Peter Hommel | University of Liverpool (original) (raw)
Recent/Popular Papers by Peter Hommel
![Research paper thumbnail of Изучение Серебряных Изделий Бородинского Клада: Новое об Известном [Studies of the Silver Artefacts from the Borodino Hoard]](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/61146701/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](Kratkie Soobshcheniya Institut Arkheologii, 2019
by Dorian Q Fuller, Lisa Janz, Maria Marta Sampietro, Philip I. Buckland, Agustín A Diez Castillo, Ciler Cilingiroglu, Gary Feinman, Peter Hiscock, Peter Hommel, Maureece Levin, Henrik B Lindskoug, Scott Macrae, John M. Marston, Alicia R Ventresca-Miller, Ayushi Nayak, Tanya M Peres, Lucas Proctor, Steve Renette, Gwen Robbins Schug, Peter Schmidt, Oula Seitsonen, Arkadiusz Sołtysiak, Robert Spengler, Sean Ulm, David Wright, and Muhammad Zahir
Science, 2019
Environmentally transformative human use of land accelerated with the emergence of 5 agriculture,... more Environmentally transformative human use of land accelerated with the emergence of 5 agriculture, but the extent, trajectory, and implications of these early changes are not well understood. An empirical global assessment of land use from 10,000 BP to 1850 CE reveals a planet largely transformed by hunter-gatherers, farmers and pastoralists by 3,000 years ago, significantly earlier than land-use reconstructions commonly used by Earth scientists. Synthesis of knowledge contributed by over 250 archaeologists highlighted gaps in archaeological 10 expertise and data quality, which peaked at 2000 BP and in traditionally studied and wealthier regions. Archaeological reconstruction of global land-use history illuminates the deep roots of Earth's transformation through millennia of increasingly intensive land use, challenging the emerging Anthropocene paradigm that anthropogenic global environmental change is mostly recent. 15 One Sentence Summary: A map of synthesized archaeological knowledge on land use reveals a planet transformed by hunter-gatherers, farmers and pastoralists by 3,000 years ago.
Authors not found on Academia:
Torben Rick, Tim Denham, Jonathan Driver, Heather Thakar, Amber L. Johnson, R. Alan Covey, Jason Herrmann, Carrie Hritz, Catherine Kearns, Dan Lawrence, Michael Morrison, Robert J. Speakman, Martina L. Steffen, Keir M. Strickland, M. Cemre Ustunkaya, Jeremy Powell, Alexa Thornton.
Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society, 2017
The analysis and interpretation of the chemical composition of copper-alloys is one of the longes... more The analysis and interpretation of the chemical composition of copper-alloys is one of the longest ongoing research projects within archaeological science. Beginning in the late 18th century these data have been consistently used to try and link objects with distinct metal sources. This paper argues the traditional provenance model for copper alloys is fatally flawed. Through pursuing a ‘pure’ source signal, chemical and isotopic datasets have been removed from their context and history. Social engagement with metal through processes such as reuse, recycling, and curation were rarely considered important by analysts. We offer an alternative model that unites the available legacy scientific datasets with process-metallurgy, archaeological and geographical context, and new conceptual approaches. Rather than provenance, we offer an empirical model of metal flow. Here objects are seen as snapshots of a wider metal stream; their final scientific characterisation including echoes of their previous forms and contexts. Through a series of case studies we highlight how the reinterpretation of existing datasets can disentangle the complex life histories of units of copper.
Where did pottery first appear in the Old World? Statistical modelling of radiocarbon dates sugge... more Where did pottery first appear in the Old World? Statistical modelling of radiocarbon dates suggests that ceramic technology had independent origins in two different hunter-gatherer societies. Regression models were used to estimate average rates of spread and geographical dispersal of the new technology. The models confirm independent origins in East Asia (c. 16 000 BP) and North Africa (c. 12 000BP). The North African tradition may have later influenced the emergence of Near Eastern pottery, which then flowed west into Mediterranean Europe as part of a Western Neolithic, closely associated with the uptake of farming.
Izvestiya Laboratorii Drevnykh Tekhnologiy, 2017
This paper presents the initial results of a new phase of absolute dating at Ust'-Karenga. Three ... more This paper presents the initial results of a new phase of absolute dating at Ust'-Karenga. Three Optically-Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dates were obtained on quartz grains extracted from Ust'-Karenga type ceramic sherds from Layers 4, 6 and 7 at Ust'-Karenga XII. These dates are used to test the reliability of the existing radiocarbon sequence and evaluate counter claims that sought to reject early dates for ceramics in the Transbaikal on the basis of a putative carbon cycle anomaly in the Transbaikal region. Our results strongly uphold the excavator's original interpretation of the site and independently confirm both the Late Pleistocene age and the long duration of the Ust'-Karenga pottery phase. The paper demonstrates the value of using independent absolute dating methods to test contested radiocarbon chronologies.
