Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory最新文献

{"title":"A New Method for Estimating Prehistoric Agricultural Productivity Through the Microtextural Analysis of Harvesting Tools","authors":"Niccolò Mazzucco, Juan José Ibáñez","doi":"10.1007/s10816-026-09792-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-026-09792-2","url":null,"abstract":"Reconstructing agricultural productivity in prehistoric societies remains a major methodological challenge. While archaeobotanical, palaeoecological, and agronomic models have provided important insights into landscape management and yield potential, the technological traces of harvesting itself have rarely been integrated into quantitative frameworks of agricultural productivity. In this study, we propose a novel method for estimating harvesting intensity and agricultural output based on the microtextural development of cereal use-wear on lithic harvesting tools. Using a long-duration experimental programme, 3D confocal surface measurements, and a reproducible analytical pipeline, we model the temporal evolution of cereal harvesting polish as a multi-phase tribological process. By explicitly linking micro-wear development to cumulative straw counts—rather than to elapsed working time—we introduce an experimentally grounded proxy for harvesting intensity. We further demonstrate how wear-derived estimates of cumulative harvesting can be tentatively translated into agronomically meaningful quantities, including harvested surface and grain output. Beyond its empirical application, this framework advances methodological theory by reconceptualizing harvesting tools as quantitative archives of cumulative work. The approach opens new avenues for integrating use-wear analysis into broader models of prehistoric subsistence economies, labour organisation, and long-term socio-ecological change.","PeriodicalId":47725,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory","volume":"20 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148291619","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"历史学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Controlled and Natural Ingestion of Exogenous Mineral Particles: Impact on Dental Microwear Textures in Pigs","authors":"Margot Louail, Antoine Souron, Stéphane Ferchaud, Gildas Merceron","doi":"10.1007/s10816-026-09797-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-026-09797-x","url":null,"abstract":"The selective pressures of exogenous mineral particles on dental innovations have been a long-standing debate in paleontology and evolutionary biology. However, the relationship between exogenous abrasives and dental wear remains unclear, questioning our ability to detect the consumption of such particles in past records. This issue is also of crucial interest when investigating ancient pig husbandry systems, since anthropogenic food supply and penning can reduce soil ingestion associated with rooting. Here, we explore the effect of different mineral particles on dental microwear of control-fed domestic pigs (<italic>Sus scrofa</italic>). We conducted dental microwear texture analysis (DMTA) on four groups of six pigs: a control group fed only with cereal flour, and three groups fed with the same diet and supplemented with 4% kaolin, 4% fine-to-medium sand (diameter between 0.1 and 0.3 mm), or 4% medium-to-coarse sand (diameter between 0.5 and 1 mm). Our study shows that different mineral particles generate different microwear textures that are distinct from those of control pigs. Clay consumption produces a polishing effect, whereas larger-sized sand generates a trend toward more abrupt relief changes. Regardless of particle type, microwear textures tend to show lower values in heterogeneity of complexity. Aiming at cross-checking these results, we observe that captive boars with and without natural soil ingestion tend to reflect the same trends, notably showing less rough and more homogeneous surfaces following soil ingestion. This study contributes to better understanding how exogenous abrasives impact dental microwear and reinforces the potential of DMTA in detecting soil ingestion in past records or the feeding on dust-rich vegetation in arid environments.","PeriodicalId":47725,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory","volume":"34 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148286301","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"历史学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Restitutio Ab Initio: Direct Dating and Isotopic Evidence to Evaluate the Proxy Reliability of Intrusive Archaeobotanical Remains","authors":"Ana García-Vázquez, Mihaela Golea, Gabriela Sava, Tiberiu Sava, Cătălin Lazăr","doi":"10.1007/s10816-026-09791-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-026-09791-3","url":null,"abstract":"Recovering archaeobotanical remains from archaeological contexts often entails substantial methodological challenges. Flotation and environmental sampling routinely yield charred seeds whose cultural attribution does not necessarily correspond to the stratigraphic position or inferred chronology of the deposits in which they occur. Direct radiocarbon dating frequently exposes marked discrepancies, demonstrating that intrusive seeds may derive from much later occupations than the layers that contain them. Such materials are commonly excluded from analysis, either because they are deemed intrusive or because their taxa are not otherwise attested in the archaeological period represented by the