Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Menghan Qiu, Ruiliang Liu, Xingyuan Li, Linyao Du, Qiurong Ruan, A. Mark Pollard, Shanjia Zhang, Xiao Yuan, Fengwen Liu, Gang Li, Gaojun Li, Zhimin Jiao, Jiaming Luo, Shengqian Chen, Xiaoyan Yang, Yongqiang Wang, Jianye Han, Fahu Chen, Guanghui Dong
Summary: The earliest systematic exploitation of coal for fuel has been discovered at the Jirentaigoukou site in Xinjiang, China, dating back to approximately 3600 years ago. This finding extends the upper limit of coal fuel exploitation by about a millennium and demonstrates the transition of energy sources under intense conflict between social demand and environmental deterioration.
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Anna Maria De Francesco, Antonina Maria Tucci, Adriano Guido, Anna Rao, Donatella Barca, Lluis Casas
Summary: This article presents the preliminary results of mineralogical, petrographic, and paleontological analyses on ceramic samples from an archaeological site in Gagliato, Italy. The analyses indicate a significant correlation between the mineral composition of the ceramics and the surrounding sediments, suggesting that the raw materials for ceramic production may have been sourced from the nearby area.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
M. Murillo-Barroso, A. Martin Colliga, M. Martinon-Torres
Summary: This study presents the discovery of a Baltic amber bead in a Late Neolithic funerary cave in northeastern Iberia. Spectroscopic analysis confirmed its complete resemblance to Baltic succinite amber. This finding provides the earliest evidence for the arrival of Baltic amber in the Mediterranean and Western Europe, challenging the traditional timeline.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2023)
Article
Biology
Megha Srigyan, Hector Bolivar, Irene Urena, Jonathan Santana, Andrew Petersen, Eneko Iriarte, Emrah Kirdok, Nora Bergfeldt, Alice Mora, Mattias Jakobsson, Khaled Abdo, Frank Braemer, Colin Smith, Juan Jose Ibanez, Anders Gotherstrom, Torsten Gunther, Cristina Valdiosera
Summary: This study utilizes multidisciplinary bioarchaeological analysis to reveal the genetic characteristics of early Islamic burials in the Middle East region, and finds genomic similarity between the individuals from 7th-8th century Syria and modern Bedouins and Saudis.
COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Humanities, Multidisciplinary
Oleh Yatsuk, Leonie Koch, Astrik Gorghinian, Giacomo Fiocco, Patrizia Davit, Lorena Carla Giannossa, Annarosa Mangone, Serena Francone, Alessandra Serges, Alessandro Re, Alessandro Lo Giudice, Marco Ferretti, Marco Malagodi, Cristiano Iaia, Monica Gulmini
Summary: Several types of blue-green glass beads from Iron-Age archaeological sites in Central Italy were analyzed using various spectroscopic techniques. The results provided insights into the raw materials used for production and the provenance indicators in the glass. The composition of the beads revealed color variations and different origins of the coloring raw materials. The study suggested a local origin for some samples, while most of the beads were likely produced in multiple sites in the Near East.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Diego Pol, Adriana C. Mancuso, Roger M. H. Smith, Claudia A. Marsicano, Jahandar Ramezani, Ignacio A. Cerda, Alejandro Otero, Vincent Fernandez
Summary: Research has indicated that early sauropodomorph dinosaurs exhibited social cohesion, age-segregation within a herd structure, and colonial nesting behavior, providing the earliest evidence of complex social behavior in Dinosauria and possibly influencing their evolutionary success as large terrestrial herbivores.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Anthropology
M. Clemenza, B. Billeci, M. Carpinelli, M. Ferrante, E. Fiorini, G. Gasperetti, S. Nisi, P. Oliva, V. Sipala, P. R. Trincherini, I. M. Villa, M. Rendeli
Summary: Lead isotope compositions of 18 metal objects from the archaeological site of Sant'Imbenia in NW Sardinia dating back to the end of the ninth century BCE were determined. The provenance of some objects was traced to SW Sardinia, while others could have come from central Sardinia or the Iberian coastal ranges. The diversity of provenances suggests a broad trade network spanning across the entire island of Sardinia and reaching out to Iberian sites.
ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND ANTHROPOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Anthropology
Canan Cakirlar, Francis J. Koolstra, Salima Ikram
Summary: By critically assessing zooarchaeological evidence, the authors studied the nature and intensity of past human interactions with green, loggerhead turtles and Nile soft-shell turtles in the Eastern Mediterranean. Through species and sex identifications, estimates of relative abundance, and size reconstructions at five coastal archaeological sites, the researchers found a variety of interactions from turtle capture to processing, allowing informative comparisons with present-day distributions of these species across the region.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Mark Cavanagh, Erez Ben-Yosef, Dafna Langgut
Summary: This study investigates the fuel sources used by the ancient copper industry in its most intensive period and finds that it heavily relied on local vegetation, which expanded over time and had a detrimental impact on the local ecosystem.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Marcella Festa, Haifeng Dou, Francesca Monteith, David Orton, Qianwen Wang, Tianyu Zong, Bin Liu, Yue Li
Summary: This study examines faunal assemblages from the Proto-Zhou sites of Sunjia and Xitou, in the Jing River Valley (Central Shaanxi Province), to understand the exploitation of animal resources during the Shang-Zhou dynastic transition in the 11th century BCE. The study analyzes the zooarchaeological evidence of increased husbandry, including pig farming, caprine and cattle herding. The findings suggest a more diverse use of animal resources due to climatic deterioration and increased interaction with pastoral communities, indicating the development of socio-economic complexity in the Jing River Valley in the late second millennium BCE.
FRONTIERS IN EARTH SCIENCE
(2023)
Review
Fisheries
Adam J. Andrews, Antonio Di Natale, Dario Bernal-Casasola, Veronica Aniceti, Vedat Onar, Tarek Oueslati, Tatiana Theodropoulou, Arturo Morales-Muniz, Elisabetta Cilli, Fausto Tinti
Summary: Overexploitation has negatively impacted marine fish populations, altering their abundance, behavior, and life-history traits. Understanding the exploitation history is crucial for effective fisheries management and conservation. Research suggests that the Atlantic bluefin tuna has been overexploited since the mid-20th century, with potential intensive exploitation dating back to the 19th century or even ancient times.
ICES JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Andrea Baucon, Annalisa Ferretti, Chiara Fioroni, Luca Pandolfi, Enrico Serpagli, Armando Piccinini, Carlos Neto de Carvalho, Mario Cachao, Thomas Linley, Fernando Muniz, Zain Belaustegui, Alan Jamieson, Girolamo Lo Russo, Filippo Guerrini, Sara Ferrando, Imants Priede
Summary: This study reveals that fish have been inhabiting the deep seafloor since the Early Cretaceous, using various techniques to feed on prey. These findings shed light on the evolutionary history of deep-seafloor fishes and the availability of new food sources in the deep sea.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Alexios Lolas, Dimitris Vafidis
Summary: The study focused on the Norway lobster fishery in Pagasitikos Gulf, finding that the local stock is over-exploited. Long-term monitoring of population dynamics, fishery, and exploitation status are crucial for sustainable management of this valuable shellfish resource. Regional policymakers should take into consideration the findings when making decisions.
Article
Geography, Physical
Minmin Ma, Wenyu Wei, Yongan Wang, Feng Sun, Jiajia Dong, Yishi Yang, Haiming Li, Guanghui Dong
Summary: This study investigates the spatio-temporal variation of human diets and subsistence practices in the eastern ancient Silk Road during the Bronze Age. The results show that dietary patterns differed among different regions, and were not consistent with crop cultivation changes. The researchers propose that these variations may have been influenced by climate, population, and geopolitical factors.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Ana Drob, Viorica Vasilache, Neculai Bolohan
Summary: This interdisciplinary study presents a model for investigating prehistoric pottery through various analyses, providing valuable insights into pottery manufacturing technologies and the functionality of different vessel categories within prehistoric settlements.
APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL
(2021)
Article
Anthropology
Jelena Jovanovic, Robert C. Power, Camille de Becdelievre, Gwenaelle Goude, Sofija Stefanovic
Summary: Research indicates that natural and social environments influenced the Neolithic expansion of farming into Europe. The Danube Gorges, with its rich aquatic resources, may have impacted the diet of inhabitants and delayed the adoption of Neolithic cultivated plants in the region.
JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ashley Scott, Robert C. Power, Victoria Altmann-Wendling, Michel Artzy, Mario A. S. Martin, Stefanie Eisenmann, Richard Hagan, Domingo C. Salazar-Garcia, Yossi Salmon, Dmitry Yegorov, Ianir Milevski, Israel Finkelstein, Philipp W. Stockhammer, Christina Warinner
Summary: By analyzing microremains and proteins preserved in dental calculus from individuals in the Southern Levant during the second millennium BCE, it has been found that people in the Eastern Mediterranean had access to food from distant locations such as South Asia, including soybean, banana, and turmeric, pushing back the earliest evidence of these foods in the Mediterranean by centuries or even millennia. This challenges previous perceptions of the complexity and intensity of Indo-Mediterranean trade during the Bronze Age and the degree of globalization in early Eastern Mediterranean cuisine.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Archaeology
Bine Kramberger, Christoph Berthold, Cynthianne Spiteri
Summary: Miniature ceramic bottles with perforated handles, believed to be personal items for storing cosmetics or for ritual purposes, were found in Late Neolithic and Chalcolithic communities in the south-eastern Prealps, south-western Transdanubia, and the Balkans in the 5th millennium BC. This study applied a multi-method approach to analyze the function of 14 of these bottles from the Lasinja and Vinca cultures, pushing back the date for the use of lead-based cosmetic/medicinal products in North Africa, the Near East, and Europe.
JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE-REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Arthur Kocher, Luka Papac, Rodrigo Barquera, Felix M. Key, Maria A. Spyrou, Ron Hubler, Adam B. Rohrlach, Franziska Aron, Raphaela Stahl, Antje Wissgott, Florian van Bommel, Maria Pfefferkorn, Alissa Mittnik, Vanessa Villalba-Mouco, Gunnar U. Neumann, Maite Rivollat, Marieke S. van de Loosdrecht, Kerttu Majander, Rezeda Tukhbatova, Lyazzat Musralina, Ayshin Ghalichi, Sandra Penske, Susanna Sabin, Megan Michel, Joscha Gretzinger, Elizabeth A. Nelson, Tiago Ferraz, Kathrin Nagele, Cody Parker, Marcel Keller, Evelyn K. Guevara, Michal Feldman, Stefanie Eisenmann, Eirini Skourtanioti, Karen Giffin, Guido Alberto Gnecchi-Ruscone, Susanne Friederich, Vittoria Schimmenti, Valery Khartanovich, Marina K. Karapetian, Mikhail S. Chaplygin, Vladimir V. Kufterin, Aleksandr A. Khokhlov, Andrey A. Chizhevsky, Dmitry A. Stashenkov, Anna F. Kochkina, Cristina Tejedor-Rodriguez, Inigo Garcia-Martinez de Lagran, Hector Arcusa-Magallon, Rafael Garrido-Pena, Jose Ignacio Royo-Guillen, Jan Novacek, Stephane Rottier, Sacha Kacki, Sylvie Saintot, Elena Kaverzneva, Andrej B. Belinskiy, Petr Veleminsky, Petr Limbursky, Michal Kostka, Louise Loe, Elizabeth Popescu, Rachel Clarke, Alice Lyons, Richard Mortimer, Antti Sajantila, Yadira Chinique de Armas, Silvia Teresita Hernandez Godoy, Diana Hernandez-Zaragoza, Jessica Pearson, Didier Binder, Philippe Lefranc, Anatoly R. Kantorovich, Vladimir E. Maslov, Luca Lai, Magdalena