Untitled

Agricultural Revolution

The time when human beings first domesticated plants and animals and no longer relied entirely on hunting and gathering

Neolithic Revolution

The switch from nomadic lifestyles to a settled agricultural lifestyle is this revolution.

animal husbandry

An agricultural activity associated with the raising of domesticated animals, such as cattle, pigs, sheep, and goats.

Managed herds @ \~11k BP, Zargos Mountains, Iran

origins of animal husbandry

* fertile crescent
* Zengpiyan cave/Cishan
* pigs \~8k BP

Archaeobotany

the study of plant remains from archaeological sites

Paleoethnobotany

the study of relationships between people and plants, using the archaeological record

Bioarchaeology

the archaeological study of human remains, emphasizing the preservation of cultural and social processes in the skeleton

cribra orbitalia

Porosity in the eye orbits due to anemia caused by an iron-deficient diet, parasitic infection, or genetic disease.

cultivation

(agriculture) production of food by preparing the land to grow crops

Domestication

the taming of animals for human use, such as work or as food

Dermestid Beetles

meat eating beetles that clean skulls and skeletons

diet

the foods and beverages a person eats and drinks

Nutrition

the process of providing or obtaining the food necessary for health and growth.

bioarchaeology:

the archaeological study of human remains, emphasizing the preservation of cultural and social processes in the skeleton

Bioarchaeology in Nutrition

caries, stature, anemia, mortality

health

The combination of physical, mental/emotional, and social well-being

environmental reconstruction

is the study of climatic change and human impacts through the analysis of terrestrial and waterlain, sedimentary and biological materials deposited at a range of timescales.

flotation method

A technique developed to assist in the recovery of plant, insect, and molluscan remains from archaeological deposits; a method of screening in which minute pieces of flora are separated from the soil by agitation with water.

Foraging

Behavior associated with recognizing, searching for, capturing, and consuming food.

farming

\-requires a lot of labor

\-can result in a nutrient poor diet

\-involves RISK

\

Macrobotanicals

readily recognizable plant parts recovered from archaeological samples (e.g., corncobs, pine nuts, nut shells, acorns, etc).

Microbotanicals

* Tiny microfossils (such as grains of flowers)
* Found via soil samples
* Includes pollen and phytyliths

\
\

Accountability

* Make every reasonable effort to consult with

affected groups, with the goal of establishing

a relationship that is beneficial to all parties
* Willingness to take credit and blame for actions.

collaborative research

an approach to learning about culture that involves anthropologists working with members of the study population as partners and participants rather than as "subjects"

Feminist Archaeology

a research approach that explores why women's contributions have been systematically written out of the archaeological record and suggests new approaches to the human past that include such contributions

gender and archaeology

recognizes that traditional archaeologists have often ignored the presence of women in the past

NAGPRA

Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act:

\-provides a process for museums and Federal agencies to return certain Native American cultural items -- human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, or objects of cultural patrimony -- to lineal descendants, and culturally affiliated Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations.

\

NAGPRA items

human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, objects of cultural patrimony

Principles of Ethics

universal rules of conduct, derived from ethical theories that provide a practical basis for identifying what kinds of actions, intentions, and motives are valued

Repatriation

the act of returning to the country/place of origin

Society for American Archaeology

* maintains an online archaeology for the public website
* produces educational materials for primary and secondary schools
* has archaeology month

\
\

\

Stewardship

we have been given, we first care for human life and protect it

UNESCO World Heritage Site

Site that has special cultural or physical significance; conserves sites of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common heritage of humanity.

Abu Hureyra

A site on the Upper Euphrates River in Syria that was occupied during the Natufian and the Neolithic periods

* First evidence of food production
* Abandoned or reduced 11.6 K BP (warmer)
* Large Neolithic Village 800 years later (10.8 K)

\
\
\

Natufians

Widespread Middle Eastern culture, dated to between 12,500 and 10,500 B.P.; subsisted on intensive wild cereal collecting and gazelle hunting and had year-round villages.

Bears Ears National Monument

a pair of buttes located in San Juan County in southeastern Utah, United States. They are protected as part of and the namesake of the \---- \----- National Monument, managed by the Bureau of Land Management and United States Forest Service.

The Elm Decline

The sharp decrease in the amount of elm (Ulmus) pollen that occurs throughout north-western Europe in soil horizons radiocarbon-dated within 100-200 years of 5000bp

Mid-Holocene

a period of warm climate that occurred about 6,000 years B.P.,

Fertile Crescent

an area of rich farmland in Southwest Asia where the first civilizations began

Kennewick Man

A skeleton discovered by James Chatters that was C-14 dated to be 9,000 years old and had an indeterminate race. Held from Native Americans as collateral and claimed by The Army Core of Engineers, Scientists, White Supremacists, & Tribes.

