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

Morphometric evolution of the domestic triad, in western Gallia Narbonensis (southern France, Languedoc), between the 2nd c.BC and the 4th c.AD: Preliminary and critical use of log size index for diachronic analysis

International audienceIn bioarchaeology, the biometry of archaeozoological remains is an important component of studies on domestic species and size has been used for multiple purposes from identifying domestication, to track environmental changes or evolution of husbandry practices. The establishment of the Roman Empire has been accompanied by social, political and economic transformations that also reflect in farming practices and animal husbandry. In southern France, biometric variation has already been partially perceived during Roman times, particularly for cattle, but lack chronological accuracy and statistical validation.This paper presents a diachronic analysis of linear measurements of post-cranial bones belonging to the domestic triad (sheep, goat, cattle and suids) in western Gallia Narbonensis (France), between the Roman conquest and Late Antiquity, i.e. from 200 BCE to 400 AD. Biometric data from 64 archaeological sites, excavated and studied over more than 30 years of preventive archaeology, were analysed using a Log Size Index (LSI) approach using time as a continuous variable. The analysis of 5533 measurements first analysed per bone and variable, then separating length, breadth and depth dimensions, revealed different trends, highly influenced by the number of measurements, reflecting allometric differences but also cases of asynchronous evolution. However, these allometries within species are small when compared to interspecies differences. Overall, the size of the four taxa increased from the 2nd century BC to the 2nd century AD. Cattle and pig sizes then decreased from the 2nd century AD and only from the 4th century onwards for goats, while sheep size tends to increase during the 3rd-4th centuries. If the Roman conquest influences the size of the domestic animals, this does not affect the four species in the same way. This potentially reflects differentiated agropastoral strategies for each of the species in the western part of Gallia Narbonensis during the Roman period. This study, which provides a diachronic and cross-species study framework, should be seen as a first step for a more in-depth understanding of micro-regional and socio-economic variation in domestic species morphologies

Morphometric evolution of the domestic triad, in western Gallia Narbonensis (southern France, Languedoc), between the 2nd c.BC and the 4th c.AD: Preliminary and critical use of log size index for diachronic analysis

International audienceIn bioarchaeology, the biometry of archaeozoological remains is an important component of studies on domestic species and size has been used for multiple purposes from identifying domestication, to track environmental changes or evolution of husbandry practices. The establishment of the Roman Empire has been accompanied by social, political and economic transformations that also reflect in farming practices and animal husbandry. In southern France, biometric variation has already been partially perceived during Roman times, particularly for cattle, but lack chronological accuracy and statistical validation.This paper presents a diachronic analysis of linear measurements of post-cranial bones belonging to the domestic triad (sheep, goat, cattle and suids) in western Gallia Narbonensis (France), between the Roman conquest and Late Antiquity, i.e. from 200 BCE to 400 AD. Biometric data from 64 archaeological sites, excavated and studied over more than 30 years of preventive archaeology, were analysed using a Log Size Index (LSI) approach using time as a continuous variable. The analysis of 5533 measurements first analysed per bone and variable, then separating length, breadth and depth dimensions, revealed different trends, highly influenced by the number of measurements, reflecting allometric differences but also cases of asynchronous evolution. However, these allometries within species are small when compared to interspecies differences. Overall, the size of the four taxa increased from the 2nd century BC to the 2nd century AD. Cattle and pig sizes then decreased from the 2nd century AD and only from the 4th century onwards for goats, while sheep size tends to increase during the 3rd-4th centuries. If the Roman conquest influences the size of the domestic animals, this does not affect the four species in the same way. This potentially reflects differentiated agropastoral strategies for each of the species in the western part of Gallia Narbonensis during the Roman period. This study, which provides a diachronic and cross-species study framework, should be seen as a first step for a more in-depth understanding of micro-regional and socio-economic variation in domestic species morphologies

Morphometric evolution of the domestic triad, in western Gallia Narbonensis (southern France, Languedoc), between the 2nd c.BC and the 4th c.AD: Preliminary and critical use of log size index for diachronic analysis