Zoledziewska, Jessica F. Beckett, Michaela Langova, Tara Ingman, Gabriel Garcia Atienzar, Maria Paz de Miguel Ibanez, Alejandro Romero, Alessandra Sperduti, Sophie Beckett, Susannah J. Salter, Emma D. Zilivinskaya, Dmitry V. Vasil, Kristin von Heyking, Richard L. Burger, Lucy C. Salazar, Luc Amkreutz, Masnav Navruzbekov, Eva Rosenstock, Carmen Alonso-Fernandez, Vladimir Slavchev, Alexey A. Kalmykov, Biaslan Ch Atabiev, Elena Batieva, Micaela Alvarez Calmet, Bastien Llamas, Michael Schultz, Raiko Krauss, Javier Jimenez-Echevarria, Michael Francken, Svetlana Shnaider, Peter de Knijff, Eveline Altena, Katrien Van de Vijver, Lars Fehren-Schmitz, Tiffiny A. Tung, Sandra Losch, Maria Dobrovolskaya, Nikolaj Makarov, Chris Read, Melanie Van Twest, Claudia Sagona, Peter C. Ramsl, Murat Akar, K. Aslihan Yener, Eduardo Carmona Ballestero, Francesco Cucca, Vittorio Mazzarello, Pilar Utrilla, Kurt Rademaker, Eva Fernandez-Dominguez, Douglas Baird, Patrick Semal, Lourdes Marquez-Morfin, Mirjana Roksandic, Hubert Steiner, Domingo Carlos Salazar-Garcia, Natalia Shishlina, Yilmaz Selim Erdal, Fredrik Hallgren, Yavor Boyadzhiev, Kamen Boyadzhiev, Mario Kuessner, Duncan Sayer, Paivi Onkamo, Robin Skeates, Manuel Rojo-Guerra, Alexandra Buzhilova, Elmira Khussainova, Leyla B. Djansugurova, Arman Z. Beisenov, Zainolla Samashev, Ken Massy, Marcello Mannino, Vyacheslav Moiseyev, Kristiina Mannermaa, Oleg Balanovsky, Marie-France Deguilloux, Sabine Reinhold, Svend Hansen, Egor P. Kitov, Miroslav Dobes, Michal Ernee, Harald Meller, Kurt W. Alt, Kay Prufer, Christina Warinner, Stephan Schiffels, Philipp W. Stockhammer, Kirsten Bos, Cosimo Posth, Alexander Herbig, Wolfgang Haak, Johannes Krause, Denise Kuehnert
Summary: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) has been infecting humans for millennia, originating between similar to 20,000 and 12,000 years ago. It was present in European and South American hunter-gatherers during the early Holocene, and later replaced by a lineage disseminated by early farmers after the European Neolithic transition.
Article
Geography, Physical
Marcel Weiss, Michael Hein, Brigitte Urban, Mareike C. Stahlschmidt, Susann Heinrich, Yamandu H. Hilbert, Robert C. Power, Hans Suchodoletz, Thomas Terberger, Utz Boehner, Florian Klimscha, Stephan Veil, Klaus Breest, Johannes Schmidt, Debra Colarossi, Mario Tucci, Manfred Frechen, David Colin Tanner, Tobias Lauer
Summary: This study presents an integrative research on the Middle Paleolithic open-air site of Lichtenberg in Northern Germany, revealing the presence of Neanderthals in temperate and cold environments and their adaptability to severely cold climates. The findings suggest recurring population in the region between MIS 5 and MIS 3, with differences in artifact assemblages between the two environments attributed to site functions, occupation duration, and the availability of flint raw material.
QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2022)
Article
Anthropology
Rivka Chasan, Cynthianne Spiteri, Danny Rosenberg
Summary: This paper presents a comprehensive study of culinary practices in the southern Levant from the Pottery Neolithic to the Late Chalcolithic period. The results suggest that there was a fairly uniform diet during this time, with a preference for meat from domestic ruminants and cultivated vegetal resources. Some variation was noted in the use of dairy products. Overall, the research shows that social and economic developments did not significantly influence what people ate and how they used vessels for food preparation and consumption.
ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND ANTHROPOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Archaeology
Rivka Chasan, Florian Klimscha, Cynthianne Spiteri, Danny Rosenberg
Summary: Tel Tsaf is a Middle Chalcolithic site in the central Jordan Valley, Israel. Organic residue analysis of pottery vessels and stone vessels suggests the use of various combinations of domestic and wild plant and animal products. The study also provides evidence for milk exploitation, offering insights into the dietary patterns and culinary traditions of the Middle Chalcolithic period in the southern Levant.
JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE-REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Robert C. Power, Amanda G. Henry, Julian Moosmann, Felix Beckmann, Heiko Temming, Anthony Roberts, Adeline Le Cabec
Summary: Research on dental calculus can provide insights into diet, health, and environmental pollution. The use of PPC-SR-mu CT technique allows for non-destructive examination of its internal organization, revealing important features and the high heterogeneity and variability within calculus.
JOURNAL OF MEDICAL IMAGING
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ken Massy, Ronny Friedrich, Alissa Mittnik, Philipp W. Stockhammer
Summary: This article demonstrates the potential of combining relative chronological information with absolute radiocarbon dates to improve age determinations. Through Bayesian interpretation and using artificial pedigrees, it shows that the combination of relationship information with radiocarbon dates improves age determination by 20 to 50% in many cases. The study also discusses the application of this method in selected case studies of Early Bronze Age Southern Germany.
Article
Archaeology
Murat Akar, Demet Kara
Summary: This article examines supra-regional trends in magico-ritual objects through a mould-made lead figurine in the form of a foundation peg found in a disturbed Early Bronze IVB to Middle Bronze I transitional deposit at Toprakhisar Hoyuk (Altinozu, Hatay). The stylised object is interpreted as a bull standing atop a peg, pointing to the adoption of hybrid Syro-Anatolian and Mesopotamian technological, iconographic and apotropaic values. It is suggested the object is ritual paraphernalia, likely in relation to the cult of the Storm God, used in a foundation ritual. Together with this peculiar metal product, the presence of other magico-ritual objects that point to northern Mesopotamian connections at the small hinterland site of Toprakhisar Hoyuk, on the outskirts of the Amuq valley, is considered to be a possible material reflection of new groups in the region, including Hurrians and Amorites, which contributed to the unity and regionality of the cults and rituals of Syro-Anatolian communities of the Middle Bronze Age.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Maxime Rageot, Ramadan B. Hussein, Susanne Beck, Victoria Altmann-Wendling, Mohammed I. M. Ibrahim, Mahmoud M. Bahgat, Ahmed M. Yousef, Katja Mittelstaedt, Jean-Jacques Filippi, Stephen Buckley, Cynthianne Spiteri, Philipp W. Stockhammer
Summary: The ability of ancient Egyptians to preserve human bodies through embalming has fascinated people. Through archaeological, philological, and organic residue analyses, this study sheds new light on the embalming practice in ancient Egypt. The analysis of ceramic vessels from a 26th Dynasty embalming workshop revealed the use of specific mixtures of oils, tars, and resins for embalming. The study also highlights the trade networks that provided ancient Egyptian embalmers with foreign substances needed for mummification.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Domingo C. Salazar-Garcia, Robert C. Power, Joan Daura, Montserrat Sanz
Summary: The emergence of Neolithic societies in Iberia brought about significant changes in various aspects of life, including diet. The arrival of new people from the Central Mediterranean introduced cereal production, herding, and Cardial pottery, but the extent to which they adopted Mesolithic staples and their food preparation methods remain unclear. A study conducted at the Cova Bonica site in Catalonia examined direct evidence of the diet of Cardial Neolithic people and found that their diet mainly consisted of terrestrial resources, with evidence of cereal use and other plant foods.
FRONTIERS IN EARTH SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Archaeology
Robert C. Power, Ingelise Stuijts, Finbar Mccormick, Sahra Talamo
Summary: This study reveals the history of otter and badger in Ireland by directly dating ancient specimens from a late Mesolithic campsite. The results show that both species have been present in Ireland for at least 7000-8000 years.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH
(2023)