Journal of Archaeological Science最新文献

{"title":"Faecal biomarkers as evidence of human presence in the caves of Kraków-Częstochowa Upland","authors":"N. Gryczewska ,&nbsp;M. Sulwiński ,&nbsp;M. Kot ,&nbsp;M.T. Krajcarz ,&nbsp;K. Cyrek ,&nbsp;M. Sudoł-Procyk ,&nbsp;J. Wilczyńki ,&nbsp;M. Wojenka ,&nbsp;K. Szymczak ,&nbsp;M. Suska-Malawska","doi":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106311","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106311","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates past human presence at cave sites by analysing faecal biomarkers—specifically sterols, bile acids and phosphorus—and compares the results with available archaeological data. The research concentrates on seven sites in the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland (S Poland): Biśnik Cave, Bramka Rockshelter, Ciasna Cave, Łabajowa Cave, Łokietka Cave, Sąspowska Zachodnia Cave, and Shelter in Smoleń III. It involved analysing sediment samples from the stratigraphic sequences of each site. The application of faecal biomarkers allowed us to detect human faecal matter at several distinct stratigraphic levels, aligned with and independent of archaeological evidence. Our findings contributed to existing archaeological data on human occupation in the region and revealed distinct patterns in the presence and distribution of faecal markers. The results highlight the potential of targeting deeper cave areas, particularly Palaeolithic layers, while also identifying key limitations—most notably the low concentrations of bile acids, which hinder interpretation, highlighting the need for further research into the factors influencing biomarker stability in cave contexts.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50254,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Science","volume":"181 ","pages":"Article 106311"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144605236","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The effects of resources and population expansion on female–male protein consumption among hunter-gatherers","authors":"Jacob Freeman ,&nbsp;Alyssa Ahmann ,&nbsp;Robert J. Hard ,&nbsp;Raymond P. Mauldin","doi":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106293","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106293","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This paper investigates the effects of terrestrial vs. marine resources and population expansion on sex differences in the consumption of protein among hunter-gatherers. We propose that differences in protein consumption emerge under conditions of greater specialization on terrestrial resources and population expansion. Consistent with this hypothesis, hunter-gatherers in pre-contact Texas display more pronounced sex differences in <span><math><msup><mrow><mi>δ</mi></mrow><mrow><mn>15</mn></mrow></msup></math></span>N isotope values when they exploit terrestrial and riverine resources rather than coastal and estuary resources. Further, where foragers harvest terrestrial and riverine resources, sex differences in <span><math><msup><mrow><mi>δ</mi></mrow><mrow><mn>15</mn></mrow></msup></math></span>N isotope values first decline and then increase coincident with population expansion on the Texas Coastal Plain. In coastal ecosystems, sex differences in <span><math><msup><mrow><mi>δ</mi></mrow><mrow><mn>15</mn></mrow></msup></math></span>N isotope values remain minimal as population expands. These patterns support the hypothesis that population expansion and associated changes in the production of resources may create incentives for more or less overlap in the dietary niches of males and females. The direction of change depends on the resource options that foragers select to scale-up their production of food.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50254,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Science","volume":"181 ","pages":"Article 106293"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144605171","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Biodiversity science of ancient fisheries: Archaeological indicators of eelgrass meadow health and indigenous (Wiyot) aquaculture, Humboldt Bay, CA","authors":"Shannon Tushingham ,&nbsp;Justin Hopt ,&nbsp;Colin Christiansen ,&nbsp;Paige Hawthorne ,&nbsp;Brittany Bingham ,&nbsp;Erica Palmer ,&nbsp;Umar Sandhu ,&nbsp;James Roscoe ,&nbsp;Janet P. Eidsness ,&nbsp;Brian M. Kemp","doi":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106267","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106267","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Humboldt Bay, California, mirrors many coastal estuaries impacted by historical development and climate change, leading to biodiversity loss. Disintegrating habitats also affect local Indigenous communities, whose deep-rooted histories include stewardship of these biologically and culturally essential places. Understanding human-fisheries dynamics is crucial for biocultural restoration. We present a snapshot of fisheries use at <em>Digawututklh</em> (CA-HUM-23), a Late Holocene ethnographic Wiyot village on the north spit of <em>Wigi</em> (Humboldt Bay), an area experiencing the highest rate of level rise in California that it is exacerbated by the high rate of subsidence where the Juan de Fuca Plate dives under the North American Plate. To expand knowledge of species use, we employ complementary faunal and genetic analyses and test the capabilities of ancient DNA (aDNA) barcoding methods. We employ a broad-spectrum sampling approach to identify previously unidentifiable elements and confirm aDNA identification of fish bone is feasible on a wide range of non-vertebral elements and tiny, fragile fragments. Our findings highlight the potential of this methodology and the need for further sequencing of modern fish bones to refine aDNA species identification. This biodiversity-centered approach provides a more comprehensive picture of historical fisheries in this endangered northern California estuary. Contrary to a salmon-focal economy assumed in prominent developmental models, results reveal complex interactions with multiple fish species, employing diverse capture methods and technologies, such as tidal weirs, nets, and spears. Identified fish species, along with shellfish, crab, waterfowl, and mammals recovered at the site, indicate significant record of human connectivity with eelgrass (<em>Zostera marina</em>) meadows. The eelgrass biome of Humboldt Bay —a highly productive habitat that supplies nutrients, shelter, and nursery grounds for diverse species—was a key target for early indigenous aquaculture, practiced by the some of the earliest sedentary plank house villagers in coastal northwest California. The study provides insight into Wiyot sustainable practices, informed by traditional ecological knowledge of food webs and seasonal spawning and migratory patterns.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50254,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Science","volume":"181 ","pages":"Article 106267"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-07-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144595469","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Introducing the Post-Glacial Land Adjustment Regenerator (GLARE) for simulating the Final Pleistocene/Holocene geographic change in North Europe","authors":"Aki Hakonen","doi":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106298","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106298","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Glacial isostatic adjustment produces challenges and opportunities for northern archaeology. Landscapes, coastlines, and lake shores have undergone continual change due to sea-level rise, land uplift, tilting, and water drainage. Simulating the combined effect brings to life a veritable geographic clockwork, which frames human habitation. In landscape archaeology the effect has usually been modelled on the basis of incommensurable local uplift/sea-level curves. This paper presents a new general semi-empirical land uplift model for digital terrain model morphing that is applicable throughout North Europe within the former extent of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet. The first refined version of the model is designed for open access use in QGIS software. Based on validation testing on 1542 index points, the model functions on par with earlier complex models, albeit with better accessibility. The GLARE model provides a generalized method for simulating geographical change in North Europe, providing new possibilities for landscape archaeology.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50254,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Science","volume":"181 ","pages":"Article 106298"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-07-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144587665","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Morphological diversity of the Russian olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia) from Oxus civilization 4000 BP, Central Asia","authors":"Guanhan Chen ,&nbsp;Xinying Zhou ,&nbsp;Mutalibjon Khasanov ,&nbsp;Nasibillo Kambarov ,&nbsp;Hui Shen ,&nbsp;Jingyi Wang ,&nbsp;Jian Ma ,&nbsp;Jianxin Wang ,&nbsp;Farhod Maksudov ,&nbsp;Akhmadali Askarov ,&nbsp;Xiaoqiang Li","doi":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106299","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106299","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The region of Transoxiana underwent an early agricultural-demographic transition, leading to the emergence of the earliest proto-urban centers in Central Asia. However, the development of horticulture activity aspects of this cultural shift remain poorly understood, particularly regarding the role and place of long-generation nativity fruit trees, such as Russian olive (<em>Elaeagnus angustifolia</em>), in the horticulture system. In this research, we conduct a systematic modern carbonization experiment on Russian olive seeds, present directly AMS ¹⁴C dated result, and use geometric morphometric methods to analyze the carbonized Russian olive seeds from the early community of Sapalli Tepa in southern Uzbekistan. The results show that the deformation during carbonization had minimal impact on the morphology of the seeds. The Russian olive seeds found at Sapalli Tepa include two types: <em>Elaeagnus angustifolia</em> and <em>Elaeagnus angustifolia</em> var. <em>orientalis</em>, both showing no signs of domestication. This suggests that the Russian olive in Bronze Age Southern Central Asia was not subjected to intensive selection by local people, and its sources may have included both cultivation and wild collection.