Analytical Chemistry, 2018
The extraction and study of organic residues from ceramics has been a subject of interest for the... more The extraction and study of organic residues from ceramics has been a subject of interest for the last 50 years in archeology and archeological science. Lipids are among the best-preserved organic substances in archeological contexts and can provide information about the diets of ancient populations as well as past environments. Here, we present a method which demonstrates significantly improved extraction of lipids from archeological pots by replacing liquid organic solvents with supercritical fluids. Optimization of the procedure using response surface methodology (RSM) approach showed that, on our system, optimal conditions for supercritical extraction of lipids from synthetic fired clay ceramics could be achieved using carbon dioxide with 16 vol % of cosolvent EtOH−H 2 O (95:5 v/ v) in 90 min at a flow rate of 2.3 mL/min, for a pressure of 30 MPa and a temperature of 50 °C. For all reference and archeological samples included in this study, lipid yields obtained by supercritical fluid extraction under these optimal conditions were systematically higher than by conventional solvent extraction. This study also highlighted a variability of the ratio of unsaturated versus saturated fatty acids depending on the extraction method. This can have important implications in the identification of the residue(s). The increased extraction efficiency provided by supercritical fluids, as well as their minimally destructive nature, enable new and refined approaches to residue analysis and dating of archeological ceramics. A rchaeological investigations of lives and lifestyles of human populations in the past are based, almost exclusively, on studies of material remains such as stone tools, ceramic vessels, glass or metal artifacts, textiles, and other organic substances (i.e., bone, wood, charcoal, seeds). Archaeologists have always relied on scientific methods to enrich their interpretations of these remains, and over the last few decades, techniques to characterize organic substances at a molecular level have improved dramatically. This trend is seen clearly in the ever-expanding application of analytical techniques based on the use of chromatography and mass spectrometry (e.g., high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and gas chromatography/ mass spectrometry (GC/MS)). 1 Although these techniques have many applications in archeological science, the most common relates to the question of ancient diet and the analysis of ancient food residues preserved within the fabric of ceramic containers. 2−4 To exploit this valuable source of information, scientists conventionally pulverize fragments of pottery and apply a combination of liquid organic solvents such as chloroform or dichloromethane and methanol. Other approaches using chemical reagents (e.g. acidified methanol) have also been explored. 5 The extracted residue is then characterized by GC/MS or GC-C-IRMS. 4 This is a time-consuming process which requires toxic solvents and is also destructive as the sherd needs to be crushed to increase the surface interface between ceramic and solvent. Over the last few decades, the field of analytical chemistry has seen substantial transformations such as with the development and application of new instrumentation using supercritical fluids (SFs) for extraction and chromatographic separation (SFE and SFC, respectively). In the field of archeological science, the use of supercritical fluids has not yet been fully
Books and Edited Volumes by Peter Hommel
Art in the Eurasian Iron Age, 2019
Since early discoveries of so-called Celtic Art during the 19th century, archaeologists have muse... more Since early discoveries of so-called Celtic Art during the 19th century, archaeologists have mused on the origins of this major art tradition, which emerged in Europe around 500 BC. Classical influence has often been cited as the main impetus for this new and distinctive way of decorating, but although Classical and Celtic Art share certain motifs, many of the design principles behind the two styles differ fundamentally. Instead, the idea that Celtic Art shares its essential forms and themes of transformation and animism with Iron Age art from across nor thern Eurasia has recently gained currency, partly thanks to a move away from the study of motifs in prehistoric art and towards considerations of the contexts in which they appear. This volume explores Iron Age art at different scales and specifically considers the long-distance connections, mutual influences and shared ' ways of seeing' that link Celtic Art to other art traditions across northern Eurasia. It brings together 13 papers on varied subjects such as animal and human imagery, technologies of production and the design theory behind Iron Age a t, balancing pan-Eurasian scale commentary with regional and site scale studies and detailed analyses of individual objects, as well as introductory and summary papers. This multi-scalar approach allows connections to be made across wide geographical areas, whilst maintaining the detail required to carry out sensitive studies of objects.
ISBN: 9781789253948
Journal Articles by Peter Hommel
Early Iron Age pastoralists of the Eurasian steppes relied heavily on copper for weapons and orna... more Early Iron Age pastoralists of the Eurasian steppes relied heavily on copper for weapons and ornaments, and new analysis of metal composition enables long-distance networks to be identified. Primary circulation from source areas where copper was mined can be distinguished alongside the secondary circulation of alloy types with high proportions of tin-bronze or leaded tin-bronze. The relative presence of trace elements, depleted during recycling events, provides a proxy for the flow of metal between regions. The localised seasonal movements characteristic of these mobile steppe societies underlie some of these patterns, but the evidence also indicates more extensive transfers, including the direct movement of finished objects over considerable distances.
Antiquity, 2017
POLLARD, A.M., P.J. BRAY, P. N. HOMMEL, Y-K. HSU, R. LIU, & J. RAWSON. In press. Bronze Age Metal... more POLLARD, A.M., P.J. BRAY, P. N. HOMMEL, Y-K. HSU, R. LIU, & J. RAWSON. In press. Bronze Age Metal Circulation in China. Antiquity, accepted for publication on 6th Aug 2016.