International audienceIn bioarchaeology, the biometry of archaeozoological remains is an important component of studies on domestic species and size has been used for multiple purposes from identifying domestication, to track environmental changes or evolution of husbandry practices. The establishment of the Roman Empire has been accompanied by social, political and economic transformations that also reflect in farming practices and animal husbandry. In southern France, biometric variation has already been partially perceived during Roman times, particularly for cattle, but lack chronological accuracy and statistical validation.This paper presents a diachronic analysis of linear measurements of post-cranial bones belonging to the domestic triad (sheep, goat, cattle and suids) in western Gallia Narbonensis (France), between the Roman conquest and Late Antiquity, i.e. from 200 BCE to 400 AD. Biometric data from 64 archaeological sites, excavated and studied over more than 30 years of preventive archaeology, were analysed using a Log Size Index (LSI) approach using time as a continuous variable. The analysis of 5533 measurements first analysed per bone and variable, then separating length, breadth and depth dimensions, revealed different trends, highly influenced by the number of measurements, reflecting allometric differences but also cases of asynchronous evolution. However, these allometries within species are small when compared to interspecies differences. Overall, the size of the four taxa increased from the 2nd century BC to the 2nd century AD. Cattle and pig sizes then decreased from the 2nd century AD and only from the 4th century onwards for goats, while sheep size tends to increase during the 3rd-4th centuries. If the Roman conquest influences the size of the domestic animals, this does not affect the four species in the same way. This potentially reflects differentiated agropastoral strategies for each of the species in the western part of Gallia Narbonensis during the Roman period. This study, which provides a diachronic and cross-species study framework, should be seen as a first step for a more in-depth understanding of micro-regional and socio-economic variation in domestic species morphologies

Morphometric evolution of the domestic triad, in western Gallia Narbonensis (southern France, Languedoc), between the 2nd c.BC and the 4th c.AD: Preliminary and critical use of log size index for diachronic analysis

International audienceIn bioarchaeology, the biometry of archaeozoological remains is an important component of studies on domestic species and size has been used for multiple purposes from identifying domestication, to track environmental changes or evolution of husbandry practices. The establishment of the Roman Empire has been accompanied by social, political and economic transformations that also reflect in farming practices and animal husbandry. In southern France, biometric variation has already been partially perceived during Roman times, particularly for cattle, but lack chronological accuracy and statistical validation.This paper presents a diachronic analysis of linear measurements of post-cranial bones belonging to the domestic triad (sheep, goat, cattle and suids) in western Gallia Narbonensis (France), between the Roman conquest and Late Antiquity, i.e. from 200 BCE to 400 AD. Biometric data from 64 archaeological sites, excavated and studied over more than 30 years of preventive archaeology, were analysed using a Log Size Index (LSI) approach using time as a continuous variable. The analysis of 5533 measurements first analysed per bone and variable, then separating length, breadth and depth dimensions, revealed different trends, highly influenced by the number of measurements, reflecting allometric differences but also cases of asynchronous evolution. However, these allometries within species are small when compared to interspecies differences. Overall, the size of the four taxa increased from the 2nd century BC to the 2nd century AD. Cattle and pig sizes then decreased from the 2nd century AD and only from the 4th century onwards for goats, while sheep size tends to increase during the 3rd-4th centuries. If the Roman conquest influences the size of the domestic animals, this does not affect the four species in the same way. This potentially reflects differentiated agropastoral strategies for each of the species in the western part of Gallia Narbonensis during the Roman period. This study, which provides a diachronic and cross-species study framework, should be seen as a first step for a more in-depth understanding of micro-regional and socio-economic variation in domestic species morphologies

Does the choice of a reference matter for log size index analysis? A case study from roman times in southern France

International audienceLog Size Index (LSI) has been developed and used in archaeozoology to perform biometric studies of often small datasets, a recurrent limitation of archaeological faunal assemblages. This approach consists of aggregating measurements taken on different anatomical parts by standardisation, using a reference to which the studied measurements are scaled. No consensus exists in the choice of the reference to be used for LSI analyses and several datasets are now available, differing in their specimens and variables composition, and geographic and temporal origin. Using a biometric dataset of 5533 measurements of cattle, suids, sheep and goat from southern France and dated from the Roman times we compared the use of several references, provided by the R package zoolog, with a ‘mean’ reference specifically built for our studied sample and that corresponds to an averaged specimen. We demonstrated that references differ both in their raw measurements and their allometries, and that the choice of the reference influences the number of variables and measurements that can be analysed, but also diachronic LSI analyses and potentially their interpretations. While the main patterns are similar among references, local variation exist and it could not be excluded that the choice of the reference will more strongly influence other studies. We advocate to use the mean of the studied archaeological assemblage as reference, with the double benefit of exploiting to the maximum the number of available measurements, and of minimising, on average, the possible allometric differences between the studied population and the reference

Does the choice of a reference matter for log size index analysis? A case study from roman times in southern France