context. We argue, however, that within multi-stratified and multi-period sites, intrusive carpological remains may, in specific cases, provide limited and context-dependent evidence for later episodes of site use, provided that their chronology and taphonomic status are independently verified by direct radiocarbon dating and, where feasible, complementary isotopic analysis. This study presents new radiocarbon and stable isotope data for charred millet grains recovered from the Gumelnița site in southeastern Romania. Two broomcorn millet (<italic>Panicum miliaceum</italic>) grains and one foxtail millet (<italic>Setaria italica</italic>) grain were directly dated, placing their presence in the second half of the 2nd millennium BC and the beginning of the 1st millennium BC. The directly dated <italic>Setaria italica</italic> grain is, to our knowledge, the earliest securely dated occurrence of foxtail millet in Europe; an earlier occurrence is known from Pichori in Transcaucasia, outside Europe, which remains the earliest directly dated record of foxtail millet currently known from the Caucasus. These results demonstrate that intrusive grains may provide limited chronological evidence for documenting later occupational or depositional events superimposed upon earlier archaeological layers.","PeriodicalId":47725,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory","volume":"75 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148291617","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"历史学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exploring Biological and Ecological Components of Sheep Astragalus Size and Shape Variation Using 3D Geometric Morphometrics: Towards A Bioarchaeological Proxy","authors":"Manon Vuillien, Emmanuelle Vila, Jwana Chahoud, Bea De Cupere, Moussab Albesso, Agraw Amane, Sofiane Bouzid, Homa Fathi, Pauline Garberi, Haeedeh Laleh, Azadeh Mohaseb, Lionel Gourichon, Daniel Helmer, Olivier Hanotte, Marjan Mashkour, Thomas Cucchi","doi":"10.1007/s10816-026-09789-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-026-09789-x","url":null,"abstract":"One of the key challenges in the archaeology of sheep domestication is reconstructing the complex history of environmental and anthropogenic transformations undergone by sheep since the beginning of the domestication process of their wild ancestors. In recent years, GMM studies of sheep astragalus bones have contributed to our understanding of morphological differences between wild and domestic caprine species. However, the respective influences of biological and ecological factors on astragalus morphological variations in sheep remain poorly documented. This limitation hinders a comprehensive understanding of its biosystematic resolution and, consequently, its use as a proxy in archaeological contexts to investigate early selective breeding and the emergence of sheep breeds in Southwest Asia. This paper presents the results of a morphological study of 96 astragali using 3D geometric morphometrics, focusing primarily on modern Eurasian and African sheep breeds and landraces. The study is based on a well-documented comparative collection encompassing phenotypical traits (breed, sex, age, presence/absence of horns, coat and tail type, weight, body length); ecological characteristics (climate, geography, environment, elevation, topography); and breeding strategies (mobility). The results demonstrate that the 3D astragalus morphological pattern is a reliable marker for distinguishing one sheep breed from another. They suggest that astragalus morphology is only slightly influenced by phenotypic markers. The study further explores the effects of environmental and climatic factors on phenotypic variation and highlights the potential of the astragalus as an ecomorphological marker. Finally, the current limitations in interpreting the relationship between astragalus morphological variation and mobility strategies in archaeological contexts are discussed.","PeriodicalId":47725,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory","volume":"146 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148286311","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"历史学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The Bow-and-Arrow along the Southern Arc and Through to Oceania: Earliest Appearances, Archaeological Challenges, and Future Opportunities","authors":"Michelle C. Langley","doi":"10.1007/s10816-026-09794-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-026-09794-0","url":null,"abstract":"It has been theorised that the invention of the bow-and-arrow may have been key to the successful dispersal of <italic>Homo sapiens</italic>, and indeed, archaeological evidence for the use of this technology at early <italic>H. sapiens</italic> sites along the southern dispersal route towards Australia have been reported. On the Australian continent and throughout most of Polynesia, however, the bow appears to have been largely abandoned or only used for ritual or entertainment. Such a situation appears incongruous with the prominence of the bow as a subsistence technology in the remainder of the Old World, and as such, has proven to be a matter of confusion for both early European explorers and researchers alike. This paper reviews the earliest archaeological evidence for the use of the bow-and-arrow across the southern arc from India through Island Southeast Asia, Australasia, and finally, out across Oceania. Where durable components of arrows are missing from the archaeological