Archaeological Research in Asia, 2015
In: E. Sibbesson, B. Jervis and S. Coxon (eds.) Insights from Innovation: New Light on Archaeological Ceramics. Papers Presented in Honour of Professor David Peacock's Contributions to Archaeological Ceramic Studies, Highfield Press, 1-18, 2016
Antiquity Project Gallery Issue 349 (February 2016)
Vestnik Mezhdunarodnogo Tsentra Aziatskikh Issledovanii 14, 2008
Kratkie Soobshcheniya Institut Arkheologii, 2019
by Dorian Q Fuller, Lisa Janz, Maria Marta Sampietro, Philip I. Buckland, Agustín A Diez Castillo, Ciler Cilingiroglu, Gary Feinman, Peter Hiscock, Peter Hommel, Maureece Levin, Henrik B Lindskoug, Scott Macrae, John M. Marston, Alicia R Ventresca-Miller, Ayushi Nayak, Tanya M Peres, Lucas Proctor, Steve Renette, Gwen Robbins Schug, Peter Schmidt, Oula Seitsonen, Arkadiusz Sołtysiak, Robert Spengler, Sean Ulm, David Wright, and Muhammad Zahir
Science, 2019
Environmentally transformative human use of land accelerated with the emergence of 5 agriculture,... more Environmentally transformative human use of land accelerated with the emergence of 5 agriculture, but the extent, trajectory, and implications of these early changes are not well understood. An empirical global assessment of land use from 10,000 BP to 1850 CE reveals a planet largely transformed by hunter-gatherers, farmers and pastoralists by 3,000 years ago, significantly earlier than land-use reconstructions commonly used by Earth scientists. Synthesis of knowledge contributed by over 250 archaeologists highlighted gaps in archaeological 10 expertise and data quality, which peaked at 2000 BP and in traditionally studied and wealthier regions. Archaeological reconstruction of global land-use history illuminates the deep roots of Earth's transformation through millennia of increasingly intensive land use, challenging the emerging Anthropocene paradigm that anthropogenic global environmental change is mostly recent. 15 One Sentence Summary: A map of synthesized archaeological knowledge on land use reveals a planet transformed by hunter-gatherers, farmers and pastoralists by 3,000 years ago.
Authors not found on Academia:
Torben Rick, Tim Denham, Jonathan Driver, Heather Thakar, Amber L. Johnson, R. Alan Covey, Jason Herrmann, Carrie Hritz, Catherine Kearns, Dan Lawrence, Michael Morrison, Robert J. Speakman, Martina L. Steffen, Keir M. Strickland, M. Cemre Ustunkaya, Jeremy Powell, Alexa Thornton.
Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society, 2017
The analysis and interpretation of the chemical composition of copper-alloys is one of the longes... more The analysis and interpretation of the chemical composition of copper-alloys is one of the longest ongoing research projects within archaeological science. Beginning in the late 18th century these data have been consistently used to try and link objects with distinct metal sources. This paper argues the traditional provenance model for copper alloys is fatally flawed. Through pursuing a ‘pure’ source signal, chemical and isotopic datasets have been removed from their context and history. Social engagement with metal through processes such as reuse, recycling, and curation were rarely considered important by analysts. We offer an alternative model that unites the available legacy scientific datasets with process-metallurgy, archaeological and geographical context, and new conceptual approaches. Rather than provenance, we offer an empirical model of metal flow. Here objects are seen as snapshots of a wider metal stream; their final scientific characterisation including echoes of their previous forms and contexts. Through a series of case studies we highlight how the reinterpretation of existing datasets can disentangle the complex life histories of units of copper.
Where did pottery first appear in the Old World? Statistical modelling of radiocarbon dates sugge... more Where did pottery first appear in the Old World? Statistical modelling of radiocarbon dates suggests that ceramic technology had independent origins in two different hunter-gatherer societies. Regression models were used to estimate average rates of spread and geographical dispersal of the new technology. The models confirm independent origins in East Asia (c. 16 000 BP) and North Africa (c. 12 000BP). The North African tradition may have later influenced the emergence of Near Eastern pottery, which then flowed west into Mediterranean Europe as part of a Western Neolithic, closely associated with the uptake of farming.
Izvestiya Laboratorii Drevnykh Tekhnologiy, 2017
This paper presents the initial results of a new phase of absolute dating at Ust'-Karenga. Three ... more This paper presents the initial results of a new phase of absolute dating at Ust'-Karenga. Three Optically-Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dates were obtained on quartz grains extracted from Ust'-Karenga type ceramic sherds from Layers 4, 6 and 7 at Ust'-Karenga XII. These dates are used to test the reliability of the existing radiocarbon sequence and evaluate counter claims that sought to reject early dates for ceramics in the Transbaikal on the basis of a putative carbon cycle anomaly in the Transbaikal region. Our results strongly uphold the excavator's original interpretation of the site and independently confirm both the Late Pleistocene age and the long duration of the Ust'-Karenga pottery phase. The paper demonstrates the value of using independent absolute dating methods to test contested radiocarbon chronologies.
