b y f ew i ndividuals . I t i s r ecognised t hat t his s tudy i s o pen t o e rror s ince many o f t he e xcavations o n which i t i s b ased t ook p lace many y ears a go when r ecovery t echniques were l ess m eticulous t han t hey s hould b e n ow . H ence t he N ISP f igures g iven h ere a re a lmost c ertainly u nderestimates o f t he v olume o f b one o riginally e xcavated . P ayne ( 1972a ) h as s hown h ow d eleterious s uch p artial r ecovery c an b e . I t i s r ealistic t o a ssume t hat t he r ecovery o f b one was b iased d uring s ite e xcavation t owards t he c ollection a nd r etent ion o f t he more e asily r ecognised a nd i dentifiable f aunal p arts and t hat m any f ragments were d iscarded a s u nidentifiable o r u ninteresting l ong b efore what r emained r eached t he f aunal a nalyst, who may h ave f ailed t o r eport t he m aterial s /he a lso j ettisoned . A lthough c onsidera ble i nformation c an b e e xtracted f rom t he s patial d istribution o f s uch f ragments , t hese a spects o f h uman b ehaviour c annot u sually b e d educed f rom f aunal r eports . Moreover , u nless a ll t he e xcavated m aterial was s ieved , which i s u nlikely , m any o f t he s maller b ones o f s maller a nimals would n ever h ave been r ecovered . Nonetheless, i f t hese c aveats a re b orne i n m ind t he t entative c onclusions d rawn b elow a t l east i ndicate s ome u seful a venues f or f uture r esearch . G iven t he a rchaeological c omments o utlined a bove i t i s p ossible t o c onsider t he c ultural and d ietary i mplications o f t he bone r emains a ctually r ecovered f rom s ome c entral a nd e astern E uropean s ites . At B alve 1 5km s outh o f t he R uhr i n Westphalia,

8 5

many c aves h ave

f ormed i n l imestone h ills o verlooking a t ypical k arstic v alley . B alverh öhle, which f aces n orth, i s t he l argest o f t hese c aves a nd h as b een i nvestigated o n s everal o ccasions . T he m ost r ecent e xcavation w as b y O ' inter ( 1964 ), w o d ug a s eries o f t renches i n t he u nexcavated p ortions o f t he s ite . T he s tone a rtefacts r ecovered b elong i n t he M iddle P alaeol ithic t radition w ith b lattspitzen . T he d eposits a re u ndated b ut p res umably f ormed d uring t he e arly U pper P leistocene . A s c an b e s een f rom T able 1 , t he f aunal material s tudied by H eller ( GÜnter 1 964:32-9 ) i s r emarkable f or i ts p overty . O nly t wo c arnivores were i dentified , f rom f oot b one f ragments : wolf a nd l ion . C ervids a re a lmost e qually p oorly r epresented by i solated t eeth, f oot b ones a nd a ntler f ragments . T he p resence o f woolly r hino , r ed d eer ( Cervus e laphus ), r eindeer ( Rangifer t arandus ), g iant d eer ( Megaceros g iganteus ) a nd h orse ( Equus c aballus ) s uggests t hat t he l ocal e nvironment was wooded b ut f airly o pen a nd t he c limate c ool . F ragments o f s everal m ammoth t usks a nd t eeth were f ound i n m ost l ayers . E xactly h ow s uch r emains c an b e i nterpreted i n t erms o f p ast a nimal b ehaviour i s u nclear e xcept t hat t his f auna i s u nlikely t o r elate d irectly t o p ast h uman b ehaviour . P articularly s ince , g iven t he f requency o f t heir r emains , t he c ave c an b est b e i nterpreted a s a b ear d en t o w hich o ther s pecies were n o m ore t han i nfrequent v isitors . A lt hough l ayers 1 -3 p roduced o nly a f ew i solated b ear t eeth a nd l ower l imb b ones, a ll t he l ower l ayers y ielded a s ufficiently c omprehensive r ange o f postcranial material t o s uggest t hat t he a nimals d ied i n t he c ave, p robably d uring h ibernation . T his p attern o f s pecies a nd body p art r epresentation i s r epeated a t m any o f t he s ites d iscussed h ere .

T able 1 : p halia.

N ISP a nd MNI e stimates f or t he f auna f rom B alverhihle ,

l ayer 1 C . U . E . C . E . C . R . M .

l upus s pelaeus p rimigenius a ntiquitatis c aballus e laphus t arandus g iganteus

2 /2a

4

5

6

7 /8

1+ 6 /1 1/2 1 8 /1

3 1+ 1+ 6 /1 2 1+

5 /1 1 0/2

1 0/11

1+

13 /1

1 3/1

3 1+

1+ 1+

9

W est-

4 2/2

1 3/1

1+

4 5/3

1 0/1

1+

1+ 3 1+

1+

1+

A n umber o f c ave s ites i n B aden- &ttemberg h ave b een e xcavated i n t he l ast 2 0 y ears . E ach c ave i s a multiple k arstic s ystem f ormed i n l imestone , whose s ediments w ere d eposited d uring t he e arly p art o f t he l ast g laciation . T hey l ie w ithin a f ew k ilometres o f e ach o ther i n t he mountainous f oreland o f t he Swabian A lb i n e ither t he u pper D anube v alley i tself o r i ts t ributaries . T he c aves may even r epresent t he s everal c amp s ites o f a s ingle N eandertal g roup which e xploited t he v arious m icro-ecological s ituations p resented by t he d ifferences i n s hape a nd s ize, o rientation a nd a ltitude o f t he v alleys i n which t he c aves a re l ocated . T he B ockstein i n t he L onetal c omprises a c omplicated s eries o f c hambers within o ne b asic c ave s ystem e ach o f which h as r evealed a

8 6

c losely s imilar s tratigraphy . I n ' T able 2 t he f aunal m aterial f rom t he d ifferent c hambers h as b een g rouped i nto c omparable l ayers wherever p ossible . T he material f rom t he t alus, ' hearth ' a nd i solated c omplex h as n ot b een i ncluded b ecause i ts p recise s tratigraphic c orrelation w ith t he d eposits i n t he B ockstein i tself i s n ot c lear . I ts omission does n ot a lter t he o verall i mpression g ained f rom L ehmann 's r eport ( Wetzel a nd B osinski 1 969:133-167 ) t hat t he f aunal r emains a re dominated by h orse . S everal l ayers y ielded a rtefacts, i ncluding b ifaces, which c learly b elong within t he c entral European Middle P alaeolithic with b lattspitzen t radition . T his r ich f auna c omprises m ost o f t he k nown E uropean U pper P leistoc ene m ammalian s pecies, h owever m any o f t hem were o nly r epresented b y s ingle t eeth o r f oot b ones . F or e xample r oe d eer ( Capreolus c apreolus ), g iant d eer , w ild b oar ( Sus s crofa ) a nd w ild c at , ( Felis s ylvestris ) were i dentified i n l ayers a /b-c/d , musk o x ( Ovibos moschatus ) i n g a nd b rown b ear , d hole ( Cuon a lpinus ) a nd g iant d eer i n h . T hese s pecies h ave b een o mitted f rom T able 2 s ince t he i mplications o f t heir p resence a re h ard t o a ssess . A s i s t hat o f c hamois ( Rupicapra rupicapra ) i n l ayer i . O nly t hree s pecies o f m icrofauna were i dentified , p lus a f ew a mphibian a nd s nake bones, probably r epresenting n atural d eaths . T he b urrowing a nimals s uch a s mole ( Talpa europaeus ) a nd badger ( Meles meles ) were r epresented b y j uvenile a s well a s a dult i ndividuals s uggesting t hey may h ave d ied n aturally . T he hare ( Lepus s p . ) bones f ound i n t he u pper l ayers m ight a lso r epresent n atural d eaths, s ince t hey i ncluded a t l east f ive l everets, o r have b een t he p rey o f f oxes. F ragments o f t he p ostc ranial r emains o f one wolf c ub, a t l east f ive j uvenile f oxes, two h yaena c ubs a nd o ne y oung l ynx ( Felis l ynx ) s uggest t hat t hese a nimals may h ave b een l airing i n t he Bockstein f rom t ime t o t ime . I ts small c hambers would m ake s uitable d ens . A s imilar p attern o f p reservation f or t he c ave b ear r emains , which i nclude a t l east s even c ubs, s uggests t hat t hese may a lso r epresent n atural d eaths . However, t he s keletons h ad s uffered s evere p ostmortem d isturbance a nd a re n ow f ragmented .

Table 2 : N ISP and MNI e stimates f or t he f auna f rom t he Bockstein, B aden-Württemberg.

l ayer F . l ynx P . l eo C . c rocuta C . l upus V ulpinae

a /b

2 /+ 4 /2

c

c -f

5 /1

1 /4

1+ 1 2 /+ 9 /2

M ustelidae 2 /4 U . s pelaeus 8 /2 E . p ri r nigenius C . a ntiquitatis

1+ 1 2 1/5 2 7+

H . c aballus 9 /2 C . e laphus 4 /2 R . t arandus 4 /3 B os/Bison s p . R . r upicapra L epus s p .

8 /5

e

1+ 2 /+ 4 /2

f

f -h

2 1+ 8 /3 1 /+ 1 /+

1 / ' - 1/+ 1+ 1 5 /2

4 /1

4 1+

3 /2

1 7+ 2 /+

1 /+ 5 /2 3 /1 2 /+

1 5/5 2 /+ 9 /2 2 /+

1/6 1

2 3/5

2 9/6

5 /3

1 /+ 2 /+

3 7+ 6 /2

6 /2

3 /1

3 1+

1+

2 /+

1 /+

h

i

k

1

3 /2 6 /2 2 /+ 4 7+

3 /1 3 5/6 3 0/4 6 /3

1 /+ 4 /1 1 7+

1 7+ 1 0/4 2 /+ 1 0/3

1 7+ 1 9/4 1 0/3 2 4/5

1 /+ 2 /+ 1 /+

2 7+

5 6/6

2 44/13 2 1/5 4 0/5 1 6/3 7 /3

7 /2 6 /2

3 /2

4 /2

1 7+

2 7+

1+

5 /2

1 /+

8 7

g

4 1+

1 /4

3 1+

2 /+

2 1+

2 1+

A part f rom t he h erbivores m entioned a bove a s r epresented o nly b y i solated f inds, most l evels o f t he c ave p roduced s eparate t eeth a nd f ragmentary postcranial r emains o f t he r ed d eer, r eindeer a nd b ovids. N o e ffort h as b een m ade i n t his s tudy t o d istinguish t he w isent ( Bison p riscus ) f rom t he a urochs ( Bos p rimigenius ). Even t he more n umerous h erbivore f inds i n l ayer h were i ncomplete , s uggesting t hat t he a nimals h ad b een s ubjected t o c onsiderable p ostmortem t rauma b efore t heir r emains b ecame i ncluded i n t hese d eposits . Most o f t he l ong bones were b roken a nd m any s howed s igns o f g nawing , p robably b y h yaenas . H orse n ot o nly d ominates t he f aunal r emains , b ut i t w as a lso r epresented i n most l ayers by a ll p arts o f i ts s keleton . P articularly i n l ayers f -h t he q uantity o f p ostcranial m aterial s uggests t hat whole a nimals w ere o rigi nally b rought i nto t o c ave , o f t hese a t l east e ight were f oals . M amm oth i s r epresented , a s s o o ften , b y f ragments o f s kull, t eeth a nd t usk whose p recise s ignificance i s h ard t o a ssess . T he woolly r hino h as e qually b een i dentified l argely o n d ental f ragments . I t i s u nusual f or i t t o b e s o n umerous . T he n umber o f s tone a rtefacts r ecovered a nd t he e xistence o f b urnt a reas a t t he B ockstein c learly d emonstrates t hat p eople u sed t his s ite , h owever t he p resence o f s o m any a nd v aried c arnivores s uggests t hat t hey a lso p layed a p art i n t he a ccumulation o f t he f auna r ecovered . T he l arge n umber o f h orse r emains i s s uggestive o f h uman p redation o n t hem a s a preferred r esource, p articularly s ince t he Lonetal s eems t o h ave b een a f avourite p lace t o h unt horse during t he U pper P alaeolithic ( Berke, t his volume ). T hat a s imilar f auna dominated by horse with mammoth, woolly r hino and hyaena i s k nown f rom Middle P alaeolithic d eposits a t t he Vogelherd c ave, a lso i n t he Lonetal ( Lehmann 1 954 ), s upports t his h ypothesis . H Owever s ome o f t he h orses c ould e qually well h ave b een t he p rey o f wolves o r h yaenas . T his s tudy a ims t o d emonstrate t hat t he n ature o f d eposition i n c aves i s s uch t hat , m illenia a fter t he e vents t hey p reserve o ccurred , i t m ay b e i mpossible t o d isentangle t he d ifferent p rocesses o f a ccumulation i n o peration , i f m ore t han o ne a gent was r esponsible . D er S tadel i s one o f another s eries o f k arstic c aves f ormed i n a 4 0m s tretch o f t he H öhlenstein , a l imestone o utcrop overlooking t he r ight b ank o f t he L onetal . T he c ave , 3 0m l ong b ut o nly 1 -3m w ide , f aces north a nd l ies i n a good l ocation a t 4 70m amsl overlooking a marshy a rea, i n a small s teep-sided valley o riented e ast-west . T he 2 0m o f d eposits i nside t he c ave were well-excavated by Wetzel ( 1961 ). T he s tratigraphy o f t he e xterior d eposits i s more confused . T he b asal s trata X a nd I X , t ogether w ith V III, c omprise u nit A a nd p robably d ate t o t he l ast i nterglacial. L ayers V III, t he ' Black Mousterian ', a nd V , t he ' Upper R ed Mousterian ', produced Middle P alaeolithic a rtefacts i n q uantity . L ayer V I, t he ' Lower R ed Mousterian ', p roduced f ew a rtefacts, while V II r epresents t he a rchaeologically s terile b ase o f V I. W ith V t hey c omprise unit B and probably d ate t o t he beginning o f t he l ast g laciation , > 33,000Bp, t he a ge o f l ayer I V . T he f auna, r ecovered f rom l ayers X -V i nside t he c ave , was r ecently r estudied b y G amble ( 1979 ). I t comprised over 5 0,000 s pecimens o f which h e i dentified 1 0,000: 4 000 p ost-cranial p ieces a nd 6 000 t eeth a nd j aw f ragments . H e d id n ot s tudy t he r odents a nd small mammals . T he f auna was d ominated by bear ( 66% ) a nd c arnivores ( 15% ), while h erbivores r epresented o nly 1 0% o f t he N ISP . U nfortunately , G amble p ublished h is work i n s uch a way t hat i t i s d iffi cult t o r einterpret h is N ISP f igures , which a re p referred h ere t o h is a ttempt t o a llow f or d ifferential body p art r epresentation, a lthough t hose d ata a re a lso g iven . H owever, t he o verall t rends a re c lear i n

8 8

T able 3 . T hree s pecies p redominate i n a ll l evels: c ave b ear, h yaena a nd h orse . T he c ave b ear r emains i nclude many n eonates and j uveniles o f whom whole s keletons h ave b een f ound , s uggesting t hey p robably r epresent d eaths d uring h ibernation . T he c arnivores a re o nly r epresented b y a dult i ndividuals . T he c ave h yaena i s t he m ost c ommon , e specially i n u nit B , b ut wolf, b oth r ed a nd a rctic f ox ( Vulpes vulpes a nd A lopex l agopus ), l eopard ( Panthera p ardus ) a nd l ion a lso o ccur . T he h erbivores h ave m ainly b een i dentified b y t heir t eeth b ecause m ost o f t he p ostcranial m aterial h as b een c ompletely f ragmented . T his p robably r epresents h uman b ehaviour, b ut a ll t he c arnivores i dentified h ere a re k nown t o modify b one a nd m ay h ave c ontributed t o t he f ragmentation . G amble a lso c onside rs ( 1979 :42 ) t hat m uch p ostcranial m aterial h ad b een r emoved f rom t he c ave . S uch a b ody p art s pectrum s uggests t hat t he a nimals were b rought b ack t o t he c ave whole a nd butchered t here . H owever, i t i s h ard t o i magine why p eople would n ot h ave l eft m ammoth a nd r hino s kulls a t t he k ill s ite . Mammoth, r hino a nd r eindeer a re r epresented equally by j uvenile a nd a dult bone r emains, while t he a dult: j uvenile r atio f or h orse i s 2 :1 a nd f or b ovids i s 8 :1 . S uch r atios a re not e asily e xplica ble a s e ither c arnivore o r h uman p redation . T here i s a p redominance o f j uvenile r ed d eer b ones . T he f requency o f r ed d eer a nd r eindeer se ems t o v ary i nversely , s uggesting t hat e nvironmental c onditions b ecame more s uitable f or r eindeer a s t he d eposits a ccumulated . T he f ew r oe d eer, w ild b oar a nd h are b ones a re h ard t o i nterpret . I n s ummary , g iven t he o ccurrence o f s ome a rtefacts , while t here was c learly a h uman i nput i nto

T able 3 : N ISP c ounts f or a ll s pecies f rom d er S tadel, B aden-W i 1rttemberg . ( Gamble 's c orrected f igues a re g iven f or s elected s pecies ).

l ayer F . P . P . C . C . V .

l ynx p ardus l eo c uta l upus v ulpes

A . l agopus F ox u ndiff. G . g ulo M ustelidae H ystrix s p . U . s pelaeus B . p rimigenius C . a ntiquitatis B . c aballus C . e laphus R . t arandus C . c apreolus M . g iganteus B os/Bison s p . S . s crof a L epus s p .

V

V I

V II 1

1 1 57(131 ) 3 5 3 4

2 6 9 4(78 ) 4 9 1 4

1

2 0 1 40(116 ) 5 7 1 1 4 3

1 356(1087 )

7 85(607 )

2 2 5 33(375 )

2 2 4 3 2 40(186 )

2 6 4 5 1 50(117 )

9 2 8 3 45(273 )

1 3 6

2 3 8

1 6

4 1 9

4 0 2 1 2 3 8 5

1

8 9

V III 2 1 3 0 7 8(64 ) 7 4 1 2

I X

3 3 7 2 4 1 0

1 4 5 1 6 7 1 8 97(594 )

4 71(295 )

4 9 7 89(213)

3 2(28 )

1 14 3 9 7 5 0 2 3

X

7 1 0 2 2 4

4 3 4 3

3

1

?

t his f aunal collection, many o f t he r emains may well r eflect o ther c arnivore b ehaviour , e specially h yaena p redation o n h orses . N on-human c arnivores could h ave o ccupied t he c ave i n t he absence o f b ears, and p eople might even h ave l ived a t t he c ave mouth while u nknown t o t hem b ears were h ibernating a t t he b ack . T he G rosse G rotte i s a l arge c ave a bout 3 -4m h igh a t i ts westwardf acing entrance, 1 0-15m wide, over 2 0m deep a nd c ontains a bout 3m o f d eposits ( Wagner 1 983 ). I t l ies a t 5 80m amsi a nd 7 6m a bove t he B lautal, a nother t ributary o f t he D anube . L ayers I I, I V , Va nd V I were p articu larly r ich i n a rtefacts which b elong i n t he c entral E uropean Middle P alaeolithic with b lattspitzen t radition . T hese l ayers a lso p roduced t he g reatest q uantity o f f aunal r emains . S ome s pecies were o nly r epres ented by an i solated f ind, f or e xample a bovid a nd r hino i n l ayer I I a nd hyaena i n X I. Two bear t eeth were a lso f ound i n l ayer X III which was o therwise s terile . T his material h as b een omitted f rom T able 4 s ince i ts s ignificance i s u nclear . ( Ovis a rgaloides ) i s u ncertain .

T he i dentification o f t he wild s heep

T his f auna i s r emarkable f or t he a lmost c omplete a bsence o f c arniv ore r emains . I dentifiable h erbivore bones a re e qually r are, b ecause m any s keletal p arts s eem t o h ave b een f ragmented , p resumably b y p eople . R eindeer was c hiefly i dentified f rom s hed a ntler p robably f rom f emales o r j uveniles, s uggesting both t hat t he animals h ad d ied early i n t he y ear a nd t hat t he a ntler h ad b een b rought i nto t he c ave . T he r arity o f h orse bones i s unusual g iven t heir f requency a t n ear b y s ites s uch a s V ogelherd a nd t he B ockstein . E qually h are r emains were c ommon a t t hose s ites and a t S irgenstein , h owever only a f ew bones were f ound h ere . Wagner ( 1983 :75 ) c onsiders t hat t hey m ight r epresent t he p rey o f r aptori al b irds o r f oxes, r ather t han p eople . Two s pecies d ominate t he f auna : t he i bex ( Capra i bex ) a nd c ave b ear . B oth s pecies h ave b een i dentified mostly on t he basis o f i solated t eeth, but a lso on f oot bones a nd j aw f ragments . B oth a dults a nd j uveniles were p resent . T hat t his f auna i s r ather d ifferent f rom t hose r ecovered f rom o ther c ave s ites i n B adenW trttemberg i s due p robably t o t he morphology o f t he Grosse G rotte i tself . U nlike t he o ther c aves, t his i s a l arge open c ave p resenting f ew o f t he n ooks a nd c rannies which might be p referred by c arnivores s eeking a d en i n which t o r aise c ubs . T he r emains r ecovered s uggest t hat t he c ave was u sed i ntermittently b y h ibernating b ears , b ut t hat a t

Table 4 : N ISP a nd MNI e stimates f or t he f auna f rom t he G rosse G rotte , B aden-W trttemberg.

l ayer I I V ulpinae 7 /2 M ustelidae 3 /3 U . s pelaeus 1 69/19 E . c aballus 3 1+ C . e laphus 2 /+ R . t arandus 3 1+ C . i bex 17 /2 0 . a rgaloides 3 1+ L epus s p . 6 /1

I II

I V

V

V I

V II

V III

I X

2 /+

1+ 7 2/8

9 /2 1 61/19

8 /3

1+ 2 1+

1+

4 1+

2 /+

6 /2

1 2/1

1 /+

5 4/10

1+

4 1+

3 1+

1+

9 0

1 3/1

3 1+

6 1+

X I

X II

1+

2 1+

1 0/1

2 1+

t he s ame t ime p eople o ccasionally c amped a t i ts m outh while t hey b utche red i bex c aught l ocally . T his s ite c ould t herefore p ossibly b e i nterp reted a s a s pecialist i bex p rocessing s tation , a lthough s uch a s cenario p robably o ver-interprets t he f ew f aunal r emains r ecovered . T he W einbergh5hlen a t M auern c omprises a s eries o f g alleries , t he l argest o f which ( 1 ) i s a bout l üm wide a nd 2 0m l ong, l eading o ut o f a c entral c hamber s ome 3 0m w ide which f aces s outh a nd e ast a nd o f which ( 2 ) S aazer L och a re p arts . T he c ave s ystem i s s ituated a t 4 30m a msl i n a l imestone o utcrop a bout 5 0km n orth o f t he D anube west o f Munich . T he c aves were o riginally e xcavated i mmediately b efore a nd a fter World War I I ( Zotz 1 955 ). Pollen a nalytical r esearch ( Bohmers 1 951 ) undertaken t hen s uggested t hat t he Middle P alaeolithic d eposits f ormed d uring a p eriod o f f airly t emperate c limate d uring t he e arlier p art o f t he l ast g laciation . D uring t hese e xcavations , t he i ndividual c ave s tratigraphi es r evealed s imilar s equences o f d eposits i ncluding f our a rtefactual h orizons i ncluding l ayer F 16 which p roduced a rtefacts o f p raeSzeletian o r ' Altn i1hlian ' t ype , p ossibly d ating t o t he H engelo i nterstadial, a nd l evels G 18 a nd H /9 c ontaining a Middle P alaeolithic i ndustry o f l ate M icoquian t ype with b lattspitzen , s imilar t o t hat f rom t he B ockstein , d ating t o t he e arly p art o f t he W&m g laciation . S ubsequent r e-excava tion d id n ot s eriously r evise i ts s tratigraphy o r a ge M tller-Beck 1 975 ).

Table 5 : B avaria.

