Provenancing Central African copper croisettes: A first chemical and lead isotope characterisation of currencies in Central and Southern Africa Publication date: November 2019 Source: Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 111 Author(s): Frederik W. Rademakers, Nicolas Nikis, Thierry De Putter, Patrick Degryse Abstract The Copperbelt is one of the richest copper deposits in the world and has been an important primary metal source for Central African cultures for over a millennium. The technology underlying this exploitation and the trade networks through which copper was exchanged, however, have not yet received much attention in archaeological research. This paper presents the first geochemical dataset for archaeological copper currencies in Central and Southern Africa: croisette ingots. Chemical and lead isotope analysis have been carried out for 45 precolonial copper artefacts with the aim of illuminating their provenance and production technology. The results show that highly pure copper with very low trace element content was produced, indicating the selection, beneficiation and smelting of specific Copperbelt ores. The variable croisette compositions and shapes reflected in burial assemblages support their suggested use as currencies over a large area. This study offers a highly novel contribution to provenance research in Central and Southern Africa, shedding new light on the broader trade networks associated with copper provisioning in these regions. The exploitation of a range of ore sources throughout the 2nd millennium CE has been identified, with a marked shift around the mid-15th century CE largely correlating to croisette typologies. Furthermore, these different geochemical copper signatures can be tentatively related to different Copperbelt zones. Combining these results with archaeological and historical evidence for regional copper production and consumption, this study provides a framework for the future study of copper production and exchange systems in the wider Central and Southern African region. Graphical abstract

Wild crocodiles hunted to make mummies in Roman Egypt: Evidence from synchrotron imaging Publication date: October 2019 Source: Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 110 Author(s): Stéphanie M. Porcier, Camille Berruyer, Stéphane Pasquali, Salima Ikram, Didier Berthet, Paul Tafforeau Abstract An ancient Egyptian crocodile mummy (MHNL 90001591, Musée des Confluences, Lyon, France) dating to the Roman period and discovered at Kom Ombo (Upper Egypt) was analysed through synchrotron multiscale microtomography. Using this advanced technology, the virtual autopsy of the animal was carried out without affecting the bones, flesh, balms and linen bandages. The technique allows for the precise analysis of the specimen's bones and tissue, enabling us to establish the cause of death and the last meal(s) of the animal. From these data, we can conclude that this crocodile was hunted while living in the wild. This is the first evidence for this mode of obtaining animals to produce mummies. With this case study, it is apparent that the praxis related to the mummification of animals in ancient Egypt are more diverse than the current Egyptological reconstruction of that phenomenon.

Innovative Neanderthals: Results from an integrated analytical approach applied to backed stone tools Publication date: October 2019 Source: Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 110 Author(s): Davide Delpiano, Andrea Zupancich, Marco Peresani Abstract The production of prepared backed artifacts during the Paleolithic is recognized as an important step in the design of stone tools for manual activities and the development of human tool ergonomics. Backed artifacts are generally identified as proxies of so-called “modern” behavior, partly because they tend to be associated with systematic hafting, but mostly because they are widespread within Middle Stone Age (MSA) or Early Upper Paleolithic (EUP) assemblages attributed to anatomically modern humans. However, in Europe these tools were first manufactured by Neanderthal groups associated with the Mousterian of Acheulean Tradition (MAT) techno-complex and Discoid and Levallois technologies, using a range of flake blanks. Investigating the reasons for this behavioral leap forward can help to unravel the development and diffusion of various aspects defining the behavioral complexity of Paleolithic humans. In this paper we present a detailed analysis of one of the oldest and richest collections of prepared backed items preserved in Europe. We study several dozens of what – in a broad sense – are considered backed artifacts, with both natural and predetermined knapped backs, recovered from unit A9 at Fumane Cave, which is dated to at least 47.6 cal ky, and is characterized by discoid technology. Our methodology integrates results obtained from technological, techno-functional and use-wear analyses, further supported by experimental data. Two distinctive types of anthropogenic modifications have been identified, both aimed at creating a back or at modifying and accommodating an already existing back. By cross-checking our results with use-wear data, we show that some of these modifications were aimed at adjusting the shapes of the tools (knives and/or scrapers) for manual handling, although traces consistent with hafting have been recognized on a few specimens. Contextual information allows us to infer that these adjustments involved mainly tools used in precision activities, whose design and production implies varying levels of expertise and technical skills. Although still not systematic or standardized, the kinds of complex tool-making implied by backing can be considered as typical feature in the technological repertoires of late Neanderthals. Graphical abstract

