6 research outputs found
Here be reindeer:geoarchaeological approaches to the transspecies lifeworlds of the SĂĄmi reindeer herder camps on the tundra
Abstract
In this paper we present ongoing geoarchaeological research of SĂĄmi reindeer pastoralist campsites. The discussion is based on three case study sites situated at the Lake GilbbesjĂĄvri region (Finland) in northern SĂĄpmi. All the sites are historical-period reindeer herder camps, likely used as temporary summer encampments by the nomadic herders in the 17thâ19th centuries. The sites were prospected with systematic soil sampling and geoarchaeological analyses, which have been previously successfully applied in the study of SĂĄmi habitation sites on both intrasite and intra-dwelling levels. The changes in the soil phosphate, pH and electric conductivity values were analysed and interpreted based on ethnographic analogies. These allow insight into the outwardly invisible taskscapes and spatialities of the herders and their animals at the campsites. The different geoarchaeological factors highlight differing aspects of the use of space at the historical SĂĄmi reindeer pastoralist campsites, such as potential reindeer corralling areas, and provide comparative material for the analyses of prehistoric SĂĄmi hunter-gatherer-herder sites
Resilient herders: a deeply stratified multiperiod habitation site in northwestern Mongolia
Currently, the development of mobile pastoralism in Mongolia is known almost exclusively from burial and ritual contexts. Here we present the results of archaeological excavations and geoarchaeological work carried out at a deeply stratified multiperiod habitation site in northwestern Mongolia. Data include an unprecedented number of well-preserved artifacts, faunal and botanical remains, sedimentary information, and chronology that document the development of pastoralism in this region. Our findings index the local durability of pastoralist occupation over 4000 years, as well as the adaptive resilience of the herders here, indeed up to the present day, and this despite major changes in the sociopolitical, socioeconomic, and environmental conditions through time.1. Introduction 2. The Western Mongolia archaeology project in ZĂŒĂŒnkhangai 2015â2018 3. ZK513 habitation site: site characteristics and test excavation methods 4. Stratigraphy and dating of the trench ZK513-1 5. Assemblages 5.1. Botanical remains 5.2. Ceramics 5.3. Lithics 5.4. Faunal remains 6. Discussion 7. Conclusio
A new chronological framework and site formation history for Cova del Gegant (Barcelona): Implications for Neanderthal and Anatomically Modern Human occupation of NE Iberian Peninsula
The chronological framework for Neanderthal occupation and demise across Europe continues to be debated. In particular, there is still uncertainty regarding the nature, timing and regional expressions of the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition associated with the disappearance of Neanderthals and the broader expansion of modern human populations in Europe around 42â40 thousand years ago (ka). The geographical and chronological distribution of Neanderthal populations also remains difficult to evaluate owing to the practical challenges of directly dating human fossils at many sites, and the fact that a large proportion of Neanderthals sites lie close to, or well-beyond, the limits of radiocarbon dating. Cova del Gegant â one of the few sites in north-eastern Iberian Peninsula to yield Neanderthal fossil remains, associated Mousterian archaeological layers, and occupations related to the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic transition â is a key locality for informing these ongoing debates. Here we provide a comprehensive chronological framework for the Cova del Gegant site using multiple radiometric dating techniques (uranium-thorium (UâTh), radiocarbon and luminescence dating), sedimentological and micromorphological analyses, and Bayesian modelling. This integrated chronostratigraphic approach enables us to reliably reconstruct site formation processes and history, and undertake improved correlations with other sites regionally. The results allow us to sub-divide the Cova del Gegant sequence into three sections spanning âŒ94 ka to âŒ32 ka, namely: a Middle Palaeolithic sequence covering âŒ94â59 ka, a ChĂątelperronian/Aurignacian section spanning âŒ43â39 ka, and a Late Aurignacian/Gravettian section spanning âŒ34â32 ka. The Neanderthal fossil remains accumulated in the cave between the end of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5/MIS 4 and the beginning of MIS 3, during two different events dated to âŒ72â67 ka and âŒ60â52 ka. The chronological framework for Cova del Gegant is in accordance with that reported for other Middle and Upper Palaeolithic sites in north-eastern Iberian Peninsula, and reveals a record of successive human occupation coinciding with a period of progressive global cooling and lowering sea levels (end of MIS 5 through to MIS 2). Sedimentological evidence points to the emergence of a coastal platform in front of the cave and indicates that local palaeoenvironmental conditions likely benefited human displacements along the littoral margin, and favoured repeated occupation of the cave during the Late Pleistocene