Chasing the traces of diffusion of agriculture during the early neolithic in the western mediterranean coast

The knowledge on the diffusion of agriculture during the Early Neolithic in the Western Mediterranean is still sparse. This paper reviews the available information and presents some recent results that bring out the potential of archaeobotanical materials on this topic. Crop exchange and diffusion in the western Mediterranean basin is observed but differences between the so-called Impressed ware and the Cardial ware cultures are still difficult to state. Possible exchanges between the LBK-II and Cardial ware cultures are evaluated. Agricultural practices are still hard to compare on a site-tosite basis but some regional patterns are presented

Can Sadurní (Begues, Baix Llobregat), de la captación de recursos abióticos al inicio de la mineria de aluminio-fosfatos (10500-4000 Cal Ane) en el Macizo de Garraf

Ya desde la fase microlaminar del Epipaleolítico el macizo de Garraf ha ofrecido y satisfecho a sus pobladores de la mayoría de materias primas. Por lo que se refiere a las materias de carácter abiótico, observaremos como las diferentes poblaciones que se han sucedido en la ocupación de la cueva, fueron incrementando la captación y el uso de las materias primas que ofrecen las diferentes formaciones geológicas del macizo hasta descubrir las mineralizaciones de aluminofosfatos del basamento paleozoico, iniciar su explotación y propiciar los primeros intercambios a escala extra-regional. Una explotación que, dado su volumen y trascendencia, probablemente condicionó el abandono del yacimiento de Can Sadurní y el traslado a la llanura cuaternaria en la que se emplaza la actual población de Gavà

A continuous‐discontinuous model for crack branching

A new continuous‐discontinuous model for fracture that accounts for crack branching in a natural manner is presented. It combines a gradient‐enhanced damage model based on nonlocal displacements to describe diffuse cracks and the extended finite element method (X‐FEM) for sharp cracks. Its most distinct feature is a global crack tracking strategy based on the geometrical notion of medial axis: the sharp crack propagates following the direction dictated by the medial axis of a damage isoline. This means that, if the damage field branches, the medial axis automatically detects this bifurcation, and a branching sharp crack is thus easily obtained. In contrast to other existing models, no special crack‐tip criteria are required to trigger branching. Complex crack patterns may also be described with this approach, since the X‐FEM enrichment of the displacement field can be recursively applied by adding one extra term at each branching event. The proposed approach is also equipped with a crack‐fluid pressure, a relevant feature in applications such as hydraulic fracturing or leakage‐related events. The capabilities of the model to handle propagation and branching of cracks are illustrated by means of different two‐dimensional numerical examples

The opium poppy in Europe: exploring its origin and dispersal during the Neolithic

A new project aims to define the origins and dispersal patterns of the opium poppy in Neolithic Western Europe through a comprehensive programme of radiocarbon dating

An Early Neolithic enclosure at the site of Vlaho, Pelagonia

[EN] Recent study of Vlaho in Pelagonia confirms that it is the earliest known Neolithic settlement in North Macedonia. Multidisciplinary research of the architecture and material reveals a complex enclosure site dating to the seventh millennium BC, with dozens of ditches, daub buildings, white painted pottery and domesticated plants and animals

One Sea but many Routes to Sail. The early maritime dispersal of Neolithic crops from the Aegean to the western Mediterranean

This paper explores the first maritime westward expansion of crops across the Adriatic and the northern coast of the western Mediterranean. Starting in Greece at c.6500 cal BC and following the coastline to the Andalusian region of Spain at c.4500 cal BC, the presence of the main cereal, pulse, oil and fibre crops are recorded from 122 sites. Patterns in the distribution of crops are explored through ubiquity scores, correspondence analysis and Simpson's diversity index. Our findings reveal changes in the frequencies of crops as farming regimes developed into Europe, and show how different crops followed unique trajectories. Fluctuations in the diversity of the crop spectrum between defined areas are also evident, and may serve to illustrate how founder effects can explain some of the patterns evident in large-scale spatio-temporal evaluations. Within the broader westward expansion of farming, regionalism and multi-directional maritime networks described through archaeological materials are also visible in the botanical recordsERc Consolidator Grant StG-31371

The Demeter project. Eight millennia of agrobiodiversity changes in the northwest Mediterranean basin

The development of agricultural societies is closely entangled with that of domestic animals and plants. Local and traditional domestic breeds and varieties are the result of millennia of selection by farmers. DEMETER (2020-2025) is an international project which is aiming to characterize the changes in animal and plant agrobiodiversity (pigs, sheep, goats, and barley) in relation with environmental and socioeconomic factors in the northwestern Mediterranean basin since the beginnings of agriculture. The project is based on a combination of approaches including phenomics (through geometric morphometrics), databasing, zooarchaeology, archaeobotany, climate modeling, paleoproteins (ZooMs) and statistical analyses. Several hundreds of archaeological sites from the South of France and Catalonia will be studied, covering the maximum environmental, societal and cultural diversity of context over the course of the last eight millennia

