Organic Residue Analysis and the First Uses of Pottery in the Ancient Middle East PDF Download

Author: Michael W. Gregg
Publisher: BAR International Series
ISBN: 9781407304731
Category : Archaeological chemistry
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
This volume discusses the role of organic residue analysis in identifying economic activities and subsistence practices associated with the first uses of pottery in the Middle East, and presents the results of analysis of 280 potsherds recovered from 22 Neolithic and early Chalcolithic settlements dating between 7300 and 4300 cal BC. It also formulates guidelines and suggests future directions for the use of organic residue analysis.

Author: Michael William Gregg
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780494609705
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
In this dissertation, I discuss the role of organic residue analysis in identifying economic activities and subsistence practices associated with the first uses of pottery in the Middle East, and present the results of my analyses of 280 potsherds recovered from 22 Neolithic and early Chalcolithic settlements dating between 7300 and 4300 cal BC. The adoption of pottery vessels in the early agricultural villages and pastoral encampments of the Middle East was not a uniform phenomenon, with this new technology not immediately of benefit, apparently, to all human groups. Results of my analyses have demonstrated that 'conventional' solvent extraction and alkaline hydrolysis techniques have limited utility in the recovery of diagnostic organic compounds from pottery from early ceramic horizons in the Middle East (Gregg et al. 2007), and that increased yields can be achieved through the use of a microwave-assisted liquid chromatography protocol (Gregg et al. 2009; Gregg and Slater in press). My research has established that there is greater diversity in the fractionation of stable carbon isotopes associated with the synthesis of fatty acids in domesticated animals than has previously been reported. In many instances, the ranges of modern isotopic values that have been used to categorize animal fats in archaeological potsherds in northern Europe cannot distinguish between the delta13C ratios of ancient dairy residues and carcass fats of ruminant and non-ruminant species in central Europe or the Middle East (Gregg et al. 2009; Gregg and Slater in press). In light of these results, I evaluate the diagnostic potential and limitations of different methodological approaches in the recovery and characterization of organic residues, and propose a series of measures that will allow more confident categorization of the substances in early pottery vessels from the Middle East. I also make a number of recommendations for archaeologists considering the use of organic residue analysis, and suggest some practical ideas on how to develop the degree of confidence necessary to assess the methods used in acquisition of molecular and isotopic data, and ultimately, to evaluate the adequacy of the analytical criteria used to address specific archaeological research questions.

Author: Ashley E. Sharpe
Publisher: University Press of Florida
ISBN: 0813070228
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description
New techniques for understanding animal and human interactions in the past Through case studies of faunal remains from Roman Britain, prehistoric Southeast Asia, ancient African pastoral cultures, and beyond, this volume illustrates some of the ways stable isotope analysis of ancient animals can address key questions in human prehistory. Contributors use a diverse set of isotopic techniques to investigate social and biological topics, including human paleodiets and foodways, hunting and procurement strategies, exchange patterns, animal husbandry and the genetic consequences of domestication, and short- and long-term environmental change. They demonstrate how different isotopes can be used alone or in conjunction to address questions of animal diet, movement, ecology, and management. Studies also examine how sampling strategies, statistical techniques, and regional and temporal considerations can influence isotopic results and interpretations. By applying these new methods in concert with traditional zooarchaeological analyses, archaeologists can explore questions about human ecology and environmental archaeology that were previously deemed inaccessible.

Author: Kurt J Gron
Publisher: Oxbow Books
ISBN: 1789251435
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 464

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Book Description
All farming in prehistoric Europe ultimately came from elsewhere in one way or another, unlike the growing numbers of primary centers of domestication and agricultural origins worldwide. This fact affects every aspect of our understanding of the start of farming on the continent because it means that ultimately, domesticated plants and animals came from somewhere else, and from someone else. In an area as vast as Europe, the process by which food production becomes the predominant subsistence strategy is of course highly variable, but in a sense the outcome is the same, and has the potential for addressing more large-scale questions regarding agricultural origins. Therefore, a detailed understanding of all aspects of farming in its absolute earliest form in various regions of Europe can potentially provide a new perspective on the mechanisms by which this monumental change comes to human societies and regions. In this volume, we aim to collect various perspectives regarding the earliest farming from across Europe. Methodological approaches, archaeological cultures, and geographic locations in Europe are variable, but all papers engage with the simple question: What was the earliest farming like? This volume opens a conversation about agriculture just after the transition in order to address the role incoming people, technologies, and adaptations have in secondary adoptions. The book starts with an introduction by the editors which will serve to contextualize the theme of the volume. The broad arguments concerning the process of neolithisation are addressed, and the rationale for the volume discussed. Contributions are ordered geographically and chronologically, given the progression of the Neolithic across Europe. The editors conclude the volume with a short commentary paper regarding the theme of the volume.