Why should traceology learn from dental microwear, and vice-versa? Publication date: October 2019 Source: Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 110 Author(s): Ivan Calandra, Antonella Pedergnana, Walter Gneisinger, Joao Marreiros Abstract Dental and artifact microwear analyses have a lot in common regarding the questions they address, their developmental history and their issues. However, few paleontologists and archeologists are aware of this, and even those who are, do not take into account most of the methodological insights from the other field. In this focus article, we briefly review the main developmental steps of both methods, highlight how similar their histories are and how combining methodological developments can improve both research fields. In both cases, the traditional analyses have been strongly criticized mainly because of their subjectivity and their lack of repeatability and reproducibility. Quantitative surface texture analyses have been proposed in response, resulting in dental microwear texture analysis (DMTA) and quantitative artifact microwear analysis (QAMA). DMTA is however a more mature method than QAMA and is well supported within the paleontological community. In this paper, focused on the methodological framework of both fields, we address this topic by arguing that traceologists could borrow a lot from DMTA; this would allow QAMA to become an established method much more quickly. Dental microwear analysts can also learn from traceology, especially regarding sample preparation, experimentation and residue analysis. We hope that this focus article will stimulate more awareness, exchange and collaboration between paleontologists and archeologists, and especially between dental and artifact microwear analysts. Paleontology, archeology and the field of surface analysis as a whole would all benefit from such cooperation.

Maternal relationships within an Iron Age burial at the High Pasture Cave, Isle of Skye, Scotland Publication date: October 2019 Source: Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 110 Author(s): Katharina Dulias, Steven Birch, James F. Wilson, Pierre Justeau, Francesca Gandini, Antònia Flaquer, Pedro Soares, Martin B. Richards, Maria Pala, Ceiridwen J. Edwards Abstract Human remains from the Iron Age in Atlantic Scotland are rare, which makes the assemblage of an adult female and numerous foetal bones at High Pasture Cave, on the Isle of Skye, particularly noteworthy. Archaeological evidence suggests that the female had been deposited as an articulated skeleton when the cave entrance was blocked off, marking the end of use of the site. Particularly intriguing is the deposition of disarticulated remains from a foetus and perinate close to the adult female, which opens the possibility that the female might have been the mother of both of the infants. We used shotgun genome sequencing in order to analyse the mitochondrial genomes of all three individuals and investigate their maternal relationship, and we report here, for the first time, complete ancient mitogenomes from foetal-aged bone fragments. While we could not exclude the possibility that the female was the mother of, or maternally related to, the foetus, we could definitely say that she was not the mother of the perinate buried alongside her. This finding is contrary to the standard archaeological interpretation, that women in such burials most likely died in childbirth and were buried together with their foetuses.

Convolutional neural networks for archaeological site detection – Finding “princely” tombs Publication date: October 2019 Source: Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 110 Author(s): Gino Caspari, Pablo Crespo Abstract Creating a quantitative overview over the early Iron Age heritage of the Eurasian steppes is a difficult task due to the vastness of the ecological zone and the often problematic access. Remote sensing based detection on open-source high-resolution satellite data in combination with convolutional neural networks (CNN) provide a potential solution to this problem. We create a CNN trained to detect early Iron Age burial mounds in freely available optical satellite data. The CNN provides a superior method for archaeological site detection based on the comparison to other detection algorithms trained on the same dataset. Throughout all comparison metrics (precision, recall, and score) the CNN performs best.