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50254,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Science","volume":"181 ","pages":"Article 106299"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-07-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144579212","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Less is more: Limiting semi-invasive sampling for multi-isotope analyses and increasing data output from single aliquot samples","authors":"Nicolas Bourgon ,&nbsp;Marcus Oelze ,&nbsp;Patrick Roberts","doi":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106308","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106308","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Developments in multi-isotope applications now enable the production of direct and precise life history data of studied archeological and paleoanthropological specimens, with analysis of tooth enamel proving particularly powerful in deep-time preservation contexts. However, the increasing amount of sample material necessary too-often compromises the specimen's structural integrity. Finding ways of minimizing semi-invasive sampling while maximizing produced data thus becomes increasingly crucial. In this study, we examine ways of optimizing sample use for state-of-the-art isotope measurements of enamel-bound zinc (<em>δ</em>⁶⁶Zn), an increasingly used method in multi-isotope archeological research. We show that certain desolvating nebulizer introduction systems can be used to measure <em>δ</em>⁶⁶Zn with high efficiency and accuracy using less than half the usual sample size. Moreover, we demonstrate that remaining samples subjected to typical pretreatments used for tooth enamel carbonate (<em>δ</em>¹³C and <em>δ</em>¹⁸O) studies can be safely used without alterations to <em>δ</em>⁶⁶Zn values. Similarly, we highlight that the often-discarded matrix fraction from zinc chromatography can be utilized for further analyses, such as measurements of ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios. Our results underscore the possibility of extracting the maximum information from specimens while altogether avoiding or significantly reducing semi-invasive sampling.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50254,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Science","volume":"180 ","pages":"Article 106308"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144569933","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Shipwreck detection in bathymetry data using semi-automated methods: Combining machine learning and topographic inference approaches","authors":"Cal T. Pols ,&nbsp;Fraser Sturt ,&nbsp;Crystal El Safadi ,&nbsp;Antonia Marcu","doi":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106297","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106297","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This research presents a workflow that integrates emerging machine learning methods with geospatial mapping techniques to improve the identification of shipwrecks in bathymetry data. By first refining the study area into high-potential units, machine learning algorithms can be applied more efficiently. This approach accelerates the process, reduces computational demands, and offers an adaptive method that can eventually be tailored to survey needs and different seabed environments. This paper contributes to the current discourse surrounding the discovery and management of underwater cultural heritage (UCH) in the context of global seabed mapping, developments in autonomous marine survey, and continued offshore development. Shipwrecks constitute a significant proportion of UCH sites that are increasingly likely to be discovered and impacted by these developments, and thus archaeologists need adequate tools for their rapid detection and monitoring to keep pace with the rate of data generation.</div><div>The proposed workflow uses a raster extraction method as a filtering process to identify areas of seabed with high shipwreck potential, based on their topographic signature in three different visualisations of bathymetry (slope, curvature, and topographic position index). Using these results, several different machine learning algorithms were tested on their ability to identify both intact, visible shipwrecks (‘conspicuous’ wrecks) as well as smaller, possible wreck sites. These methods were tested over an area of 3,131 km² from the south coast of England. Results show that the Raster Extraction method was able to filter out 96% of the test data, while still detecting 78% of the test shipwrecks (n=253). Machine learning models trained on different data visualisations (Hillshade, Shaded Relief, Curvature) and algorithms (Single Shot Detector, Faster R-CNN, and Mask R-CNN) had varied performances in terms of recall and precision.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50254,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Science","volume":"181 ","pages":"Article 106297"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144562897","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Wood ash tempering in archaeological ceramics: an experimental approach for its characterisation using textural, chemical, and mineralogical analysis","authors":"Carlotta Gardner ,&nbsp;Panagiotis Karkanas ,&nbsp;Noémi S. Müller ,&nbsp;Ian C. Freestone ,&nbsp;Evangelia Kiriatzi","doi":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106300","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106300","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This paper establishes criteria for identifying wood ash tempering in archaeological ceramics, a practice documented ethnographically across the globe but likely often unrecognised in archaeological studies due to the lack of established diagnostic markers. Through an experimental project employing a multi-analytical approach, this study identifies key indicators of ash tempering, highlighting the utility of thin section petrography for low-fired ceramics and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis for high-fired ceramics as particularly effective techniques. Finally, we present two archaeological case studies in which the application of our findings has enabled the identification of likely wood ash tempering.