( Koenigswald a nd

N ISP a nd M NI e stimates f or t he f auna f rom t he Weinbergh5hlen ,

l ayer

1 /F

hG

1 /H

2 /6

2 /8

2 /9

1 1+ 9 2/12 1 3/1 1 /+ 1 6/3

9 /4 2 /+ 2 /1

1 1+ 2 /+ 1 /+ 6 /3

3 1+ 1 2/2 3 1+

2 1+ 5 /2 1 1+ 3 /+ 2 /+ 1 9/3

P . l eo C . c rocuta C . l upus V . v ulpes Ä l agopus Mustelidae U . s pelaeus E . p rimigenius C . a ntiquitatis

2 1+ 1 03/12 1 9/2 2 7/5 1 8/3 5 /3 5 67/60 2 1/3 5 9/7

2 65/23 1 3/3 1 1/2

E . c aballus C . e laphus R . t arandus M . g iganteus B os/Bison s p . C . i bex p us s p. T . e uropaeus

2 09/9 9 /2 1 9/3 5 /+ 2 7/4 2 /+ 2 4/11

5 9/6 1 /+ 5 /+ 2 /1 2 /+ 1 /+ 1 /+

1 /+ 9 1/11 5 /3 4 /2 2 0/3 1 /+ 3 /+ 2 /2 4 /2

2 6/3

2 /+ 2 2/7

S L/2 1 1+ 1 0/2 3 5/2 3 4/4 1 4/3 8 7/5 6 /2

1 /+

6 /+ 2 /+ 2 /+

1 1/1 5 /+ 1 9/1

5 /2 2 /+

1 /+ 5 /1 5 2/3 2 /+

I n T able 5 t he r emains i dentified by K oenigswald f rom t he 1 937-8 a nd 1 967 e xcavations ( Koenigswald , M iller-Beck a nd P ressmar 1 984 :53-106 ) h ave b een a dded t o t hose i dentified by H eller f rom t he 1 947-9 s easons ( Zotz 1 955 :220-305 ). N o a dditional s pecies were i dentified , b ut c onside rable d etail h as b een a dded t o t he o riginal i nterpretation , p articularl y o f t he U pper P alaeolithic d eposits ( Koenigswald a nd M dller-Beck 1 975 :

9 1

1 12-6 ). T he f auna i s d ominated b y c ave b ear , which i s r epresented by s everal i ndividuals i n e ach a ge g roup : a t l east 4 -5 n eonates , 7 -9 j uveni les, 3 -4 m ature a nd 1 7 a dult whole s keletons ; a nother 3 j uveniles a nd o ver 7 0 a dults were i dentified f rom i solated t eeth . O f t he c arnivores, t he h yaena w as t he m ost c ommon , b ut wolf , r ed a nd a rctic f ox w ere a lso p resent i n a ll l ayers a nd r epresented by a ll p arts o f t he s keleton . C oprolites a re a lso r eported, s trengthening t he s uggestion t hat t he c aves s erved a s a nimal d ens . T he n umerous h ares were p robably t he p rey o f f oxes . R elatively f ew r emains o f t he l arger h erbivores were r ecove red . T he c ervids a nd b ovids were m ostly r epresented b y s ingle i ndividu als i dentified mainly f rom t eeth a nd a ntler f ragments . T he s tate o f bone preservation p rompted K oenigswald, Muller-Beck a nd P ressmar t o e ndorse Z otz 's o riginal i nterpretation o f t he s ite a s a b ear a nd h yaena d en ( 1984 :99-100 ). C ertainly t he n umber o f t eeth a nd c ranial f ragments f ound s uggests t hat animals were brought i nto t he c aves whole, which i s more l ikely t o r eflect n on-human c arnivore t han h uman b ehaviour . O nly h orse , m ammoth a nd r hino were r epresented b y s everal i ndividuals . H orse a nd m ammoth were i dentified m ainly f rom d ental f ragments , i ncludi ng m ilk t eeth a nd t usk f ragments, whose s ignificance i n t erms o f h uman b ehaviour i s o bscure . T he r hino r emains i n l ayer F i nclude a dult p ostc ranial material, h owever whether t hese a nimals r epresent h uman f ood d ebris i s d oubtful. A ltogether t he f aunal s pectrum o f t he w einbergh 3hlen s uggests t hat , d espite t he p resence o f m any s tone a rtefacts , t his was a nother c ave w hich s erved p rimarily a s a n a nimal d en a t which p eople w ere o nly i nfrequent v isitors . A n umber o f k arstic c ave s ystems i n t he l imestones o f t he A ustrian A lps h ave p roduced c opious r emains o f c ave b ear , i n s ome c ases t ogether w ith a f ew s tone a rtefacts g enerally c onsidered t o b e o f M iddle P alaeol ithic t ype ( Ehrenbe rg 1 951 ). T hese f inds h ave f ormed t he b asis o f t he i rritatingly i ndestructible i dea t hat P alaeolithic p eople h ad d evised a c ult o f t he c ave b ear, but t his n otion h as b een s hown a bove t o b e u nsubstantiated ( Spahni 1 954 ). O f t hese c aves , t wo h ave b een p ublished i n s ufficient d etail t o m erit c onsideration h ere . R epolusth hle i s o ne o f s everal c aves f ormed i n t he n orth f lank o f a small t ributary o f t he Mur a t l 3 adl i n S tyria, Austria . T he l ong, n arrow s outh-facing c ave i s a bout 3 0m d eep a nd s ituated a t a bout 5 00m amsi . I t w as f irst i nvestigated i n 1 910 . I n 1 948 e xcavations b y i ' i ottl ( 1951 ) r evealed 4m o f d eposits i ncluding t hree f ossiliferous l ayers s eparated b y s terile d eposits: 6 a g reybrown e arthy t ill a nd 8 a g rey s and, a ttributed t o t he e arly p art o f t he l ast g laciation, a nd 1 1 r edb rown p hosphate e arth , a ttributed t o t he l ast i nterglacial , a lthough t he f auna i s n ot p articularly c limatically d iagnostic . T he r emains f rom l ayer 1 1 were p oorly p reserved . S ome M iddle P alaeolithic a rtefacts were a lso r ecovered . T he f auna was n ot published i n s ufficient d etail t o p ermit i ts r e-interpretation , b ut s ome g eneral c omments a re p ossible . I t i s dominated by c ave b ear a nd i bex , both r epresented by a dult a nd j uvenile i ndividuals a nd a ll p arts o f t heir s keletons . L ayer 1 1 a lso p roduced m any b ones o f n eonate b ears . Most o f t he b ones h ad n ot s uffere d p ostmortem d amage . Most o f t he E uropean P leistocene c arnivores i ncluding l ion , l eopard , w ild c at, wolf , d hole , r ed f ox , b adger , m arten ( Martes m artes ) a nd m armot ( Marmota m armota ), were r epresented b y n ume rous r emains o f a ll p arts o f t heir s keletons . I n c ontrast, h erbivores a re p oorly r epresented . O nly a f ew b ones o f h orse , m ammoth , r ed , r oe , a nd g iant d eer, r eindeer, d os/Bison, c hamois, wild b oar a nd h are were r ecovered . T his s pectrum s uggests t hat R epo1usthihle s erved p rimarily a s a b ear d en i n w hich s everal i ndividuals d ied d uring h ibernation . T he

9 2

f requency o f c arnivores s uggests t hat t hey a lso l aired h ere , w hile t he r arity o f h erbivore r emains a rgues a gainst a l arge h uman i nput i nto t his a ssemblage . W hether t he i bex w ere h unted b y p eople , o ther c arnivores, o r e ntered t he c ave i ndependently i t i s i mpossible t o s ay, b ut t his f auna h as i nteresting p arallels w ith t hat f rom H ortus, F rance , w here I s uggested ( Webb 1 988b ) t hat t he i bex h ad p robably d ied n aturally . S alzofenhöhle l ies s ome 6 0km n orthwest o f R epolust 1 hle a t 2 000m a msi i n t he T otes G ebirge , A ustria . T he c ave w as i nvestigated b y K örber i n 1 924-1944 who a ssumed t hat t he p lentiful c ave b ear r emains h e f ound r epresented h uman f ood d ebris . I t was s ubsequently r e-excavated b etween 1 948 a nd 1 958 by E hrenberg ( 1952, 1 958-8 ), who c oncluded t he d eposits f ormed d uring e ither t he l ast i nterglacial o r a n e arly W drmian i nters tadial. T he f auna i s overwhelmingly d ominated b y c ave b ear . T he r emains o f o ver 2 00 h ave b een i dentified . T hey c omprise m ale a nd f emale a dults a nd j uveniles o f a ll a ges . A f ew b rown b ear bones were a lso r ecovered t ogether w ith e vidence f or wolf , g lutton , l ion , b adger a nd a m arten . U nsurprisingly , g iven t he a ltitude o f t he s ite , t he o nly h erbivore r ecovered r epresented c hamois and i bex . A lthough t he c ave d id p roduce a f ew a rtefacts o f Middle P alaeolithic t ype, t here i s l ittle r eason t o a ttribute t his f aunal s pectrum t o h uman d ietary s trategies . L ike R epolust , i t s eems t o h ave s erved p rimarily a s ab ear d en , t o which n on-human c arnivores c ame e ither t o s cavenge o r f or s helter . While p eople m ight h ave b een h unting c hamois a nd i bex i n t he T otes G ebirge , o n t he b asis o f t he a vailable i nformation t here i s n o p articular r eason t o a ttribute t hese r emains t o h uman b ehaviour . U nfortunately t he f aunal m aterial f rom K ilna c ave , n ear S loup n orth o f B rno i n t he Moravian k arst r egion o f C zechoslovakia , a s p ublished b y Musil ( Valoch e t a l. 1 969:8-20 ), i s n ot c apable o f r einterpretation . N onetheless i t m erits a b rief c omment . T he c ave was o riginally e xcava ted a t t he b eginning o f t his c entury . T hen a f actory was built t here d uring t he S econd World War . F inally t he c ave was r e-investigated b y V aloch ( 1971 ) f rom 1 961 . I t i s f unnel-shaped , 85f l l ong , 1 8m w ide a nd 6 8 m h igh , c ontains 1 3m o f d eposits a nd l ies f acing s outhwest a t t he l evel o f i ts v alley f loor . Valoch h as e xcavated t o b edrock a t t he f ront o f t he c ave r evealing a s equence o f n ine M iddle P alaeolithic a ssemblages o verlain b y f our l ate U pper P alaeolithic l ayers , i n l oessic b rownearths a nd bar ns i nterstatified w ith l imestone r oof f all a nd waterlain d eposits a t t he b ase . T he f auna r ecovered s eems l argely t o r eflect human p rov isioning s trategies . I t i s d ominated b y h erbivores . S everal c arnivore s pecies a re o nly m inimally p resent t hroughout t he a rchaeological d eposi ts . T he c ave b ear i s a lso e xtremely r are . T he c ave m ay well h ave b een t oo open t o h ave b een a ttractive a s ad en . S ix h erbivore s pecies s eem t o h ave b een p eoples ' p referred p rey , b ut t he c hanges i n t heir f requency o f o ccurrence were p robably a p roduct o f l ocal e nvironmental c onditions n ot c hanging human p references. C ave hyaena, wolf a nd c ave l ion a re p resent i n l ayer 1 1 where t he f auna i s d ominated b y h orse , w ith e lk a nd r ed deer . T he r are f auna o f t he m iddle l evels with b lattspitzen c omp rises h orse, woolly r hino, r eindeer, m ammoth a nd e lk ( Alces a lces ) e qually . R ed a nd a rctic f ox c an b e a dded t o t he o ther c arnivores . T he u pper ' Micoquian ' l evels a re d ominated b y m ammoth, with r eindeer , woolly r hino, h orse, c ave b ear a nd t he c arnivores a lready mentioned . T he p resence o f t he g lutton d uring two e pisodes i n l ayer 7 i s n oteworthy . T his r apacious s cavenger would h ave b een a f earsome h uman c ompetitor . A v ery d ifferent s ituation o btained a t i pka c ave, a lso i n t he Moravian k arst r egion . T he s ite was e xcavated i n t he l ate n ineteenth

9 3

c entury when 8 0,000 b ones were r ecovered . O f t hese 1 4,000 s urvive i n t he B rno Museum a nd h ave b een r e-examined b y M usil ( 1965 ). H e c onclude d, g iven t hat b ear r epresented 8 0% o f t he t otal N ISP , t hat t he c ave s erved c hiefly a s a b ear d en , a lthough p eople d id i nhabit i t o ccasionall y . T he o ther m ost c ommonly o ccurring s pecies w ere h orse a nd B os/Bison . U nits I II a nd I V a re a ttributed t o t he M iddle P alaeolithic o n t he b asis o f t he a rtefacts t hey c ontained . I n u nit I II s ome b ones h ad b een g nawed b y h yaenas , e specially t hose o f t he woolly r hino , a bout h alf t he N SIP , b ut a lso s ome o f t he b ovid a nd h orse b ones . M any f ragments , i ncluding p art o f ah uman m andible , h ad b een b urnt . Most o f t he b ear a nd m ammoth bones r epresented j uveniles . W ild a ss ( E . hydruntinus ), r ed d eer and m armot b ones were a lso i dentified , while t he c arnivores i ncluded f ox , wolf a nd g lutton . I n unit I V c ave l ion a nd l eopard r emains were more n umerous t han i n u nit I II. A s i n u nit I II a bout half t he r hino b ones s howed h yaena g nawing . T he c ave b ear was a gain r epresented m ainly b y j uveniles . T heir r emains i ncluded a l arge n umber o f p enis b ones . Many b ones a lso s how g nawing b y r odents a nd e ven wolves . T he m ammoth b ones h ave m arks s uggesting t hey were b rought t o t he c ave b y l arge p redators . R emains o f v ery l arge r ed d eer, c hamois, wild hog and beaver ( Castor f iber ) were a lso r ecovered . T he p resence o f m usk o x t ogether a nd c oll ared l emming ( Dicrostonyx t orquatus ) i n t his unit i s d ifficult t o r econcile with t hat o f s aiga a ntelope ( Saiga t artarica ) and r oe d eer . P robably t his unit r epresents a considerable t ime during a p eriod o f c limatic i nstability . While p recise d ata a re l acking , i t i s c lear f rom t he p reponderance o f c ave b ear a nd t races o f g nawing o n m any o ther b ones t hat o nly p art o f t his f auna c an b e a ttributed t o human p rovisioning s trategies. Gabori-Csank ( 1983) h as r ecently published t he r esults o f h er excavations i n t he R emete ' felsö ' ( upper ) c ave, i n t he v icinity o f Budapest . A lthough s he s tates categorically t hat t he f auna i s t he p roduct o f h uman h unting a nd d ismisses o ut o f h and t he p ossibility t hat b ears i n p articular c ould h ave d enned t here ( 1983:265 ), h er c onclusion c an b e questioned . R emete ' felsö ' i s a small c ave, 2 .4m wide a nd 0 .70m h igh a t t he e ntrance o pening i nto two c hambers e ach a bout 9 m l ong s epara ted b y a n arrow c onstriction . I t l ies a t 3 50m amsl a nd 7 0m a bove i ts v alley f loor . A s ingle P alaeolithic h orizon , l ayer 4 , was f ound t owards t he b ase o f t he 2 m o f m ostly H olocene d eposits . T his p roduced a d ozen a rtefacts o f S zeletian t ype and a f auna dominated by c ave b ear ( NISP 1 10 ) but i ncluding a f ew bones e ach o f l ion, wolf, f ox a nd mustelid . Horse ( NISP 1 1 ), bovid ( 9 ) and r ed d eer ( 8 ) were t he most f requently o ccurring h erbivores, but a f ew r emains, mostly t eeth, o f mammoth, woolly r hino, g iant d eer, i bex , musk o x and r eindeer were a lso f ound . H are b ones were m ore c ommon ( NISP 1 9 ). A f ragment o f N eandertal mandi ble was a lso r ecovered . U nfortunately G abori-Csank d oes n ot p ublish t he d etails t hat would e nable a s ure r einterpretation o f t his a ssemb lage . H er a rgument t hat t he entrance was t oo small t o encourage i ts u se b y h ibernating b ears i s u nconvincing o n t wo c ounts . F irst a s s tated above, f emale b ears p refer t o d en i n small c aves, a lso t he s ize o f t he PLeistocene e ntrance i s n ot k nown . T he p reponderance o f b ear bones l inked t o t he s mall n umber o f s tone a rtefacts a nd o ther f aunal r emains , s uggests o n t he c ontrary t hat t his cave was i ndeed a b ear d en . H er a rgument t hat t he b ones o f t he l arger h erbivores a re u nlikely t o r epres ent n atural d eaths i n t he c ave i s a ccepted . T hese f aunal r emains p robably i nclude a human d ietary c omponent b ut t he e clectic r ange o f herbivores r ecovered a nd t he p resence o f s everal carnivorous s pecies s uggests t hat t he l atter p layed a p art i n t heir a ccumulation .

9 4

B acho K iro i s a l arge c ave 1 5m l ong b y 5 m w ide , l ying a t a bout 2 50m amsl i n t he mountains o f c entral Bulgaria, n ear T irnovo . I ts 2m h igh e ntrance f aces n orth . S oundings were o riginally made i n 1 938 ( Garrod 1 939 ). S he o pened u p a s eries o f t est p its w hich r evealed a s equence o f U pper P alaeolithic o ccupations a t t he base o f which i n l ayers k a nd 1 s he f ound Mousterian m aterial. T he c ave was r e-excavated i n 1 971-5 ( Kozlowski 1 981 ) t o o btain m ore d etailed i nformation a bout i ts s tratig raphy a nd o ccupation h istory . T his i nvestigation amplified h er s equenc e, but whether o r n ot h er l ayers k a nd 1 a re i dentical t o t he Middle P alaeolithic l evels l la-14 i dentified l ater i s n ot c lear . K oz lowski t hinks t hat t hese l evels d ate t o t he e arlier p art o f t he l ast g laci ation, but t he r adiocarbon a ges o btained i ndicate merely t hat t he s amples were t oo o ld t o b e d ated .

Table 6 : g aria.

N ISP a nd MNI e stimates f or t he f auna f rom B acho K iro, Bul-

l ayer C . c rocuta C . l upus C . a lpinus V . v ulpes A . l agopus Mustelidae U . s pelaeus E . c aballus E . h ydruntinus C . e laphus B os/Bison s p . C . i bex

ha 1 2/2 1 2/2 2 /+ 1 9/3 4 /2 1/3 1 3 4/5

2 1+ 2 1+

1 2

1 3

1 3h

1 6/3 1 3/2 2 /+ 16 /1 2 /+

5 /2

1+ 1+

7 6/8 1 2/1 8 /3

1 9/4 1 5/3 5 /2 1 7/5 1 0/1 1 2/2

3 1+ 2 /+ 7 /1 2 /+

1+

2 /2

2 1+

3 1+

1 0/1

1 4/2

1 4

1+

6 /1

3 6/16

1+ 2 1+ 5 1+

2 1+

1+

T he mammalian s pecies i dentified i n t he l ater i nvestigations by Wiszniowska ( Kozlowski 1 981:52-66 ), whose d ata a re u sed i n T able 6 , c onfirm t hose o riginally r eported by P opov ( Garrod 1 939 :85-126 ). C ave b ear was t he s ingle most commonly o ccurring s pecies t hroughout t he d eposits a t B acho K iro a nd t he o nly o ne r epresented b y a ll p arts o f i ts s keleton . B rown b ear i n c ontrast was i dentified f rom o nly f our b ones . Wiszniowska r emarks ( Kozlowski 1 981 :52-3 ) o n t he u nusual p redominance o f f emales i n t he bear r emains r ecovered h ere . T hey were t hree t imes a s n umerous a s males . B ears s eparate s exually during h ibernation with m ales p referring l arger c aves a nd f emales s electing s maller o nes . W iszn iowska was a ble t o c arry o ut s ome p opulation s tatistics ( ibid . ) s howing mmature i ndividuals w ho h ad d ied t hat t he f ew m ales f ound were s exually i a ged l ess t han 3 y ears . T he o lder i ndividuals were a ll f emales 2 7% o f whom were o ver 1 0 y ears o ld a nd 3 7% were s exually i mmature i ndividuals l ess t han 3 y ears o ld . S uch a t hanatocoenosis i s ac lassic p roduct o f n atural d eaths d uring h ibernation . While t he a rtefacts r ecovered c learl y i ndicate t hat p eople d id u se t he c ave, t here i s c ertainly n o r eason t o s uppose t hese r emains r epresent s ome s ort o f h uman b ear c ult o r t hat t he b ears w ere t he o b ject o f h uman h unting . Most o f t he k nown P leistocene c arnivores o f E urope were c onsistent-

9 5

l y p resent i n t hese l evels, but t hey h ave b een i dentified mainly f rom d ental r emains . F or e xample l ion was r epresented b y o nly two t eeth . F or t he o ther c arnivores both j uveniles a nd a dults a re r ecorded . T he a ge s pectra a nd t ype o f b ody p arts s urviving s uggest t hat m ost o f t hese a nimals d ied n atural d eaths while t hey were l airing i n t he c ave i n t he a bsence o f e ither p eople o r b ears . T he p resence o f a rctic f ox t his f ar s outh s uggests t hat c limatic c onditions were f airly r igorous a t l east i n winter . G arrod ( 1939 :73-5 ) c laimed t o h ave i dentified 1 5 b one t ools i n h er l ayer k a nd 2 0 i n l ayer 1 . Most o f t hose i llustrated a ppear r ather t o r epresent f ortuitous a lteration p ost-mortem , p robably b y c arnivores . H erbivores a re p oorly r epresented h ere , m ainly b y d ental f ragments, a lthough a l ittle p ostcranial m aterial i s a lso r ecorded . T he p resence o f s kull material s uggests t hat t he animals o riginally e ntered t he c ave whole . Only t he e quids, b ovids, i bex a nd r ed d eer, o f which a t l east two were j uveniles, a re r epresented by more t han s ingle i ndividuals . R oe d eer , g iant d eer a nd c hamois were e ach i dentified f rom o nly t wo o r t hree b ones . One b ovid h orn c ore f rom l ayer 7 /6b i n t he e arly U pper P alaeolithic s hows t races o f c arnivore g nawing . T he r ange o f h erbivore s pecies but r arity o f i ndividual r emains p reserved i n t hese d eposits s uggest t hat t his c ave was o nly i nfrequently v isited and t hat o ther c arnivores m ay well h ave c ontributed a s much t o t he f ew s urviving t races o f f ood-getting s trategy a s d id p eople . I t s eems t o h ave s erved p rimari ly a s ab ear d en . A c onsiderable b at , r odent a nd i nsectivore f auna ( Kozlowski 1 981 : 3 9-51 ) p robably r epresenting r emains f rom owl p ellets was r ecovered, p articularly f rom l ayers 1 1-13 , s uggesting t hat t he c ave was o ccupied eople a t t hat t ime t o h ave b een a p refers ufficiently i nfrequently b y -p r ed r oosting p lace f or owls . T he p rey s pecies i dentified s uggest t hat t he environment o f t he owls ' hunting t erritory was mainly s teppic a t t his t ime but t hat p atches o f d eciduous f orest were available i n t he v icinity a nd marshy c onditions even e xisted, p robably i n t he valley b ottom . T he e cological t olerances o f t he m icrofauna s uggest t hat a c ool humid c limate during l ayers 1 3 and 1 2 h ad ameliorated t o warmer but wetter c onditions i n l ayer ha .

Conclusions T he u ltimate a im o f a ll a rchaeological r esearch s hould b e t he r econstruction o f p ast h uman l ifeways . H owever , d ue t o t he q uality o f a rchaeological i nformation , t his i s o ften n ot p ossible . A n a ttempt h as b een made h ere t o r e-examine t he s upposition t hat t he a nimal bones r ecovered f rom s ome C entral E uropean M iddle P alaeolithic s ites a ctually p rovide c redible e vidence f or t he f ood-getting b ehaviour o f t he N eandert al p eople , who p resumably m ade t he s tone a rtefacts a nd ' hearths ' f ound a pparently i n a ssociation with t he b ones, b y t aking i nto c onsideration which s keletal p arts o f which s pecies h ad b een p reserved a nd w hether t he bones s how a ny evidence f or post-mortem d amage, a nd r e-interpreting t hose d ata i n t he l ight o f r ecent r esearch o n t he t aphonomic p rocesses b y which a rchaeological f aunal a ssemblages c ome t o b e p reserved f or u s t o s tudy . A s n oted a bove o nly c ertain s keletal p arts a re r egularly p resent i n t hese a ssemblages , which makes t heir i nterpretation i n t aphonomic t erms d ifficult . Most o f t he s pecies r epresented , w hether p redators o r p rey , were i dentified f rom c ranial, d ental o r p edal f ragments, s uggesting t hat

9 6

t he a nimals were whole when t hey entered t he s ite . H owever, t hese s keletal p arts a re a lso a ll s mall a nd d ense a nd h ence l ikely t o s urvive whole , f or e xample p halanges c an b e g rossly a ssigned t o s pecies o n s ize a lone, while t eeth a re u nique t o s pecies a nd c an u sually t herefore be a ssigned a t l east t o g enus e ven when f ragmentary , p articularly i n E urope where many g enera a re r epresented by o nly o ne s pecies. Other postc ranial m aterial i s u sually l ess f requently i dentified b ecause i n m any o f t hese s ites i t h as b een f ragmented b eyond r ecognition . Whether t his b ehaviour s hould b e a ttributed t o p eople i n t he a bsence o f e vidence f or o ther a nimals k nown t o m odify b ones , s uch a s t he c anids a nd p orcupine , r emains t o b e d emonstrated c onclusively o n more s uitable r emains f rom m odern e xcavations t han t hose d iscussed h ere . Nonetheless, s ome p atterns o f s keletal p art r epresentation a re b eginning t o emerge . B ones f rom s ites which s erved p rimarily a s a nimal l airs a ppear t o be d ifferently f ragmented o r a t l east d ifferent fr agm ents s urvive f rom t hose o n s ites r eflecting h uman b ehaviour . U sually a t a nimal l airs a v ariety o f c arnivore s pecies a re r epresented b y s evera l i ndividuals o f a ll a ges f rom mature a dults t o n eonates , t he b ones o f which a re s ometimes a rticulated s uggesting t hat t he a nimals d ied a n atural d eath . Coprolites a re a lso s ometimes f ound, p articularly i n h yaena d ens. T he d ominant s pecies a t s everal o f t he s ites d iscussed h ere , f or e xample R epolust , S alzofen a nd S ipka , i s t he c ave b ear . I t i s a lways r epresented b y i ndividuals o f a ll a ges, b ut p articularly t he v ery y oung and o ld, whose b ones a re o ften s till i n a natomical connection , s uggesting t hat t he a nimals d ied d uring h ibernation . O n t hese c riteria , t here i s no r eason t o s uppose t hat s ome o f t he f aunas d iscussed a bove r eflect exclusively human u se o f t he s ites i n question , p articularly g iven t he r arity o f s tone a rtefacts . A t s uch s ites p eople s eem t o h ave b een i nfrequent v isitors t o what were p rimarily a nimal l airs . However, a t o ther s ites, f or example K ulna, t he evidence f or a d efinite human ' overprint ' on t he bones r ecovered i s c learer . Such s ites u sually y ield f ew c arnivore o r c ave b ear r emains , f requently t he n umber o f s tone a rtefacts r ecovered i s g reater , b ut most i mportantly t he b ones o f a l imited r ange o f h erbivore s pecies a re p resent i n c onsidera ble quantities and o ften s ome o f t he bone has b een burnt . On t hese s ites any h erbivore l imb bones present have u sually b een f ragmented b eyond r ecognition . T he s pectrum o f s pecies p reserved a nd n ature o f t he post-mortem d amage n oted i s considered to r eflect human behaviour t o s ome extent . Nonetheless s uch f aunal material c an o nly y ield a v ery l imited amount o f i nformation a bout Neandertal d iet, a bout which t oo m any s implistic a ssumptions h ave b een m ade . I t s till r emains t o d eterm ine what t he a nimal b ones f ound o n a rchaeological s ites m ean i n t erms o f p ast h uman b ehaviour . O ne o f t he m ajor p roblems i n i nterpreting t he f aunal r emains f ound o n M iddle P alaeolithic s ites i s t o d etermine t he p eriod o f t ime r epres ented by t he i ndividual l ayers and during which t he s ite was u sed by p eople . Whether h uman o ccupation was p ermanent o r t ransitory a nd , i f s easonal, a t what t ime o f y ear i t o ccurred, a re f ascinating questions which r emain u nanswered a t p resent d ue t o t he i nadequacies o f t he d ating t echniques a vailable . T he s tratigraphic u nits r ecognised i n c aves p roba bly r epresent t he s low p rocess o f s edimentation o ver m illenia . I f s uch e stimates o f t he t ime r equired f or s ite f ormation a re c orrect t hen t he b one f ragments r ecovered e ven f rom s ites l ike t he B ockstein o r S tadel where t he f aunal r emains were r elatively n umerous , t ake o n n ew m eaning . I t c an b e s een t hat a ctually v ery l ittle b one r efuse h as s urvived,

9 7

s uggesting b oth t hat t here h as b een c onsiderable a ttrition i n t he a rcha eological r ecord a nd t hat o nly a t iny p roportion o f t he t otality o f p ast h uman b ehaviour h as b een p reserved f or modern i nterpretation . Moreover , g iven t he s lowness o f s ediment d eposition most a rchaeological l ayers p robably p reserve a p alimpsest o f s everal d iscrete e vents which were w idely s eparated i n t ime when t hey o ccurred . H ence , what f ossil m aterial h as s urvived p resents a v ery b lurred a nd p artial p icture o f t he p ast . R ecent a ttempts a t s tudying h ow p eople e xploited t he f ood r esourc es a vailable d uring t he P leistocene ( Gamble 1 978 ; Weniger 1 982 ; S affiro 1 983 ) while l audable a re l ikely t o be s ubjected t o s evere r evision i n t he f uture a s o ur u nderstanding o f t he p rocesses o f s ite f ormation a nd t he n ature o f t he f aunal r ecord t hey p reserve b ecome i ncreasingly s ophi sticated . While t here i s c learly a d anger a t present o f an overr eaction away f rom t he e arlier untested a ssumption t hat animal b ones f ound o n a rchaeological s ites were brought t here by p eople, t owards a v iew t hat l ittle o r n one o f t his f aunal material, p articularly when r ecovered f rom P alaeolithic c aves a nd r ockshelters, r eflects h uman b eh aviour , i t i s a lso s eems t hat t he f aunal r emains e xcavated f rom M iddle P alaeolithic s ites c an t ell u s l ittle a bout p ast h uman b ehaviour . O ther i nterpretive p roblems m ake t he r econstruction o f h uman e xp loitation o f a n a nimal p opulation d ifficult . I t i s i mpossible n ow t o e stablish whether t he f aunal r emains f ound o n an archaeological s ite r eflect a d eliberate s election b y p eople o f p referred g ame a nimals f rom t he l ocal b iomass o r whether a nimals were c aught o n a c atch-as-catch-can b asis . A lthough t he f aunal r emains f rom most a rchaeological s ites s eem t o r ecord o ne o r t wo p redominant s pecies, f or e xample t he i bex a t G rosse G rotte a nd t he h orse a t t he B ockstein , s uch a pparent p referential s ele ction m ay s imply r eflect t hat t hese s pecies were l ocally a bundant o r t he e asiest g ame t o t ake n ear t hat p articular s ite . H owever , t hey m ight a lso h ave b een p rized f or t otemic r easons . C ertainly t he s pecies which t end t o p redominate on a rchaeological s ites a re a ll g regarious h erbivores o f medium body s ize . U nfortunately, t hese animals a re a lso a ll t he p referred p rey o f t he c arnivores t hen e xtant . T hus i t r emains d ifficult t o d isentangle h uman b ehaviour f rom t hat o f o ther c arnivores i n t he a rchaeological r ecord . T his a rticle c annot h ope t o b e d efinitive ,

i t i s m erely a n a ttempt

t o i nterpret t he d ata a s f ar a s p ossible without s tretching t he e vidence u nreasonably . Would t hat i t c ould s till b e s implistically a ssumed t hat a g iven n umber o f c ervid f emora f ound o n a g iven s ite i ndicates t hat s o many d eer were k illed b y p eople with a p reference f or h aunch o f v enison !

