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J Archaeol Sci 30 (11)
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Title:
J Archaeol Sci 30 (11)
Series:
Journal of Archaeological Science
Volume:
30 (11)
Publication Type:
Journal
Editor:
Karl W Butzer
John P Grattan
Julian Henderson
Richard G Klein
Publisher:
Academic Press
Year of Publication:
2003
Source:
BIAB (The British & Irish Archaeological Bibliography (BIAB))
Created Date:
28 Apr 2004
Article Title
Access Type
Author / Editor
Page Start/End
Abstract
The use of tooth pits to identify carnivore taxa in tooth-marked archaeofaunas and their relevance to reconstruct hominid carcass processing behaviours
Manuel Domínguez-Rodrigo
Ana Piqueras
1385 - 1391
Tooth marks on bones have been used as a proof of carnivore involvement in carcass modification in archaeological assemblages. Recognition of the array of potential carnivores that may intervene in the consumption of carcass elements accumulated at archaeological sites may condition the way archaeologists reconstruct hominid-carnivore interaction and resource availability for both types of taphonomic agents. The development of techniques aimed at discerning carnivore taxa according to tooth mark location and size has proven problematic so far. The present work introduces new information, based on the use of tooth pit size, to determine the types of carnivores that have modified bone surfaces. It is concluded that tooth marks alone cannot be used to differentiate among specific taxa, unless the analysis of tooth pits is carried out taking into account their distribution and ranges of variation in large samples, together with other variables, such as the location of tooth marks according to bone section and element, and the anatomical distribution of furrowing. Even so, the attribution of specific bone damage to determined carnivores can only be confidently made when comparing small-sized versus large-sized carnivores.
A practical approach to the identification of low temperature heated bone using TEM
Hannah E C Koon
Rebecca A Nicholson
Matthew J Collins
1393 - 1399
A previous Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) study showed that heat induced morphological changes to the collagen fibrils occur after low temperature heating of fish bone. This paper investigates whether these findings could be replicated on mammal bone. A series of experiments were carried out using sheep humeri. These results were compared with cooked and uncooked bones recovered from experimental burials, representing a variety of different environments (moorland, woodland and garden soil). Morphological changes to the fibrils were seen following only very mild heating events, such as short-term roasting of fleshed bone. However, similar changes were observed in unheated bone which had been buried in a low pH (3.5-4.5) soil for 7 years. Within a given burial cooked and uncooked bone was easily distinguishable. The technique, therefore, has direct application in forensic studies and may be of value in distinguishing heated from unheated bone within a given archaeological assemblage.
Interobserver bias in enumerated data from archaeological survey
A L Hawkins
S T Stewart
E B Banning
1503 - 1512
In case studies of enumerated survey data from Cyprus and Egypt, it is possible to attribute interobserver variation in the detection of lithic findspots and recovery of lithics to sources of bias. The reliability of data on the presence and density of lithic scatters depends on careful evaluation, but straightforward evaluation depends on thoughtful research design. In well-designed strategies, testing for bias is straightforward but, when certain classes of data are not available, it may be impossible to determine whether variation in the apparent density of artefacts is simply a function of who collected where. We present alternatives for evaluation of survey results and presentation of survey data, including exhaustion maps and corrected density maps.
Dental microwear in grazing and browsing Gotland sheep (Ovis aries) and its implications for dietary reconstruction
Ingrid L Mainland
1513 - 1527
Microwear patterns and formation processes are examined in modern browsing and grazing Gotland sheep from Denmark. Clear differences in microwear patterning are identified between sheep which included a high proportion of leaves, bark and twigs of deciduous trees and shrubs in their diet, and those which primarily had access to graze, with the browsing group exhibiting enamel surfaces dominated by pitted microwear features, the grazers a predominance of striations. Analysis of abrasives in dung suggests that these trends can be attributed to higher levels of soil ingestion in the grazing population and are a consequence both of grassland management practices and height of feeding within the vegetation canopy. These findings question previous interpretations of microwear patterning in browsing and grazing ungulates and have significant implications for palaeodietary reconstruction in such species. To address further the implications of these results, comparison is made between the Gotland sheep and modern grazing and fodder-fed sheep and goats from elsewhere in Europe. It is concluded that dental microwear analysis has the potential to address questions relating to grassland management practices and the use of certain fodders, such as leafy-hay, but that it may ultimately prove more difficult to distinguish `fresh' browsing sheep from some grazing populations, specifically those in which levels of soil ingestion are reduced.