Tiwanaku, Bolivia

Capital of empire, The architecture, sculpture, roads, and empire management of \-------- would exert a significant influence on the later Inca civilization

Zengpiyan Cave

early evidence of pig domestication

Cishan

a site in china with stronger evidence of early pig domestication

MNI

minimum number of individuals.

refers to the fewest possible number of people or animals in a skeletal assemblage.

NISP

number of identified specimens.

is used in archaeology and paleontology when counting bones from a site.

counts each bone and fragment as one unit.

Palynology

the study of pollen grains and other spores, especially as found in archaeological or geological deposits.

pollen

used to distinguish plants based off its size, shape, and surface attributes

Phytolith Analysis

Collect small sample off of dirt or artifacts.

Rigid, microscopic structures found in plant tissues.

Often preserves in conditions hostile to pollen (resistant to oxidization and microbial activity) •Deposited only where plant was growing or used •good for studying plant use in settlement contexts

\

porotic hyperostosis

A symptom of iron deficiency anemia in which the skull takes on a porous appearance.

Osteology

The study of anatomy, structure, and function of the bones.

sex estimation (osteology)

estimating the sex of an individual through bone structure

shattering

a natural mechanism of seed dispersal

Rachis

a stem of a plant, especially a grass, bearing flower stalks at short intervals.

Site Seasonality

occupation based on seasons

data/ methods of site seasonality

* animal age (e.g., deer are born in spring
* Migratory animals (birds and fish)

\

Skeletal modifications

premodern surgery, disease, funerary/birth practices

Starch Grain Analysis

recovers microfossils of food plants from the stone tools used to process them

Trephination

An ancient operation in which a stone instrument was used to cut away a circular section of the skull, perhaps to treat abnormal behavior.

Younger Dryas Hypothesis

created an environmental crisis (cold & dry) that pushed people to domesticate grains (agriculture)

Zooarchaeology

study of animal remains of archaeological sites

anthropogenic landscapes

Landscapes that have been heavily transformed by humans

Transport technology

systems to support food production by moving or manipulating soil, water, etc.

foragers vs. farmers

Foragers: avg work day 3.5 hours; few wealth disparities; better overall health; less affected by rainfall fluctuations; diverse diet, adaptable to shortfalls

Farmers: avg work day 8-10 hours; accumulation, competition: inequality. communicable diseases, anemia, caries; very susceptible to fluctuations in rainfall; limited died, less adaptable to shortfalls

Intensification

The process of getting more in return for less; for example, growing more food on a smaller plot of land.

Means: \n -More energetic output per unit of land \n -i.e., more calories from smaller area (e.g., farm plot) \n -Farming is intensive \n -Hunting and gathering is extensive \n •Many resources over large areas

Natufian lifeways at Abu Hureyra

•Resource-rich terrace above Euphrates NW floodplain

•Fished, hunted gazelle, wild cattle, and sheep •Collected plums, pistachios, almonds, olives \n •Wild grasses and seeds, including barley, wheat, & rye \n •Sedentary hunter-gatherers (14K BP) \n •Small settlement, round pit houses, storage bins, burials

Column Sample

best sampling strategy for collecting plant remains is to collect sediment from every excavated stratum and feature

starch granules

•Identifiable from ground stones

•Shows direct evidence of what plants are used

•Diagnostic to genus/species level

\

cereals

grasses with edible grains \[seeds\]

•high caloric yield per acre \n •sources of carbohydrates, fat, proteins, minerals, vitamins \n •easy to store and retain nutrients for a long time •(BUT)...they drain soil of nitrogen \n •grown with legumes, which replenish nitrogen •stalks useful as animal food, bedding, etc.

key attributes of domesticated seeds

•Seed size increases

Loss of natural seeding mechanism \n •Loss of natural shattering(seed dispersal) ability •rachis (stem) \n •glume (husk)

glume

the tough seed cover of many cereal kernels

Wild vs Domesticated shattering mechanism

Wild

•Brittle rachis to promote seed dispersal \n •Tough glume to protect seed until next season Domesticated \n •Tough rachis enables grain to stay on plant so it can be harvested \n •Brittle glume so seed can be removed by threshing

fertile crescent

A geographical area of fertile land in the Middle East stretching in a broad semicircle from the Nile to the Tigris and Euphrates. Animal husbandry

benefits of the neolithic package

•Domesticated animals are a way to store and readily access fat & protein

•Arable land is finite; marginal areas provide pasture (economical) •Herbivores convert grasses and shrubs that humans don't eat into animal biomass \n •Animal waste is fuel & fertilizer \n •Some animals convert human waste (garbage) to meat

neolithic package

The assemblage associated with the spread of agriculture across Europe including querns and polishe stone axes, domesticated animal bones and plant remains from emmer and einkorn wheat and barley.