Analytical Chemistry, 2018
The extraction and study of organic residues from ceramics has been a subject of interest for the... more The extraction and study of organic residues from ceramics has been a subject of interest for the last 50 years in archeology and archeological science. Lipids are among the best-preserved organic substances in archeological contexts and can provide information about the diets of ancient populations as well as past environments. Here, we present a method which demonstrates significantly improved extraction of lipids from archeological pots by replacing liquid organic solvents with supercritical fluids. Optimization of the procedure using response surface methodology (RSM) approach showed that, on our system, optimal conditions for supercritical extraction of lipids from synthetic fired clay ceramics could be achieved using carbon dioxide with 16 vol % of cosolvent EtOH−H 2 O (95:5 v/ v) in 90 min at a flow rate of 2.3 mL/min, for a pressure of 30 MPa and a temperature of 50 °C. For all reference and archeological samples included in this study, lipid yields obtained by supercritical fluid extraction under these optimal conditions were systematically higher than by conventional solvent extraction. This study also highlighted a variability of the ratio of unsaturated versus saturated fatty acids depending on the extraction method. This can have important implications in the identification of the residue(s). The increased extraction efficiency provided by supercritical fluids, as well as their minimally destructive nature, enable new and refined approaches to residue analysis and dating of archeological ceramics. A rchaeological investigations of lives and lifestyles of human populations in the past are based, almost exclusively, on studies of material remains such as stone tools, ceramic vessels, glass or metal artifacts, textiles, and other organic substances (i.e., bone, wood, charcoal, seeds). Archaeologists have always relied on scientific methods to enrich their interpretations of these remains, and over the last few decades, techniques to characterize organic substances at a molecular level have improved dramatically. This trend is seen clearly in the ever-expanding application of analytical techniques based on the use of chromatography and mass spectrometry (e.g., high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and gas chromatography/ mass spectrometry (GC/MS)). 1 Although these techniques have many applications in archeological science, the most common relates to the question of ancient diet and the analysis of ancient food residues preserved within the fabric of ceramic containers. 2−4 To exploit this valuable source of information, scientists conventionally pulverize fragments of pottery and apply a combination of liquid organic solvents such as chloroform or dichloromethane and methanol. Other approaches using chemical reagents (e.g. acidified methanol) have also been explored. 5 The extracted residue is then characterized by GC/MS or GC-C-IRMS. 4 This is a time-consuming process which requires toxic solvents and is also destructive as the sherd needs to be crushed to increase the surface interface between ceramic and solvent. Over the last few decades, the field of analytical chemistry has seen substantial transformations such as with the development and application of new instrumentation using supercritical fluids (SFs) for extraction and chromatographic separation (SFE and SFC, respectively). In the field of archeological science, the use of supercritical fluids has not yet been fully
Art in the Eurasian Iron Age, 2019
Since early discoveries of so-called Celtic Art during the 19th century, archaeologists have muse... more Since early discoveries of so-called Celtic Art during the 19th century, archaeologists have mused on the origins of this major art tradition, which emerged in Europe around 500 BC. Classical influence has often been cited as the main impetus for this new and distinctive way of decorating, but although Classical and Celtic Art share certain motifs, many of the design principles behind the two styles differ fundamentally. Instead, the idea that Celtic Art shares its essential forms and themes of transformation and animism with Iron Age art from across nor thern Eurasia has recently gained currency, partly thanks to a move away from the study of motifs in prehistoric art and towards considerations of the contexts in which they appear. This volume explores Iron Age art at different scales and specifically considers the long-distance connections, mutual influences and shared ' ways of seeing' that link Celtic Art to other art traditions across northern Eurasia. It brings together 13 papers on varied subjects such as animal and human imagery, technologies of production and the design theory behind Iron Age a t, balancing pan-Eurasian scale commentary with regional and site scale studies and detailed analyses of individual objects, as well as introductory and summary papers. This multi-scalar approach allows connections to be made across wide geographical areas, whilst maintaining the detail required to carry out sensitive studies of objects.
ISBN: 9781789253948
Early Iron Age pastoralists of the Eurasian steppes relied heavily on copper for weapons and orna... more Early Iron Age pastoralists of the Eurasian steppes relied heavily on copper for weapons and ornaments, and new analysis of metal composition enables long-distance networks to be identified. Primary circulation from source areas where copper was mined can be distinguished alongside the secondary circulation of alloy types with high proportions of tin-bronze or leaded tin-bronze. The relative presence of trace elements, depleted during recycling events, provides a proxy for the flow of metal between regions. The localised seasonal movements characteristic of these mobile steppe societies underlie some of these patterns, but the evidence also indicates more extensive transfers, including the direct movement of finished objects over considerable distances.
Antiquity, 2017
POLLARD, A.M., P.J. BRAY, P. N. HOMMEL, Y-K. HSU, R. LIU, & J. RAWSON. In press. Bronze Age Metal... more POLLARD, A.M., P.J. BRAY, P. N. HOMMEL, Y-K. HSU, R. LIU, & J. RAWSON. In press. Bronze Age Metal Circulation in China. Antiquity, accepted for publication on 6th Aug 2016.