Note T his p aper i s o ne o f t hree i nterlinked c ontributions I h ave e ndeavoured t o make t o c urrent t hinking on t he a nalysis and d escription o f h uman d ietary p references a nd p rovisioning s trategies i n t he e arly U pper P leistocene ( Webb 1 988b, 1 988c ). Because t he t exts were expected t o appear a pproximately s imultaneously i n p ublications u nlikely t o r each t he s ame a udience a c ertain amount o f r epitition h as p roven u navoidable .

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i nsight i n

T URNER , A . 1 981 P redation and palaeolithic man in northern England . i n B ARKER , G .W .W . ( ed ) P rehistoric c ommunities i n n orthern E ngland , p p . 1 1-26 . U niversity o f S heffield P ress , S heffield . U ERPMANN, H -P . 1 973 Animal bone f inds and e conomic a rchaeology: a c ritical s tudy o f ' osteoarchaeological ' method . World A rchaeology 4 :307-322. VALJCH , K . 1 970-1 E arly Middle P alaeolithic ( Stratum 1 4 ) i n t he K ilna c ave n ear S loup i n t he Moravian k arst ( Czechoslovakia ). World A rchaeology 2 :28-38 . VALOCH , K ., P ELI EK, J ., MUSIL , R ., K ORANDA, J . and OPRAVIL, E . 1 969 D ie Erforschung d er Kulna-Höhle bei S loup im Mahrischen K arst ( Tschechoslovakei ). Q uat r 2 0 :1-45 . WAGNER , E . 1 983 D as M ittelpaläolithikum d er G rossen G rotte b ei B laubeuren ( Alb-Donau-Kreis ). Forschungen und B erichte z ur Vor-u nd F ruhgeschichte i n Baden-Württemberg, Band 1 6. T heiss Verlag, S tuttgart. WEBB, R .E . 1 988a T he implications f or Middle Palaeolithic culture h istory o f r ecent a ttempts a t r adiometric d ating . i n OTTE , M . ( ed ) A ctes d u C olloque l 'Homme d e N eandertal, L iege , 1 986 . ( in p ress ). WEBB ,

R .E . 1 988b A r eassessment o f t he f aunal e vidence f or Neandertal d iet b ased o n s ome western E uropean c ollections , i n ( YrrE , M . ( ed ) A ctes d u C olloque l 'Ho in ie d e N eandertal, L iege, 1 986. ( in p ress ).

WEBB ,

R .E . 1 988c U ne r emise e n c ause d e q uelques f aunes d u p l istocene s up'rieur c omme t moignage d e l 'alimentation nandertalienne t enant c ompte d e l a r echerche t aphonomique a ctuelle . A rchaeozoologia ( in p reparation ).

WETZE [ J ,

R .

1 961

D ie H öhlenstein i m L onetal .

M itteilungen d es V ereins

f ur N aturwissenschaft u nd M athematik i n U lm 2 6:21-75. WETZE L, R . a nd B OSINSKI, G . 1 969 D ie B ocksteinschmiede i m L onetal, ( II enkmalpflege T eilen . V eröffentlichungen d er S taatliche Amtes f ür— D S tuttgart , R eihe A , H efte 1 5 . M üller u nd G riff , S tuttgart .

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WINTE } HALDER , B . & SMITH, E .A . ( eds ) 1 981 H unter-gatherer f oraging s trategies . U niversity C hicago P ress, C hicago . WOILLARD, G .M. 1 978 Grande P ile p eatbog : ac ontinuous pollen r ecord f or t he l ast 1 40 ,000 y ears . Q uaternary R esearch 9 :1-21 . Z OTZ, L .F . 1 955 D as P al olithikum i n d en Weinberghöhlen bei Mauern . Q uatär B ibliothek I I . R 5hrscheid V erlag , B onn .

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B UTCHERH3 M ARKS O N H ORSE B ONES F ROM T HE M AGDAL E4IAN S ITE O F P ETERSFELS, S OUTHWESTERN GERMANY

H ubert B erke I nstitut f ür U rgeschichte D er U niversität T übingen S chloss, 7 400 T übingen , West G ermany

A bstract T he i nvestigation r eported o n h ere concerns a ll c ut mark t races f ound o n h orse b ones f rom t he P etersfels s ite . T he a nalyses u ndertaken a ddressed t he f ollowing q uestions : what k inds o f a rtefacts were u sed t o m ake t he c uts ; what w as t he i ntended u se o f t he b one ; what k inds o f c ut m arks o ccur o n which s keletal p arts ; what k inds o f a rtefacts were m ade f rom which b ones? U nlike t he r eindeer b ones f rom t he s ame s ite , t hese r esults s howed t hat t he h orse bones were mostly c ut u sing r etouched a rtefacts; c uts f rom d ifferent d irections h ad d ifferent u ses; impact s cars were l ocated a t p oints o f muscle a ttachment ; a nd p ebbles w ere u sed t o b reak b ones .

I ntroduction T he s ite o f P etersfels, s outhwestern Germany , i s l ocated i n t he t ransitional z one s tretching f rom t he f lat a lpine f oreland t o t he l owl ands a round t he B odensee , L ake C onstance , i n t he s outh . T he m ountaino us r egion o f t he S chwarzwald ( Black F orest ) l ies t o west a nd t he S chw äbische A lb ( Swabian A lps ) t o t he n ortheast . T he m aximum e xtension o f t he l ast , W ärmian , g laciation r eached t he v icinity o f t he s ite . T he s mall v alley w ith i ts s teep w alls, i n which t he P etersfels s ite i s s ituated , was c ut a s a d rainage c hannel b y m elti ng i ce a t t he e nd o f t he l ast g laciation . T he v alley i s c onstricted where i t i s n ow c rossed t ransversely b y r emnant l imestone r idges . C aves a re k nown i n s ome o f t hese J urassic l imestone o utcrops which were f ormed k arstically i n p re-Wdrmian t imes . T he P etersfels c ave i s o ne o f t hese . I ts l ocation i s s hown i n F igure 1 .

T he P etersfels s ite P etersfels i s a M agdalenian s ite d ated b y r adiocarbon t o b etween 1 3,000 a nd 1 2,000BP . I t h as b een t he o bject o f p rehistoric r esearch i nvestigations on s everal o ccasions . Between 1 927 a nd 1 930 P eters e xcavated b oth i nside t he c ave i tself a ri d a t t he e ntrance ( Peters 1 930 ; P eters a nd T oept e r 1 932 ). H is e xcavations were d one i n av ery r ough a nd 1 05

F igure 1 : L ate P alaeolithic s ites i n s outhwestern G ermany ( Magdalenian a nd ' Late P alaeolithic '). P etersfels i s n umber 2 2 . F rom H -J . Müller B eck ( ed ) 1 983 U rgeschichte i n B aden-Wirttemberg .

q uick f ashion s o t hat we h ave a lmost n o i nformation a bout t he l ayers a nd s tructures he f ound . I n p articular h e f ailed to f ind, o r a t l east t o r ecord a nd k eep, most o f t he small t ools l ike backed b ladelets a nd n eedle f ragments . A lso h e f ound n o b ones o f s mall m ammals . A ll o f t his material i s, o f course, very i nteresting f or t he i nterpretation o f Magdalenian t imes. During t he r ecent excavations i t was possible t o s ieve a p art o f t he s poil f rom h is e xcavations . On t he b asis o f t he m aterial we t hus r ecovered , we h ave b een a ble t o e stimate t he n umbers o f small t ools a nd bones which were o riginally present i n t he a rea h e e xcavated. S ince 1 975 G erd A lbrecht o f t he I nstitut f 1r U rgeschichte , U niversi ty o f T übingen, h as excavated i n v arious p laces a long t he f oot o f t he l imestone r idge i n which t he c ave s ite l ies a nd i n t he v alley i n f ront o f t he c ave . T he l ocations o f t he a reas h e h as d ug a re s hown i n F igure 2 . H e h as f ound a t l east 1 2 a rchaeological h orizons o f Magdalenian d ate i n t hese P leistocene s ediments ( Albrecht 1 979 ). T he c ave i s n ow empty o f a rchaeological d eposits, h owever t o t he e ast i n a rea P 3 s ome s tructures which s eem t o h ave b een t ent r ings a nd 1 06

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Figure 2 : Excavated a reas i n t he valley i n f ront o f t he P etersfels c ave , 1 974-9 .

f ood c aches were f ound i ndicating t here was a l iving a rea h ere .

While

m ore t o t he west , a nd d own wind g iven t he p revailing w ind d irection , i n t he l argest e xcavation u nit P l a b utchering a rea with r efuse was i denti fied . T he b one p reservation a t P etersfels i s e xcellent . A l arge amount o f b one h as b een r ecovered b oth f rom t he o ld P eters ' e xcavations i n t he c ave a nd f rom A lbrecht 's m ost more r ecent e xcavation u nits . I t h as b een p ossible , t herefore , t o c arry o ut d etailed a rchaeo-zoological i nvestigations

( Albrecht e t a l .

1 983;

B erke 1 984,

1 986 ).

R eindeer h unting a t P etersfels One o f t he t ransverse r idges mentioned a bove l ies c lose t o t he s ite . T his h as constricted t he v alley j ust i n f ront o f t he c ave t o a bout 3 0m a t t he p resent d ay . I n t he W&m t he v alley was a bout 2 0-25m w ide . T here was a s mall s easonally f lowing c reek c lose b y t o p rovide a s ource o f water . T his was o bviously a f avourable p lace f or hunting r eindeer ( Rar igif e r t arandus ) during t he a utumn migration which t ook p lace d uring t he s econd h alf o f O ctober . T he e vidence f or s easonality c omes f rom t he a ntlers a nd t he j uvenile m andibles . 1 07

P late 1 : C utmarks o n ar eindeer b one f rom P etersfels , s howing o ne t race i n t he f orm o f aV m ade b y a n u nretouched f lake . ( xlO ).

1 08

H owever , r eindeer h unters d o n ot u sually a ctually f ollow t he h erds d uring t heir m igration ( durch 1 972 ). A t P etersfels t he p eople s tayed p ut o ccupying t hemselves w ith t he f ollowing t asks : b utchering t he r eindeers k illed s toring t he m eat p reparing t he h ides p roducing s tone t ools f rom n earby f lint d eposits p roducing b one t ools, m ostly n eedles mak ing a rt o bjects p ossibly t rapping s now h ares ( Lepus t imidus ) h unting o ther a nimal s o n e very s uitable o ccasion T he main a ctivities a t P etersfels were t he h unting o f r eindeer d uring a s hort p eriod i n O ctober . S toring meat a nd c uring h ides was p robably f acilitated b y f rost which a lready o ccurs i n O ctober a t t he s ite a t t he p resent d ay . T he r eindeer were butchered j ust i n f ront o f t he c ave . T he a nimals were a lways c ut up by t he s ame t echnique u sing u nretouched s tone t ools a s t he d istribution o f t he s tone t ools a nd t he c ut m arks o n t he b ones s how ( Plate 1 ) . T he m arks s how s ingle c uts f rom which a lmost n o bone m aterial h as been r emoved . T herefore, i n c ross s ection t hese c uts a re s harply V -shaped w ith small r aised embankments o n e ither s ide . A lmost a ll p arts o f t he r eindeer s keleton were r epresented a t P etersfels w ith a p redominance o f t he h indquarters , which a re t he e asi est t o d etermine . I n t he r ichest a nd l argest e xcavation u nit P 1, which i s i nterpreted a s a b utchery s ite , t he r ecognition o f t he e ven d istribu tion o f t he s keletal p arts o f a t l east 2 5 r eindeer i s due l argely t o t he r elatively h igh n umber Ö f h indlimbs ( Albrecht e t a l . 1 983 :Fig . 6 ). T he r eindeer a ntlers a re c oncentrated i n two a reas o nly : t o t he e ast i n t he d irection o f t he c ave entrance a nd t he l iving a rea P 3. There i s more u nworked r aw antler i n t he l ower p art o f t he excavation and more worked a ntler t ools i n t he u pper p art . O n t he o ther h and t he d istribution a nd o ccurrence o f h orse ( Equus c aballus ) b ones i n t he b utchering a rea P l d emonstrates s patial d iffere nces ( Albrecht et a l. 1 983:Fig . 5 ). Most o f t he s kull e lements, t he f ractured l ong bones ( humerus, r adius, f emur and t ibia ) a nd t he t hird p halanges were f ound i n t he u pper d eposits; while t he r ibs, pelvis, s capulae a nd f eet b ones w ere f ound i n t he l ower d eposits . T his i s why o nly two h orses h ave b een r ecognised i n t his a rea . T hey a re r epresented m ostly b y s plintered l ong b ones , f oot b ones a nd m andibular f ragments , w hile t he v ertebral c olumn i s a lmost t otally m issing .

H orse butchery t echniques T he e xplanation f or t he d ifferences i n t he d istribution p attern o f t he b ody p arts p reserved f or t he two m ajor s pecies h unted , r eindeer a nd h orse, c an be f ound i n t he e nvironment o f t he s ite which e ncouraged d ifferent hunting s trategies f or t he two s pecies. Horses move i n s maller h erds a nd a re m uch m ore s hy t han a re t he b igger r eindeer h erds d uring m igration . T herefore h orses h ad t o be hunted a t a g reater d istance f rom t he s ite . Horses a lso h ave a g reater body weight t han r eindeer . T herefore , t he i nitial b utchering o f h orses i nto t he f ollowi ng i ndividual p arts t ook p lace a t t he k ill s ite : h ide w ith t hird p halanges h ead w ith m andible a nd t ongue

1 09

f ore l imb f rom t he s capula t o t he s econd p halanx h ind l imb f rom t he p artial p elvis t o t he s econd p halanx t he r ib c age w ithout t he v ertebrae By s tudying t he butchery marks o n a ll t he horse bones, both f rom P eters ' a nd A lbrecht 's e xcavations , a t otal o f a bout 3 0 a nimals , i t h as p roved p ossible t o r econstruct t he h orse-hunting s trategy o f t he M agdalenian people a t P etersfels and t heir t echniques f or butchering t heir k ills. A t a n u nknown d istance f rom t he s ite , p ossibly i n t he m ountainous r egions t o t he n ortheast and s outheast, a fter a s uccessful k ill t he hunters had f irst t o s kin t he horse u sing t he s harp e dge o f af lake o r b lade . T he r esultant c utmarks c an b e s een o n a f ew f rontal e lements o f t he s kull a nd o n s ome s econd p halanges ( Fig . 3 ). T he t hird p halanx a nd h oof were l eft a ttached t o t he s kin .

2cm F igure 3 :

S econd posterior p halange o f h orse f rom P etersfels .

W ith c ut

marks m ade w ith a n u nretouched f lake d uring s kinning .

T he n ext s tep, t he r emoval o f t he l egs, t ook more e ffort . A comb ination o f t he i nformation deducible f rom a ll t he cutmarks d etected d emonstrates t hat i nitially t hey c ut i nto t he f oreleg f rom t he f ront t o t he medial s ide o f t he humerus a nd t hen u p t o t he medial s ide o f t he s capula, a s s hown i n F igure 4 . G iven t hat t here a re n o t races o f c utmarks o n t he l ateral a nd c audal s ides o f t he h umerus , o ne c an i magine t hat s ubsequent b utchering c uts were m ade f rom t he i nside i n a c audall ateral d irection without t ouching t he bones. T o do t his a s econd p erson i s n ecessary t o hold t he a lmost d etached l eg u ntil i t i s comp letely s evered f rom t he b ody . Ac omparable process c an b e o bserved f rom a s tudy o f t he c utmark t races o n t he h indleg e xcept t hat h ere t he i nitial c uts were m ade f rom t he b ack, o r c audal, t o t he medial s ide o f t he f emur and t hen u p t o t he p elvis , a s s hown i n F igure 5 . I n c ontrast t o t he f orelimb which i s e asy t o s eparate o nce cut u nder t he s capula, t he pelvis h ad t o b e b roken b etween t he a cetabulum a nd s acrum b ecause t he t wo h alves o f t he p elvis a re f used i n a dult i ndividuals a t l east . T his was d one with a p ebble o r

1 10

5c m -

Figure 4 : l eft :

-:

I mpac t p o in t

B utchering m arks o n h orse h umeri f rom P etersfels .

l ateral, c ranial ,

F rom t he

m edial a nd c audal v iews .

s tone with a b lunt e dge . A t t he m oment i t i s n ot p ossible t o r econstruct t he r emoval o f t he s kull because n either t he base o f t he s kull nor t he nuchal vertebrae have b een f ound . Most o f t he s kull r emains r ecovered come f rom t he f rontal a nd mandible . A ll o f t he s eparated parts were t hen r eady f or t ransportation t o t he l iving s ite a nd f urther p rocessing t here . A t t he f oot o f t he s lope below t he P etersfels c ave, i n t he main butchering a rea, a ll t he p arts were d efleshed using r etouched s tone tools, a s t he cut marks on t he b ones s how . Various d ifferent c ut mark t races have been i dentified . P late 2 i llustrates h eavy c ut m arks m ade b y a s craper o r a n e nd r etouched t ool . E ach i ndividual c ut i s f ormed l ike a f lat U c ontaining s everal p arallel s cratches made at t he s ame t ime . I n P late 3 t he c ut was made by a r etouched e dge s haped l ike h alf a s teep-sided U with o ne f lat and one c oncave s ide . This i s t he most c ommon t ype o f c ut mark o n t he horse b ones f rom P etersfels . I n b oth t hese c ases , i n c ontrast t o t he c ut m ark o n r eindeer b one i llustrated i n P late 1 , b one h as b een r emoved f rom t he c ut i tself . O n a ll t he b ones a t t he p oints where m uscles were a ttached , 1 11

F igure 5 : B utchering m arks o n h orse f emora f rom P etersfels . t op : c audal, m edial, c ranial a nd l ateral v iews .

1 12

F rom t he

Plate 2 : T races o f a b low with a b lunt o bject on h orse bone f rom P etersfels . ( xlO ).

P late 3 : Cutmarks o n ah orse bone f rom P etersfels, s howing s everal t races f rom a s ingle c ut with a n e nd r etouched t ool i n t he f orm o f a k , x 1O ). f lat U .

13 1

Plate 4: Cutmarks on a horse bone from Petersfels, showing several traces from a single cut with a retouched tool in the form of half a steep U. (xlO J •

Plate 5: Traces of blows with a sharp edge on a horse bone from Pet.ersfels. ixlCJi. 114

m ainly o n t he h umerus , p elvis , f emur a nd t ibia , o ne c an f ind t races o f b lows with s harp o bjects, i llustrated i n P late 4 , made n ot with t he i ntention o f b reaking t he b one b ut t o l oosen t he muscle a ttachment a nd c ut l igaments a nd s inews . A ll t he s keletal p arts f or which t he p eople h ad n o f urther u se r emained a t t he b utchering p lace, P 1: r ibs, s capula, p elvis and t he m etapodials d own t o t he s econd p halanx . O n t he o ther h and , a ll t he l ong b ones a nd t he s kulls w ith t heir m andibles were t aken h igher u p t he s lope c loser t o t he c ave a nd t he l iving a rea j ust i n f ront o f i t . I n t his a rea we f ound a ll t he b ones a nd bone f ragments f rom horses which had b een processed f urther : t hird p halanges which were waste products o f h ide working ; t ooth a nd mandible f ragments, t he p roduct o f t ongue exp loitation ; s plinters f rom l ong b ones b roken f or m arrow e xtraction b y b lows f rom b lunt o bjects, s hown i n P late 5 . T hese l atter were t he f lattest p arts o f t he b ones which would h ave b een e asiest t o work . T he mandible f ragments f ound i n t his u pper p art o f t he s ite s how c learly t he method b y which t he t ongue was r emoved a s c an b e s een i n F igure 6 . T his was d one f rom b elow u sing a n e nd-retouched b lade while t he m andible was s till c onnected t o t he c ranium . T he f irst s tep was t o b reak t he h yoid bone . T his was f ollowed by a c ut f rom b elow n ear t he a rticulation a t t he a ngle o f t he j aw . T hen a nother c ut was made a long t he m andibular c orpus f rom b ack t o f ront a nd a t l east n ear t he a nterior s ymphesis d iagonal c uts were made f rom b elow . T he s pace b etween t he two h alf m andibles i s l ess t han 1 cm a t t his p oint .

m

F igure 6 : P etersfels,

B utchering m arks o n t he medial s ide o f h orse m andibles f rom s howing t he m ethod o f t ongue e xtraction .

T he d ifferences i n bone d istribution d escribed a bove were o nly v isible i n t he a nalyses a s a r esult o f t he s mall n umber o f h orses i n t he e xcavated a rea . I f t here h ad b een m ore , t he p attern would h ave b een a s v ague a s i t i s f or t he r eindeer b one d istribution . I t i s ap ity t hat we know n othing a bout t he b one d istribution p attern within t he c ave, but t he o ccurrence t here o f a l ot o f worked b one , n ot o nly o f h orse , a nd t he d ebris o f bone t ool p roduction s uggests t hat t he c ave was u sed i n a c ompletely d ifferent w ay .

15 1

Conclusions ' i y i nterpretation o f t he butchery marks described above and t he d istribution o f t he a nimals bones i n t he e xcavated a reas p ermit u s t o b e f airly s ure o f our i nterpretations o f t he a ctivities carried out by P alaeolithic hunters at t he P etersfels s ite . Conclusions about t he e nvironment a round P etersfels d uring l i agdalenian t imes a re a lso p ossi ble . T he h igher a reas were c overed p redominantly b y s teppic b iota a s i ndicated b y t he o ccurrence o f h orse a nd s now h are . H owever t he r eind eer , a lthough i t was t he most i mportant g ame a nimal a t P etersfels, was only a s hort-term guest which passed by b riefly during i ts autumn m igration f rom i ts s ummer r anges i n t he a lpine f oreland t o i ts p referred w inter r anges i n t he r egion o f t he l ower a nd m iddle N eckar .

Acknowl edgements T he research r eported on here was undertaken with t he f inancial s upport o f t he D eutsche F orschungsgemeinschaft and t he Auswartige Amt d er Bundesrepublik D eutschland .

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BERKE, H . 1 984 T he d istribution o f bones f rom l arge mammals in t he Magdalenian s ite P etersfels ( Engen, Hegau ) i n t he a rchaeological horizon ( AH ) 3 , s ite P 1. i n BERKE, H ., HAHN, J . and K IND, C-J . ( eds ) U pper P alaeolithic s ettlement p atterns i n E urope , p p . 1 03-8 . U rgeschichtliche Haterialhefte 6 . Archaeologica Venatoria, Tü bingen. BERKE,

F l . 1 986 Arch ozoologische D etailuntersuchungen a n K nochen a us 1 dwestdeutschen Magdalenien-Inventaren . U rgeschichtliche Materi alhefte . A rchaeologica Venatoria , ' B ibinqen . ( in p ress ).

BURCH, E .F ., Jr . 1 972 T he caribou/ wild r eindeer a s a human r esource . American A ntiquity 3 7:339-368 . PETERS, E . F ilser , P ETERS,

E .

1 930 D ie A ugsburg .

a nd ' I OEPFER ,

V .

a ltsteinzeitliche

1 932

K ulturstatte

P etersfels.

D er A bschluss d er G rabungen am P eters-

f els b ei Engen im b adischen Hegau . 2 3:155-199.

16 1

P räh istorische Z eitschrift

T HE D ET

=ICN O F C HR N ) IJ J GICAL M IXING I N S AMPLES F ROM S TRATIFIED A I HAF X )LDGICAL S IT ES

B rian Hesse D epartment o f Anthropology U niversity o f A labama a t B irmingham B irmingham , A labama 3 5294, U SA a nd A rlene Rosen M iqne-Ekron P roject W .F . A lbright I nstitute o f Archaeological R esearch P0 B ox 1 9096, Jerusalem , I srael

A bstract F aunal, botanical a nd g eological s amples r ecovered f rom a rchaeol ogical s ites r arely h ave i nherent attributes which c an be u sed t o a ssign t hem t o a p eriod . C hrohological i nterpretation must r est e ither on s tratigraphic considerations o r on a rtefact a ssociations . I n t he a nalysis o f s amples f rom M iddle E astern t ell s ites , t hese two l ines o f evidence o ften d iverge . Two approaches t o d etermine t he d egree o f m ixing o f bone f ragments and s ediments o f d ifferent c hronological o rigins i n t he s ame s tratum a re e xplored h ere b ased o n s amples e xcavated f rom a n umber o f s ites i n I srael .