sex estimation

•Based on human sexual dimorphism, which varies among populations

•Males, in general, are larger, with heavier bones and more robust landmarks \n •within-sex variation of skeletal markers can be greater than variation between the sexes

pelvis

95% accurate (if preserved) The sub-pubic angle is the most sexually dimorphic feature of the human skeleton

sciatic notch

bigger in females

cranium

70%-80% accurate

A.Robustness & cranial vault B.Females have sharper orbital margin \n C. Zygomatic bone (male) \n D. Female mandible rounded \n E. Male deeper cranial mass \n F. Male brow is pronounced

basics about bone chemistry

Tooth enamel forms early in life, reflects diet (and mother's) diet during infancy.

Bone constantly remodels; it reflects the foods we eat throughout our lives \n • Basically... \n - Teeth = diet at birth \n - Bone = diet at death \n • So: Differences between tooth and bone chemistry MAY result \n from migration

steps to follow for repatriation

Locate & identify human remains

Create an inventory: \n -Create draft Inventory \n -Identify tribe(s) to consult \n -Consult \n -Make cultural affiliation determinations \n -Produce final Inventory \n Produce Notice(s) \n Repatriation Request (may happen before this step) \n Repatriation/Disposition (Transfer control)

positive impacts of archaeology

advances awareness of cultural diversity and our shared human history.

* Archaeologists work to document and preserve heritage sites

SAA Principles of Archaeological Ethics

1. Stewardship
2. Accountability
3. Commercialization
4. Public Education and Outreach
5. Intellectual Property
6. Public Reporting and Publication
7. Records and Preservation
8. Training and Resources

\

accountability and collaboration

Archaeology impacts descendant groups \n • Oral traditions may be considered alongside \n scientific data (as a key source of information) \n • Indigenous groups are not MONOLITHIC \n • Neither are archaeologists

Indian tribes under NAGPRA

An "Indian tribe" is an organized group that is recognized as eligible for the programs and services provided by the United States to Indians due to their status as Indians.

human remains

• The physical remains of the body of a person of Native American ancestry

• The term does not include remains or portions of remains that may reasonably be determined to have been freely given or naturally shed \n • For the purposes of affiliation, human remains incorporated into a funerary object, sacred object, or object of cultural patrimony are part of that item

(Un)associated funerary objects

• Objects that are reasonably believed to have been placed with individual human remains at the time of death or later \n • The human remains need not be in possession of a Federal agency or museum \n • Object must be identified by a preponderance of evidence (more probable than not) as having been removed from a burial \n • Items originating from the bodies of persons killed in battle may potentially meet the NAGPRA criteria for funerary objects, if leaving the body of a slain person in place can be demonstrated to have been a funerary rite

sacred objects

Specific ceremonial objects which are needed by traditional Native American religious leaders for the continued or renewed observance of religious ceremonies Not all religious items are sacred

objects of cultural patrimony

•an object having ongoing, central historical, traditional, or cultural importance to the Native American group or culture itself

• not property owned; cannot be alienated or appropriated by an individual \n • Communal Property

Highland Valleys

2000-4000 meters above sea level

High grassland

Puna.

4000-5000 meters above sea levels

challenging environment at Tiwanaku

\-irregular rainfall \n -poor and degraded soils \n -frequent severe frost

answering challenges at Tiwanaku

\-cold resistant, altitude heavy crops

\-root crops (potatoes, yams, manioc, ulluco) \n -maize and quinoa \n -short growing season \n -chuño

future and relevance of archaeology

\-unique source of knowledge about human past and long term social change \n -there are lessons to learn from thousands of years of human history \n -can contribute to present and future

Landscape technologies in Tiwanaku

\-terraces (andenes)

\-flood raised fields (waru waru)

waru waru system

\-"flooded-raised field" agriculture

\-highland and lowland Bolivia

\-discovered through arial survey

Boucher de Perthes

‘archaeologist’ at Abbeville Gravels. Argued for the theory that humans coexisted with certain extinct animals through stratigraphic comparison of artifacts and animal remains. One of the first to claim the earth was far older than was believed at the time.

Charles Lyell

Geologist who

Theorized that the earth was far older than was believed

Deb Haaland

Author of Thanksgiving article

James Ussher

bishop, claimed the earth began in 4004 BCan

Jared Diamond

Writer of “The Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race” (referring to agriculture.) Points to trends