Archaeological Research in Asia, 2015
In: E. Sibbesson, B. Jervis and S. Coxon (eds.) Insights from Innovation: New Light on Archaeological Ceramics. Papers Presented in Honour of Professor David Peacock's Contributions to Archaeological Ceramic Studies, Highfield Press, 1-18, 2016
Antiquity Project Gallery Issue 349 (February 2016)
Vestnik Mezhdunarodnogo Tsentra Aziatskikh Issledovanii 14, 2008
Enclosing Space, Opening New Ground: Iron Age studies from Scotland to mainland Europe, 2019
Eurasian archaeology is, above all, an archaeology of interaction. Its distributions of artefacts... more Eurasian archaeology is, above all, an archaeology of interaction. Its distributions of artefacts, materials, technologies and traditions define extensive networks of communication and exchange tying the dispersed communities of the continent together. Although these webs of connectivity can be traced in almost every period, their scale and character is constantly in flux. Here, we will follow just one thread in this shifting tapestry, using large funerary mounds as our primary evidence.
ISBN: 9781789252019
Provides a more complete presentation of the ceramic assemblages from Ust'-Karenga (Upper Vitim B... more Provides a more complete presentation of the ceramic assemblages from Ust'-Karenga (Upper Vitim Basin, Eastern Siberia). These have previously been reported briefly in the English language literature, but these presentations have failed to capture the detail of the original Russian research and have at times been rather misleading. Recent research, to be published more fully elsewhere, is summarized and integrated with earlier work.
Art in the Eurasian Iron Age: Context, connections and scale, 2019
This paper introduces the process of creating the database of objects for the European Celtic rt... more This paper introduces the process of creating the database of objects for the European Celtic rt in ontet roet t gies te details of te data inluded igligting teir benefits and weaknesses. Through a series of distribution maps and tables, we provide an introduction to some of the general patterns seen in the data and suggest directions for future research.
ISBN: 9781789253948
Art in the Eurasian Iron Age: Context, connections and scale, 2019
Since early discoveries of so-called Celtic Art during the 19th century, archaeologists have muse... more Since early discoveries of so-called Celtic Art during the 19th century, archaeologists have mused on the origins of this major art tradition, which emerged in Europe around 500 BC. Classical influence has often been cited as the main impetus for this new and distinctive way of decorating, but although Classical and Celtic Art share certain motifs, many of the design principles behind the two styles differ fundamentally. Instead, the idea that Celtic Art shares its essential forms and themes of transformation and animism with Iron Age art from across nor thern Eurasia has recently gained currency, partly thanks to a move away from the study of motifs in prehistoric art and towards considerations of the contexts in which they appear. This volume explores Iron Age art at different scales and specifically considers the long-distance connections, mutual influences and shared ' ways of seeing' that link Celtic Art to other art traditions across northern Eurasia. It brings together 13 papers on varied subjects such as animal and human imagery, technologies of production and the design theory behind Iron Age at, balancing pan-Eurasian scale commentary with regional and site scale studies and detailed analyses of individual objects, as well as introductory and summary papers. This multi-scalar approach allows connections to be made across wide geographical areas, whilst maintaining the detail required to carry out sensitive studies of objects.
ISBN: 9781789253948
This paper presents a database of 14C dates for early pottery contexts across Eurasia collated fr... more This paper presents a database of 14C dates for early pottery contexts across Eurasia collated from the published literature, it considers the context of collection and its significance for research..
Download - http://konf.asu.ru/archeo/?page=%D1%81ollection&char=%D0%A2
HOMMEL, P., J. RAWSON & M. SAX. 2013. Vnutri Kitaya i za ego Predelami: Proizkhozhdenie i Raspros... more HOMMEL, P., J. RAWSON & M. SAX. 2013. Vnutri Kitaya i za ego Predelami: Proizkhozhdenie i Rasprostranenie Bus V Period Zapadnogo Chzhou, in A.A. Tishkin and N. Serëgin (ed.), Sovremennye Resheniya Aktual'nykh Problem Evrazijskoj Arkheologii: 320-324. Barnaul: Altai University University Press (in Russian).
Hommel, P., P.M. Day, P. Jordan & V.M. Vetrov. 2013. Homogeneity, variability and mobility: techn... more Hommel, P., P.M. Day, P. Jordan & V.M. Vetrov. 2013. Homogeneity, variability and mobility: technological choices and the context of Neolithic pottery production in the Upper Vitim Basin, in A.M. Konstantinov (ed) Drevnie Kul'tury Mongolii i Bajkal'skoj Sibiri IV, Vol. 1: 220-227. Chita: ZabGU Press.
This publication is an edited translation of a book published in Russian in 2010. It provides det... more This publication is an edited translation of a book published in Russian in 2010. It provides detailed results arising from 30 years of multidisciplinary research in the Lower Vitim Basin in Eastern Siberia. Unusually, it includes details of how the theoretical and methodological approaches taken in the project have developed over the years, and undertakes a complex study of stratigraphically separate phase of on-site activity at the well-researched site of Bol'shoy Yakor' I in full environmental context. In all of these things it represents one of the most intellectually developed research programmes in Siberian Palaeolithic research, and it is likely to be of considerable value to a wide range of researchers in related fields.