I ntroduction : t he p roblem I f o ne k ind o f s ite c an b e s aid t o c haracterise o ur a rchaeological p erception o f ag eographical a rea , t hen f or t he N ear E ast t hat e ntity i s t he t ell ( tel when t ranscribed f rom Hebrew ). The v isibility ( Deetz 1 977 :94-5 ) i n t he l andscape o f t hese l arge m ounds o f c ollapsed , r econs tructed a nd a gain c ollapsed a rchitecture which a re p acked w ith e normous a ccumulations o f t he c ultural d ebris o f i ts f ormer o ccupants h as l ong a ttracted t he a ttention o f a rchaeologists . Part o f t he l ure i s t he guarantee t he t ell o ffers t hat e xcavation will p roduce s ubstantial s amples o f a rtefacts f or c ontemplation a nd a nalysis . A dditional m otiva tion i s p rovided by t he f requent a ssociation o f t ells with s pecific c ities a nd t owns k nown f rom t he h istorical/ t extual r ecord . E ven where p ositive h istorical i dentification c annot b e m ade t ells a re t hought o f a s t he i mportant p laces , t he c entres o f p olitical a nd e conomic l ife i n a r egion . O n t he o ther h and , t he f ocus o f t he a rchaeological r ecord a t a t ell i s n ot v ery s harp . O ur a bility t o a ssign a collection o f o bjects t o an eatly b ounded p opulation o f m akers, u sers a nd d iscarders i s l imit-

1 17

T EL M IQNE C ONTEXTUAL C ONTAM INAT ION

-

(

C ONTEMPORARY B ONE ?DEBRIS

S TRA TUM/LOCUS

R EDEPOS ITED B ONE D EBR IS

F igure 1 : Model o f contextual m ixing i n t he s ediments f ound i n at el s tratum . R edepositional p rocesses , b oth c ultural a nd n atural , c ombine t o i nclude material d iscarded e arlier with contemporary g arbage . A s ignificant methodological p roblem i s t o d etermine t he d egree o f t his

c ontamination .

e d . A m ajor r eason f or t his i s t hat t he s tratigraphic r ecord i n a t ell a lways i ncludes an extraordinarily complex h istory o f b uilding a nd r ebuilding . S ince t ells are c ompact u nits, f requently b ounded by massive f ortification walls, t he f ills, r ebuildings, borrow p its a nd o ther evidence o f construction a ctivities t hey c ontain r epresent t he p ast m ovement o f s ubstantial amounts o f p reviously d eposited m aterial . T he i nescapable conclusion i s t hat c hronological m ixing a ffects m any o f t he s ub-samples e xcavated f rom t ells . S imply p ut , i n t he p ast d ebris was m ixed with l ong d iscarded g arbage u nearthed b y c onstruction a nd o ther c ontemporary a ctivities ( Fig . 1 ) . T hus t he c ontents o f many s trata , l oci o r f eatures e nd u p c ontaining a m ix o f r emains f rom s everal p eriods. T hat t his o ccurs c an be s hown f rom t he s tratigraphic a nd a rtefactual r ecords o f t ell s ites . I n e xcavation r eporting t wo c hronol ogical r ecords a re u sually c reated . O ne, t he p hasing , d etails t he s equence o f building and r ebuilding a nd i s based o n t he s tratigraphic s egregation o f t he s edimentary l ayers . T he o ther , t he p ottery r ecord , d escribes t he c eramics a nd o ther d atable r emains f ound i n t he c ollecti ons a ssociated with e ach d eposit . T he c onclusion t hat c hronological mixing i s pervasive i s warranted by t he observation t hat f requently t hese two r ecords a re n ot i n c lose a greement . A d eposit c onsidered t o b e r elatively l ate on s tratigraphic g rounds, o ften c ontains l arge amounts o f material manufactured a t a much e arlier d ate . I n t he analysis o f a rtefacts t his p roblem i s c ontrolled by t he e xistence o f a l arge a nd d etailed b ody o f i nformation a bout t he s equence o f s tylistic and t echnological c hanges i n t he r egion a nd by c oncent rating o n t he i nterpretation o f t he p resence o r a bsence o f p articular a ttributes c onsidered t o b e r eliable c hronological m arkers . T his i s n ot u sually p ossible i n t he s tudy o f z oological o r b otanical r emains . T he s pecies r epresented i n h istoric p eriod a rchaeological d eposits a re u sually morphologically s table over t he p eriods b eing c ompared o r c ontrasted . Even when t hat i s n ot completely t he c ase, t he n umber o f 1 18

f ragments t hat c an b e s egregated a nd a ssigned t o ac ategory s uch a s a b reed t hat h ad a s hort h istory i s v ery small. A t t he s ame t ime t he r equirements o f a nalysis a imed a t r econstructing d iet , a nimal m anagement o r a gricultural s trategies d emand q uantitative i nformation t o b e a vaila ble a t l east a t t he o rdinal l evel t o d etect p atterns . T he t wo b asic a pproaches t o h andling t his c hronological p roblem a re n ormally i ntegrated : e ither l ean o n t he s tratigraphic r ecord o r r ely o n t he a rtefactual r ecord . I t i s i mportant t o n ote t hat o nly i nfrequently i s t he a nalyst 's d ecision m ade e xplicit i n s ite r eports . H owever , e ach c hoice m akes d ifferent a ssumptions a bout t he s ite f ormation p rocesses t hat a ccount f or t he s amples a vailable . T he a rgument f or r elying o n t he s tratigraphic r ecord i s : t hat b ones a re f ragile o rganic m aterials a nd l ess r esistent t o r edeposition t han c eramics a nd o ther material; t hat o rganic and i norganic r emains a re l ikely t o h ave s eparate c ulturally d etermined d iscard p atterns t hat l ead t o s eparate d ump a reas o r p rocedures f or e ach k ind o f g arbage . T he a rgument f or r elying o n t he a rtefactual r ecord i s : t hat b ones a lready i n t he a rchaeological c ontext a re n ot m arkedly more f ragile o r r esistent t o r edeposition t han o ther m aterials ; t hat p rocesses o f d isc ard i n u rban s ites t end t o r ecombine d ifferent c ategories o f g arbage i ndiscriminately i n d umps a nd o ther a rchaeological c ontexts . Both o f t hese s ets o f a ssertions c an p robably be s upported by e thnographic o r e xperimental d ata . I n t his p aper we h ave t ried t o e xplore s ome ways t hat m ight a llow u s t o d etermine i f e ither a pproach i s t he more r easonable t o emphasise i n t reating t he d ebris f rom d ifferent c ategories o f e xcavation u nits .

T el M iqne-Ekron O ur p roject i s b ased o n r esearch b eing c onducted a t t he s ite o f T el Miqne-Ekron i n I srael, s hown i n F igure 2 , a mound l ocated west o f J erusalem a t t he b order b etween t he c oastal p lain a nd t he z one o f r olli ng c ountry known a s t he S hephelah . Excavations a t t his l arge s ite, which h ave b een d irected b y S eymour G itin o f t he A lbright I nstitute o f Archaeological R esearch, American S chools o f Oriental R esearch, a nd T rude D othan o f t he H ebrew U niversity , h ave p roduced e vidence o f a l arge I ron A ge c ity m ost p robably t o b e i dentified with t he P hilistine c ity o f E kron ( Dothan a nd G itin 1 983 ). T his I ron A ge c ommunity was b uilt o n t he r emains o f aB ronze A ge C anaanite c ity . P rocessing o f t he 1 981 a nd 1 982 a nimal b one c ollections p roduced a s ample o f a pproximately 3 000 i dentifiable f ragments . T his m aterial was r ecovered f rom a t rench cut down t he n ortheast s lope o f t he t ell, a n e xcavation p rocedure d esigned t o d evelop a n o utline v iew o f t he c hrono logy o f t he s ite by c utting t hrough an a rea l ikely t o c ontain t he s tratigraphic r ecord o f f ortification s ystems . T he b one f ragments were t agged w ith two c hronological i dentifications : o ne b ased o n t he s tratig raphic p osition , t he o ther b ased o n t he c eramic c ontent o f t he a ssoci ated l ocus . W ith r espect t o s tratigraphy , t he b ones c ould b e s eparated i nto s ub-samples d ated t o d ifferent p hases o f t he I ron A ge , 3 200-2600BP ( 1200-600BCE ). However , t he a ssociated pottery f ound i n t he I ron Age s trata s uggests, o n t he o ne h and , t hat s ubstantial n umbers o f t he b ones 19 1

MEDITERRANEAN S EA

0

Figure 2 :

5 0 KM

Map o f t he a rchaeological s ites i n I srael mentioned i n t he

t ext .

1 20

c ame f rom a nimals which d ied d uring t he B ronze A ge , s ometime p rior t o 3 200BP ( 1200BCE ), a nd a lso t hat d espite t heir s tratigraphic p osition o nly a f ew o f t hem a re a ssignable t o s laughterings i n t he l ater p hases o f t he I ron A ge . T he f ollowing a re t ypical c orrelations :

s ample A s ample B

s tratigraphic d ate I ron A ge I I I ron A ge I

c ommon c eramic a ssociation I ron A ge I B ronze A ge

A nalysis o f t he c ollection a ccording t o t he t wo d ating a pproaches p roduced c onflicting r esults ( Hesse 1 986 ). Emphasising s tratigraphic a ssignment produced n o d iscernible p attern o f c hange i n an e rratic s equence o f v alues f or t axon a bundance . T he o ne e xception was t hat p ig ( Sus s crofa ) bones were v ery i nfrequent i n any s tratum p redating t he P hilistine i ncursion i n I ron A ge I . C eramic d ating d id h owever p roduce a c luster o f c orrelated c hanges i n t he a bundances o f m ajor a nimal r eso urces . C omparing t hose l oci which c ontained mostly I ron A ge I p ottery s uggested t hat t he a ppearance o f t he P hilistine a t t he s ite was marked b y s harp i ncreases i n t he i mportance o f c attle ( Bos s p . ) a nd p igs i n t he e conomy and a s harp d ecrease i n t he f requency o f g oats ( Capra h ircus ). R ecent r esearch a t t he c ompanion s ite o f B atash ( Kelm a nd M azar 1 982 ), l ocated a f ew k ilometres t o t he e ast , has p roduced p recisely p arallel c hanges i n animal e conomy ( Hesse e t a l. 1 986 ). While t he d iscovery o f a n h istorically s atisfying a nd r epeated pattern, a ssociating p ig with P hilistines, was r eassuring , we h ave s ought t o s ubstantiate t he c ontent d ating a pproach f urther with a rguments b ased o n t aphonomy . T he f ollowi ng a re s ome p reliminary a nalyses we h ave u ndertaken .

Micro-archaeological a nalysis A lthough c ontent d ating i s a p romising m ethod f or i dentifying a nd d ealing with d isturbed d eposits , t he s ediment m atrix i tself i s u sually i ndicative o f t he d egree o f m ixing e ven i n c ases where c eramic d ating i s a pparently c onsistent . O ne p ossible m ethod o f t esting t o what d egree a rchaeological d epo sits a re d isturbed i s t hrough a t echnique k nown a s m icro-archaeology ( Rapp 1 975 ; H assan 1 978 ; R osen 1 985 ). T he b asic a ssumption b ehind t his t echnique i s t hat t he a rtefacts most i ndicative o f a ctivities o n ag iven l iving s urface a re t hose o f s and a nd g ranule s ize . These p articles would h ave b een t rampled i nto t he g round and were t hus not r emoved by n atural t ransport o r s weeping a s were l arger a rtefacts . T hey a re a lso f ound within t he s urface o f t he f loor and n ot on t op o f i t, a s i s s econdary r efuse f rom b rick c ollapse a nd t rash d isposal a fter a r oom h as b een a bandoned . I t i s s uggested h ere t hat t he g rain s ize d istribution o f p articular r efuse s uch a s c harcoal i s i ndicative o f t he amount o f d isturbance a n a rchaeological d eposit h as s uffered . T he b asic a ssumption o f t his t est i s t hat i n u ndisturbed d eposits p ercentages o f a n i tem i n a g iven s ize f raction a re d ependent u pon t he p ercentages o f t he i tem i n t he o ther s ize f ractions . F or e xample , w ith t rampling , s ofter r efuse s uch a s c harcoal b reaks d own i n a way t hat i s c ontinuous f or e ach s ize f raction . C onversely when material f rom a n u nrelated d eposit i s a dded i n t he f orm o f s econdary r efuse d isposal o r b rick collapse, t hen p articles o f many d ifferent s ize f ractions a re i ncluded p roducing a g rain s ize d istribution which i s n on-continuous .

1 21

T his m ethod o f i dentifying d isturbed d eposits i s s imple a nd i nexp ensive . A bout 1 kg o f s ediment i s s craped f rom a l iving s urface a nd t he v olume i s m easured . T he s ediment i s t hen washed t hrough a s et o f n ested s ediment s ieves u sing mesh s izes g reater t han 0 .25mm ( +2 p hi ) s ince s maller g rain s izes a re n ot i dentifiable . I n t his s tudy we u sed 0 .25mm , 0 .50mm, 1 .0mm, 2 .0mm and 4 .0mm ( +2, + 1, 0 , 1 a nd 2 p hi ) s ieves . T he s ieved m aterial i s t hen d ried a nd v olume m easurements a re t aken o f e ach s ize f raction . F inally t he s ize f ractions a re e xamined u nder a b inocu lar m icroscope and t he p roportions o f d ifferent a rtefacts a nd r efuse a re e stimated by volume t hrough t he u se o f g raphed p ercentiles . r esults a re t hen g raphed a nd t he s hapes o f t he c urves a re c ompared .

T he

S amples f or t his s tudy were t aken f rom T el Miqne-Ekron a nd two o ther s ites, a lso s hown on t he map , F igure 2 . T hese a re T ell Q asile, another l arge P hilistine c ity l ocated on t he coats n ear T el Aviv , a nd S hiqmim, a 6 000 year o ld C halcolithic v illage i n t he n orthern N egev ( Levy a nd A lon 1 985 ). A t Q asile a nd M iqne-Ekron s amples were t aken f rom d eposits which were known t o be e ither p rimary o r s econdary r efuse, b ased o n o ther e vidence . T he u ndisturbed p rimary d eposits were f rom t he l iving s urfaces o f c ourtyards i n which t here was a büild-up o f micros tratigraphic s ediment u nits e ach o nly s everal m illimetres t hick . A ny post-depositional d isturbance would h ave a ltered t he pattern o f t he l aminar m icro-stratigraphy . T he d isturbed, s econdary , d eposits c ame m ainly f rom u nits o f b rick c ollapse i n which a l arge amount o f s ediment f rom d ifferent s ources h ad a ccumulated r apidly . T he r esults were c ompared with a l iving s urface a t S hiqmim i n o rder t o d etermine i f t he s urface h ad b een d isturbed s ince d eposition . I n t he f irst a nalysis p ebble a nd s and-sized p articles o f b one were e xamined f or t heir c ontinuous o r n on-continuous d istribution . T his t est p roved u ns uccessful, probably due t o t he l ack o f c ontrol over small mammal and f ish b ones i n t he s amples . T heir p resence c reated i nterference i n t he s tudy o f t he n atural b reakdown o f l arge m ammal b one . H owever , t he p ercentage o f wood c harcoal p roved t o b e a m ore u seful i ndicator o f d isturbance . F igure 3 i s a g raph o f t he p ercentage o f c harcoal i n e ach g rain s ize f raction f or t he u ndisturbed l iving s urfaces, which s hows t hat t he d istribution i s i ndeed c ontinuous . F igure 4 s hows t he c harcoal p ercentages f rom e ach s ize f raction i n t he b ricky s ediments which a re o f m ixed o rigin . H ere t he d istribution i s n ot c ontinuous . T he s tandard , b ased o n t he S hiqmim s ample , f alls i n t he c ategory o f u ndisturbed d eposits . S amples f rom M iqne-Ekron w ere t hus s uccessfully d istinguished i nto d isturbed a nd u ndisturbed d eposits. T his t echnique i s s till e xperimental a nd t herefore m ust b e t ested o n n umerous d eposits b efore i t c an b e a pplied c onfidently i n a v ariety o f a rchaeological c ircumstances . F urthermore , c ertain i nconsistencies s till e xist i n t he method which must b e o vercome i n o rder t o i ncrease t he c onfidence l evel. H owever, a s i t n ow s tands, i t does s erve a s a c rude f ield m ethod o f d ifferentiating d isturbed f rom p rimary a rchaeol ogical d eposits, a n e ssential p reliminary t o t he a nalysis o f f aunal r emains a s well a s o ther a rtefact c lasses .

O steological a ttributes T he two o ther e xperimental p rocedures t o b e d escribed d epend o n v ariability i n t he a ttributes o f t he a nimal b ones f ound i n s ites . T he 1 22

O a ) O a )

U ) i

S 4

‚ ' I

E . ' i

I E D S M X E P O I T S

-

-I

4

4 4

I S I T S N U D E P O I T S

‚ U Z 36

4 -6

6 7%

1 8%

1 1%

4 %

4 -6

5 6%

2 1%

1 6%

7 %

2 -4

8 5%

9 %

2 %

4 %

* Explanation o f a ge c ategories ( years ) exually immature; 1 2-24 = s exually mature, but s till g rowing 0 -12 = s v igorously; 2 4-36 = g rowth e nding, mature p eriod; > 36 = f ully mature, g rowth c eased .

F or c omparison , T able 3 p resents t he p roportions o f d ie-off a nimals a ssigned t o f our b road a ge c ategories: 0 -12, 1 2-24, 2 4-36 a nd over 3 6 y ears o ld . T hese c ategories d ivide a ny s ample i nto : s exually i mmature a nd g rowing a nimals ; s exually m ature , b ut s till g rowing a nimals; a nimals whose g rowth i s e nding ; a nimals whose g rowth h as e ntirely c eased . F igure 3 s hows t he a ge p rofile o f t he d ie-off s ample a t o ne s eep f or

1 58

— I 4 1

P E R C E N T A G E

0 I —

ELEPHANTS F OUND DEAD A T S HAB I S HAB I ( 1982 AND 1983 TOTAL )

2 0

A GE

U NCLASS IF IED ( OVER 2 0 )

F igure 3 : A ge p rofile o f s ample o f e lephants t hat d ied f rom d rought a nd s tarvation a t one s eep i n Hwange National P ark . T he 1 982 f igures i nclude t otal mortality b etween 1 979 a nd 1 982 . T he 1 983 a dditions a re d eaths i n t he o ne y ear o nly .

T able 3 : P ercentages o f s ample i n d ifferent a ge c ategories : d ie-ofts a t f our s eeps ( 1979-1984 ) a nd f rom 1 983 c ull s ample .

0 -12yr N ehimba L ememba S hakwanki S habi S habi

( n ( n ( n ( n

= = = =

2 2 ) 1 3 ) 1 2 ) 1 95 )

951 ) 1 983 c ull ( n = 1 1 983 ' corrected ' c ull ( n

=

2 339)

1 2-24yr

2 4-36yr

d ata f rom

> 36yr

7 7% 8 5% 9 2% 8 6%

1 4% 0 0 9 %

0 0 0 3 %

9 % 1 5% 8 % 2 %

6 7% 5 6%

1 8% 2 1%

1 1% 1 6%

4 % 7 %

c omparison with t he cull s ample a ge p rofile s hown i n F igure 2 a . T he d ie-off s ample r epresents a s hort-term i nput o f b ones i nto a v ery l ocali sed d eposit . M any h ours o f o bservation o f l ive e lephants a t a nd a round s eeps i ndicates t hat t he s ub-population o f Hwange e lephants c ongregating i n t he s eeps i s p robably a ' normal ' o r r epresentative portion o f t he e ntire p ark population . Approximately 1 500-2000 e lephants u sed t he s eeps a rea i n t he d ry s eason o f t he d ie-off y ears , o r a bout 7 -10% o f t he 1 59

t otal Hwange population . Mean , modal a nd median a ges o f t he s ubp opulation a t t he s eeps a re a ssumed t o b e s imilar both t o t hat o f t he c ulled s ub-population a nd t hat o f t he e ntire Hwange p opulation . Note t hat t he d ie-off s ample i s b iased i n t hat s ub-adult a nimals a re over-represented i n T able 3 , c ompared t o t heir o ccurrence i n l ive h erds. A s d escribed i n Conybeare a nd H aynes ( 1984 ) and H aynes ( 1985 ), when p roboscidean m ortality r ates r ise d ue t o e nvironmental f actors s uch a s d rought, j uvenile r ates r ise f aster t han g eneral a dult r ates, a lthough o lder f emales w ill a lso b e h ard h it . Ib elieve t hat t hese k inds o f g eneralisations a bout e lephant m orta lity o r v ulnerability c an b e v alidly u sed a s a nalogues f or s tudies o f a ge p rofiles o f e xtinct p roboscideans ( Haynes 1 986b ). H owever, i t i s f irst n ecessary t o d etermine i f t he Hwange d ata f orm a s pecial c ase o r a re r elated i n a ny way t o d ata c ollected f rom o ther e lephant p opulati ons.

E lephant d emography :

what i s ' normal '?

S ccalled s table p opulations o f e lephants h ave n ot b een o bserved i n t he wild ( Laws e t a l. 1 975 ). I t may b e t hey c annot exist u nder modern c onditions , i n which p rotected l and c ontaining e lephants i s s urrounded b y f orbidden z ones i nto which e lephants a re n o l onger a llowed t o m ove , s uch a s h uman s ettlements . A s a r esult m odern e lephant p opulations a re i solated a nd c ompressed . C onsequently h abitat d estruction h as a ccelera ted i n e lephant r anges f ollowing p opulation g rowth d ue t o i mmigration a nd e ruption . T his was o riginally t hought t o b e d ue t o a bnormally h igh b irth r ates, but i s more l ikely t o b e d ue t o v ery s low d emographic r esponse t o c rowding p ressures and t he p revention o f emigration when c rowding b egins . T here a re two popular models o f h ow e lephant demography m ight f unction i n t he a bsence o f h uman p opulation p ressure . T he f irst model s uggests t hat e lephant p opulations n ever t ruly s tabilise u nder p ristine c onditions i n t he wild , o r a t l east n ot t hrough b iological m echanisms s uch a s a l owering o f b irth r ates . C aughley ( 1976 ) p roposed t hat e lephant populations g o t hrough widespread cycles o f d ecline d ue t o h abitat d estruction f ollowed b y p opulation c rash , a nd i ncrease f ollowing h abitat r ecovery a nd p opulation g rowth . A ccording t o C aughley 's p roposi tion , h abitat c onditions u ltimately d etermine t he s tability , g rowth o r d ecline o f e lephant p opulations . I n o ther words , s ince e lephant p opula tions a lways g row , t hen d ecline , t hen i ncrease , a nd s o o n , t he s tate o f t he habitat c ontrols which p art o f t he c ycle o btains a t a ny t ime . O f c ourse , d ensity d ependent f actors s uch a s b irth r ates, b irth i ntervals a nd a ge a t s exual m aturity c hange d uring n atural c ycles a s p roposed b y F ord ( 1966 ), H arris a nd F owler ( 1975 ) a nd C aughley ( 1976 ), b ut t he p oint i s t hat g rowth f ollowed by d ecline i s p ossibly t he n orm f or e very e lephant population . T he p roportion o f s ub-adults i n a ny p opulation will b e h igh, t hen l ow, t hen h igh a gain a fter s everal g enerations . C aughley p ostulated t hat t he a verage c ycle i n t he A frican w oodlands o f Z ambia i s a bout 2 00 y ears, b ased on t he s izes a nd g rowth p atterns o f s ome t ree t axa t hat a re o ften b roken b y f eeding e lephants . C aughley 's p roposition h as n ot b een g reeted w ith u niversal

a ccept-

a nce . M any e cologists r ealise t hat p resent-day e lephant p opulations a re n ot i n e quilibrium with t heir h abitats, b ut t his i s t hought t o b e a

1 60

r esult o f h uman p ressures o n t he p opulations, r ather t han n ormal e lephant-woodland i nteraction . P resumably b efore t he e xpansion o f h uman p opulation i n A frica , e lephants were i n a much m ore h armonious r elations hip with t heir h abitats . I f a ge s tructures and population s ize were s table u nder t hose c onditions , t hen e lephant p opulations m ight h ave b een r elatively s mall, s ince e lephants c an b e e xceptionally d estructive when f eeding i n woodlands ( Buechner and D awkins 1 961; F ord 1 966; T homson 1 975 ; G uy 1 976; C umming 1 981 a nd r eferences ). P ilgram a nd Western ( 1986 ) c reated a c omputer s imulations model o f e lephant p opulations i n t he w ild . T his m odel a llowed t he p opulation t o m ake c ertain d emographic r esponses t o c hanges i n d ensity r esulting f rom d eaths a nd b irths , T he p opulation f urthermore was n ot s ubject t o h uman h unting . S table p opulation s izes r esulted when t he a ge a t m aturity was s et a t 1 6 y ears a nd t he average i nter-birth i nterval was 7 y ears . Not o nly t he s ize but a lso t he a ge s tructure s tabilised i n t his modelled p opulation, s o t hat i t c ould b e d escribed a s mature . T his k ind o f c omputer modelling m ay p rovide t he o nly s table age d istribution d ata t hat we will e ver f ind f or e lephants ( Fowler a nd Smith 1 973; H anks a n d McIntosh 1 973 ). T he p roportion o f s exually i mmature a nimals i n t he modelled p opula tion was 3 6% ( Pilgram p ersonal c ommunication ). T his i s n ot s ubstanti ally d ifferent f rom t he p roportions observed i n ' young ' and s lowly g rowing p opulations , s uch a s t hose i n Z ambia ( Hanks 1 979 ) o r e ast A frica ( Laws 1 966; Laws e t a l. 1 975 ). O f course, by comparison, t he Hwange p opulation i s y ounger a nd g rowing v igorously , b ut i ts a ge s tructure i s i n f act n ot r adically d istinct f rom t hat o f t he o ther populations . G rowth i n t he Hwange e lephant p opulation h as o ccurred o ver t he c ourse o f s everal d ecades ( Cumming 1 981 ) a nd h as b een a s low , c umulative p rocess . I t a ppears t hat e lephant p opulations l ike t he o ne i n Hwange m ay g row o r d ecline s ignificantly e ven when o nly s light c hanges o ccur i n mortality o r f ertility . E lephant populations p ossess r ather s table mortality r ates a nd c auses o f d eath . T herefore, t he p arameter most a ffecting g rowth i s f ertility , which i ncludes t he a ge a t which f irst c onception o ccurs a nd t he i nter-birth s pacing i nterval ( Hanks and McIntosh 1 973; L aws e t a l. 1 975 ). I n a g rowing p roboscidean p opulation , t he p roportion o f s ub-adult t o a dult animals c an b e a s g reat a s o ne t o o ne . A s table population c ontains a bout o ne s ub-adult t o e ach two a dults . When a d ie-off s tress p eriod a ffects a h ealthy p opulation a ny r esulting d eath s ample s hould b e d ominated b y s ub-adults , i n m uch g reater p roportions t han o ne j uvenile t o two a dults . T hus , a h ealthy p roboscidean p opulation will c ontribute m ainly young animals t o a s hort-term, l arge-scale d ie-off c aused by d rought . A s imilar d ie-off p attern m ight h ave o btained i n P leistocene t imes due t o o ther s harp c limatic c hanges s uch a s e arly o r p rolonged f reeze-up . I t i s impossible t o p inpoint a t hreshold f or s ub-adult overr epresentation i n d eath a ssemblages s uch t hat p ercentages o f s ub-adults a bove t his l evel would i ndicate t hat t he h erds which c ontributed m embers t o t he d eath s ample h ad c learly b een s table o r h ealthy ; while p ercenta ges b elow t his l evel would i ndicate unhealthy o r d eclining h erds . E lephants r eproduce s lowly, g estation l asts 2 2 months a nd b irths a re s paced every 4 -8 y ears, and t hey l ive l ong, u p t o 6 0 years, s o t hat h erds i n a n u nstable s tate o f g rowth o r d ecline may t ake d ecades t o s tabilise . O ver t hose d ecades t he modal a nd m ean a ges o f t he h erd m ight 1 61

f luctuate w ildly ,

a s would t he p roportion o f s ub-adults .