record, the rich ethnohistoric record is examined for information concerning its presence or absence. By bringing these data together across such a broad spatial region for the first time, this paper not only provides a ‘big picture’ view of its use across the southern arc, but identifies challenges for furthering our knowledge of when, where, and how it was made and used by various peoples—and perhaps more interestingly, why it was ignored by others.","PeriodicalId":47725,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148286302","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"历史学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Mapping the Symbolic Structure of Palaeolithic Rock Art Using Co-occurrence Network Analysis","authors":"Iñaki Intxaurbe","doi":"10.1007/s10816-026-09796-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-026-09796-y","url":null,"abstract":"This study examines the internal organisation of Magdalenian parietal art along the Bay of Biscay axis through the application of network-based and multivariate statistical analyses to a large, systematically documented graphic corpus. The dataset comprises more than 500 figures from nine decorated cave sites located in the Basque region, which constitutes a key transitional zone between the Iberian Peninsula and the rest of continental Europe. Palaeolithic rock art is approached as a structured semiotic system, in which thematic associations and formal conventions can be investigated independently of predefined symbolic interpretations. Theme co-occurrence networks were constructed at the panel scale using both frequency-based and Jaccard-normalised weighting, and were complemented by filtered networks, minimum spanning trees, and panel–theme bipartite models. The results reveal a non-random patterning of thematic associations, characterised by the recurrent dominance of large herbivores—particularly bison, horse, and ibex—and by the presence of hierarchical and modular structures operating at multiple analytical scales. Formal variables such as figure orientation and inclination also display structured distributions, supporting the existence of shared graphic conventions. Rather than advancing specific symbolic interpretations, this study identifies recurrent organisational patterns within Magdalenian parietal art and situates them within a broader structural framework. These findings highlight the potential of network-based approaches for comparative analyses of Palaeolithic graphic systems, particularly when integrated with detailed contextual and taphonomic assessment.","PeriodicalId":47725,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory","volume":"156 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2026-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148286314","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"历史学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"E-lorgesailie: An Agent-Based Simulation Model of Acheulean Lithic Raw Material Procurement and Handaxe Deposition Patterns","authors":"Grant S. McCall, Muhammad Rehan","doi":"10.1007/s10816-026-09788-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-026-09788-y","url":null,"abstract":"The striking archaeological patterning associated with Acheulean handaxes has been the subject of investigation for more than two centuries. Since the earliest days of the field, Paleolithic archaeologists have noticed the tendency for some Acheulean sites to take the form of large biface concentrations, while other contemporaneous sites (often in close spatial proximity) have few or none. This paper explores the potential significance of this patterning through agent-based simulation using the Netlogo software platform. In particular, our study looks at a variant of the stone cache model in exploring a potential economy of lithic raw materials based on (1) the direct acquisition of stone at discrete quarry locations, (2) the necessity of handaxes in carrying out spatially dispersed subsistence activities, and (3) the intentional caching of handaxes at strategic landscape locations in order to reduce mobility costs in traveling to quarry sites to acquire lithic raw material. Our model demonstrates that, in following a handful of simple rules and adhering to a limited set of assumptions, hominins could have significantly enhanced their foraging return rates by creating handaxe caches, which in a sense “split the distance” between foraging patches and stone quarries. Our model also shows that handaxe caching behavior may have resulted in the creation of sites with vast handaxe assemblages, such as Olorgesailie and the many others belonging to the Acheulean Industry.","PeriodicalId":47725,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory","volume":"34 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2026-04-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147743948","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"历史学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Pixelated Transformations: Tracing Changing Irrigation Management Through Deep-Learning-Based Object Detection on HEXAGON and SkySat Satellite Images","authors":"Casey Haoran Shi, Cayleigh Elizabeth Haag","doi":"10.1007/s10816-026-09787-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-026-09787-z","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47725,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory","volume":"21 