Ancient History

Abstract

Fossil evidence for some of the earliest Homo sapiens presence in mainland Southeast Asia have been recovered from Tam Pà Ling (TPL) cave, northeastern Laos. Taphonomic indicators suggest that these human fossils washed into TPL via gradual colluviation at varying times between MIS 5–3, yet no attempt has been made to situate them within the depositional environments of the cave within these periods. This has precluded a deeper appreciation of their presence there and in the surrounding landscape. In this first microstratigraphic study of TPL, we primarily use sediment micromorphology to reconstruct the depositional environments of the cave, relate these environments with the taphonomic history of the human fossils recovered from the upper 4 m of the excavated sequence, and explore how the sediments can better explain the presence of these humans in the area during MIS 3–1 (52–10 ka). Our results demonstrate changes in local ambient conditions from being temperate to arid, with ground conditions often wet during MIS 3 and becoming increasingly seasonal (wet-dry) during MIS 2–1. The changing cave conditions impacted its interior topography and influenced the way sediments (and fossils) were deposited. Preserved combustion biproducts identified in the sediments suggest two possible scenarios, one where small forest fires may have occurred during periods of regional aridity and/or another where humans visited the cave.

Abstract

The island of Sicily is considered to be among the first occupied by humans in the European Upper Paleolithic. Studies to understand early occupation of the island are mostly concentrated on the northern shores. Our project, Early Occupation of Sicily (EOS), focuses on southeastern Sicily so to address questions regarding dispersal to Mediterranean islands and Late Pleistocene landscapes and environments. Here, we present the initial results of our terrestrial and underwater surveys in combination with archival work and analyses of museum collections. In SE Sicily very few Upper Paleolithic sites have been excavated and analyzed using scientific methods. We have relocated and assessed ~20 caves and rock shelters identified between the 1870s and 1990s, studied museum collections, and collected raw material to reconstruct procurement patterns. To identify new sites, we conducted land and underwater surveys to reconstruct paleo-shorelines and past environments. We have identified three sites, two on land and one partially submerged, that still contain unexplored archaeological sediments, demonstrated in one instance through seismic tomography. This work shows the potential of re-examining minimally studied sites and materials to reconstruct mobility patterns and environmental impact of the first inhabitants of the island.

Abstract

The Neonatal Line (NNL) of the tooth serves as a unique identifier, allowing us to distinguish whether a child survived birth. This line is essential for assessing the age at death of infants from skeletal remains found in archaeological contexts. Our primary objective is to accurately determine the age of infant intramural inhumations from the Iberian Iron Age (8th-1st centuries BC) by analyzing histological sections of tooth germs. Due to their fragility and high susceptibility to taphonomic factors, these samples are challenging to handle. By accurately assessing their age, we aim to classify individuals into various stages of infant mortality, which will help reconstruct infant mortality patterns in these populations.

We analyze unerupted and still-forming crown deciduous teeth from 45 infant burials. By calculating Crown Formation Time (CFT) and identifying the NNL, we determine both gestational and chronological ages. We further validate the reliability of NNL identification through Synchrotron X-ray Fluorescence (SXRF) elemental analysis (Ca, Zn, Cu) on two contemporary and two archaeological samples.

Our histological study reveals the chronological age of 38 infants from Iberian settlements, ranging from the 30th week of gestation to the 2nd postnatal month. The age distribution shows an attritional mortality pattern, with nearly half experiencing perinatal mortality, including preterm births. These findings support the hypothesis that mortality was primarily attributed to natural causes. Our research enhances the understanding of infant life history events in prehistory by combining histological analysis of tooth NNL and CFT, highlighting the technique's potential and limitations.

English: The first "long house" from the early Neolithic period was discovered by archaeologists in Sandomierz-Mokoszyn (Świętokrzyskie) in the Sandomierz Upland. The find, dated to the years 5300-4900 BC, was discovered during rescue archaeological research conducted in connection with the construction of a complex of single-family houses.

The research, carried out by the Three Epochs studio from Klimontów, was initially supposed to confirm the existence of the population of the funnel cup culture (3700-3200 BC), traces of which were already known. As explained in an interview with PAP, dr hab. Marek Florek from the Sandomierz delegation of the Provincial Office for the Protection of Monuments, research indeed confirmed the presence of the settlement, discovering large cavities - cellars intended for food storage. Fragments of clay vessels, flint tools, stone mills and animal bones were found in them.