H owever , o ther d emographic a ttributes m ight h elp i ndicate t o u s t he r elative ' health ' o f a g iven e lephant h erd o r d eath s ample . F or e xample , t he Hwange p opulation h as a pproximately a n 1 1-13% r ecruitment r ate , t hat i s t he p roportion o f n ew-born a nimals m easured b iennially , s ince g estation l asts n early two y ears . T he s imulated p opulation m odel-

Table 4 : P reliminary a nalyses o f p ublished d emographic d ata f rom l arge a rchaeological c ollections.

s ite ( reference )

a pproximate g eologic a ge

E hringsdorf/Weimar W est G ermany ( 1 ) H ot S prings S outh D akota

> 60,000BP

2 6,000BP

M NI

n umber u nweaned

r ecruitment r ate ( approximate )

1 00 ( Elephas/ < 10% M an i nuthus ) < 5%

< 10% < 5%

7 a ged

0

0

C racow-Spadzista S t > 20,000BP P oland ( 3 )

6 0

1

1 .7%

K ostier iki s ites U kraine ( 4 )

2 0,000 1,000BP 1

3 2

M ezhirich U SSR ( 4 )

2 0,000 1 3,000BP

1 26 1 49

( 2)

-

B oney S prings M issouri

-

1 3,000BP

( 5 )

Volchya G riva U SSR ( 6 )

1 3,000BP

B ere l ekh U SSR ( 7 )

1 3,000BP

L amb S pring C olorado ( 8 )

1 3,000 1,000BP 1

S eeps d ie-offs Hwange

r ecent

1 983 c ull Hwange

r ecent

r ecent

1 983 c ull ' corrected '

-

1 3

3 ( Soffer 1 985 )

3 1 ( Manuut ) 8

2 7 ( aged o n m andible ) 3 0

1 80 ( one s eep )

4 1%

%u nweaned t o a dult

1 : 7 1 :18 0

1 :46

1 :

2

2 %

1 :23

3 %

1 :27

1 2.5%

1 :

1

1

4 %

1 :21

0

0

0

3 2

1 8%

1 :

0 .9

1 951

2 54

1 3%

1 :

2 .7

2 339

2 54

1% 1

1 :

4 .3

f igures

R eferences: 1 Müller Beck ( 1982 ); 2 Agenbroad a nd L aury ( 1984 ); 3 K oz lowski e t a l . ( 1974 ); 4 V ereshchagin a nd K uz 'mina ( 1977 ); 5 S aunders ( 1977 ); 6 T seitlin ( 1979 ); 7 V ereshchagin ( 1977 ); 8 H aynes ( unpub ).

1 62

l ed b y P ilgram a nd 'Western ( 1986 ) a lso d emonstrates a 1 3% r ecruitment r ate . B y c ontrast, d ie-off s amples p rovide a 1 7-18% r ecruitment r ate . T able 4 p resents r ecruitment f igures f or n ine collections o f f ossil p roboscidean b ones a s d escribed i n t he a vailable l iterature . N otice h ow widely t he p roportions v ary , f rom a l ow o f z ero r ecruitment at Hot S prings, S outh D akota, a nd L amb S pring, C olorado, t o a h igh o f 4 1% r ecruitment i n a ssemblages f rom t he K ostienki s ites i n t he U kraine, U SSR . A nother i ndication o f p opulation h ealth i s p rovided b y t he r atio o f u nweaned t o s exually mature a nimals . T his p roportion c ompares t he n umber o f n ew-borns a nd c alves, o r t he r ecruitment g roup , with t he n umber o f a nimals a ble t o b ear y oung . T able 4 a lso p resents t his r atio f or t he a rchaeological c ollections . A gain , t here i s g reat v ariety , f rom z ero a t L amb S pring a nd H ot S prings t o o ne u nweaned a nimal t o 4 6 a dults a t t he Cracow-Spadzista S treet s ite, P oland . Table 4 a lso p resents f igures f rom both t he Hwange c ull and t he d ie-off s ample . T he Hwange p opulation h as one u nweaned e lephant f or a bout every t hree o r f our a dults . I n t he d ie-off s ample , t here i s a bout o ne u nweaned a nimal f or e ach a dult . N ote t hen t hat a d ie-off s ample c reates a r atio t hat may b e t hree o r more t imes g reater t han t hat o f t he o riginal l ive p opulation f rom which i t d erives . I f t he Cracow s ample was t he r esult o f ad ieo ff , t he o riginal u nweaned t o a dult r atio i n t he l ive p opulation would h ave b een c loser t o 1 :138, a n e xtremely l ow p roportion . T he M ezhirich , U SSR , collection c ontained one u nweaned a nimal f or every 2 7 a dults . S upposing t hat t he b ones o f t he v ery y oung a nimals were p reserved i n t he s ediments a nd a lso e xcavated, t hen t he r atio i n t he l ive p opulation would h ave h ad t o h ave b een 1 :111, i f ad ie-off c reated t his s ample . I n c ontrast , t he Volchya G riva , U SSR , c ollection s hows a 1 :1 r atio , i denti cal t o t he f igure f or t he Hwange d ie-off s ample . T he r ecruitment r atio a t t his s ite must h ave been a bout 1 2-13%, very n ear t he Hwange cull f igure . S ince t his s ite was o nly p artly s ampled a nd s ince t he b ones o f s mall m ammoths m ight h ave b een e ither o verlooked o r d estroyed t hrough e rosion o r weathering , t he a ctual r ecruitment r ate m ight o riginally h ave b een h igher and t he u nweaned t o a dult r atio s omewhat l ower . I t i s i mpossible t o k now f or s ure , b ut t his c ollection d oes l ook much l ike a d ie-off s ample c reated f rom a s table o r r elatively h ealthy h erd , u nlike t he C racow , M ezhirich , H ot S prings o r L amb S pring s amples . T he p ercentage o f a nimals a ble t o b ear y oung i n a h ealthy s table o r g rowing p opulation w ill b e a bout 3 0-50% ; whereas a d eclining p opulation will i nclude well o ver 7 0% o f adult a nimals . I n t he Hwange d ie-off s ample , which g reatly o ver-represented s ub-adults , a dults m ake u p a bout 1 6% o f t he t otal. S ince n o d eath p rocess p robably a ccounts f or a g reater over-representation o f s ub-adults t han does d rought , I will a ssert here t hat t he p roportion o f a dults i n a ny d ie-off s ample c an a lways be c onsidered much l ower, by a f actor o f two o r t hree, t han i n t he o riginal l ive p opulation . I f we c orrect t he p ercentages o f a nimals a ble t o b ear y oung i n T able 4 , o n t he b asis o f t hese d ata , a ssuming f or t he s ake o f a rgument t hat t hey m ight a ll h ave r esulted f rom d ie-offs, we g et f igures r anging f rom m ore t han 1 00% a dults f or m ost o f t he c ollecti ons, t o a bout 3 0% a dults i n t he Volchya G riva population . I would p ostulate t hat i f t he p ercentage o f a dults i n ag iven d eath s ample i s i s g reater t han 6 0%, a fter c orrecting t he s ample f igures a s s uggested a bove, t he p opulation r epresented e ither c ontained a n u nusually g reat p roportion o f m ature a nimals o r m ight b e t he r esult o f d eath p rocesses t hat were n ot s hort-term . P erhaps t he s ample i s t he r esult o f l ong-term I nput , d ue t o i ndividual d eaths a ccumulating o ver many y ears, o r p erhaps

1 63

a nd a lso g reater p roportions o f

l actating f emales ,

b ased o n u npublished

c ull d ata . Note t hat i n T able 6 t he l arger herds a re l ed b y o lder f emales . R elatively small h erds may a lso b e l ed by f emales over 5 0 y ears o ld but v ery r arely i s t here more t han o ld f emale i n s uch small

T able 6 : A ges o f M atriarchs i n h erds c ulled i n Hwange N ational P ark i n 1 981 a nd 1 983 .

h erd s ize

s ample s ize

a ge o f o ldest f emale r ounded m ean

9 9 -15 1 6-30 3 1-40 4 1-50 5 1-60 6 1-74

n= n = n = n = n = n = n =

3 1 0 3 2 1 9 8 1 0 4

2 3 3 1 3 9 4 6 4 7 4 9 4 7

m in/max 1 6/31 1 6/43 2 0/58 3 5/58 3 5/53 3 5/58 3 5/54

g roups . C onversely , r elatively l arge h erds m ay b e l ed b y y oung m atria rcf ls but i n t hese c ases t here a re n umerous o ther f emales o f s imilar a ges i n t he g roup . T hese a pparent p atterns a re c urrently b eing v erified a nd t ested i n d ata f rom c ulls a nd d ie-offs . O ne p ossible i mplication o f t his k ind o f p attern f or t he i nterpretation o f f ossil a ssemblages i s t hat small d eath g roups c ontaining s everal very o ld f emales do n ot r epresent c omplete h erds . They may have b een o nly a p art o f a l arger h erd l ed b y a n o ld c ow o r t hey m ay b e m ixtures o f u nrelated a ttritional d eaths.

N atural mortality and bone a ccumulations T he o rder o f importance o f t he main c auses o f d eath among modern A frican e lephants l isted b elow v aries f rom y ear t o y ear : e nvironmental s tress , e specially d rought-related a ccident p redation o n t he v ery y oung , i njury , t raumatic b one f racture o ld a ge d isease p oaching b y i vory h unters A fter 1 6 m onths o f f ield s earch f or e lephant c arcasses f rom 1 982 t o 1 986 i n Hwange National P ark, i t i s my v ery s trong conclusion t hat e lephant b one a ccumulations f orm o nly a t water s ources a nd a re c reated b y e pisodic , s hort-term i nput o f l arge n umbers o f d ead , d ue t o d rought a nd n ot b y a ccretional p rocesses o ver l engthy t ime p eriods . O f c ourse e lephants d ie i ndividually every year f ar f rom d ie-off l ocales , b ut s uch d eaths h ave n ever b een o bserved f orming v isible a ccumu lations o f b ones t hat c ould b ecome f ossil d eposits . A s d etailed b elow , d ie-off p roboscidean b one a ccumulations p ossess r elatively d iagnostic p hysical a ttributes . A s f aunal a nalysts b ecome aware o f t he d emographic a s well a s t he p hysical a ttributes o f f ossil

1 64

t he s ite was p oorly e xcavated a nd s ampled .

O ther t ypes o f d emographic d ata T able 5 p resents f igures r ecorded i n t he Hwange c ull s ample i ndica ting t he n umber o f a dult m ales p resent i n t he m ixed h erds . A dult m ales n ever f orm m ore t han a s mall p roportion o f m ixed-herd m embers . H owever , n otice t hat t he l arger h erds h ave more bulls i n attendance t han t he s maller h erds . I f w e a ssume t hat e xtinct p roboscidean s ocial o rganisa tion was s imilar t o t hat o bserved i n m odern e lephants, I would s uggest t hat any bone collection containing age a nd s ex proportions g reatly d ifferent f rom t hose i n t his t able m ight b e t he r esult o f l ong-term i nput o r t ime-averaging m ixing t he f atalities o f s everal t ime p eriods , r ather t han a catastrophic d eath event . A dult bull e lephants a re n ot v ulnerable t o d rought s tresses a nd d o n ot e xpectably d ie e n m asse a s d o members o f m ixed h erds, u nless t he d rought s tress i s very s evere due, f or e xample , t o i ts l engthy c ontinuation , b y which t ime y ounger a nimals a nd o lder a dult f emales will a lready h ave d ied i n g reat n umbers .

T able 5 :

S exually m ature m ales i n m ixed h erds

n umber o f m ales o ver 1 2 y rs o ld i n h erds 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ( anomaly ) 9 1 3

n umber o f m ixed h erds r ecorded 3 0 1 7 1 4 8 5 3 2 1 2 1

h erd s ize m in/max m ean ( rounded ) 1 2/55 2 6 9 /58 3 1 9 /53 3 0 9 /53 2 9 1 7/68 3 9 2 6/67 4 8 5 4/59 5 7 3 2 3 2 3 7/74 5 6 6 3 6 3

T able 6 p resents t he o bserved a ges o f t he o ldest f emales i n h erds c ulled i n Hwange . Hwange e lephants i n m ixed h erds a re g enerally r elated a nimals l ed by an o lder cow . S uch e lephant herd O rganisation exists e lsewhere i n A frica a nd A sia ( Sikes 1 971 ; M cKay 1 973; D ouglas-Hamilton 1 975 ). A ccording t o b ehaviour o bserved i n t he wild , t he o ldest f emale o ften s eems t o be t he h erd l eader o r s o-called Matriarch . C ows g ive b irth a bout e very f our t o s ix y ears, b ased o n u npublished c ull d ata , a nd r aise n umerous c alves o ver t heir l ong l ifetimes . T herefore , most f emale e lephants l ive t o a ssociate with many g enerations o f t heir own d escenda nts . H owever , u nder c ertain c onditions t hese e xtended-family c onglome rates f ragment b efore b ecoming e xcessively l arge . F or e xample , when p referred r esource a reas a re patchy a nd s cattered, h erds t end t o be s maller a nd s cattered . I n Hwange , m embership n umbers i n m ixed h erds a re f luid , b ut h erds r arely e xceed 5 0 m embers . S ome s maller h erds a ppear t o b e s plinter g roups l ed by r elatively young c ows o ften b roken o ff f rom l arger g roups o f t heir r elatives l ed b y o lder f emales . Larger m ixed h erds u sually c ontain g reater p roportions o f f emales o ver 3 0 y ears o ld

1 65

e lephant b one a ssemblages , t heir i nterpretations o f m ortality p rocesses a nd a gencies will b e c onsiderably s trengthened .

u tes:

Modern d ie-off d eposits a re c haracterised b y t he f ollowing a ttrib-

S everal i ndividuals o f d ifferent l ife-ages a re r epresented . S uba dults a re p resent i n g reater t han e xpected proportions . O ld a dult f emales a re a lso o ver-represented . A dult m ales a re r are . B one s catters f rom s everal d ifferent a nimals o verlap . S ometimes t hick c lusters o r bone p iles f orm, s ome o f which c ontain a rticulated e lements , d ue t o c ontinued i nput a t t he s ite d uring e xtended d ie-offs . S ome s keletons m ay b e n early c omplete , while o thers a re v ery r educed d ue t o e lement r emoval b y s cavengers , s cattering b y t rampling a nd d ifferenti al d estruction d uring weathering a nd n atural b urial . C lusters o f f ractured b ones o ccur where c arcasses were d ensest a nd l ive a nimal crowding heaviest . R ibs, s capulae a nd pelves a re o ften f ragmented , a lthough u ndamaged o r a rticulated s keletons m ay l ie within o r o n t op o f t he broken e lements. L imb bones may a lso b e s pirally f ractured. S egments o f f ractured t usks a re s pread t hroughout t he d eposits, r eflecting p eriodic , i ntense c ompetition f or a ccess t o water . Bones o f other t axa a re present, a lthough p roboscidean bone i s d ominant . S cavengers a nd p redators d ie a t t hese s ites when a ttacked b y o ther c arnivores s eeking e asy prey o r c arrion . B irds which f eed on f lesh o r maggots a nd r eptiles s uch a s b urrowing l izards o r t urtles a lso d ie t here i n s ignificant n umbers . I i ntend t o p resent much more d etailed d escriptions a nd g eneralisa tions a bout n on-cultural m ortality p rocesses i n l ater p ublications .

C onclusion T his p aper h as p resented r ecords o f m ortality e vents which a re p art o f o bservable processes a ffecting e lephants . Ih ave made s ome d emog raphic g eneralisations b ased on observations o f d ie-offs i n s outhern A frica a nd compared t hese t o o bservations o f f ree-roaming e lephant p opulations i n o rder t o e xamine t he m anner i n which d eath a ssemblages a re b iased b y d eath p rocesses . T here i s s till a l ong way t o go i n s uch s tudies before f aunal a nalysts c an c onfidently a pply a ll t hese m odern a nalogues t o t he i nterp retation o f f ossil a ssemblages . What I h ave t ried t o d o h ere i s s imply t o point o ut t hat t he demographic a nd p hysical c haracteristics o f a c ontemporary bone a ssemblage r eflect i nformation a bout modern l iving e lephant p opulations a nd m ight , t herefore , r eflect s imilar i nformation a bout f ossil p roboscideans .

R eferences AGENBROAD,

L .D . a nd LAURY, R .L .

1 984

1 66

Geology,

p aleontology , paleo-

hydrology,

and s edimentology o f a Quaternary mammoth s ite, Hot

S prings, S outh D akota : 1 974 -4979 R esearch R eports 1 6:1-32 .

e xcavations .

N ational G eographic

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D epartment o f

GXi( )RP }D I L JGIC lL EVIDENCE F OR A C ULTURALLY CAUSED C HANG E I N S ITE U SE A ND S F 7F I ! L12 4ENP P ATTERNS I N S OUT HEASTERN A USTRALIA

A nne R oss Cultural R esources S ection N ational P arks a n d W ildlife S ervice S ydney, N SW 2 000, A ustralia

A bstract I n s outheastern A ustralia a s ignificant i ncrease i n t he n umber o f s ites i n t he l andscape a nd e xpansion i nto p reviously u noccupied a reas h as b een r ecorded i n t he H olocene . T his c hange b egan a bout 4 000BP a nd i ncreased m arkedly a fter 2 000BP . N umerous e xplanations h ave b een p rop osed : s ite l oss o ver t ime a s a f unction o f e nvironmental p reservation f actors; i ntensification o f l andscape e xploitation ; r eal population i ncrease . I t i s a rgued h ere t hat while environment i nfluences s ite l ocation i t was n ot a m ajor d eterminant o f s ettlement c hange a nd t hat t he i ncrease i n s ite numbers n oted i s a r eal r eflection o f c ultural c hange among A ustralian A borigines i n t he H olocene .

I ntroduction T hroughout s outheastern Australia a rchaeologists h ave r ecorded a s ignificant i ncrease i n t he number o f s ites i n t he l andscape t ogether with e xpansion i nto p reviously u noccupied o r s parsely o ccupied a reas i n t he mid t o l ate H olocene . T his c hange a ppears t o h ave b egun a round 4 000BP , w ith a m ajor a cceleration o ccurring a fter a bout 2 000BP . T here h ave b een n umerous i nterpretations o f t his p henomenon . S ome a rchaeologists h ave a rgued t hat t he d ecline i n s ite n umbers with t he i ncrease i n s ite a ge i s p urely a f unction o f e nvironmental p reservation f actors ( Head 1 983 , 1 986 ) o r a r esponse t o e nvironmental c hange ( Rowland 1 983 ). Others h ave a rgued f or c ultural c ausality , mainly i ntensifica tion o f l andscape e xploitation a s ar esult o f s ocial c hanges ( Lourandos 1 983 ) and/or population i ncrease ( Ross 1 981, 1 984, 1 985; Hughes and L ampert 1 982 ). S ome h ave d ebated t hat a ll t hese f actors : e nvironmental p reservation o r c hange , i ntensification, s ocial c omplexity and popula tion i ncrease h ave a ffected t he r ecorded p atterning o f a rchaeological s ites ( Williams 1 986 ). I n t his p aper I d iscuss t he g eomorphological e vidence f or t he r ole t he e nvironment p layed a s ac ausal f actor i n t he f ormation o f t he e vide nce f or s ite i ncrease i n s outheastern Australia i n t he m id t o l ate H olocene . Ia rgue t hat a lthough t he e nvironment was a p arameter i r if 1 u encing s ite l ocation t hroughout t he H olocene , i t c annot b e r egarded a s

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a m ajor d eterminant o f s ettlement c hange . It herefore s uggest t hat t he i ncrease i n s ite n umbers s een a fter 4 000BP i s a r eal r eflection o f c ultural c hange amongst A boriginal A ustralians .

B ackgrou nd E vidence f or a d ramatic i ncrease i n t he n umber o f A boriginal s ites a ssociated w ith a n i ncrease i n s edimentary a nd c ultural d eposition r ates w as f irst d ocumented b y H ughes a nd L ampert ( 1982 ) f or t he s outh c oast o f N ew S outh W ales f rom a bout 5 000-4000BP t o t he p resent . T hey s uggested t hat t hese d ata m ay r eflect a p eriod o f p opulation i ncrease o n t he s outh c oast a t t his t ime . S ince t hen s imilar p henomena o f i ntensification o f s ite u se , i ncreases i n t he n umber o f s ites o ccupied a nd e xpansion i nto p reviously u noccupied o r s parsely o ccupied a reas, h ave been d iscussed f rom e lsewhere i n s outheastern A ustralia i n t he l ight o f ah ypothesis o f p opulation i ncrease ( Ross 1 981, 1 984, 1 985 ; B eaton 1 983; L ourandos 1 983, 1 984, 1 985 ; R owland 1 983 ; H iscock 1 986 ; a nd o thers ). H iscock ( 1986 ) h as r ecently s uggested t hat t his t rend t o s ite i ntensification i s more c omplex t han was p reviously r ecognised . H e p resented d ata f rom t he H unter R iver v alley i n e astern N ew S outh Wales ( Fig . 1 ) which i ndicate t hat a lthough t here was a n i ncrease i n s ite n umbers a nd i n a rtefact d iscard r ates a t s ites a fter a bout 2 000BP , t he i ncreases were n ot m aintained a nd t here was a d ramatic d ecline i n b oth v ariables a fter 8 00BP . H e went o n t o a rgue t hat a s imilar i nterpretati on o f t he d ata c ould b e i nvoked f or o ther p arts o f s outheastern A ustra lia . However, i t i s c lear f rom t he work o f F lood ( 1980 ), A ttenbrow ( 1982 ), L ourandos ( 1983 ), R oss ( 1984 , 1 985 ), S mith ( personal c ommunica tion ) and o thers, t hat i n many p arts o f t he s outheast c hanges i n both s ite n umbers a nd i n i ntensity o f s ite u se , m easured i n t erms o f a rtefact d iscard , s edimentation a nd d ebris a ccumulation r ates , d id r emain h igh d uring t he l ast 1 000 y ears a nd i n s ome p laces, s uch a s c entral Austra lia , r eached a p eak a t t his t ime . A lso , t hroughout s outheastern A ustra lia , t he n umbers o f s ites o ccupied i n t he l ate H olocene a nd t he r ates o f a rtefact d iscard a t t hese s ites f ar e xceeded t he n umbers o f s ites o ccupied a nd t he i ntensity o f s ite u se r ecorded i n t he e arly H olocene , a d ecline i n d iscard r ates o ver t he l ast 8 00 y ears n otwithstanding . A lthough m ost r esearchers a gree t hat a c hange i nvolving s ite n umb ers a nd a rtefact d iscard r ates d id o ccur i n t he m id t o l ate H olocene o f s outheastern A ustralia , m any h ave s hied away f rom e xplanations i nvolving s ocial c hange o r p opulation i ncrease a rguing t hat t hey a re u n-archaeol ogical. Many workers p refer t o i nvoke e nvironmental c hange o r s ea l evel r ise a s t he t rigger f or a c hange t oward m ore i ntensive a nd e xtensi ve s ite u se ( Horton 1 981 ; R owland 1 983; W illiams 1 986 ). Ih ave a rgued e lsewhere ( Ross 1 984, 1 985 ) t hat s uch e xplanations d o n ot f it t he a vailable g eomorphological d ata f or t his p eriod , which a re n ow s ufficient t o p ermit a d etailed r econstruction o f e nvironmental c hanges t hroughout t he H olocene . B riefly , a ccording t o o ptimal f oraging t heories o f e nvironmental a nd e cological d eterminism ( Winterhalder a nd Smith 1 981 ), f or a n i ncrease i n both s ite u se a nd i ntensity o f o ccupat ion t o h ave o ccurred , t ogether w ith e xpansion i nto m ore g eographically marginal a reas, r esource a bundance a nd a vailability must a lso h ave i ncreased . T he d istribution a nd a bundance o f most Aboriginal f ood r esources i n s outheastern A ustralia a re r eliant u pon t he a vailability o f f resh water . I f t he u ndoubted m id t o l ate H olocene a rchaeological

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c hanges were t riggered b y a p eriod o f i ncreased r esource a vailability , t hen t he e nvironment s hould h ave b een s omewhat w etter a t t hat t ime t han during t he e arly H olocene . T his, h owever, was n ot t he c ase . I t h as been d emonstrated e lsewhere ( Bowler e t a l. 1 976; R ognon a nd Williams 1 977 ; T hom a nd Wasson 1 982 ; C happell a nd G rindrod 1 983; R oss 1 984 ) t hat t he m ajor p eriod o f c limatic amelioration , d emonstrated t hrough h igh l ake l evels a nd t he p resence o f more m esic v egetation , t o which e nvironm entally d eterministic m odels c ould a scribe t he s orts o f c hanges s een i n t he mid t o l ate Holocene, d ates t o t he e arly Holocene a bout 1 0,0006 000BP . Whereas t he m id-Holocene s aw t he o nset o f d esiccation i n s outhe astern Australia . L akes t hroughout t he a rea became e ither d ry o r s aline b y 5 000BP , s and d unes were m obile i n t he m ore a rid a reas a nd i n marginal a reas x eric t axa d ominated t he v egetation . T hese d rier c ondi tions c ontinued u ntil a round 2 000-1500BP . A b rief r eversal i n t he e nvironmental t rend o ccurred a bout 1 500-1000BP . L ake l evels r ose f or a s hort p eriod and s and d unes s tabilised . However v egetation p atterns a ltered l ittle a nd b y 1 000BP t he c omparatively s emi-arid c onditions o f t he p resent d ay were e stablished . D uring t his m id t o l ate H olocene p eriod o f r elatively d ry c onditi ons s ea l evels a round A ustralia e stablished t hemselves a t t heir p resent p ositions . S ea l evel h ad b egun t o r ise a bout 1 5,000BP f rom t he g lacial l ow a t 1 8,000BP . T he s ea r eached i ts p resent l evel a bout 6 000BP ( Thom 1 978, 1 982 ). I f r ising s ea l evels h ad h ad a m ajor i nfluence u pon h uman s ettlement r elocation b y f orcing p eople i nland , we c ould e xpect t hat a n i ncrease i n s ite n umbers would h ave b egun d uring t he e arly H olocene a nd r eached a p eak a bout 6 000BP . A fter t hat t ime s ettlement p atterns , l ike s ea l evels , s hould h ave s tabilised . T his evidence c learly does not marry u p with t hat f or a c hange i n s ite u se and d ensity which b egan a fter 5 000BP and a ccelerated a fter 2 000BP . The environment apparently s uffered a minor r eversion t o a cooler and d rier c limate a nd consequent l ower l ake l evels a ssociated with s and dune r emobilisation , during t he p eriod when s ite n umbers i ncreased a nd evidence f or expansion i nto marginal a reas o ccurred . A lthough t here was a m inor c limatic amelioration a bout 2 000-1500BP i t was not on a s cale e quivalent t o t hat o f t he e arly H olocene and was u nlikely t o h ave b een t he s ole f actor c ausing t he c hange i n s ettlement p atterns . B eaton ( 1985 ) i tion o f t his a rgument .

a nd R oss

( 1985 )

p resent a more d etailed e xpos-

I t i s t herefore c onsidered u nlikely t hat e nvironmental c hange c ould h ave b een t he s ole t rigger f or t he a rchaeological s ite p atterning s een i n s outheastern Australia during t he mid t o l ate Holocene . However, before t he c ausal r oles o f c ultural and s ocial f actors c an be c onside red , t he q uestion o f d ifferential s ite p reservation m ust b e d iscussed .

reservation over t ime S ite p I t i s a t ruism t o s uggest t hat a rchaeological s ites will only s urvive while g eomorphological c onditions f avouring t heir p reservation prevail. I t i s a lso o bvious t hat more r ecent s ites will t end to be p reserved b etter t han o lder s ites . T o what e xtent t hen c ould t he g reate r number o f s ites d ating t o t he l ast 4 000 y ears be due s imply t o p reservation f actors? I n 1 983 H ead a rgued t hat t he a pparent i ncrease i n s ites a long t he

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s outh c oast o f V ictoria a fter 4 000BP m ay h ave b een d ue a lmost e ntirely t o l ocal g eomorphological c hanges . A round D iscovery B ay ( Fig . 1 ) p alyno logical d ata i ndicate t hat a m ajor e pisode o f s edimentological c hange o ccurred a fter s ea l evel s tabilised a bout 6 000BP . C oastal p rogradation , d une a ccumulation a nd s wamp i nf i ll a ll r esulted i n c onsiderable r eworki ng o f s ediments a round t he B ay between a bout 6 000 a nd 3 000BP . S he a rgued t hat s ediment m ovement o f t his m agnitude would b ring a bout t he r emoval o r o bliteration o f a ny coastal o r h interland s ites o lder t han 3 000BP: ' Since s ites t hat were o n t he f oredune b etween a bout 6 000 a nd 3 000BP n o l onger e xist , a ny a rgument t hat p osits c hanges i n p opulation d ensity s olely o n t he b asis o f n umbers o f s ites , a t l east i n c oastal a reas , must b e c onsidered t enuous ' . ( Head 1 983:78 ) H ead o f c ourse i s quite c orrect i n t his a ssessment . H owever, g eomorphological c hange o f t his k ind i s n ot u biquitous a long t he c oast a nd c ertainly c annot e xplain t he widespread p attern o f t he d ocumented c hange , which i s s een a cross a v ariety o f l andscapes a nd e nvironmental z ones ( Ross 1 985 ). F ew d etailed e xaminations o f t he question o f a rchaeological s ite v isibility h ave b een u ndertaken i n s outheastern A ustralia . H ead 's s tudy o f c oastal V ictorian s ites r evealed t hat c hanges i n s ite n umbers m ay n ot n ecessarily b e ' real ' . My own r esearch i n t he V ictorian M allee h owever s uggests t hat i n many i nstances t he a rchaeological e vidence i ndicating a l ow d ensity o f e arly H olocene s ites i s r eal a nd c an b e explained i n t erms o f l ow p opulation d ensities . G eomorphical a nd a rchaeological d ata f rom t he n orthwestern Mallee a re p resented a nd d iscussed i n d etail b elow . I t i s s hown t hat a n a bsence o f s ites i n t he a rea p rior t o a bout 4 000BP i s n ot a f unction o f g eomorphological e vents . O n t he c ontrary , i t will b e d emonstrated t hat e rosional a nd d epositional a ctivity d uring t he H olocene was s uch t hat a ny s ites d ating t o t he wet p eriod p rior t o 6 000BP s hould h ave s ince b een e xposed a nd e asily v isible n ow . A ll s ites s o f ar l ocated i n t his a rea a re s urface c ampsites .