Истражување На Локалитетот Плоча-Миќов Град Кај Градиште (Охридско Езеро) Во 2019 Година

Research In 2019 At The Site Of Ploča-Mićov Grad Near Gradište (Lake Ohrid) [in Mazedonisch]: Локалитетот Плоча-Миќов Град кај Градиште на Охридското Езеро претставу-ва една од најдобро истражените наколни на-селби во балканскиот регион, што овозможува потемелен увид во нејзиниот карактер, но и во заедниците што ја основале и користеле. Покрај придонесот на претходните истражувања на овој локалитет, голем удел во тоа има теков-ниот меѓународен проект EXPLO (Exploring the dynamics and causes of prehistoric land use change in the cradle of European farming), поддржан од Европскиот истражувачки совет. Овој проект е во соработка меѓу Универзитетот во Берн, Уни-верзитетот во Оксфорд и Универзитетот во Со-лун, додека македонски партнери се Центарот за истражување на предисторијата и Заводот за заштита на спомениците на културата и музеј - Охрид во домен на ископувањето на локалите-тот Плоча-Миќов Град. Како резултат на оваа соработка, годинашното истражување вклучи повеќе мултидисциплинарни сфери, како што се дендрохронологијата, археоботаниката, пале-оекологијата, проучувањето на материјалната култура итн. Во таа смисла, истражувањето во 2019 година беше надоврзување на она од прет-ходната година, но во рамки на нов проект и со вклучување на многу поголем тим од стручњаци и студенти, коишто се ангажираа во разни сег-менти од работата на Плоча-Миќов Град

Mashes to Mashes, Crust to Crust. Presenting a novel microstructural marker for malting in the archaeological record

The detection of direct archaeological remains of alcoholic beverages and their production is still a challenge to archaeological science, as most of the markers known up to now are either not durable or diagnostic enough to be used as secure proof. The current study addresses this question by experimental work reproducing the malting processes and subsequent charring of the resulting products under laboratory conditions in order to simulate their preservation (by charring) in archaeological contexts and to explore the preservation of microstructural alterations of the cereal grains. The experimentally germinated and charred grains showed clearly degraded (thinned) aleurone cell walls. The histological alterations of the cereal grains were observed and quantified using reflected light and scanning electron microscopy and supported using morphometric and statistical analyses. In order to verify the experimental observations of histological alterations, amorphous charred objects (ACO) containing cereal remains originating from five archaeological sites dating to the 4th millennium BCE were considered: two sites were archaeologically recognisable brewing installations from Predynastic Egypt, while the three broadly contemporary central European lakeshore settlements lack specific contexts for their cereal-based food remains. The aleurone cell wall thinning known from food technological research and observed in our own experimental material was indeed also recorded in the archaeological finds. The Egyptian materials derive from beer production with certainty, supported by ample contextual and artefactual data. The Neolithic lakeshore settlement finds currently represent the oldest traces of malting in central Europe, while a bowl-shaped bread-like object from Hornstaad–Hornle possibly even points towards early beer production in central Europe. One major further implication of our study is that the cell wall breakdown in the grain's aleurone layer can be used as a general marker for malting processes with relevance to a wide range of charred archaeological finds of cereal products

Mapping past human land use using archaeological data: A new classification for global land use synthesis and data harmonization

In the 12,000 years preceding the Industrial Revolution, human activities led to significant changes in land cover, plant and animal distributions, surface hydrology, and biochemical cycles. Earth system models suggest that this anthropogenic land cover change influenced regional and global climate. However, the representation of past land use in earth system models is currently oversimplified. As a result, there are large uncertainties in the current understanding of the past and current state of the earth system. In order to improve repre- sentation of the variety and scale of impacts that past land use had on the earth system, a global effort is underway to aggregate and synthesize archaeological and historical evi- dence of land use systems. Here we present a simple, hierarchical classification of land use systems designed to be used with archaeological and historical data at a global scale and a schema of codes that identify land use practices common to a range of systems, both imple- mented in a geospatial database. The classification scheme and database resulted from an extensive process of consultation with researchers worldwide. Our scheme is designed to deliver consistent, empirically robust data for the improvement of land use models, while simultaneously allowing for a comparative, detailed mapping of land use relevant to the needs of historical scholars. To illustrate the benefits of the classification scheme and meth- ods for mapping historical land use, we apply it to Mesopotamia and Arabia at 6 kya (c. 4000 BCE). The scheme will be used to describe land use by the Past Global Changes (PAGES) LandCover6k working group, an international project comprised of archaeologists, historians, geographers, paleoecologists, and modelers. Beyond this, the scheme has a wide utility for creating a common language between research and policy communities, link- ing archaeologists with climate modelers, biodiversity conservation workers and initiatives.publishedVersio