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2026-04-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147733595","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"历史学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Paleolithic Dietary Flexibility? Methodological Considerations in Analogy-Based Reconstructions of Paleolithic Energetic Returns","authors":"Miki Ben-Dor, Ran Barkai","doi":"10.1007/s10816-026-09780-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-026-09780-6","url":null,"abstract":"Trophic level, which serves as a basic determinant of the evolutionary pathway of animals, including humans, emerges as, primarily, a product of relative energetic returns and food items availability. The concept of trophic level flexibility during the Paleolithic period for the highly adaptable human species represents a prevailing paradigm in the field of paleoanthropology. This paradigm largely relies on the observed variability of trophic levels among recent hunter-gatherer societies. We examine various methodological aspects involved in using ethnographic quantitative data as an analogical source for reconstructing the energetic returns of humans during the Paleolithic period and, consequently, their trophic level. By analyzing datasets from several studies, we highlight potential limitations that may arise when applying such analogies. In the past we argued that Paleolithic humans preferred to acquire the largest available prey. This assertion met with objection, based on ethnographic analogies. In addition to pointing out the limitations to the validity of such analogies, we propose that archaeofaunal records provide detectable reflection of prey ranking and thus their relative energetic returns without the need for detailed numerical reconstruction of energetic returns based on the ethnographic record. We introduce the Kakwani Concentration Index, originally developed in Economics to measure directionality and strength of inequality, as a measure of directionality and strength in the size ranking of prey in Archaeological assemblages to test preference for large prey. We propose that the paradigm of flexibility is based on adaptations that occurred following the Late Quaternary Megafaunal Extinctions during and after which prey size availability patterns have markedly changed. In contrast, as evidenced by the technological persistence of simple hunting tools and assemblages with large herbivores throughout the Lower and Middle Paleolithic, subsistence strategies likely centered on large prey, which can be deduced by the lack of composite projectile hunting tools for a substantial portion of human evolution. The paper re-emphasizes that ethnoarchaeological analogies should be treated as testable hypotheses, and they may hold potential validity for behaviors that exhibit cross-cultural correlates. Ultimately, it suggests that no such correlates are present in some influential hunting energetic returns and human trophic level reconstructions. We argue that the technological, ecological and cognitive non-analog features of ethnographic energetic returns datasets are too great to be predictive of the Paleolithic nutritional pattern.","PeriodicalId":47725,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory","volume":"27 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2026-04-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147733597","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"历史学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The Bones of Relation: Materialising Personhood Through Secondary Burial in Papua New Guinea","authors":"Simon Coxe, Ben Shaw","doi":"10.1007/s10816-026-09778-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-026-09778-0","url":null,"abstract":"The concept of relational personhood is well-developed in Melanesian ethnography and often cited by archaeologists globally, yet it has rarely been applied archaeologically in this region. Drawing on anthropological theory, local oral traditions, and recent archaeological fieldwork on two islands in the southern Massim region of Papua New Guinea, this paper examines secondary cave burials and the objects they were interred with as material expressions of relational personhood. Human skeletal remains were deliberately fragmented, selected, modified, and arranged alongside culturally significant objects such as pottery, which were also often intentionally fragmented. Secondary burials containing individuals of different ages, combined with emphasis on anatomical elements, particularly the skull, indicate that relational personhood was materially enacted through the intentional commingling of bones and artefacts. Objects such as complete pots and pot sherds, shell ornaments, and stone axes acted as synecdochic and metonymic agents of identity, provision, and ancestral continuity. Rather than being merely symbolic, these secondary burial assemblages instantiate enduring networks of kinship and exchange, integrating the dead into ongoing social processes of the living. This study offers a contextual model for Melanesian mortuary practices and contributes to broader debates on the material patterning of personhood and ethnographic analogy in archaeological interpretation in the Pacific region and globally.","PeriodicalId":47725,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory","volume":"29 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2026-04-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147702324","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"历史学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}