Changes i n s ite n umbers and p reservation f actors i n t he Mallee T he V ictorian M allee ( Fig . 1 ) l ies i n t he s emi-arid z one o f n orthwestern V ictoria . I t i s a r egion c haracterised b y well-vegetated d une f ields a nd mostly d ry o r s aline l akes . I n t he p ast t he a rea e xperienced c onditions r anging f rom e xtreme a ridity t o a bundant water . A t 1 8,000BP t he Mallee was p art o f t he h yper-arid c ore c haracteri stic o f t he g lacial m aximum i n A ustralia : t he p resent d ay t emporary a nd s emi-permanent s ources o f f resh water, s uch a s t he s oaks and l arge u pstream l akes , were d ry a nd t he s and d unes were d evegetated a nd mobile . T owards t he end o f t he g lacial, a bout 1 2,000 t o 8 000BP, t he Mallee e xperienced moist c onditions, d unes were v egetated a nd s table and l aKes t hroughout t ue r egion w ere f ull o f w ater . E ven p resent-day s aline c ontained g roundwater d ischarge l akes , s uch a s t he R aak F lains F ly . 2 ) ,

a reas o f f reshwater . B y 7 200BP a m ore a rid c limatic r egime h ad b een r ee stablished . L akes b egan t o dry u p . Water l evels i n t erminal l akes, s uch a s P ine P lains ( Fig . 2 ), f ell r apidly, f rom + llm a t 7 600BP t o + lm b y 7 200BP , a lthough u pstream l akes r etained water u ntil more r ecently . B y a bout 5 000BP t he M allee l akes were d ry o r s aline a nd s lightly d rier 1 74

Figure 1 : t ext.

Map o f s outheastern Australia s howing p laces mentioned i n t he

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c onditions t han t he p resent p revailed . A part f rom a p eriod o f s lightly h igher l ake l evels i n u pstream l akes a t a bout 1 500-1000BP , t he l akes o f t he Mallee h ave b een dry ever s ince t he m id-Holocene . c onditions were e stablished a bout 1 000BP .

P resent d ay

S ite d ensity a nd d istribution i n t he Mallee r eflects t he wider p attern f rom s outheastern A ustralia o utlined a bove . V ery f ew a rchaeol ogical s ites d ating t o t he p eriod p rior t o 4 000BP a re k nown d espite t he g ood e nvironmental c onditions p revailing t here i n t he e arly H olocene . S ome 8 0% o f t he s ites k nown i n t he M allee were n ot o ccupied u ntil a fter 4 000BP a nd m ost o f t hese were p robably f irst o ccupied a fter 2 000BP ( Ross 1 981, 1 984:120-183 ). T his was a p eriod o f d eclining r esources and e nvironment i n t he i l allee , n ot a t ime w hen i ncreasing s ite n umbers would b e p redicted o n e nvironmentally d eterminstic g rounds . 1 76

A ll t he s ites s o f ar r ecorded i n t he M allee a re s urface c ampsites , t hus c hanges i n a rtefact d ensity o ver t ime c annot b e g auged . H owever , a s t here i s l ittle d ifference i n t he amount o f m aterial f ound o n s ites o f a ll a ges i n t his a rea , t here i s n o r eason t o a rgue t hat i ntensity o f s ite u se d eclined a s s ite d ensity i ncreased . G iven t hat a ll r ecorded s ites i n t he Mallee a re o n t he s urface , c an i t b e a ssumed t hat a bsence o f e vidence f or s ites i s t antamount t o e vidence f or t he a bsence o f o ccupation? C learly n ot . S uch a correlation must d emonstrated , n ot a ssumed , a nd t he l ikely i mpact o f s ite p reserva tion f actors o n t he d atabase m ust b e a ssessed .

A rchaeological i nvisibility A s urface c ampsite may b e r endered a rchaeologically i nvisible i n two ways : b y t he p resence o f v egetation c over b y l ater d eposition a t t he s ite S ite s urvey i n t he Mallee was undertaken over a p eriod o f f ive years f rom 1 980 t o 1 984 . T he most i ntensive s urveys were conducted d uring 1 981-1983, when t he most s evere d rought i n l iving m emory o ccurre d , c oupled with a n e xceptionally c old winter with e xtreme f rost c onditi ons . T his c ombination o f f actors c aused t he d estruction o f much o f t he Mallee v egetation . F urthermore , s everal l arge f ires burned t hrough t he a rea during and before t he d rought r educing t he vegetation cover and i ncreasing s urface v isibility . During t he s urvey p eriod, t herefore, g round v isibility e verywhere e xceeded 2 0% , w ith most o f t he g rassland a reas a round t he l akes, c reeks and s oaks having v isibility r atings b etween 5 0 a nd 1 00% . G iven t hat t he s urvey was u ndertaken u nder s uch c ircumstances o f o ptimal g round s urface v isibility a nd y et f ailed t o r eveal more s ites , i t i s s uggested t hat t he f actor most l ikely t o o bscure s ites i n the Mallee i s s ubsequent d eposition o f s ediment a fter s ite a bandonment , f ollowed b y m inimal e rosion . S and f rom t he c rests o f t he Mallee d unes i s i n c onstant movement a nd r egularly c overs a nd u ncovers s ites . H owever , burial o f artefacts by t his p rocess i s not p ermanent s ince a d irectional c hange i n t he wind will u ncover t hem a gain . T he p resent d ay movement o f dune c rests i s, t herefore, unlikely t o h ave caused t he permanent obscuring o f l arge numbers o f early Holocene s ites i n t he Mallee . Larger-scale g eomorphological p rocesses a re more p robable a gents. T here a re t hree ways i n which e arlier o ccupation o f t he Mallee may h ave b een r endered i nvisible b y l arge-scale g eomorphological p rocesses : e arly s ites c ould h ave b een c overed b y m id t o l ate H ol oc ene d eposits o n t he s urface o f which a ll t he r ecent s ites a re l ocated; e arly s ites l ie s tratified b elow t he r ecent s ites but h ave n ot y et b een e xposed b y e rosion ; e arly s ites a re s ituated i n d ifferent l ocations f rom t he l ater s ites a nd e rosion h as p referentially r evealed o nly t hose d eposits u pon which r ecent a ssemblages a re l ocated . F or t he f irst h ypothesis t o h old , t here must b e e vidence f or l arge-

1 77

s cale m id t o l ate H olocene d eposition t hroughout t he M allee , b lanketting e arlier l andforms a nd t hereby o bscuring a ny e vidence f or e arlier s ites . T he s econd h ypothesis p redicts t hat t here h as b een g radual a ccumulation o f s ediments o ver t ime , w ith t he r emains o f h uman a ctivities s tratified within t hem, but o nly t he younger l evels o f s uch d eposits h ave s o f ar been e xposed by r ecent e rosion . T he t hird hypothesis r equires t hat u neroded o ld d epositional l andforms r emain i n t he Mallee a nd t hat e arly s ites a re l ocated i n t hese s ediments . I n o rder t o d etermine which , i f a ny , o f t hese h ypotheses a dequately e xplains t he a rchaeological s ituation f ound i n n orthwestern V ictoria, e ach will b e t ested b y e xamining t he d epositional a nd e rosional h istory o f t he Mallee g eomorphological r ecord .

D epositional e vidence i n t he M allee D epositional l andforms i n t he Mallee c omprise a eolian a nd s ourcebordering s and dunes, c lay l unettes a nd l akeshore ' beaches ' o r s and l unettes. A ll a eolian s and dunes i n t he Mallee a re o f l ate P leistocene a ge ( Bowler 1 976; Bowler and Magee 1 978; Wasson 1 982 ). T he most r ecent c arbonate s oil i n l inear dunes has b een r adiocarbon d ated t o 1 5,550 + 2 30BP ( ANU-183 ), a nd B owler a nd P olach ( 1971 ) h ave i nterpreted t his a ge a s being t he f inal p hase o f g eneral l inear d unefield mobilisation . P arabolic dunes ( Fig . 3 ) appear t o h ave b een a ctive more r ecently t han l inear dunes . T hermo l uminescence d ates f rom a p arabolic dune t o t he west o f Outlet Creek ( Fig . 2 ) i ndicate t hat p arabolic d unes were n ot s tabilised u ntil a bout 1 2,000BP, a fter t he c essation o f l inear d une a ctivity ( Ross 1 984 :91-2 ). R ecently a l ate H olocene p hase o f s and d une mobilisation h as b een r eported f or s everal p arts o f b oth a rid a nd s emia rid s outheastern A ustralia ( Wasson 1 976 , 1 982 ). H owever , n o e vidence f or t his r ecent m obilisation o f s and d unes h as b een d ocumented f rom t he V ictorian Mallee ( Ross 1 984 :188-9 ). C lay l unettes a re a lso P leistocene i n a ge . T he b est d ated l unette s equence i n t he Mallee comes f rom L ake Tyrrell ( Fig . 2 ) where a twop hase l unette s equence o verlies a P leistocene b each ( Ross 1 981 , 1 984 ). T he most r ecent c lay l unette i s u ndated , h owever e vidence f or t he c liffi ng o f t hese s ediments by h igh l ake l evels a t 1 0,000BP a ttests t o t he P leistocene a ge o f t hese l unette s ediments . T he most r ecent l unette a t Lake A lbucutya ( Fig . 2 ) i s a lso P leistocene i n age . R adiometric d ates o f 1 6,000BP have been a ssayed f or t his c lay d une ( Bowler 1 976; Bowler a nd Magee 1 978 ). T he a ges o f c lay a nd g ypsum d unes a t R aak P lains , t he P ink L akes , Mud L ake a nd v arious o ther s mall s aline d epressions t hroughout t he s tudy a rea a re a lso l ikely t o d ate t o t he end o f t he P leistoc ene . B owler a nd Magee a rgue t hat , a s f or l inear d une m obilisation , t he f inal p hase o f c lay l unette f ormation t hroughout s outhwestern N ew S outh Wales a nd n orthwestern V ictoria o ccurred i n t he l ate P leistocene : ' (clay ) l unettes t hroughout t his r egion are e xclusively r elict f eatures r elating t o h ydrologic e vents o f l ate P leistoc ene t imes . D ates a vailable f rom t he l ast e pisode o f l unette b uilding c luster i n t he r ange b etween 1 9,000 a nd 1 5 ,000BP with many s howing evidence o f s ynchronous d evelopment between 1 7,000 a nd 1 6,000 a s a t t he Willandra Lakes, Tysons Lake a nd L ake A lbucutya ' . ( Bowler a nd Magee 1 978 :13 )

1 78

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T here i s n o e vidence t herefore t hat c lay l unette f ormation i n t he V ictorian M allee was a s ignificant e vent a fter a bout 1 5 ,000 I 3P . T he m ost s ignificant H olocene d epositional l andforms i n t he M allee a re l akeshore b eaches . F ive r adiocarbon a ges o n f reshwater m ussels o f n atural, r ather t han a nthropogenic, o rigin f rom f our b eaches a t P ine P lains ( Fig . 4 ) t estify t o a m ajor p hase o f b each c onstruction b etween a bout 8 000 a nd 6 000BP ( Macumber 1 980 ; R oss 1 981 , 1 984 ). S imilar f eatu res e lsewhere o n P ine P lains, a nd on s ome o f t he l akes upstream a re a lso l ikely t o h ave b een d eposited d uring t he H olocene . E lsewhere i n t he M allee , t i owever , e arly H olocene d eposition i s n ot e vident . I n s u iimary,

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P leistocene i n a ge . T herefore e arly H olocene s ites a re n ot l ikely t o h ave b een a ffected b y s ediment d eposition a fter s ite f ormation , e xcept a round P ine P lains a nd s ome o f t he u pstream l akes .

E rosional e vidence i n t he Mallee I n o rder f or b urial, i f i ndeed i t o ccurred , t o h ave b een e ffective i n r endering a rchaeological s ites i nvisible e rosion o f t he s ediments c overing s uch s ites m ust h ave b een l imited t o s uperficial weathering , s ufficient o nly t o r eveal t he most r ecently d eposited a rtefacts . T he n ecessary c orollary t o t his h ypothesis i s t hat t here h as b een l ittle o r no s ubsequent e rosion o f r ecent d epositional f eatures, o r o f a ncient l andforms. S urface s ites a re most e asily v isible u nder e rosional c onditions and t he majority o f t he s ites r ecorded i n t he Mallee were f ound i n e rosional s calds . Many o f t hese s calds are v ery d eep , s ome t o ad epth o f 5m b elow t he s urface . I n d esert d unes i t i s n ot u ncommon f or t he i ndurated c arbonate l ayer, which f orms under d amp c onditions, t o b e exposed o n t he p resent d ay s urface . S uch c arbonate h orizons must b e, a ccording t o B owler a nd P olach ( 1971 ), a t l east 1 5 ,000 y ear o ld . Not a ll d eposits i n t he Mallee a re s o d eeply e roded . Y et e ven o n l andscapes f ormed d uring t he Holocene, where r ecent burial o f e arly Holocene s ites i s more l ikely, e rosion o f s urface s ediments d own t o e arly H olocene l evels i s widespread . 1 80

At P ine P lains many a reas h ave

been eroded to expose sediments dating to 7000BP and earlier. Yet in no instance have artefacts attributable to the core tool and scraper trad­ ition, dated prior to 4000BP elsewhere (Bowler et al. 1970), been exposed. Instead, the lithic debris found is largelyrelated to the small tool tradition which dates to the last 4000 years in southeastern Australia (Johnson 1979). Elsewhere in the Mallee Pleistocene sediments have been exposed by erosion, yet more than 80% of the sites located on these sediments are late Holocene in age. The degree of erosion suffered by relatively recent depositional landforms cannot, therefore, explain the low numbers of archaeologically visible sites from the early Holocene. It is clear that, had artefacts of early Holocene age been deposited close to water sources or on any of the Mallee dunes, they would have been exposed by subsequent erosion, particularly since the advent of European farming in the area has accel­ erated the natural rate of erosion. The first two hypotheses outlined above are, therefore, not supp­ orted by the geomorpholgical data. Attention will now be focussed on an analysis of older depositional landforms in an assessment of the third hypothesis. The oldest surficial deposits in northwestern Victoria are late Pleistocene clay lunettes. Since the oldest lakeshore features are the most likely to contain evidence for early occupation in the Mallee, as for example at the Willandra Lakes (Bowler et al. 1970), Lake Tandou (Hope et al. 1983) and the Menindee Lakes (Hopel981), the weathered surfaces of clay lunettes are of particular interest to the present investigation . There are numerous clay lunette deposits in the Mallee, all of which have been examined for the presence of early sites. All have been eroded to some extent, mainly as a result of European agricultural pursuits. Archaeological sites have been found in most of these feat­ ures. At Lake Tyrrell, sites contain a mixture of artefacts usually associated with both the early and the more recent tool kit and a Pleistocene age has been obtained for one site (Macumber personal comm­ unication). However, once again the great majority of sites located on these old landforms date to the later Holocene. There is, therefore, no evidence to support the suggestion in the second and third hypotheses above that early Holocene occupation of the Mallee was widespread, but has not yet been exposed. Erosion of both late Pleistocene and early Holocene landforms has been such that, had occupation dating to earlier than 4000BP been widespread, archaeological evidence for that occupation should have been visible during the systematic survey that forms the basis of this study (Ross 1984). The lack of evidence for widespread occupation of the Mallee prior to about 4000BP is, therefore, unlikely to have been due to geomorphological activity obscuring sites once they had been abandoned and the distribution patterns seen are most probably real. Conclusion

The arguments for site preservation in the Victorian Mallee are more detailed than those from elsewhere in southeastern Australia; nevertheless there is now a growing body of data which indicates that all sites dating to at least the last 6000 years should be visible in 181

t he m odern l andscape . A d iscussion o f s ite p reservation i ssues f or t he r est o f s outheastern A ustralia h as b een o utlined e lsewhere ( Ross 1 985 ). I n g eneral i t would appear f rom t he available d ata t hat t here was a n i ncrease both i n t he number a nd i n t he u se o f s ites i n t his a rea a fter 4 000BP , a nd t hat t his p henomenon was r eal . Ih ave d iscussed a bove t he i nadequacies o f e nvironmentally a nd/or e cologically d eterministic e xpla nations o f t his o bserved p attern . T he e vidence , a lthough r ather t enu ous i n m any i nstances , i s n ow m ounting t hat m id t o l ate H olocene a rcha eological s ite p atterning was determined by i ntensification o f s ite u se, s ocial c hange and population i ncrease . I t i s c lear t hat t hese f actors h ad a f ar g reater i nfluence o n t he H olocene p rehistory o f s outhe astern Australia t han d id e nvironmental f actors .

R eferenc es ATTENBROW, V .J . 1 982 T he a rchaeology o f U pper Mangrove Creek c atchment : r esearch i n progress . i n BOWDLER , S . ( ed ) Coastal a rchaeo6 7-78 . D epartment o f P rehistory , l ogy i n e astern Australia, pp. R ese a rch S chool o f P acific S tudies, A ustralian N ational U niversity , C anberra. BEATON , J .M . 1 983 Does i ntensification a ccount f or changes i n t he A ustralian H olocene a rchaeological r ecord? A rchaeology i n O ceania 1 7:59-67. B EATON , J .M . 1 985 E vidence f or a c oastal o ccupation t ime-lag a t P rinc ess C harlotte B ay ( noith Q ueensland ) a nd i mplications f or c oastal c olonisation a nd p opulation g rowth t heories f or A boriginal A ustra lia . A rchaeology i n O ceania 2 0 :1-20 . B OWLER , J .M . 1 976 A ridity i n A ustralia : a ge , o rigins a nd e xpression i n a eolian l andforms a nd s ediments . F rth-Science R eview 1 2 :279-310 . BOWLER , J .M ., HOPE, G .S ., J ENNINGS, J .N ., S INGH, G . and WALKER , D . 1 976 . L ate Q uaternary c limates o f Australia a nd N ew G uinea . Q uaternary R esearch 6 :359-394 . BOWLER , J .M ., JONES, R ., ALLEN , H . and T HORNE , A .G . 1 970 P leistocene human r emains f rom Australia: a l iving s ite and human c remation f rom L ake Mungo , 6 0,

western N ew S outh W ales .

W orld A rchaeology 2 :39-

B OWLER , J .M . a nd MAGEE , J .W . 1 978 G eomorphology o f t he Mallee r egion i n s emi-arid n orthern V ictoria a nd western N ew S outh Wales . P rocedings o f t he R oyal S ociety o f V ictoria 9 0 :5-20 . e B OWLER , J .M . a nd P OLACH , H .A . 1 971 R adiocarbon a nalyses o f s oil c arbo nates: an evaluation f rom paleosols i n s outheastern Australia . i n YAALON, D .H . ( ed ) P aleopedology : o rigin , n ature and d ating o f p aleosols , pp. 9 7-108 . I nternational S ociety o f S oil S cience a nd I srael U niversity P ress, J erusalem . CHAPPELL , J .M .A . and GRINDROD, A . ( eds ) 1 983 CLIMANZ: P roceedings o f f irst C limanz, F ebruary 1 981 . D epartment o f B iogeography a nd G eom orphology , R esearch S chool o f P acific S tudies, A ustralia N ational U niversity , C anberra .

1 82

F LOOD , J . 1 980 T he Moth H unters : A boriginal p rehistory o f t he A ustrali an A lps . A ustralian I nstitute o f A boriginal S tudies, C anberra . H EAD , L . 1 983 E nvironment a s a rtefact : a g eographic p erspective o n t he Holocene o ccupation o f s outhwestern Victoria . A rchaeology i n O ceania 1 8 :73-80 . H EAD ,

L . 1 986 P alaeoecological c ontributions t o Australian p rehistory . A rchaeology i n O ceania 2 1 :121-9 .

H ISCOCK , P . 1 986 T echnological c hange i n t he H unter R iver v alley a nd i ts i mplications f or t he i nterpretation o f l ate H olocene c hange i n A ustralia . A rchaeology i n O ceania 2 1 :40-50 . H OPE , J . ( ed ) 1 981 D arling S urveys 1 . O ccasional P apers i n P rehistory n o . 3 , D epartment o f P rehistory , R esearch S chool o f P acific S tudi es , A ustralian N ational U niversity , C anberra . HOPE, J ., DARE-EDWARDS, A . and MCINTYRE, M .L . 1 983 Middens a nd megaf auna : s tratigraphy a nd d ating o f L ake T andou l unette , western N ew S outh Wales . A rchaeology i n O ceania 1 8 :45-52 . HORTON, D .R . 1 981 Water a nd woodland : t he p eopling o f Australia . A ustralian I nstitute o f A boriginal S tudies N ewsletter 1 6 :21-7 . H UGHES, P .J . and LAMPERT, R .J . 1 982 P rehistoric population c hange i n s outhern c oastal New S outh Wales . i n BOWDLER , S . ( ed ) Coastal 1 6-28. D epartment o f P rea rchaeology i n e astern Australia, pp. h istory, R esearch S chöol o f P acific S tudies, Australian N ational U niversity , C anberra . J OHNSON, I . 1 979 T he g etting o f d ata . U npublished P hD t hesis , a lian N ational U niversity , C anberra .

Austr-

LOURANDOS, H . 1 983 I ntensification : a l ate P leistocene Holocene a rchaeological s equence f rom s outhwestern V ictoria . A rchaeology i n O ceania 1 8 :81-94 . -

L OURANDOS , H . 1 984 C hanging p erspectives i n A ustralian p rehistory : r eply t o B eaton . A rchaeology i n O ceania 1 9 :29-33 .

a

LOURANDOS, H . 1 985 I ntensification i n Australian p rehistory . i n PRICE, T .D . and BROWN , J .E . ( eds ) P rehistoric hunters and g athere rs : t he emergence o f s ocial a nd c ultural c omplexity , p p . 3 85-423 . A cademic P ress , N ew Y ork . MACUMBER , P .G . 1 980 T he i nfluence o f g roundwater d ischarge on t he mallee l andscape . i n S TORRIER , R .R . and S TANNARD , M .E . ( eds ) A eolian l andscapes i n t he s emi-arid z one o f s outheastern A ustralia , p p . 6 7-84 . A ustralian S ociety o f S oil S cience , R iverir ia . F «X NON , P . a nd W ILLIAMS , M .A .J . 1 977 L ate Q uaternary c limatic c hanges i n Australia a nd North A frica: a p reliminary i nterpretation . P alaeogeography , P alaeoclimatology a nd P alaeoecology 2 1 :285-327 . R OSS , A . 1 981 H olocene e nvironments a nd p rehistoric s ite p atterning i n t he V ictorian M alle. A rchaeology i n O ceania 1 6:145-154 .

1 83

R OSS ,

A . 1 984 I f t here were water : p rehistoric s ettlement p atterns i n t he V ictorian M allee . U npublished P hD t hesis , Macquarie U niversi ty , North R yde .

ROSS, A . 1 985 Archaeological evidence f or population c hange i n t he m iddle t o l ate H olocene i n s outheastern A ustralia . A rchaeology i n O ceania 2 0 :81-9 . R OWLAND , M .J . 1 983 A borigines a nd e nvironment i n H olocene A ustralia : c hanging p aradigms . A ustralian A boriginal S tudies 2 :62-77 . T HOM ,

E .G . 1 978 C oastal s and d eposition i n s outheast A ustralia d uring t he Holocene . i n D AVIES, J .L . and WILLIAMS, M .A .J . ( eds ) Landform 1 97-214 . A ustralian N ational U nive volution i n A ustralasia , pp. e rsity P ress , C anberra .

THOM, B .G . 1 982 Holocene c oastal s tratigraphy . 5 0-77 . WASSON, R .J . op . c it ., pp.

i n THOM,

B .G . and

THOM, B .G . and WASSON, R .J . ( eds ) 1 982 Holocene r esearch i n Australia 1 978-1982 . O ccasional P aper n o . 3 3, D epartment o f G eography , U nive rsity o f N ew S outh Wales , D untroon . WASSON , R .J . 1 976 Holocene a eolian l andforms i n t he B elarabon a rea , s outhwest o f Cobar, N .S .W . Journal and P roceedings o f t he R oyal S ociety o f N ew S outh Wales 1 09 :91-101 . WASSON, R .J . 1 982 Late Holocene a eolian a ctivity i n a rid Australia . 3 6-8 . i n T HOM, E .G . and WASSON , R .J . op . c it ., pp. W ILLIAMS ,

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W INTERHALD E IR , B . a nd S MITH , E .A . ( eds ) 1 981 H unter-gatherer f oraging s trategies : e thnographic a nd a rchaeological analyses . University o f C hicago P ress , C hicago .

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R E XE 1 D EIE LDPM EN I 'S I N E Z 1VI W * 1M F N ML ANALYSIS I N T HE O LD A ND NEW ) RU JS: AN A NTIPODEAN P ERSPECT IVE

S andra Bawdier

or Prehistory C entre f f Western Australia U niversity o N edlands, WA 6 009, A ustralia

Abstract T he author was t he i nvited d iscussant a t t his s ymposium . A fter s ome i ntroductory r emarks o n t he d evelopment o f e nvironmental a nalysis i n a rchaeology , s he d iscusses a spects o f s ome o f t he p apers p resented i n t he l ight o f h er own a nd o thers ' work o n s imilar p roblems i n Australia . P articular m ention i s m ade o f t he m ulti-disciplinary s tudies which g rew out o f h er excavations o n Hunter I sland , T asmania . S he s uggests t hat t he n orthern h emisphere c an l earn f rom antipodean experience, where a rchaeology h as d eveloped s omewhat d ifferently .