</div><div>Recognising this practice is essential, as its absence in archaeological interpretations may result in missed opportunities to understand past craftspeople and technological traditions. Furthermore, the identification of wood ash tempering offers insights into cross-craft interactions and the potential application of circular economic principles, given the frequent use of waste ashes from other industries in ethnographic examples. By refining methods to detect ash tempering, this research contributes to broader discussions on sustainability, resource reuse, and technological innovation in the past.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50254,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Science","volume":"180 ","pages":"Article 106300"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144534810","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The bioarchaeology of tobacco use: An exploratory study of nicotine and cotinine detection in tooth dentine","authors":"Sheridan Strang ,&nbsp;Thomas Köcher ,&nbsp;Laura van der Sluis ,&nbsp;Manasij Pal Chowdhury ,&nbsp;Hannah Grabmayer ,&nbsp;Katerina Douka ,&nbsp;Michaela Binder","doi":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106301","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106301","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Tobacco use has been evident in human populations throughout history. However, the detection of tobacco usage through the presence of metabolites, such as, nicotine and cotinine, in human skeletal remains is challenging due to the breakdown and loss of these molecules over time. This research attempts to detect tobacco use from dentine in skeletal remains from an archaeological context. Adapting a previously published untargeted method (Badillo-Sanchez et al., 2023b) to a targeted approach for analysing dentine, eight tooth dentine samples were extracted from five skeletons excavated from a Napoleonic battlefield (1809) in Austria. All five individuals had external signs of tobacco use (e.g., pipe facets and tobacco staining). Modern dentine samples from tobacco smokers and archaeological samples from the pre-tobacco period (6th-9th century) in Europe were also tested as negative and positive controls, respectively. After extraction and purification, the extracts were analysed using a liquid chromatography system directly coupled to a tandem mass spectrometer. Nicotine was not detected in any of the archaeological teeth. Difficulties of nicotine detection above the signal-to-noise levels were also seen in one of the positive control samples and could be linked to the half-life of nicotine in the body. On the other hand, cotinine was identified in one of the five samples from the early 19th century and in all three modern control samples.</div><div>This indicates that tooth dentine is a reliable source for archaeometabolomic studies, and cotinine can be a targeted metabolite in investigations of tobacco use in the past.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50254,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Science","volume":"180 ","pages":"Article 106301"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144518565","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Understanding the human settlement of the Pacific – Are we there yet?","authors":"Elizabeth Matisoo-Smith,&nbsp;Anna L. Gosling","doi":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106307","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jas.2025.106307","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>As a result of developments in genomic technology over the last 15 years, we have seen a major shift in our understanding of the settlement of the Pacific – from a period of nearly 40 years of a near consensus view of human settlement history to a very different narrative of events and processes. Here we provide a brief overview of what has become a generally well accepted story of human settlement before reviewing some of the latest genomic research contributions to reconstructing Pacific settlement. This will be followed by a discussion of some of the limitations of the current data and interpretations along with some suggestions regarding how we might proceed in the future. This paper does not aim to \"solve\" the \"problem\" of understanding the settlement history of this vast region, but to generate some new hypotheses that now can be addressed with a full, truly interdisciplinary approach, that engages Pacific voices and their concerns in the instigation and interpretation of research involving their lands, peoples and culutes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50254,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Archaeological Science","volume":"180 ","pages":"Article 106307"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144523050","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}