This forty-chapter treatment of the history of Eurasian pastoral societies is an extensively adap... more This forty-chapter treatment of the history of Eurasian pastoral societies is an extensively adapted and edited translation of a Russian book published in 2014 under the same title. It deals with the subject of nomadism from the emergence of metallurgy to the collapse of the Soviet 'empire' and represents the culmination of an extraordinary career in Eurasian archaeology and a synthesis of the interests and ideas of its author.
Prehistoric art has always fascinated collectors, researchers, and the public alike. Explored in ... more Prehistoric art has always fascinated collectors, researchers, and the public alike. Explored in a variety of disciplines from art history to anthropology, interpretative and methodological approaches to the study of material classified as prehistoric art has varied dramatically over the last century. This variation has been shaped not only by specific disciplinary interests, but also by wider academic traditions and regional politics. Interpretations draw on a diverse corpus of literature and encompass theories of animism, magic, witchcraft, agency, religion, astronomy, and cosmology, to name but a few.
This session aims to bring together papers focusing on art from later prehistory. It will include both portable and parietal art created on or in a variety of materials. This session will specifically focus on the importance of archaeological context and examine how these can better inform our understandings of the significance of prehistoric art and its functions in society. It will ask what prehistoric art is, what it means, what it does and how it is enfolded into complex social relationships in both the past and present. A key objective of the session will be to showcase and share different interpretive methodologies across regional/disciplinary boundaries.
Review of Gibson, A. (ed) Prehistoric Pottery: Some Recent Research, BAR International Series S15... more Review of Gibson, A. (ed) Prehistoric Pottery: Some Recent Research, BAR International Series S1509. Oxford: Archaeopress.
‘(Re)made’— from Mines to Metals was an day event which build core research themes from the FLAM... more ‘(Re)made’— from Mines to Metals was an day event which build core research themes from the FLAME project into a cyclical narrative around the museum in which the importance of metal emerges from its properties and the way it is made and remade in human societies—both today and in the past.
The main part of the day was aimed at families with young children, with a smaller evening event aimed at adults (young adults (16–21), in particular).
The event was funded by a grant secured from the University of Oxford Public Engagement Seed Fund. However, significant in-kind funding, including copyright permissions for character image rights, was secured through partnerships with Aardman Animations and Studiocanal. Much of the fuel for the smelting event was provided free of charge from sustainable sources by the Oxford Charcoal Company.
The events were based around the production of metal and the significance of recycling—challenging visitors to think differently about presumed relationships between technology, magic, art, science and society.
We created:
• a sensory ‘mine experience’ for young kids, with dark tunnels and underground soundscapes (developed from an original concept trialled in a project led by Dr R. Doonan in Sheffield in 2009).
• handling sessions and experiments (properties of ores and metals) and the history of archaeometallurgy.
• a mini-exhibition: recycling, past and present.
• a full-scale reconstruction of copper production (with talks and activities to tie the event together).
1,603 recorded visitors. Audiences of 20–50 visitors at smelting talks—67% of engaged visitors were family groups, only 3% were young adults outside family groups. 244 children participated in all our activities within the museum (and won one of the prizes donated by Aardman Animations and/or a project pencil!).
The ECAIC project teamed up with the ECR-funded NEARCH project to develop an activity day event d... more The ECAIC project teamed up with the ECR-funded NEARCH project to develop an activity day event designed to inspire younger children (4–10 years old) to consider different ‘Ways of Seeing’ and representing the world.
Working with the Pitt Rivers Museum (Andrew McLellan and Jozie Kettle) we presented:
• a mini-exhibition to show how different communities sought to represent their world. This provided the backdrop for informal lectures, aimed at older children and adults as well as a drawing workshop to celebrate alternative ways of seeing.
• videos developed to show-case aspects of Dr John Talbot's research on later Iron Age coins.
• handling sessions and drop-in craft workshops on symmetry, asymmetry and reflections.
• interactive demonstration of ‘celtic’ coin and Scythian plaque production (with Dr. A. Loboda) to show how the properties of different materials enabled the reproduction of images.
1,887 recorded visitors. Consistent presence of 2–15 visitors at our interactive demonstrations. 238 coins, were struck with the help of (mostly) young visitors who took them as souvenirs.
In honour of Movember 2017, the European Celtic Art in Context Project wrote a short popular piec... more In honour of Movember 2017, the European Celtic Art in Context Project wrote a short popular piece on facial hair in the past using ESRI's storymap system. We believe this is an extremely powerful tool for presenting archaeological research to a wider public audience.
The aim of the piece was to consider the early history of facial grooming, a broad chronological sweep from Neolithic razors to Turkic Balbals. We tried to focus on evidence from so-called 'barbarian' societies rather than the usual Greek, Roman and Egyptian suspects!
This is not a traditional academic paper, and needs to be viewed online.