Regional patterns in medieval European glass composition as a provenancing tool Publication date: October 2019 Source: Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 110 Author(s): L.W. Adlington, I.C. Freestone, J.J. Kunicki-Goldfinger, T. Ayers, H. Gilderdale Scott, A. Eavis Abstract A legacy dataset of 1329 major element analyses of medieval glass (12th-15th centuries) has been compiled and analysed for geographical distribution of compositional characteristics. Three regional compositional types may be distinguished using simple elemental plots, associated with glass production in northwestern France, in the region around the Rhine, and in central Europe. Distribution maps are presented to aid interpretation and use of the data. The application of the approach is illustrated through three case studies. Late thirteenth-early fourteenth century medieval stained glass from York Minster (n = 91), late fourteenth-century stained glass from New College Oxford (n = 79) and a single medieval mirror found in Egypt were analysed using scanning electron microscopy–energy dispersive analysis. The York coloured and white glasses were identical and consistent with an origin in NW France. In the late fourteenth century, the coloured glass samples from Oxford were from the Rhenish region, while the white glass is consistent with an origin in NW France or England. The mirror glass from Egypt is of central European origin, and similar mirror glass is known from Italy. The apparent dominance of German mirror production may reflect an advantage of the glass, which is low in iron. The meta-analysis of the legacy data shows significant potential for developing an understanding of the production and movement of medieval glass.

Storage or cooking pots? Inferring pottery use through archaeomagnetic assessment of palaeotemperatures Publication date: October 2019 Source: Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 110 Author(s): Marta Francés-Negro, Ángel Carrancho, Amalia Pérez-Romero, Juan Luis Arsuaga, José Miguel Carretero, Eneko Iriarte Abstract In this paper we report the results of an archaeomagnetic and rock-magnetic study performed on a set of Neolithic and Chalcolithic potsherds from El Portalón de Cueva Mayor site (Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain) to investigate their thermal history and obtain information about their function during ancient times. Two types of palaeomagnetic behaviour have been observed. One yields stable and univectorial magnetization diagrams (Type 1) while the other yields multivectorial diagrams with an intermedium component interpreted as a partial thermoremanence (p-TRM) (Type 2), acquired during a partial reheating of the pottery during their use. To investigate the connection of these two types with the ancient function of the potsherds, a set of modern pots was experimentally fired and then partially reheated al known temperatures. The results obtained reproduced patterns similar to those observed in the archaeological samples. Type 1 (univectorial) samples that reached only a high heating temperature (>600 °C) during their manufacture were most probably used as storage vessels. By contrast, Type 2 (multivectorial) samples probably recorded a p-TRM acquired during their last use (reheating) related to cooking activities (<450 °C). Additionally, a detailed microprofile performed on an experimental pot heated twice at different temperatures allows interesting inferences to be drawn on the magnetic record in archaeological pottery and its implications. This study shows that the magnetic measurements can be a useful tool to infer the last re-heating temperatures in prehistoric ceramics and to relate them to the use of those pieces in the past.

Animal fibre use in the Keriya valley (Xinjiang, China) during the Bronze and Iron Ages: A proteomic approach Publication date: October 2019 Source: Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume 110 Author(s): Clara Azémard, Antoine Zazzo, Arul Marie, Sébastien Lepetz, Corinne Debaine-Francfort, Abduressul Idriss, Séverine Zirah Abstract Textile technology strongly advanced with sedentism and pastoralism. During prehistory, many populations settled in central Eurasia, a place of extensive exchange and cultural contact. In the Taklamakan desert, the dry climate enabled good preservation of ancient textiles. The study presented here aimed to identify animal fibres from Bronze Age and Iron Age sites in the Keriya valley (Xinjiang, China) using proteomics. A large corpus of 109 keratin extracts obtained from raw fibres or textiles was analysed, enabling us to establish a corrected and improved list of peptide markers for the identification of species, not only among the family Bovidae, but also for camels and humans. In total, we were able to identify 97% of the sampled objects to the taxonomic level of tribe and 85% of caprines to the level of genus. The assemblage was dominated by hair of sheep (57.8%) followed by goat (16.5%), cattle (8.3%), camel (0.9%), human (0.9%) and non-differentiated Caprinae (sheep or goat) (12.8%). The study showed a continuity between the two sites in this respect. It revealed a choice of raw material linked to the function of the textile, with most woven textiles being made from sheep's wool and most pelts being obtained from goat. Comparison with the bone assemblage of one of the sites provided insight into the herd management strategies. The results confirm the heuristic potential of the proteomic approach for the determination of archaeological fibres and for textile studies in general. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD012189.

Corrigendum to “Identifying ancient water availability through phytolith analysis: An experimental approach” J. Archaeol. Sci. 73 (2016) 82–93 Publication date: Available online 30 August 2019 Source: Journal of Archaeological Science Author(s): Emma Jenkins, Khalil Jamjoum, Sameeh Nuimat, Richard Stafford, Stephen Nortcliff, Steven Mithen