The most surprising discovery, however, was the remains of an older, Neolithic settlement of the carved ribbon ceramics culture, attributed to the first farmers who came to these areas from the Transcarpathian areas. Fragments of a "long house" were discovered, based on a column structure, oriented along the north-south axis. It was determined that the building was about 6 meters wide and over 20 meters long.

"The discovery of a long house is the first find of this type on the Sandomierz Upland" - emphasized dr hab. Florek Houses of this type were previously known from Kujawy, Podkarpacie and Małopolska.

"This is an interesting discovery that indicates that in the early Neolithic period there was a permanent settlement in this place, not a makeshift camp. What's more, it also confirms the continuation of settlement in this area over several thousand years," he said.

Traces of farm pits were also found around the building, including the so-called clay, from which the material for building walls was selected.

In addition to ceramics decorated with engraved lines and flint tools, two cavities were found in volcanic glaze (obsidian) products that were imported from the areas of present-day Slovakia or Hungary. A fragment of a Neolithic vessel of the Lublin-Volhynia culture was also found, which indicates further traces of settlement.

All discovered monuments will be transferred to the Castle Museum in Sandomierz after scientific study.

The engraved ribbon culture is one of the early Neolithic cultures that developed in Central and Eastern Europe from about 5500 to 4500 BC. Its name comes from the characteristic decorations of ceramic vessels - ornaments in the form of engraved ribbons, often filled with white paste or other materials. The population of this culture was engaged in agriculture and animal husbandry. Traces of the culture of engraved ribbon ceramics can be found in the areas of today's Poland, Germany, the Czech Republic and Ukraine.( PAP)

Science in Poland

wdz/ bear/

Abstract

For the first time in the Indian subcontinent, a series of royal burials with chariots have been recovered from the Chalcolithic period at the archaeological site Sinauli (29°8′28″N; 77°13′1″E), Baghpat district, western Uttar Pradesh, India. Eight burials were excavated from the site; among them a royal burial with copper decorated legged coffin (lid with a series of anthropomorphic figures) and headgear has also been recovered. Among these remarkable discoveries, three full-sized chariots made of wood and copper, and a sword with a wooden hilt, made this site unique at historical ground. These cultural findings signify that the ancients from this place were involved in warfare. All these recovered exclusive antiquities also proved the sophistication and the high degree of craftsmanship of the artisans. According to the 14C radiocarbon dating and recovered material culture, the site date back to 4000 yr BP (∼2000 BCE) and is thought to belong to Ochre-Coloured Pottery (OCP)/Copper Hoard culture. This culture was believed to develop in the Ganga-Yamuna Doab and was contemporary to the late phase of the Indus civilization. Altogether, the findings indicate that the time period of this culture is plausibly contemporary to Late Indus, Mesopotamian and Greece civilizations.

Conclusion

Sinauli is the first archaeological site in the Indian subcontinent which provides evidence of chariots, royal burials with the warfare elements during OCP/ Copper Hoard culture in Ganga-Yamuna doab. The set of 14C dates presented in this study authenticates the chronology of the site which date back to ∼4000 yr BP (∼2000 BC) and identified OCP occupation in northern India. The recovered material culture at the site indicate that the Sinaulians were involved in warfare activities. The recovered antiquities indicates their high degree of sophistication in wood and copper craftsmanship. Besides establishing chronology, the present study proposes the idea of utilising scientific analytical methods to address key questions arising from the burial sites such as exploitation of raw materials for rituals practices, subsistence, material culture, ancestry etc. This study provides a platform for the researchers to evaluate evidence of royal burials, the use of chariots and other warfare elements in relation to contemporary civilizations in other part of the world.

Abstract: Horses began to feature prominently in funerary contexts in southern Siberia in the mid-second millennium BC, yet little is known about the use of these animals prior to the emergence of vibrant horse-riding groups in the first millennium BC. Here, the authors present the results of excavations at the late-ninth-century BC tomb of Tunnug 1 in Tuva, where the deposition of the remains of at least 18 horses and one human is reminiscent of sacrificial spectral riders described in fifth-century Scythian funerary rituals by Herodotus. The discovery of items of tack further reveals connections to the earliest horse cultures of Mongolia.