I ntroduction A ustralia s its u neasily between t he O ld and New Worlds. S ettled f rom t he O ld World more r ecently t han t he Americas, i t a lso r etained f or l onger i ts l inks with t he O ld World . A ustralian a rchaeologists , g enera lly s peaking , a ttempt t o m aintain f amiliarity with t he work o f E nglishs peaking colleagues f rom both s ides o f t he Atlantic . P erhaps, we s ee other d ichotomies a s more s ignificant t han t hat d ivide, particularly t hat b etween t he northern and s outhern hemispheres, but a lso t o s ome extent t hat b etween English and n on-English s peaking a rchaeologists . T he b enefits o f a t opic s uch a s t hat o f t his s ymposium ' Recent d evelopments i n e nvironmental a nalysis ' i s t hat i t t ranscends a ll t hese d ivisi ons, i s o f e qual i nterest t o a rchaeologists f rom t he O ld a nd New Worlds , n orthern a nd s outhern h emispheres a nd f rom s uch l inquistically e xotic c ountries a s t he N etherlands, G ermany a nd A ppalachia . One u nifyi ng f actor i n t his s ymposium has b een t he f act t hat n early a ll t he papers p resented r elated t o hunter-gatherer s tudies . S ince t he p reh istory o f A ustralia i s , u niquely , a p rehistory o f h unter-gatherers , a n A ntipodean p erspective o n t he s ymposium t opic s eems a ppropriate .

Analysing e nvironmen ts T he t erm ' environmental analysis ' might b e construed i n s everal ways . I t c an m ean t o a nalyse e nvironments i n ab road g eneral s ense , o r , more p ertinently , t o a nalyse a rchaeological e vidence e nvironmentally . T his l atter c onstruction c an b e f urther i nterpreted i n t wo ways . F irst ,

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w e m ay wish t o u nderstand p ast e nvironments a s t hey a ffected , a nd were a ffected by , human b ehaviour . S econdly, we m ay concentrate o n d irect a rchaeological e vidence o f a n e nvironmental n ature , p articularly h uman d ietary e vidence , i n t erms o f s pecific h uman b ehavioural s tudies . B oth k inds o f a pproach were r epresented i n t his s ymposium . I n t he p ast , g eneral e nvironmental s pecialists s uch a s p alynologi sts, g eomorphologists, p alaeontologists a nd s o o n , have t ended t o c oncentrate n arrowly within t heir own f ields . T hey h ave n ot t aken m uch a ccount o f t he work o f a rchaeologists , e xcept t o u se r andom b its o f i t when i t a ppeared r elevant a nd t o i nvoke h uman a ctivities a s e nvironment al mechanisms when t hey r an o ut o f o ther i deas. Archaeologists h ave o ften h ad t o g o c ap-in-hand t o s uch s pecialists f or a ssistance a nd h ave h ad t o work hard t o a rouse t heir i nterest . I t may b e, o f c ourse , t hat s ometimes t hat p articular boot was p erceived t o be o n t he o ther f oot . N ow , h owever , t here i s ab etter r approchement b etween a rchaeologists a nd o ther k inds o f e nvironmentalists, and a lso a b etter g rasp by a rchaeol ogists o f t he s kills a nd p rinciples i nvolved i n e nvironmental a nalyses . N owadays , i t i s o ften t he c ase t hat a rchaeologists a re d oing t he n ecessa ry a nalyses f or t hemselves . O ne i mportant r ealisation b y Q uaternary s pecialists h as b een o f t he e xtent t o which what was t hought t o b e t he ' natural t e nvironment i s i n f act a h uman a rtefact . T his h as b een r ecognised n ot j ust i n l ater h uman h istory , b ut a lso f or h unter-gatherer e nvironments . I n A ustralia , t he f act t hat A borigines h ad u sed f ire t o m odify t he n atural v egetation was r ecognised twenty y ears a go ( Jackson 1 965 ; J ones 1 969 ; H allam 1 975 ). S ubsequent r esearch h as i ndicated t hat t his c ould l ead t o q uite e xtensive l andscape r eshaping . R epeated b urning c an l ead t o s oil i nstability which t hen l eads t o e xtensive s ediment d eposition i n d rainage b asins . T his has b een d emonstrated i n New S outh Wales and T asmania f or t he p rehistoric p ast ( Hughes a nd S ullivan 1 981 ; C olhoun a nd Moon 1 984 ). Only v ery r ecently h as a s imilar p attern o f l andscape m odification b een s uggested f or Mesolithic E urope ( Moore 1 986 ). A s B enz ( this volume ) implies, i t i s i ncumbent o n u s a ll t o p erc eive t he e xtent t o which t he e nvironment a s we s ee i t r eflected i n t he a rchaeological r ecord m ay i tself b e a r eflection o f p rehistoric h uman a ctivity . T he r ole o f f ire i n a ffecting v egetation s uccession i s e ven more s ignificant i n Australia, where s ome p lant species n eed f ire t o g erminate ( Kemp 1 981 ). While we must a ssume t his a daptation t o h ave come a bout i n t he very r emote p ast by p rocesses o f n atural s election , t he c oming o f humans wielding f ire s ticks must a lso h ave a ltered t he ' natural ' b alance i n f avour o f t hose s pecies . T he extent t o which a rchaeologists have mastered t he s kills o f o ther d isciplines i s a pparent i n s everal o f t he p apers p resented a t t his s ymposium . N ot o nly d oes t his a llow t hem a m easure o f i ndependence f rom ' experts ', i t a lso m eans t hat t hey c ome t o a m uch b etter u nderstanding o f botanical o r z oological p rinciples, marine e cology o r g eomorphic p rocesses a s t he c ase may b e . T his d oes n ot, o f c ourse, mean t hat b otanists , z oologists o r g eomorphologists a re t hus r endered r edundant , s ince major r esearch i ssues i n t hose a reas will a lways r equire s uch p rimary e xpertise . What i t d oes m ean i s t hat a rchaeologists c an m ore i ntelligently c onverse w ith s uch p eople a nd a lso h ave a m ore i ntegrated v iew o f p ast e nvironments , a lbeit a n a nthropocentric o ne .

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Much o f t he work d escribed h ere f rom both t he O ld a nd New Worlds h as b een p aralleled, i ndeed i n s ome c ases anticipated, by r esearch c arried out i n Australia . Australian a rchaeological r esearch h as a s trong environmental o rientation f or a n umber o f r easons . F irst, a s mentioned a bove, Australia was t he o nly c ontinent s olely o ccupied by hunter-gatherers t hroughout t he Holocene, until a bout 2 00 y ears a go . T here i s t hus m uch e thnohistorical a nd e thnographic in formation a vailable o n t he d ynamics o f A boriginal e cology . S econdly , much o f t he l andscape r emains s ubstantially a s i t was b efore t he a rrival o f E urop eans . T he r econstruction o f h unter-gatherer l andscapes i s n ot , t heref ore , s uch a d aunting u ndertaking a s i t i s i n t he O ld World e specially . T hirdly , A ustralian s tone a rtefact a ssemblages d o n ot m ake t he n ice n eat p atterns b eloved o f P alaeolithic a rchaeologists, s o A ustralian a rchaeol ogists , f aced w ith i ntractable c ollections o f amorphous implements, have t urned with s ome r elief t o t he a nalysis o f bone, s hell and s edi ment .

Env ironmental a nalysis i n A ustralian a rchaeology R esearch i n A ustralia h as s hown t hat i t h as b een o ccupied b y p eople f or a t l east t he l ast 4 0 ,000 y ears . D uring t hat t ime s ignificant e nvironmental c hanges h ave t aken p lace . While t he g lacial maximum o f t he l ate P leistocene d id n ot d irectly a ffect t he Australian l andscape i n ways f amiliar f rom t he n orthern h emisphere , t here were o ther s ignificant e ffects, particularly s ea l evel c hange and f luctuations i n e ffective p recipitation . Australia h as b een p hysically s eparated f rom s outheast A sia s ince t he e nd o f t he C retaceous b y ad eep s ubmarine t rough , b ut t he e xtensive e ustatic l owering o f s ea l evels d uring g lacial m axima n arrowed t hat b arrier w hile e nlarging t he c ontinent t o i nclude t he i sland o f N ew Guinea i n t he n orth a nd T asmania i n t he s outh . S uch p eriods a lso p rovide evidence o f much g reater a ridity , with an e xpansion o f t he d esert c ore , m ajor d une b uilding e pisodes , a nd a d rying u p o f h itherto s ubstantial i nland l ake s ystems ( Bowler et al . 1 976 ). Considerable r esearch has n ow g one i nto e lucidating t he human r esponse t o t hese c hanges, t o d ocumenting e volving A boriginal a daptations t hrough t ime a nd a ttempting a n u nderstanding o f t he r esulting A boriginal e conomic s trategies i n t he e thnographic p resent ( White and O 'Connell 1 982; F lood 1 983). U ntil r ecently , m y own r esearch h as b een c oncentrated i n n orthwest T asmania , s pecifically o n H unter I sland a nd I will d raw o n t hat r esearch f or s ome i llustrations ( Bowdier 1 980 , 1 984, 1 987 ). H unter I sland i s n ot l arge, o nly 2 4km l ong a nd 6 km wide o r 8 400ha . I t i s o ne o f ag roup o f i slands j ust o ff t he n orthwest t ip o f T asmania , which i s l ess t han 5 km away ( Fig . 1 ). H istorical evidence r ecords t hat t hese i slands were v isited b y T asmanian A boriginal m ariners o n b ark c anoe-rafts , o r ' catamarans ', a nd a rchaeological r esearch h as s hown a d iscontinuous o ccupat ion o f H unter I sland g oing b ack t o 2 3,000BP . B etween a bout 2 3,000 a nd 6 000 y ears a go , H unter I sland was n ot o f c ourse a n i sland a t a ll, b ut a s mall h ill o n t he e xposed f loor o f t he B ass S trait which f ormed a l and b ridge b etween t he A ustralian m ainland a nd T asmania . A l ong Quaternary s equence was d erived f rom C ave B ay Cave, whose d eposits c ontained a c ontinuous r ecord o f f aunal r emains a nd p ollen with i ntermittent a rchaeological evidence f or h uman o ccupation . G enerally s peaking , t he a rchaeological evidence s pans t he p eriods a bout 2 3,0001 8,000BP, 6 000-4000BP a nd 2 500-900BP . T he i sland i s a lso dotted with

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C .)

1 o, .

n umerous o pen s hell m idden s ites, o f which t hree h ave b een e xcavated . A ll s uch s ites a re a ssumed t o d ate f rom within t he l ast 6 000 y ears . O f t hose d ated , n one a ppear t o b e o lder t han 1 600BP . T he m ost e xtensively e xcavated midden i s t he S tockyard s ite, l ocated a lmost e xactly i n t he c entre o f t he i sland . Ih ave d iscussed e lsewhere ( Bowdler 1 983 ) t he c oncepts o f ' shell midden ' a nd ' midden ' a s u sed i n Australian a rchaeol ogy . I will n ot d escribe a ll t hese e xcavations h ere , t he d etails a re f ound i n B owdler

( 1984 , 1 987 ).

T he main a nalytical f ocus o f t he evidence f rom Cave Bay Cave was e nvironmental . A d etailed t ypological a nalysis o f a rtefacts f rom t his s ite was q uite p recluded b y t he s parse a nd amorphous n ature o f t he s tone t ool a ssemblage . T his was however more t han c ompensated f or by t he a bundant f aunal r emains , which were e xcellently p reserved , a nd a lso t he p resence o f f ossil p ollen t hroughout t he d eposits . I was f ortunate t o b e a ble t o c apture t he i nterest o f p alynologist D r . G . H ope who a nalysed t he l atter ( 1978 ), while I c arried out t he p rimary a nalysis o f a ll t he o ther e vidence . T he f aunal r emains c omprised t he bones o f b irds, mammals and r eptiles t hroughout t he s equence, while mollusca, c rustacea and s ome f ish bones were r ecovered f rom t he d eposits d ated t o within t he l ast 6 000 y ears . T hus t he g ross e nvironmental h istory o f t he s ite i n t erms o f c hanging s ea l evels was i mmediately a pparent f rom t he f aunal r emains . Q uite d etailed i nformation o n e nvironmental c hange was o btained f rom t he i dentification o f animal s pecies, e specially when c ombined with t he p ollen a nalysis . A t t he t ime o f t he l ast g lacial m aximum , a bout 2 0,0001 8,000BP , a n e cological c ommunity e xisted i n s outheast A ustralia with n o known modern a nalogue, a p henomenon r ecorded a lso i n North America ( Davis 1 976 ; G raham a nd L undelius 1 984 ). A g rassy p lain , w ith s cattered e ucalypts, e xtended f rom t he v icinity o f K angaroo I sland , o ff t he c oast o f S outh A ustralia n ear t he m odern c ity o f A delaide , a cross t he e xposed f loor o f B ass S trait , t o n orthwest T asmania . I t s upported a m ammalian f auna c omprising s pecies which i n R ecent t imes d id n ot e xist a nywhere n ear e ach o ther , a lthough m ost were e xtant a t l east i nto t he h istorical p eriod . On what i s n ow H unter I sland, n umerous s pecies were r ecorded f rom t his p eriod which were n ot f ound t here, o r o n a ny o f t he B ass S trait i slands, a fter t he s ea r eached i ts p resent l evel. With t he g radual r ising o f t he s eas, t he vegetation became i nitially d enser i n r esponse t o i ncreasing h umidity and we s ee t he e stablishment o f cool t emperate r ainforest i n western Tasmania . With t he f ormation o f t he i slands, t he v egetation b ecame m ore l ike t he p resent c oastal h eath a nd t he i sland f aunas were r educed i n s pecies d iversity t o t heir p resent d epauperate l evels . T he i nterpretation o f t he C ave B ay C ave f auna i n t erms o f g eneral e nvironmental c hange i s s traightforward e nough . What i s l ess e asy i s d isentangling t he a rchaeological r emains f rom t hose d eposited b y n onhuman a gencies, a p roblem a lso a ddressed by Webb ( this volume ) with r espect t o f auna f rom M iddle P alaeolithic s ites i n western E urope . I n t he T asmanian s ituation , t he f aunal r ecord h as b een c omplicated b y t he a ctivities o f n on-human p redators which i nclude owls , p eregrine f alcons , n ative ' cats ' ( marsupials o f t he f amily D asyuridae ), T asmanian d evils ( Sarcophilus h arrisii ) a nd T asmanian ' tigers ' o r ' wolves ' ( Thylacinus c ynocephalus ). F or C ave B ay C ave , t he l ast n amed m arsupials c an o nly b e c onsidered r elevant i n t he l ower d eposits b efore t he B ass S trait f looded . I t was p ossible t o i solate s everal c riteria f or i dentifying f auna d eposited p redominantly b y n on-human a gents, p erhaps m ost n otice-

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a bly t he s ize o f i ndividual b one f ragments . T asmanian d evils i n p arti cular c runch e verything u p t o a r easonably u niform s ize a nd , b y d int o f e xtensive measuring, d evil ' assemblages ' c ould b e d istinguished . S imilar t aphonomic c omplications h ave b een i dentified i n contemporary s ites i n s outhern A ustralia , i ncluding D evil 's L air , Western A ustralia , C loggs Cave, V ictoria, a nd t he S eton s ite, K angaroo I sland ( Bowdier 1 977; Hope e t a l. 1 977 ). O ne o f m y m ain p reoccupations with r espect t o t he r ecent a rchaeol ogy o f Hunter I sland h as b een t he question o f s easonality , which h as i ndeed been a c ommon preoccupation o f Australian a rchaeologists. I n 1 939, e thnographer D onald T homson p ublished h is d escription o f t he W ik Monkan o f C ape Y ork , which c ontained t hese o ft-quoted words : ' It will b e a pparent t hat a n o nlooker , s eeing t hese p eople a t d ifferent s easons o f t he y ear , would f ind t hem e ngaged i n o ccupations s o d iverse , a nd with weapons a nd u tensils d ifferi ng s o much i n c haracter , t hat i f h e ( sic ) were u naware o f t he s easonal i nfluence o n f ood s upply , a nd c onsequently u pon o ccu pation , h e would b e l ed t o c onclude t hat t hey were d ifferent g roups'. ( Thomson 1 939 :269 ) T his p aper h as b een v astly i nfluential o n a rchaeologists, y et, i ronically , t he o bvious s easonal ' markers ' s uggested by T homson 's a ccount h ave p roved e lusive i n t he g round . A rchaeologists h ave i nterpreted , o ften i ndeed r e-interpreted, t heir d ata i n t he l ight o f T homson 's d epiction o f as easonal r ound, but f irm s easonal i ndicators r emain p roblematical ( Lampert 1 966, 1 971 ; White 1 967 ; White a nd P eterson 1 969 ; A llen 1 972 ). S ome work h as b een c arried o ut o n t he a nalysis o f g rowth i ncrements i n m arine b ivalves t o d etermine s easonal p atterns i n s outhern A ustralia ( Conover p ersonal c ommunication ; L uebbers 1 978 ; C allaghan 1 980 ). L ike C arlson , C laassen a nd D eith ( this v olume ), h owever , A ustralian r esearche rs i n t his a rea have f ound i t d ifficult t o e stablish c lear r esults. P roblems a rise d ue t o s ubjectivity i n i dentifying a nd c ounting g rowth i ncrements o n t he part o f r esearchers a nd n on-seasonal c hanges i n s ea water t emperatures a nd variability i n t he way i ndividual o rganisms a ctually r espond t o t hem ( Callaghan 1 980 :147-9 ). H unter I sland s eemed t o o ffer a u seful l aboratory f or i nvestigating questions o f s easonal o ccupation . Ethnohistorical r ecords s uggested t hat i slands i n t his g roup were v isited b y A borigines f rom t he T asmanian m ainland i n t he s ummer . T he p rimary a ttraction f or t hese v isits was t he presence o n t he i slands o f muttonbirds ( short-tailed s hearwater, P uff i nus t enuirostris ) ( Bowdler 1 980 ). My r esearch a im o n H unter I sland was t o s ee i f t his c ould b e s ubstantiated a rchaeologically , a nd i f s o , t o e stablish t he a ntiquity o f s uch a p attern o f e xploitation . Mutton b irds a re m igrants a nd s trict s easonal breeders . Vast n umbers n est i n r ookeries o n t he Bass S trait I slands, t hen s pend o ur winter i n t he n orthern h emisphere . I n t he r ookeries, e ach p air o f b irds i nhabit a b urrow f rom t he l ast week o f S eptember . E ggs a re l aid b etween N ovember 1 9th a nd D ecember 2 nd , a nd h atch b etween J anuary 1 0th a nd 2 3rd . T hus a dult b irds a re available f rom S eptember u ntil e arly April when t hey l eave f or t he n orth . E ggs a re a vailable f rom l ate N ovember u ntil m id-January, a nd c hicks f rom t hen u ntil l ate A pril o r e arly May , when

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t hey f ollow t he a dults n orth . T hus , muttonbirds d o i ndeed c onstitute a g ood s easonal i ndicator , which , i t was h oped , c ould b e a rchaeologically i nvestigated. I n t he event, a dult muttonbird r emains were i dentified i n most e xcavations a nd c hicks i n a f ew c ases , b ut i n r elatively s mall n umbers . I t s eemed, t herefore, t hat t hey d id n ot c onstitute s uch a s ignificant r esource a s t he h istorical r ecords h ad s uggested . F urthermore, while t heir p resence a s f ood d ebris i n a ny quanitity a t a ll, and t his i s c learly what t hey were, a t l east i n t he o pen m idden s ites, i ndicated s ummer o ccupations, t his was n o g uarantee t hat Hunter I sland was n ot v isited i n winter, n or i ndeed t hat i t was n ot o ccupied t hroughout t he y ear . S ome o ther l ines o f e nquiry were t hen p ursued . T he S tockyard s ite was p articularly r ich i n v ertebrate r emains a s well a s m olluscs . T he f ormer i ncluded s everal s pecies o f b ird a s well a s muttonbird , s ome s eals a nd a n a bundance o f pademelon ( Thylogale b illardierii ), a small member o f t he k angaroo f amily ( Macropodidae ), which was t he l argest n ative l and a nimal f ound on t he i sland, o nce i t h ad b ecome a n i sland , b efore t he i ntroduction o f d omesticated a nimals . A ll t he v ertebrate r emains f rom t he S tockyard s ite, e xcept padem elon , were a nalysed b y O 'Connor ( 1980, 1 982 ). T he p resence o f c ertain s pecies o f b irds s uch a s d iving p etrels ( Pelecanoides u rinatrix ) a nd p elican ( Pelecanus c onspicillatus ), o f which t he b ones o f c hicks c ould b e i dentified, s upports t he muttonbird evidence i n s uggesting s ummer o ccupation . O 'Connor c arried o ut a d etailed analysis o f s eal t eeth . Two s pecies o f f ur s eal ( Arctocephalus d oriferus a nd A . f osteri ) were p resent , both o f which a re s easonal breeders and t hey s hare t he s ame b reeding t imetable . S eal colonies a re s tructured o n t he basis o f d istinct a ge/sex g roups . A nimals o f a p articular g roup o ccupy a welld efined a rea o f t he c olony . T he a ge/sex g roups p resent v ary a ccording t o r egular s easonal p atterns . T he r elative p roportion o f e ach a ge/sex c ategory r epresented i n an a rchaeological s ite s hould , t herefore, i ndicate which p art o f t he c olony was b eing e xploited a nd t he s eason o f t hat e xploitation . O 'Connor was a ble t o d etermine t he s ex o f s eals p resent o n t he b asis o f t he s ize a nd s hape o f t he c anine t eeth , a nd t he p opulation a ge s tructure b y c ounting t he i ncremental g rowth l ayers i n t he d entine o f t he c anine r oots a nd c omparing t hem with measurements f rom k nown-age s pecimens . T he r esults i ndicated t hat a b rccding c olony was b eing e xploited d uring t he s ummer months . T his r esearch was m ade p ossible by t he existence o f a l arge body o f data o n s eal b reeding p atterns ( Warneke 1 966, 1 968 , 1 975 ) a nd t he a vailability o f c omparative s amples. A s imilar s ituation e xisted w ith r espect t o p ademelon , whose a bunda nt r emains f rom t he S tockyard s ite were a nalysed b y G eering ( 1980, 1 982 ). A l arge c ollection o f p ademelon s kulls d erived f rom a nimals o f k nown a ge a nd s ex was h eld b y t he T asmanian Museum a nd i nformation e xisted a s t o t heir b reeding c ycle i n T asmania . G eering was, t herefore , a ble t o a nalyse t he a rchaeological s pecimens i n t erms o f t heir a ge a nd s ex a nd r elate t his t o t he p opulation s tructure a t a g iven t ime o f y ear . While s tressing t hat t he e vidence i s by n o means c onclusive, s he was a ble t o f ind s upport f or a s ummer o ccupation o f H unter I sland . F urther s upport f or a s ummer o ccupation i s a dded b y a s tudy o f t he

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m olluscan r emains f rom t he S tockyard s ite c arried o ut b y N ewland ( 1984 ). I n i nvestigating s easonality N ewland s imply m easured t he m aximum s hell s ize o f s elected g astropods, p rincipally a balone ( Haliotis r uber ) a nd warrener ( Subninella u rdulata , a m ember o f t he T urbinidae f amily ), a nd 1 hile a gain n ot c onclusive, t he c onstructed l ength: f requency p lots . 1 r esultant p olymodal d istributions w ere b est i nterpreted a s r epresenting s easonal p redation , a lthough i t was n ot p ossible t o i ndicate which s eason w ith a ny c onfidence . T his a nalysis was a lso m ade p ossible b y t he pre-existence o f a body o f r elevant c omparative b iological d ata ( Harrison a nd G rant 1 971; O 'Gower a nd M eyer 1 965 ). T hese s tudies c ombine t o s uggest t hat t he o ccupation o f Hunter I sland was s easonal, n ot y ear-round , a nd t hat t he s eason o f o ccupation was s ummer . T hey a lso s uggest t hat while m uttonbirds were e aten , t hey were n ot o f m ajor d ietary s ignificance ; l arge amounts o f p rotein a lso c ame f rom o ther b irds, s eals and p ademelons . While t he a bsolute a nti quity o f t his p attern o f s easonal o ccupation h as n ot b een e stablished , i t d oes s eem t o h ave p ersisted f or a t l east t he l ast 1 600 y ears . What t hese s tudies have i n c ommon i s t heir r eliance o n a dequate c omparative s amples a nd b iological d ata p lus t he e xistence o f c ontrols o f s ome s ort , a s d o s everal o f t he p apers p resented h ere . N ot o nly a re t hese c riteria e ssential f or r esearch t o p roceed , we a lso s ee a rchaeol ogists a cquiring a v ery p ersonal u nderstanding o f t he e nvironmental p arameters i nvolved i n t he c ases t hey s tudy . T his i s c learly r eflected i n t heir d etailed a pprehension o f t he l imitations i n t heir c onclusions . Australian a rchaeologists d eal with a h unter-gatherer p ast which ended o nly 2 00 y ears ago . T hey h ave c ome t o p erceive Aborigines a s n either ' parasites ' o n t he e nvironment n or a s j ust a p art o f t he e nvironment l ike a ny o ther animal s pecies, but a s h aving a p rofound e ffect u pon i t e ven while b eing t o s ome e xtent b ound b y i ts c onstraints . T he c ombination o f a l ong t imespan , t he a ccessibility o f e nvironmental d ata a nd a r ecent h unter-gatherer p resence a re b ringing a bout a u nique f orm o f e nvironmental a rchaeology i n Australia, o f which I h ave b arely t ouched t he s urface .

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W . G IO I M 4ANN-van W AATERI t E : M ) k JVELLkS T ENDN CES D ANS I A P ALYMDLOGIE AW H EbLOGIQUE F 1 E U IOPE D U J IDO ( JEST : AL A R3 HE Fc I 1E F R I 'IQUE IS Da INEES P OLLINIQUES L OCALIS ES

tapes p rincipales L a b ut d e c et a rticle e st d e p asser e n r evue l es é d u d veloppement d e l a p alynoarch ologie d e l 'Holoc ne e n E urope s eptent rionale . I i s 'agIt s urtout d 'une & . ialuation d e l 'auteur d e c e d evelopp ement p endant l es v ingt d erni ' res a nnées . C et a rticle c omprend l es s ujets s uivants: u n t our d 'horizon h istorique p réliminaire; l 'etat a ctuel d u d ébat s ur l e d eclin d e l 'orme ; l a s ignification r glative e ntre l es d onnéés p olliniques l ocales e t rgionales ; l 'importance d 'une m eill eure c omprehension d es p reuves d 'une p ré ' sence humaine e t i ti n f l uen c e q ualitative e t q uantitative d e c ette p resence s ur l a fl ore ; l ' tude d es d epots d e p ollen r cents e n c omparaison a vec l es s yst mes a gricoles c onnus d epuis l a p ériode h istorique ; e t , p our t erminer , l a r echerche s ur l a p r servation v ariable d es p ollens d ans d es t errains d ifferentes .