Enclosing Space, Opening New Ground, 2019
The pivotal role of hunter-gatherers in the origins of ceramic technology has only recently been ... more The pivotal role of hunter-gatherers in the origins of ceramic technology has only recently been recognized. Chronological evidence, which allows the scale of this largely unacknowledged phenomenon to be visualized, is presented and discussed. The origins of pottery, the perceived constraints on production and plausible functional/symbolic roles for pottery are discussed in the context of emergent complexity within hunter-gatherer society. A case study in early ceramics from the Upper Vitim Basin, Northern Transbaikal, Siberia (which superficially conforms some of the simple expectations of the dominant explanatory models) is introduced alongside two, locally-specific and conflicting interpretations of ceramic use in the region which this study sets out to explore, test and extend. Macroscopic description and thin-section petrography, supplemented by a small range of targeted instrumental analyses (including a small, self-contained pilot study in residue analysis) were employed to i...
Connections, contacts and interactions between ancient cultures of Northern Eurasia and civilizations of the East during the Palaeometal period (IV–I mil. BC), 2019
Antiquity
In the article by Pollard et al. (2017), Figure 2 was incorrectly duplicated as Figure 5.
Archaeological Research in Asia
A considerable amount of bioarchaeological research – including AMS 14C dating and stable carbon ... more A considerable amount of bioarchaeological research – including AMS 14C dating and stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses (δ13C and δ15N) – has been undertaken on the hunter-gatherers from the area west of Lake Baikal, known as Cis-Baikal. No such work has previously been reported for the east side of the lake, Trans-Baikal. Here, we present new radiocarbon dates and isotopic results for twenty individuals from the Fofanovo cemetery, located along the Selenga River on the southeast coast of Lake Baikal. Once corrected for an old carbon effect using regression equations developed for Cis-Baikal, the radiocarbon results form 4 chronological clusters: 1) Late Mesolithic (LM), around 7950 cal BP (n = 3); 2) Late Neolithic (LN), between ca. 6000 and 5500 cal BP (n = 5); 3) LN to Early Bronze Age (EBA), between ca. 4900 and 4500 cal BP (n = 2); and the largest cluster 4) later EBA, around 3700 cal BP (n = 10). The LM Cluster 1 dates indicate that formal cemetery use in Trans-Baikal may have begun earlier than in Cis-Baikal. Clusters 2 and 3 reveal a previously unidentified LN component to the cemetery. Additionally, the EBA Cluster 4 appears to be largely synchronous with the EBA in Cis-Baikal. As a group, the Fofanovo individuals are isotopically distinct from the Middle-Holocene hunter–gatherers in the microregions of Cis-Baikal, exhibiting a combination of low δ13C values (−19.4 ± 0.9‰) but high δ15N values (15.2 ± 0.8‰). This likely reflects the distinctive isotopic ecology of the lower Selenga River, combined with use of aquatic resources from Lake Baikal itself. While further sampling is needed to test its robustness, a statistically significant difference between the LN (n = 6) and EBA (n = 11) was found, suggesting a greater reliance on the seasonal resources of the Selenga River during the EBA. Further analyses on these and other individuals from the cemetery are planned and will undoubtably provide additional insights into hunter-gatherer subsistence adaptations and dietary variation in Trans-Baikal, highlighting both differences and similarities with those of Cis-Baikal.
Archaeometry, 2020
This paper discusses the reorganisation of archaeometallurgical legacy data for future research. ... more This paper discusses the reorganisation of archaeometallurgical legacy data for future research. When archaeometallurgical research aims to answer questions that involve significant movements of raw material or metal objects, it needs to rely on large sets of data. These data are available but scattered across hundreds publications, where they are differently organised, based on the focus of the original papers. The FLAME-D database aims to collect this corpus of data and include it in a versatile structure that also maintains the information about the original data organization. The production of such a database requires transparent data transformations. The database is complemented by a series of online tools that make data available to answer new questions.
Archaeological Research in Asia, 2021
A considerable amount of bioarchaeological research – including AMS 14C dating and stable carbon ... more A considerable amount of bioarchaeological research – including AMS 14C dating and stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses (δ13C and δ15N) – has been undertaken on the hunter-gatherers from the area west of Lake Baikal, known as Cis-Baikal. No such work has previously been reported for the east side of the lake, Trans-Baikal. Here, we present new radiocarbon dates and isotopic results for twenty individuals from the Fofanovo cemetery, located along the Selenga River on the southeast coast of Lake Baikal. Once corrected for an old carbon effect using regression equations developed for Cis-Baikal, the radiocarbon results form 4 chronological clusters: 1) Late Mesolithic (LM), around 7950 cal BP (n = 3); 2) Late Neolithic (LN), between ca. 6000 and 5500 cal BP (n = 5); 3) LN to Early Bronze Age (EBA), between ca. 4900 and 4500 cal BP (n = 2); and the largest cluster 4) later EBA, around 3700 cal BP (n = 10). The LM Cluster 1 dates indicate that formal cemetery use in Trans-Baikal m...