Cenotes in the Yucatán Peninsula are time capsules preserving remnants of Maya culture and fossils of extinct megafauna

Highlights

• 3500 BP Lactobacillus genomes shed light on the origin of kefir in inland East Asia

•Bacterial-fungal dynamics reinforce resistance to exogenous microbes in ancient dairy

•Human-microbial interactions contribute to the adaptation of domesticated lactobacilli

•Goat DNA from dairy suggests communication between Xiaohe and the steppe populations

Summary

Despite the long history of consumption of fermented dairy, little is known about how the fermented microbes were utilized and evolved over human history. Here, by retrieving ancient DNA of Bronze Age kefir cheese (∼3,500 years ago) from the Xiaohe cemetery, we explored past human-microbial interactions. Although it was previously suggested that kefir was spread from the Northern Caucasus to Europe and other regions, we found an additional spreading route of kefir from Xinjiang to inland East Asia. Over evolutionary history, the East Asian strains gained multiple gene clusters with defensive roles against environmental stressors, which can be a result of the adaptation of Lactobacillus strains to various environmental niches and human selection. Overall, our results highlight the role of past human activities in shaping the evolution of human-related microbes, and such insights can, in turn, provide a better understanding of past human behaviors.

Abstract: “The American sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) is a globally important comestible crop that features prominently in Polynesian lore; however, the timing and mode of its Oceanic transplantation remain obscure. New research from the Māori cultivation site M24/11 in Aotearoa/New Zealand, presented here, offers a re-evaluation of evidence for the early use and distribution of the sweet potato in southern Polynesia. Consideration of plant microparticles from fourteenth-century archaeological contexts at the site indicates local cultivation of sweet potato, taro and yam. Of these, only sweet potato persisted through a post-1650 climatic downturn it seems, underscoring the enduring southern-Polynesian appeal of this hardy crop.“

Abstract: “Walrus ivory was a prized commodity in medieval Europe and was supplied by Norse intermediaries who expanded across the North Atlantic, establishing settlements in Iceland and Greenland. However, the precise sources of the traded ivory have long remained unclear, raising important questions about the sustainability of commercial walrus harvesting, the extent to which Greenland Norse were able to continue mounting their own long-range hunting expeditions, and the degree to which they relied on trading ivory with the various Arctic Indigenous peoples that they were starting to encounter. We use high-resolution genomic sourcing methods to track walrus artifacts back to specific hunting grounds, demonstrating that Greenland Norse obtained ivory from High Arctic waters, especially the North Water Polynya, and possibly from the interior Canadian Arctic. These results substantially expand the assumed range of Greenland Norse ivory harvesting activities and support intriguing archaeological evidence for substantive interactions with Thule Inuit, plus possible encounters with Tuniit (Late Dorset Pre-Inuit).”

Abstract: “Uncertainties regarding traditional osteological methods in biological sex estimation can often be overcome with genomic and proteomic analyses. The combination of the three methodologies has been used for a better understanding of the gender-related funerary rituals at the Iberian megalithic cemetery of Panoría. As a result, 44 individuals have been sexed including, for the first time, non-adults. Contrary to the male bias found in many Iberian and European megalithic monuments, the Panoría population shows a clear sex ratio imbalance in favour of females, with twice as many females as males. Furthermore, this imbalance is found regardless of the criterion considered: sex ratio by tomb, chronological period, method of sex estimation, or age group. Biological relatedness was considered as possible sociocultural explanations for this female-related bias. However, the current results obtained for Panoría are indicative of a female-centred social structure potentially influencing rites and cultural traditions.”

Abstract: The Maghreb (north-west Africa) played an important role during the Palaeolithic and later in connecting the western Mediterranean from the Phoenician to Islamic periods. Yet, knowledge of its later prehistory is limited, particularly between c. 4000 and 1000 BC. Here, the authors present the first results of investigations at Oued Beht, Morocco, revealing a hitherto unknown farming society dated to c. 3400–2900 BC. This is currently the earliest and largest agricultural complex in Africa beyond the Nile corridor. Pottery and lithics, together with numerous pits, point to a community that brings the Maghreb into dialogue with contemporaneous wider western Mediterranean developments.

Pocket link

Snippet: Near the coast of Peru lies the ancient city of Caral, which was in existence at the same time as the Egyptians were still building the pyramids. Caral is said to be the first ancient city of the Americas.