Author: Roger Matthews
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1000570916
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 1239

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Book Description
The Archaeology of Iran from the Palaeolithic to the Archaemenid Empire is the first modern academic study to provide a synthetic, diachronic analysis of the archaeology and early history of all of Iran from the Palaeolithic period to the end of the Achaemenid Empire at 330 BC. Drawing on the authors’ deep experience and engagement in the world of Iranian archaeology, and in particular on Iran-based academic networks and collaborations, this book situates the archaeological evidence from Iran within a framework of issues and debates of relevance today. Such topics include human–environment interactions, climate change and societal fragility, the challenges of urban living, individual and social identity, gender roles and status, the development of technology and craft specialisation and the significance of early bureaucratic practices such as counting, writing and sealing within the context of evolving societal formations. Richly adorned with more than 500 illustrations, many of them in colour, and accompanied by a bibliography with more than 3000 entries, this book will be appreciated as a major research resource for anyone concerned to learn more about the role of ancient Iran in shaping the modern world.

Author: Akiri Tsuneki
Publisher:
ISBN: 178570575X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 196

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Book Description
Over the past fifty years or so early pottery complexes in the wider region of West Asia have hardly ever been investigated in their own right. Early ceramics have often been unexpected by-products of projects focussing upon much earlier aceramic or later prehistoric periods. In recent years, however, there has been a tremendous increase in research in various parts of West Asia focusing explicitly on this theme. It had generally become accepted that the adoption of pottery in West Asia happened relatively late in the history of ceramics. Several regions are now believed to have developed pottery significantly earlier. Thus, pottery occurs in Eastern Russia, in China and Japan by 16,500 cal. BC and in north Africa it is known in the 10th millennium. However, while the East Asian examples in particular do mark chronologically earlier instances, the picture in West Asia is actually rather more complex, in part because of the tyranny of the Aceramic/Ceramic Neolithic chronology. For the first time, The Emergence of Pottery in West Asia examines in detail the when, where, how and why pottery first arrived in the region? A key insight that emerges is that we must not confuse the reasons for pottery adoption with the long-term consequences. Neolithic peoples in West Asia did not adopt pottery because of the many uses and functions it would gain many centuries later and the development of ceramic technology needs to be examined in the context of its original cultural and social milieu.

Author: Chris Caple
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000223515
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 269

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Book Description
Studies in Archaeological Conservation features a range of case studies that explore the techniques and approaches used in current conservation practice around the world and, taken together, provide a picture of present practice in some of the world-leading museums and heritage organisations. Archaeological excavations produce thousands of corroded and degraded fragments of metal, ceramic, and organic material that are transformed by archaeological conservators into the beautiful and informative objects that fill the cases of museums. The knowledge and expertise required to undertake this transformation is demonstrated within this book in a series of 26 fascinating case studies in archaeological conservation and artefact investigation, undertaken in laboratories around the world. These case studies are contextualised by a detailed introductory chapter, which explores the challenges presented by researching and conserving archaeological artefacts and details how the case studies illustrate the current state of the subject. Studies in Archaeological Conservation is the first book for over a quarter of a century to show the range and diversity of archaeological conservation, in this case through a series of case studies. As a result, the book will be of great interest to practising conservators, conservation students, and archaeologists around the world.

Author: Ofer Bar-Yosef
Publisher: Berghahn Books
ISBN: 1789201578
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 717

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Book Description
This large volume presents virtually all aspects of the Epipalaeolithic Natufian culture in a series of chapters that cover recent results of field work, analyses of materials and sites, and synthetic or interpretive overviews of various aspects of this important prehistoric culture.

Author: Eleanora A. Reber
Publisher: University of Alabama Press
ISBN: 0817321225
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 225

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Book Description
"Organic residue analysis is a technical specialty that blends an unusual type of instrumental organic chemistry and archaeology. Because it is considered abstruse, archaeologists of all degrees of experience tend to struggle with how to apply the technology to archaeological questions and how to sample effectively in the field to answer these questions. "Organic Residues in Pottery" uses a case-study approach to explain the methods and application of organic residue analysis to archaeologists in a reader-friendly tone. The case studies come from Reber's more than twenty years of research. Pottery analysis is considered an important component of excavating a site. Organic pottery residues are made up of chemicals that absorb into pots over their use-lifetime. Analysis of the residues can allow fascinating interpretations of human behavior that are only recognizable from this analysis. The analysis allows archaeologists to interpret the ways that people have used pottery. For instance, pottery analysis can help reveal what people ate, whether different types of vessels were used for different cooking or foodstuffs preparation, and whether "elite" vessels were in use. Every residue comprises many different chemicals. Analysis includes a series of steps. Reber starts with basic information, such as how a residue forms in different environments. Other chapters discuss excavation of the residue (including extraction, instrumentation, and analysis), interpreting results, different contaminators, common substances found (e.g., caffeine and nicotine, maize, tree resins, and fish and shellfish), how to sample, how to talk with a lab analyst, and future benefits of residue analysis"--

Author: Peter Jordan
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1315432358
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 632

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Book Description
A long-overdue advancement in ceramic studies, this volume sheds new light on the adoption and dispersal of pottery by non-agricultural societies of prehistoric Eurasia. Major contributions from Western Europe, Eastern Europe and Asia make this a truly international work that brings together different theories and material for the first time. Researchers and scholars studying the origins and dispersal of pottery, the prehistoric peoples or Eurasia, and flow of ancient technologies will all benefit from this book.