International audienceLog Size Index (LSI) has been developed and used in archaeozoology to perform biometric studies of often small datasets, a recurrent limitation of archaeological faunal assemblages. This approach consists of aggregating measurements taken on different anatomical parts by standardisation, using a reference to which the studied measurements are scaled. No consensus exists in the choice of the reference to be used for LSI analyses and several datasets are now available, differing in their specimens and variables composition, and geographic and temporal origin. Using a biometric dataset of 5533 measurements of cattle, suids, sheep and goat from southern France and dated from the Roman times we compared the use of several references, provided by the R package zoolog, with a ‘mean’ reference specifically built for our studied sample and that corresponds to an averaged specimen. We demonstrated that references differ both in their raw measurements and their allometries, and that the choice of the reference influences the number of variables and measurements that can be analysed, but also diachronic LSI analyses and potentially their interpretations. While the main patterns are similar among references, local variation exist and it could not be excluded that the choice of the reference will more strongly influence other studies. We advocate to use the mean of the studied archaeological assemblage as reference, with the double benefit of exploiting to the maximum the number of available measurements, and of minimising, on average, the possible allometric differences between the studied population and the reference

Does the choice of a reference matter for log size index analysis? A case study from roman times in southern France

International audienceLog Size Index (LSI) has been developed and used in archaeozoology to perform biometric studies of often small datasets, a recurrent limitation of archaeological faunal assemblages. This approach consists of aggregating measurements taken on different anatomical parts by standardisation, using a reference to which the studied measurements are scaled. No consensus exists in the choice of the reference to be used for LSI analyses and several datasets are now available, differing in their specimens and variables composition, and geographic and temporal origin. Using a biometric dataset of 5533 measurements of cattle, suids, sheep and goat from southern France and dated from the Roman times we compared the use of several references, provided by the R package zoolog, with a ‘mean’ reference specifically built for our studied sample and that corresponds to an averaged specimen. We demonstrated that references differ both in their raw measurements and their allometries, and that the choice of the reference influences the number of variables and measurements that can be analysed, but also diachronic LSI analyses and potentially their interpretations. While the main patterns are similar among references, local variation exist and it could not be excluded that the choice of the reference will more strongly influence other studies. We advocate to use the mean of the studied archaeological assemblage as reference, with the double benefit of exploiting to the maximum the number of available measurements, and of minimising, on average, the possible allometric differences between the studied population and the reference

Does the choice of a reference matter for log size index analysis? A case study from roman times in southern France

International audienceLog Size Index (LSI) has been developed and used in archaeozoology to perform biometric studies of often small datasets, a recurrent limitation of archaeological faunal assemblages. This approach consists of aggregating measurements taken on different anatomical parts by standardisation, using a reference to which the studied measurements are scaled. No consensus exists in the choice of the reference to be used for LSI analyses and several datasets are now available, differing in their specimens and variables composition, and geographic and temporal origin. Using a biometric dataset of 5533 measurements of cattle, suids, sheep and goat from southern France and dated from the Roman times we compared the use of several references, provided by the R package zoolog, with a ‘mean’ reference specifically built for our studied sample and that corresponds to an averaged specimen. We demonstrated that references differ both in their raw measurements and their allometries, and that the choice of the reference influences the number of variables and measurements that can be analysed, but also diachronic LSI analyses and potentially their interpretations. While the main patterns are similar among references, local variation exist and it could not be excluded that the choice of the reference will more strongly influence other studies. We advocate to use the mean of the studied archaeological assemblage as reference, with the double benefit of exploiting to the maximum the number of available measurements, and of minimising, on average, the possible allometric differences between the studied population and the reference

Does the choice of a reference matter for log size index analysis? A case study from roman times in southern France

International audienceLog Size Index (LSI) has been developed and used in archaeozoology to perform biometric studies of often small datasets, a recurrent limitation of archaeological faunal assemblages. This approach consists of aggregating measurements taken on different anatomical parts by standardisation, using a reference to which the studied measurements are scaled. No consensus exists in the choice of the reference to be used for LSI analyses and several datasets are now available, differing in their specimens and variables composition, and geographic and temporal origin. Using a biometric dataset of 5533 measurements of cattle, suids, sheep and goat from southern France and dated from the Roman times we compared the use of several references, provided by the R package zoolog, with a ‘mean’ reference specifically built for our studied sample and that corresponds to an averaged specimen. We demonstrated that references differ both in their raw measurements and their allometries, and that the choice of the reference influences the number of variables and measurements that can be analysed, but also diachronic LSI analyses and potentially their interpretations. While the main patterns are similar among references, local variation exist and it could not be excluded that the choice of the reference will more strongly influence other studies. We advocate to use the mean of the studied archaeological assemblage as reference, with the double benefit of exploiting to the maximum the number of available measurements, and of minimising, on average, the possible allometric differences between the studied population and the reference