Caral was the central city on Peru’s coastline from 3000 to 1800 BC. Today, it is remembered for the massive stone complex its people left behind. The Stone City spans over 150 square miles of desert and contains many plazas, houses for both the elite and residents, and a 60-foot temple.

Abstract: “Southern Africa has one of the longest records of fossil hominins and harbours the largest human genetic diversity in the world. Yet, despite its relevance for human origins and spread around the globe, the formation and processes of its gene pool in the past are still largely unknown. Here, we present a time transect of genome-wide sequences from nine individuals recovered from a single site in South Africa, Oakhurst Rockshelter. Spanning the whole Holocene, the ancient DNA of these individuals allows us to reconstruct the demographic trajectories of the indigenous San population and their ancestors during the last 10,000 years. We show that, in contrast to most regions around the world, the population history of southernmost Africa was not characterized by several waves of migration, replacement and admixture but by long-lasting genetic continuity from the early Holocene to the end of the Later Stone Age. Although the advent of pastoralism and farming substantially transformed the gene pool in most parts of southern Africa after 1,300 BP, we demonstrate using allele-frequency and identity-by-descent segment-based methods that the ‡Khomani San and Karretjiemense from South Africa still show direct signs of relatedness to the Oakhurst hunter-gatherers, a pattern obscured by recent, extensive non-Southern African admixture. Yet, some southern San in South Africa still preserve this ancient, Pleistocene-derived genetic signature, extending the period of genetic continuity until today.”

Published Summary: Neanderthal genomes have been recovered from sites across Eurasia, painting an increasingly complex picture of their populations’ structure that mostly indicates that late European Neanderthals belonged to a single metapopulation with no significant evidence of population structure. Here, we report the discovery of a late Neanderthal individual, nicknamed “Thorin,” from Grotte Mandrin in Mediterranean France, and his genome. These dentognathic fossils, including a rare example of distomolars, are associated with a rich archeological record of Neanderthal final technological traditions in this region ∼50–42 thousand years ago. Thorin’s genome reveals a relatively early divergence of ∼105 ka with other late Neanderthals. Thorin belonged to a population with a small group size that showed no genetic introgression with other known late European Neanderthals, revealing some 50 ka of genetic isolation of his lineage despite them living in neighboring regions. These results have important implications for resolving competing hypotheses about causes of the disappearance of the Neanderthals.

Snippet: “Life during prehistory was believed to be as Thomas Hobbes described: “nasty, brutish and short.” However, this new study shows these teens were actually quite healthy. Most individuals in the study sample entered puberty by 13.5, reaching full adulthood between 17 and 22 years old. This indicates these Ice Age adolescents started puberty at a similar time to teens in modern, wealthy countries.”

Link to research study (open access)

The study(not open access), published today in *Science *and co-led by the University of Bristol and China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), has shed new light on why the effects of rapid climate change in the Permian-Triassic warming were so devastating for all forms of life in the sea and on land.

"Our genetic analysis shows a stably growing population from the 13th century through to European contact in the 18th century. This stability is critical because it directly contradicts the idea of a dramatic pre-contact population collapse," says Bárbara Sousa da Mota, a researcher at the Faculty of Biology and Medicine at University of Lausanne and first author of the study.

"We looked into how the Indigenous American DNA was distributed across the Polynesian genetic background of the Rapanui. This distribution is consistent with a contact occurring between the 13th and the 15th centuries," says first author Víctor Moreno-Mayar, Asst. Professor at the Globe Institute's Section for Geogenetics, University of Copenhagen.

Archived link of the article

April 2023

According to recent archaeological findings published in the journal ‘Science Advances’, up to half the women in the Americas were big-game hunters. “An archaeological discovery and analysis of early burial practices overturns the long-held ‘man-the-hunter’ hypothesis,” lead author Randy Haas, assistant professor of anthropology at University of California, Davis, commented in a news release by the same institution.

To determine whether the discovery was an exception, Prof. Haas examined 429 skeletons spread across 107 other burial sites in North and South America from around 8 000 to 14 000 years ago. Of the 27 individuals buried with hunting tools, 11 were women. The study estimates that somewhere between 30 % to 50 % of hunters were women during that time.

Youtube link

2 centuries ago this ancient fabric was 26x more expensive than silk. It was worn by the Mughal Emperors, the Romans, Marie Antoinette and even Jane Austen wrote about it.

For the last 200 years, no one has been able to make this fabric.