B . B ENZ : L E G ISE 2 4EN J A I H 1QGIQUE I WE U N Ø JSF4B IE D E DEPOTS L as r estes f loristiques t rouv s d ans d es c ouches a rcheologiques e t a ssociés avec e lles r ef ltent l 'influence 6 cologique d e l a p résence h umaine u n m oment d onne d ans l e p asse . L 'ensemble a rchéblogique d oit d onc c omprendre d es r estes m ontrant l es s trateg ies éologiques e xploit ees p ar l es h ommes d ans l eur e nvironnement b otanique a ussi b ien q ue l a r eaction d es p lantes a u p henom ne d e l 'habitation h umaine , g ui m odifie l 'habitat . C ertains r estes b otaniques, p ar e xample l es g raines, s ont l es moyens p ar l esquels l es p lantes s e p erpetuent, l a p resence d es f ruits e t/ou d es g raines n on-carbonisees d ans l es d epOts a rcheologiques p eut ê tre i nterpr tée c omme u ne d ispersion t ravers l e t emps e t n on s implement c omme d es i ntrusions recentes o u p rehistoriques q ui Wont r ien a v oir a vec l 'interprétation d u g isement a rcheologique . L a p ensée a rcheoloqique d es d erni res a nnees d oming p ar l a n otion d e p rocess us d e l a m ise en p lace d 'un g isement e t n 'a p as p ris en c onsideration l a t heorie d e l a s uccession d es c ommunautes éologiques ; n ous a vons i ci l a j ustification d u d ogme d ominant d e l a r echerche e thnobotanique . '

M . D EI T h : LA DOTERMINATION S AISONNIERE A UX O JQUILLAGES : t i NE I VALUATI (i N D E L A T ECHN IQUE D ES I SOTOPES S TABLES D 'OXYG E1 4E L e b ut d e c et a rticle e st u ne e valuation d e l a dgtermination s aisonni re d u r amassage d es m ollusques d e l a t echnique a nalytique d es i sotopes s tables d 'oxyg ne , l e g enre d e r ésolution q u 'elle o f fre e t l es

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c irconstances d ans l esquelles e ile marche d 'une mani ' re e ffective . T rois c as s ont d écrits: u n o u l a t echnique a r ussi; u n o ' t i e ile a c houé ' ; e t u n o t i l 'analyse d es c oquilles p rovenant d 'un e stuaire, d 'habitude u ne s ituation d éfavorable , ap roduit d es d onn es p ossibies d e dtermination s aiso r ini re . Q uelques c onclusions c oncernant l e b ilan d e r ésolution e t l es l imitations d e l a t echnique e n s ont t ire 's .

C .

L AASS :

' t kS TECHNIQUES E 1 ' IS C AS C OQU IILA GES

MOINS IX JR KT MLIR IA S AISON D E IA PE CH E AUX

S i l a d ate d e mort d es moilusques t rouvés d ans u n amas d e c oquilles e st connue l a s aison a l aquelie u s f urent r amassé 's e st dé 'terminable . Le dé 'compte d es anneaux d e c roissance, l es c hiffres d e po uiation e t l 'anaiyse d es i sotopes s tables s ont l es mgthodes d isponibles a l a d4term ination s aisonni ke d es c oquilles . O n e n f ait i ci u ne r evue c ritique . I i e st a bsoluement e ssentiel d 'é 'tablir d es c as t emoins b ien d ocumentés . L 'auteur c rea d e t els c as té 'moins p our l es t rois d erni ' res a nn es c iviles d e Mercenaria mercenaria v enant d e Caroline du Nord, E U . P lusieurs t echniques c i-dessus f urent s oumises " au ne c omparaison a vec l e c as t é 'moin p our v é i rifier l eur p recision .

C . CAR I $4 : L 'ESTIMATION DES ANNEAUX A NUELS DES POISSONS POUR LA DETERMINATION S AISONNIERE Les poissons habitant l es e aux f roides e t t emperé ' es ont d ans l a s tructure d e l eurs s quelettes d es a nneaux s aisonniers b ien m arqué ' s . L es a rché 'ologues a ttendaient a vec u n o ptimisme c onsidé ' rable q ue c es a nneaux p uissent f ournir d es r enseignements d é 'finitifs pour l a dé 'termination s aisonn T hre d es o ccupations d es g isements p réhistoriques . Mais i 'é ' tude d es o tolithes e t d es v ert bres d e p oissons d e s eries r é entes e t d 'amas d e coquilles archéologiques d e l a dote du Maine, EU, montre u n a utre a spect d u p rob T hme . L es p robl mes t hé 'oriques i nh ' rents e t c eux s oulev4 p ar l a mé 'thodologie d e l a m esure d es a nneaux d es poissons i ndiquent q ue l a t echnique West pas f iable et n e f ournira point d e r ecettes c omme c eiles d 'un l ivre d e c uisine p our l 'estimation s aisonni re d es g isements a rché 'ologiques.

E . WEBB : VINTE METATION D ES R EST ES F AUNISTIQUES P }JV E N EANDERPALIE 2IS D E L 'EU I OPE c E NrR Mk

NT D E QUE[Q ( JES G ISEMEN S

T andis qu 'il y a une d izaine d 'anné 'es l e monde a rché 'ologique s upp osait t oujours q ue l es o ssements n on-humains a ssocié 's a vec l es o utils l ithiques t rouves d ans l es g isements d u p aléblithique m ayen é ' taient l es d é 'chets d es r epas d es humains, l es r echerches r é 'cemment e ntreprises s urtout e n A frique , s ur l es p rocessus t aphonomiques q ui c r é bnt u n e nsemb le f aunistique , m ontrent n ettement q ue Pon p eut c ontester c ette h ypot h se . D e p lus n ous a vons t rap p eu d e d onn é bs c hronologiques c ar c 'est b ien p robable q ue c haque c ouche d e t ous l es g isements d u p alé 'olithique mayen s e p resente c omme u n p alimpseste d es r estes qui s e f orm rent

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p endant u ne priode d ont n ous i gnorons l a d ur e e t a uquel l 'homme , l es a utres c arnivores, l es r ongeurs e t l es o iseaux r apaces contribu rent . Q uelques 'uns d es p robl mes d e l 'analyse d es o ssements d u p aléblithique m ayen d e l 'Europe c entrale s ont d iscut s . D es c rit 'ères p our l a r echerc he v enir s ont p ropos es et n ous é ' sperons qu 'ils nous am neront dchiffrer c ette a ttestation f aunistique d u p ass .

H . BERKE: L ES T RACE S D E IA B OUCHERIE DES OS D U C HEVAL D U G ISEMENT MA GD A I ä «EN D E P ETERSFELS , A U S UD -OUEST D 'AL IEMN E FEDER ALE Les r echerches i ci s ignal es portent s ur t outes l es t races d 'incision t rouvëes s ur l es a s d e c heval d u g isement d e P etersfels . L es a nalyses e ntreprises p osent l es q uestions s uivantes : q uels o nt &4'l es te l 'utiliso utils a vec l esquels l es i ncisions a nt 6 tg f aits ; q uelle a 6 a tion l aquelle Pos a é ' té c onsacré ; q ueu es i ncisions o nt 6 t6 t rouv4 s s ur quelle p artie a natomique d e l a s quelette; quels outils a nt e r enne d u m ême f abriqué ' s e n u tilisant q uels O s? C ontrairement a ux as d g isement, c es resultats montrent que l es a s d e c heval ant 6 te c oupés p rincipalement a vec d es o utils r etouch s, l es d irections d ifferentes d es i ncisions a vaient d es u ti1isations d iff rentes, l es t races d es p oints '

d 'impact s e s ituaient a ux points d 'adh ' sion musculaires, s ervaient a c asser l es Os.

l es g alets

B . HESSE and A . 1OSE : L 'ID FNrIFICATICz s D ES MEL AN GE S CH FCN) I L )GIQUES D ES F W TIL IL1 IS S TRATIFIES PW V E1ANT D ES G ISEM EWPS M H J I A JGIQUES L es d onn es f aunistiques, bataniques e t g eologiques r ecoup re s d ans l es g isements a rch ologiques n 'ont q re d 'attributs i n i rents p ar i -e s . L eur i nterpr tatian c hronolagique l esquels e lles p euvent ê tre d ate r epose s ur d es a rguments s tratigraphiques ou s ur l eurs r elations a vec l es o bjets t rouv . L 'analyse d es d onn s d es ' tells ' d u P roche O rient m antre q ue c es d eux m'thodes p euvent a rriver d es c onclusions d ivergent es . D eux f a ons d e d eté 'rminer d es f ragments d 'os e t d es se diments '

d 'origine c hronologique d iffg rente m' lang s d ans u n m ême n iveau a rcheol agique s ont e xaminé 'es p artir d 'echantillons f ouilles p ris d ans p lusieurs g isements i sr liens .

D . HUELSBECK: I kS R ESTES F AUNISTIQ L JES F P VIDENT IFICATION E N A RCH b IL X IE D ES G IO ( JP E S S OC I AUX S i d eux g isements a u d eux s ecteurs d u m ême g isement o ccup s s imult angment o nt u n a cc ' s e gal a ux mêmes r essources, mais p roduisent d es e nsembles f aunistiques t r 's d iff rents , i l s 'agIt p eutêtre d 'obstacles l 'exploitation a u l 'utilisation d e c es r essources c r es p ar d es c onditi ons s aciales . L 'utilitg d e c et a pproche p our l a dfinition d es g roupes s ociaux a rch oloqiques e st d7 nontr p ar l 'analyse d es r apparts s ociaux e t é onomiques e ntre q uatre m aisans v oisines d atant d e l a p é Hode p rotah istarique a u g isement d 'Ozette , s itu6 s ur l a c ôte a uest d c Washington , E U . L es e nsembles f aunistiques t rauvés d ans l es m aisans s ont d iff6rents '

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l es u ns d es a utres, s ugg rant que l es habitants e xploitaient t rois t erritoires d iff rents e t a vaient u n a cc ' s p articulier u n quatri ' me ous l es q uatres . D 'apr s l es r apports e thnot erritoire a ppartenant i t g raphiques, p armi l es N ootkanophones d e l a c 6te n ord-ouest d e l 'Am rique d u n ord , l es t erritoires d es r essources d 'exploitation a ppartenaient d es g roupes l ocaux , s ugg rant q ue l es q uatres m aisons dcrites c aient t rois e ntitgs d istinctes .

G . HAYNES: L ' TUDE DE LA MORT ET DE L 'EMPORTE LES UNS APRES LES AUTRES DES I A L PH JNTS : S (I PPLICATION 9V ENTUEL IE P OUR L 'EXPLICATI(I J D ES ENSEMBLES 1 D 'c SEME21S JE MAMMOU T h L es g tudes d mographiques s ur l e t errain d e l 'éléphant a fricain ( Loxodonta a fricana ) f ournissent d es r enseignements analogues p our l 'interpr tation d es e nsembles d es p roboscid ens f ossiles . P endant u ne p ériode d e g rande t ension é Zologique , l e t aux d e mortalitg d es 6 16 phants s ub-adultes e t d es v ieilles f emelles a dultes a ugmente b rusquement . D ans es g rands t roupeaux , m n es par d es f emelles r elativement 1 g6e s , c e cas l c omprennent un grand n ombre d e f emelles qui ont p lus d e 3 0 a ns . C es g rands t roupeaux c omprennent a ussi p lus d e males a dultes , mais us n 'y rovisoirement . C ette 6 tude f ournit d es o bservations s ont c ompris que p es 6 16phants qui p arcourent q uantifi es d es v ariations d e c e g enre sur l l ibrement l e Z imbabwe .

A . R OSS: LES T MOINS GE ( )MORPHOLOGIQUES POUR LA MISE EN TRAIN D 'UN CHANGEMENT CULTUREL DE L 'EXPLOITATION DES G ISEMENTS ET DU MODELE D 'HABITATION EN AUSTRALIE D U S UDEST P artout e n A ustralie d u s ud-est une a ugmentation i mportante d u t aux d es g isements d ans l e p aysage e t u ne e xpansion a ux reg ions auparavant i nhabit ès o nt p ris p lace p endant l 'Holoc ne . C e c hangement d buta aux a lentours d e 4 000ans AP e t a ugmenta v isiblement après 2 500ans A P . D e n ombreuses explications pour c e f ait ont été p ropos es: l a p erte d es t moins d es g isements t ravers l e t emps comme f onction d es f acteurs c oiogiques d e conservation ; l 'intensification d e l 'exploitation d e l 'environnement ; u n v rai a croissement d e l a p opulation . L 'auteur p roien que l 'environnement i nfluence l 'emplacement d 'un g isement p ose que b c e n ' tait p as l 'ëlément d écisif d 'un c hangement d 'habitation e t que éel c hangel 'augmentation d u n ombre d es g isements t rouv s r ef lte im r ment c ulturel p armi l es A borig ' nes a ustraliens p endant l 'Holoc ne . '

S . B c

tER -

LES F AITS NOUVEAUX D ES D ERNIERES R FX HERCHES E COLOGIQUES D E L 'A I C UN F r l ' D U NOUVEAU MQ DE : L E P OINT D E V I JE D ES A NTIPODES

a ce symposium. Apr 's L 'auteur 6 tait i nvitge c omme p articipante " q uelques m ots d 'introduction é humerant l e developpement d es a nalyses é ' coiogiques e n a rchéblogie , e ile d iscute c ertains a spects d c q ueiques ' e s es p ropres r echerches e t l e u nes d es c ommunications d u p oint d e vue d t ravail d es a utres s ur d es p robl mes s emblables e n Australie . E lle 2 00

s ignale e n p articulier l es e tudes p luridisciplinaires i ssues d e s es f ouilles'a i 'Isle de H unter, T asmanie . E ile p ropose que l e monde s ept entrione l ie p ourrait p rofiter d e i 'expérience a ntopodienne , d u m onde a ustralien o b l 'archéologie a p ris u ne a llure i m p eu d iffé ente .

Z USAM MENF ASSUNGE N

W . G I«J E MANN-van WAATERIM E: NEUE

T RENDS

I N D ER PALY t3 1RC I 0 I L )GIE NO IDW& STEU 1 OPAS ODER D IE VERZWEI-

F ELTE S UCHE NACH I J DK J "N I OLL J NDAT F1 D ieser A rtikel v ersucht , d ie wichtigsten S tufen i n d er E ntwicklung d er P alynoarch oloqie d es H olozans i n Nordwesteuropa darzustellen . E s i st v or a llem e ine p ersönliche S tellungnahme d azu , w ie d iese E ntwicklung von d er Autorin während d er l etzten 2 0 J ahre g esehen wurde . F olgende T hemen werden b ehandelt : e ine E inführung i n d ie h istorische S uche ; d er d erzeitige S tand d er D ebatte ü ber d ie U lmenabnahme ; d ie r elative B edeutu ng v on l okalen z u r egionalen P ollen-Daten ; d ie Wichtigkeit , m enschliche A ktivitäten u nd d eren q ualitativen und quantitativen E influss a uf d ie V egetation b esser z u v erstehen ; S tudien z u r ezenten P ollenablagerungen i m V ergleich z u l andwirtschaftlichen S ystemen , wie s ie a us h istorischen P erioden b ekannt s ind ; s chliesslich F orschungen z ur P ollenerhaltung i n u nterschiedlichen B odentypen .

B . B ENZ: D IE M cHAo I A JGISQ 1E F UNDSTELLE A lS A BGELAGERTE VE I ESEL ISCHA F VPUN B otanische R este i n a rchäologischen Ablagerungen u nd i hnen z ug eordnete , r epräsentieren m enschliche E inflüsse a uf d ie Umwelt i n e iner b estimmten Z eit . Archäologische I nventare s ollten a lso Material e nthalten , d as s owohl d as a usbeuterische V orgehen d er Menschen i n i hrer b otanischen Umwelt widerspiegeln , a ls a uch d ie A ntwort d er P flanzen a uf d ie s tandortverändernde W irkung d er m enschlichen B eseid l ung . D ie T ats ache i st k lar , d ass b estimmte b otanische B estandteile ( z .b . d ie S amen ) d as M ittel s ind, durch d as s ich d ie P flanzen v ermehren . S o k ann d as Vorkommen u nkarbonisierter S amen u nd/oder F rüchte i n a rchäologischen r l iorizonten a ls g leichzeitig i nterpretiert werden u nd n icht e infach a ls r ezente o der p räh istorische Verunreinigung, d ie f ür d as Verstehen d er a rchäologischen Fundstelle i rrelevant i st . D as d erzeitige H ervorheben d er P rozesse z ur F undstellengenese h at i n d er a rchäologischen T heorie n och k eine N achfolgerin z ur ö kologischen V ergesellschaftung g ebildet u nd s o d as v orherrschende D ogma d er e thnobotanischen F orschung g erechtf ertigt.

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M . D EI T h : S 1US O NALITXT VU ' 1 MUSCHELN - E INE B EWERTUNG D ER S AUERSTOFF-ISOTOP-T E Xi 1NIK I n d iesem B eitrag wird d ie Z uverläs sigkeit d er S auerstoff-IsotopT echnik e rörtert , m it d er d ie S aison b estimmt w erden k ann , i n d er Musc heln g esammelt wurden, d ie A rt d er Auflösung, d ie s ie l ierf e rn k ann, u nd d ie B edingungen , u nter d enen s ie am wirksamsten f unktioniert . D rei F allstudien werden v orgestellt , e ine, b ei d er d ie T echnik e rfolgreich war, e ine n egative u nd e ine, i n d er d ie B estimmung v on Muscheln a us e inem M ündunggebiet , a llgemein e ine u ngünstige S ituation , s trukturierte D aten e rgab, d ie s aisonal b estimmt s ein k önnen . Daraus e rgeben s ich R ückschlüsse a uf d en Auf l ösungsgrad, d ie B eschränkungen und d ie M ögl ichkeiten d er S auerstoff-Isotop-Technik .

C .

L PASSEN :

D IE TECHNIKEN UND D IE VERGLEICHEN Z UR BEST IMMUNG D ER J AHRESZEITLICHEN A KTIVITXT E 2 JV UN MUS HELSAMMLERN K önnen d ie T odesdaten von Mollusken i n Muschelhaufen b estimmt werden , wird e s möglich, a uch auf d ie J ahreszeit d er Besiedlung d er F undstelle z u s chliessen . D as Z ahlen d er Wachstumsringe, d ie P opulati onsstatistik , d ie A nalyse u nveränderlicher I sotope , wurden a ls M ethoden f ür d ie B estimmung d er J ahreszeiten k ritisch n achgeprüft . D ie Notwendigkeit e iner v ollständig d okumentrierten V ergleichssamlung muss b etont werden . D ie Autorin h at e ine s olche S ammlung von Mercenaria m ercenaria a us N orth C arolina , V S , a ufgebaut , d ie j etzt d rei K alenderj ahre a bdeckt . E inige d er vorgestellten T echniken wurden a n d ieser S ammlung g etestet , um i hre G enauigkeit z u p rüfen .

C . C AR IS O N : E INE UNTERSUCHUNGSMÖGLICHKEIT VON JAHRESRINGEN AN F ISCHKNOCHEN FÜR J AHRESZEITEN-BESTIMMU NGEN F ische, d ie i n kalten u nd g emässigten W ässern l eben, p rägen i n i hren S kelettstukturen Wachstumsringe a us . G rosse Hoffnungen s etzten d ie A rchäologen i n d iese T atsache , um m it i hrer H ilfe d ie J ahreszeiten i n p rähistorischen F undstellen s icher n achzuweisen . D ie U ntersuchung v on Ootolithen u nd Wirbeln von r ezenten S erien und a rchäologischen M uschelhaufen a n d er K üste v on M aine , V S , l assen Z weifel a ufkommen . D ie t heoretischen u nd m ethodischen S chwierigkeiten , d ie d em M essen d er W achs tumsringe b ei F ischen i nnewohnen , z erstreuen d ie Vorstellung , d ass d ie T echnik v erlässlich i st u nd s o k aum ' Kochrezepte ' f ür d ie S chät zung d er J ahreszeiten a rchaologischer F undstellen l iefern k 3nnen .

E . WEBB D IE I NTERPRETATION F AUNISTICHEN A BFALL S A US M I T ALERFUNDSTE LLEN

LEURO 1 ISCHEN NEANDER-

Vor n icht mal 1 0 J ahren wurde a ngenommen , dass K nochen d ie i n V erbindung m it S teinartefakten a us m ittelpaläolithischen F undstellen g efunden wurden , m enschliche S peiserests d arstellen . N eue F orschungen ,

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i ngton , VS, g ezeigt . D ie F aunenvergeseilschaftung i n d rei H äusern d ifferieren u nd weisen a uf v erschiedene A usbeutungsareale h in , w ährend d ie v ierte G ruppe g emischten Z ugang h atte . E thnographisch waren , b ei d er N ootkan s prechenden B e i lkerung d er Nordwestküste Amerikas s olche N utzungsareale B esitz l okaler G ruppen , was z u d er A nnahme f dhrt , d ass d ie v ier u ntersuchten H aushalte d rei s eparaten E inheiten a ngeh irten .

G . H AYNES : D IE UNTERSUCHUNG VON TODESURSACHEN UND AUSSTERBEN BEI R LF .FANTEN : MÖGLICHE B EDEUTUNG F UR D AS VERSTEH EN \1 4 MAMMUT-K JC E N-ANH UFU I SXEN D emografische u nd a ktualistische F eldstudien d es a frikanischen E lefanten ( Loxodonta a fricana ) g eben I nformationen, d ie a ls Analogien f ür d ie I nterpretation f ossiler P robosciden F undstellen d ienen kön nen . I n Z eiten von umweltbedingtem S tress e rhöht s ich d ie S terberate f ur s ubadulte und a dulte weibliche E lefanten e norm . G rössere H erden , d ie v on r elativ a lten weiblichen T ieren g eführt werden, enthalten e inen g rösseren A nteil a lter K dhe ü ber 3 0 J ahre . H ier f inden s ich a uch v iele a usgewachsene B ullen , d ie n ur z eitweise z ur H erde g ehören . D iese S tudie e nthalt q uantifizierte B eobachtungen s olcher V ariablen v on f reilebenden E lefantenpopulationen i n Z imbabwe .

A . R OSS : G EOMORPHOLOGISCHER B FI F UR E INER K ULTURE LL B EDINGT EN WANDEL I N F UNDL N SMUS N I fZU U ND S IEDL ' 1E 1 ( I M S ÜDÖST LICHEN A USTRALIEN I n g anz S üdost-Australien i st f ür d as Holozän e ine b edeutende Z unahme d er F undstellen i n d er L andschaft u nd i hre A usdehnung i n v orher u nbesiedelte G egenden f estzustellen . D iese Veränderung begann um 4 0,000BP u nd n ahm n ach 2 0,000BP merklich z u . E s wurden h ierfür z ahlr eiche E rklärungen g egeben : S chwund von F undsLellen i n d er Z eit a ls F unktion von umweltbedingten E rhaltungsfaktoren ; I ntensivierung d es l andschaftlichen Nutzung; e chtes B evölkerungswachstum . E s wird h ier h erausgestellt , d ass, w ährend d ie Umwelt d ie L age d er F undtsellen b eeinf lusst , e s doch d ie S iedlungsänderung n icht hauptsächlich b estimmte . D as A nwachsen d er Fundstellenhäufigkeit i st v ielmehr e ine wirkliche W iedergabe e ines K ulturwandels d er a ustralischen U reinwohner i m H oloz ä h .

S . B DIER : NEUE E NTWICKLUNGEN V (1 1 UMWELTANALYSEN I N D ER ALTEN U ND NEUEN WELT : P ERSPEKTIVE E INER A NTIIODIN

D IE

D ie Autorin wurde e ingeladen , d ie B eiträge d ieses S ymposium z u d iskutieren . Nach e inigen e inführenden Worten z ur Entwicklung d er Umweltanalysen i n d er A rchäologie, werden A spekte e iniger B eiträge i m L icht i nhrer e igenen u nd anderer A rbeiten i n Australien a n ä hnlichen P roblemen d iskutiert . S peziell wurde d en m ultidisziplir ren S tudien , d ie a us i hrer A usgrabung a uf H unter I sland , T asmanien , e rwuchsen , A ufm erksamkeit g eschenkt . S ie i f ihrt a n , d ass d ie nrdliche H albkugel a us a ntipodischen E rfahrungen l ernen k ann, wo s ich d ie Archäologie e twas a nders e ntwickelt h at .

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vornehmlich i n A frika, ü ber t aphonomische P rozesse , b ei d enen F aunenv ergesellschaftungen e ntstehen , s tellen d iese Annahme i n F rage . J eder e inzelne Horizont i n d en meisten m ittelpaläolithischen F undstellen r epräsentiert e ine O berdeckung d er A blagerung v on u nbekannter Z eitdauer , a n d er M enschen , a ndere C arnivoren , N ager u nd P l& iderer A nteil h atten . B eispiele d er P robleme b ei d er A nalyse v on F aunen a us d ie m ittele uropäischen mittelpal o1ithischen Fundstellen werden d iskutiert u nd a nregende K riterien f ür d ie z ukünftige A rbeit v orgeschlagen , d ie N atur d ieser F aunen z u e ntwirren .

H . BERKE : S CHLACHTSPUREN AN PFERDEKNOCHEN AUS DER M GDA t h JIENFUNDSTELLE P ETERSF ELS , S JDWESTDEUTSCHL .AND J D ie h ier vorgestellte U ntersuchung e nth alt a lle S chlachtspuren a n P ferdeknochen v om P etersfels . F olgende F ragen wurden a nalysiert : welche A rtefakte wurden z um S chlachten b enutzt ; aus welchen Gründen wurden w elche K nochen g eschnitten o der z erschlagen ; welche S chlachtspur f indet s ich vorwiegend an welchem S keletteil; a us welchen K nochen wurden A rtefakte h ergestellt? A nders a ls b ei d en R entierknochen d er g leichen F undstelle, z eigen d ie R esultate, dass d ie P ferdeknochen meist m it r etuschierten Artefakten g eschnitten wurden, d ass S chnitte a us v ers chiedenen R ichtungen u nterschieldliche Gründe h aben, d ass s charfe S chlagmarken o ft a n Muskelan s ät zen l iegen u nd G erölle z um Z erschlagen d er K nochen d ienten .

B . H ESSE u nd A . RO SE N : D AS A UFFINDEN CH F «)& ) IL JGISCHER V ERMISCHUNG EN I FIZIERP EN A 1 H O I A )GISQ ]EN F UNDSTELLE N

I N P 1 BENSERIEN V UN S TR 1T-

F aunistische , b otanische u nd g eologische P roben v on a rchäologischen F undstellen h aben s elten u nabhängige Merkmale, d ie d azu benutz werden k önnen , s ie e inem D atum z uzuordnen . D ie c hronologische I nterpretation m uss d aher a uf d er s tratigrafischen L age o der a uf A rtefaktzusammenh ngen b asieren . I n d er A nalyse v on P roben a us T ell Fundstellen d es m ittleren O stens g ehen d iese b eiden B eweislinien o ft a useinander . Z wei M ethoden , um d en Grad d er Vermischung von K nochenfragementen u nd S edimenten v erschiedene Z eitursprungs im s elben S tratum z u messen , werden h ier a nhand v on a usgegrabenen P roben e iniger i sraelischer F undstellen u nters ucht.

D . HU E LSB FX K: FAUNISTICHE RESTE UND DAS ERKENNEN VON S OZIALGRUPPEN I N D ER A JCHAD IDG IS HEN U BERLIEYERUNG H aben zwei g leichzeiting b ewohnte F undstellen o der T eile d erselben F undstelle g leichen Z ugang z u d en R ohstoffen, l iefern a ber d eutlich a ndere F auneninventare, k önnen s oziale S chranken b ei d er Ausbeutung! E rforschung d er R ohstoffe d er G rund s ein . D er N utzen d ieser A nnahme f ür d ie a rchäologische I dentifikation s ozialer Gruppen , wird d urch d ie A nalyse d er ö konomischen u nd s ozialen B eziehungen z wischen v ier b enachb arten H aushalten a us d er F undstelle O zette a n d er W est 1c1ste v on W ash -

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