Acta Geologica Sinica - English Edition
Archaeometry
This paper discusses the reorganisation of archaeometallurgical legacy data for future research. ... more This paper discusses the reorganisation of archaeometallurgical legacy data for future research. When archaeometallurgical research aims to answer questions that involve significant movements of raw material or metal objects, it needs to rely on large sets of data. These data are available but scattered across hundreds publications, where they are differently organised, based on the focus of the original papers. The FLAME-D database aims to collect this corpus of data and include it in a versatile structure that also maintains the information about the original data organization. The production of such a database requires transparent data transformations. The database is complemented by a series of online tools that make data available to answer new questions.
The Lake Baikal region of southern Siberia has a rich mortuary record that has provided the most ... more The Lake Baikal region of southern Siberia has a rich mortuary record that has provided the most comprehensive isotopic database for palaeodietary studies of north-temperate hunter-gatherers in the world, permitting more detailed reconstructions and finer-grained research questions than are usually possible. Building on previous work, this study contributes new δ13C, δ15N, and AMS radiocarbon dating results from the cemeteries of Verkholensk (n 1⁄4 44) in the Upper Lena River micro-region and Ulan-Khada (n 1⁄4 19) in the Little Sea micro-region. Our results reveal that the Late Neolithic (LN, 5570–4600 cal BP) individuals at Verkholensk exhibit higher δ15N values than in the Early Bronze Age (EBA, 4600–3700 cal BP), suggesting a shift to a more terrestrial diet, possibly in response to climate- induced environmental changes. In addition, EBA individuals at Verkholensk differ in both δ13C and δ15N from those at the nearby site of Obkhoi, suggesting territorial divisions at a surprisi...
Analytical chemistry, Jan 20, 2018
The extraction and study of organic residues from ceramics has been a subject of interest for the... more The extraction and study of organic residues from ceramics has been a subject of interest for the last 50 years in archeology and archeological science. Lipids are among the best-preserved organic substances in archeological contexts and can provide information about the diets of ancient populations as well as past environments. Here, we present a method which demonstrates significantly improved extraction of lipids from archeological pots by replacing liquid organic solvents with supercritical fluids. Optimization of the procedure using response surface methodology (RSM) approach showed that, on our system, optimal conditions for supercritical extraction of lipids from synthetic fired clay ceramics could be achieved using carbon dioxide with 16 vol % of cosolvent EtOH-HO (95:5 v/v) in 90 min at a flow rate of 2.3 mL/min, for a pressure of 30 MPa and a temperature of 50 °C. For all reference and archeological samples included in this study, lipid yields obtained by supercritical flu...
Sayan-Altai Scientific Review, 2020
The article is devoted to some current problems in the study of Tagar culture dwellings of the Ea... more The article is devoted to some current problems in the study of Tagar culture dwellings of the Early Iron Age in the South of Siberia. A brief analysis of the history of research of this subject and a review of some new materials indicates the need for further improvement of the existing classification of Tagar settlements and dwellings. Some results from fieldwork on sites in the Uybat river valley and on the Boyary ridge are presented. Our conclusion, that the range of dwellings encountered across the Minusinsk Basin during the Early Iron Age is not well represented in the literature or fully understood. Based an analysis of available materials, several working hypotheses are presented about their chronological correlation and function, about the architecture of the dwellings and correlations with the architecture of barrows, about connections with house-building traditions of the Bronze age and the traditions of neighbouring regions. These hypotheses, though not always conclusive, give a clear mandate for further research and define its direction.
Brief Communications of the Institute of Archaeology, 2019
The paper reports on the results of excavating an above-ground Maykop tomb of unknown type. This ... more The paper reports on the results of excavating an above-ground Maykop tomb of unknown type. This construction precedes the dolmen in kurgan 1 excavated by N. I. Veselovsky near the Tsarskaya village (northwestern Caucasus) in 1898. The tomb is an above-ground construction made of dry-stone walling, the floor paved with pebbles and covered with clay with wooden beams along the perimeter and a clay roof. The tomb façade with an entry aperture is made in the form of a shallow portal. The radiocarbon dating evidenced that a twin burial in the tomb had been made between 3300 and 3100 BC. The technical design of the tomb has some similarity not only with the Tsarskaya dolmens but also with Maykop burials made in pits and above-ground tombs. These data help clarify an overall development trajectory of the Maykop funerary ritual.
Древние и традиционные культуры во взаимодействии со средой обитания: проблемы исторической реконструкции, 2021
The Bronze Age of the Urals is one of the key points in the ancient history in Northern Eurasia d... more The Bronze Age of the Urals is one of the key points in the ancient history in Northern Eurasia due to the number of natural and cultural factors. The reconstruction of the cultural situation here is based mainly on archaeological materials. The significant progress also has been achieved in recent years thanks to 14C-dating use. The paper presents an example of the analysis of the interaction of different groups of the population who left sites of different cultures, concentrated in a small microdistrict (modern Stepnoye village in Plast district of the Chelyabinsk region), using a large volume of AMS dates and the maximum information capabilities of archaeological data.