Walking commodities: A multi-isotopic approach (δ13C, δ15N, δ34S, 14C and 87/86Sr) to trace the animal economy of the Viking Age town of Birka (original) (raw)
Related papers
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 120, 2013: pp 531-544
Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios (d13C and d15N) have been used widely in archaeology to investigate palaeodiet. Sulphur stable isotope ratios (d34S) have shown great promise in this regard but the potential of this technique within archaeological science has yet to be fully explored. Here we report d34S, d13C and d15N values for 129 samples of animal bone collagen from Skutustaðir, an early Viking age (landnam) settlement in north-east Iceland. This dataset represents the most comprehensive study to date of its kind on archaeological material and the results show a clear offset in d34S values between animals deriving their dietary resources from terrestrial (mean = +5.6 ± 2.8‰), freshwater (mean = 2.7 ± 1.4‰) or marine (mean = +15.9 ± 1.5‰) reservoirs (with the three food groups being significantly different at 2 sigma). This offset allows reconstruction of the dietary history of domesticated herbivores and demonstrates differences in husbandry practices and animal movement/trade, which would be otherwise impossible using only d13C and d15N values. For example, several terrestrial herbivores displayed enriched bone collagen d34S values compared to the geology of the Lake Myvatn region, indicating they may have been affected by sea-spray whilst being pastured closer to the coast, before being traded inland. Additionally, the combination of heavy d15N values coupled with light d34S values within pig bone collagen suggests that these omnivores were consuming freshwater fish as a significant portion of their diet. Arctic foxes were also found to be consuming large quantities of freshwater resources and radiocarbon dating of both the pigs and foxes confirmed previous studies showing that a large freshwater radiocarbon (14C) reservoir effect exists within the lake. Overall, these stable isotope and 14C data have important implications for obtaining a fuller reconstruction of the diets of the early Viking settlers in Iceland, and may allow a clearer identification of the marine and/or freshwater 14C reservoir effects that are known to exist in human bone collagen.
We report here the results of strontium, oxygen and carbon isotope analysis of teeth from domestic animals at two Neolithic settlement sites in Falbygden, Sweden. The main result is the high mobility of domestic animals, particularly of cattle but also of sheep. More than half of the analysed cattle teeth show strontium isotope signals indicating that they were raised in an area of Precambrian rock, outside the sedimentary Cambro-Silurian rocks found in Falbygden. This is in marked contrast to pigs, which were mostly local to Falbygden. The mobility of cattle is much higher than that of humans, for which the frequency of immigrants is about 25%.We suggest that West Sweden in the Neolithic was not a local but a regional economy, where not only prestige items and humans were circulating but also basic components of subsistence. Such a regional economy would have drawn together the megalithic-building population in Falbygden with its non-megalithic neighbours. In addition, it seems that cattle had a particular place in the Neolithic symbolic system, beyond their economic and practical value.► Teeth from domestic animals at Neolithic settlement sites in Falbygden, Sweden were analysed for 87Sr/86Sr. ► Cattle and sheep were highly mobile but pigs were mostly local. ► The mobility of cattle is much higher than that of humans. ► West Sweden in the Neolithic was a regional economy, where basic components of subsistence were circulated. ► Probably, cattle also had a particular place in the Neolithic symbolic system.
Diet and mobility among Mesolithic hunter-gatherers in Motala (Sweden) - The isotope perspective
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2016
Recent excavations at the sites of Strandvägen and Kanaljorden in Motala, Eastern Central Sweden, have unearthed complex and varied funerary remains from the Mesolithic. The two sites are situated on opposite banks of the river Motala Ström. While geographically close and roughly covering the same time span (c. 8000-7000 cal. BP), the funerary remains reveal differences and similarities in the treatment of the dead between the two localities. While at Strandvägen human bones were mostly found either scattered along the river bed or in inhumation graves, Kanaljorden contains wetland depositions of disarticulated skulls. We have conducted multi-isotope analyses of δ 13 C, δ 15 N, δ 34 S and 87 Sr/ 86 Sr of human and animal remains with the aim of reconstructing the dietary patterns, geographic provenance and mobility of the interred. A series of faunal reference samples and, in the case of 87 Sr/ 86 Sr, soil samples have been analysed in order to establish relevant isotopic baselines. The results show a protein intake dominated by aquatic resources, probably consisting of both freshwater and marine fish in varied proportions. The strontium isotope data indicate an interesting distinction between the individuals buried on either side of the river Motala Ström. Five out of six sampled individuals from Strandvägen have isotope ratios consistent with a local provenance, whereas ratios from seven out of eight Kanaljorden individuals indicate a non-local origin. The δ 34 S analysis proved problematic as a majority of the samples appear to be affected by diagenesis. This is probably the result of contamination by exogenous sulphur from surrounding fluvial and lacustrine sediments, as has previously been reported from other waterlogged sites.
Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, 2011
The objective of this investigation is to look at the use of various aquatic, in this case marine, resources in relation to mobility during the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods. On the island of Öland, in the Baltic Sea, different archaeological cultures are represented in the form of material culture and skeletal remains at three sites. We have analysed δ 34 S values in human remains representing 36 individuals, as well as faunal remains. We investigated intra-individual patterns of mobility from childhood to adulthood, primarily focusing on a passage grave. Taking into account previously published dietary data that demonstrate a wide range of dietary practices involving aquatic resources, we applied a model to estimate the contribution of δ 34 S from terrestrial protein, to separate mobility from dietary changes, thereby identifying individuals who changed residence, as well as individuals with non-local origins. Evidence of mobility could be demonstrated at two sites. For the third site the consistently marine diet inhibits inferences on mobility based on δ 34 S analysis. Chronologically, the frequency of non-locals was highest during the Bronze Age, when the diet was very uniform and based on terrestrial resources.
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2024
Despite an increasing number of studies, the application of stable sulfur (δ34S) isotope analysis to prehistoric bone collagen remains in its infancy. Conventionally, stable sulfur isotope compositions reflect coastal proximity and the interaction between humans and animals. Here, we undertook stable carbon (δ13C), nitrogen (δ15N) and sulfur (δ34S) isotope analysis of human and faunal bone collagen. To understand the local environmental conditions as well as the husbandry regime employed by the first farmers, and investigate where the animals were raised or hunted in non-specific terms, we sampled 50 faunal, including wild and domestic taxa, and human remains from the Late Mesolithic to Early-Middle Neolithic (c. 4860–2310 cal BC) site of Syltholm II on the island of Lolland, Denmark. We show that the wild animals were obtained from multiple locations surrounding the prehistoric Syltholm Fjord, including forested and open landscapes, areas impacted by sea spray and saltmarshes. In contrast, the domestic taxa, especially cattle, were tightly managed for the majority of their lives based on their δ13C and δ15N isotope compositions, though were likely raised in multiple locations, including sea spray-affected areas, salt marshes and wetlands, based on their δ34S values. The domestic dogs had a broad range of δ13C, δ15N and δ34S values, reflecting the consumption of varying degrees of marine foodstuffs, including animals that were sulfide-derived. Overall, our results contribute to a growing body of evidence for possible cultural and animal husbandry duality during the earliest Neolithic in southern Scandinavia.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 2013
Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios (d 13 C and d 15 N) have been used widely in archaeology to investigate palaeodiet. Sulphur stable isotope ratios (d 34 S) have shown great promise in this regard but the potential of this technique within archaeological science has yet to be fully explored. Here we report d 34 S, d 13 C and d 15 N values for 129 samples of animal bone collagen from Skú tustaðir, an early Viking age (landná m) settlement in north-east Iceland. This dataset represents the most comprehensive study to date of its kind on archaeological material and the results show a clear offset in d 34 S values between animals deriving their dietary resources from terrestrial (mean = +5.6 ± 2.8&), freshwater (mean = À2.7 ± 1.4&) or marine (mean = +15.9 ± 1.5&) reservoirs (with the three food groups being significantly different at 2r). This offset allows reconstruction of the dietary history of domesticated herbivores and demonstrates differences in husbandry practices and animal movement/trade, which would be otherwise impossible using only d 13 C and d 15 N values. For example, several terrestrial herbivores displayed enriched bone collagen d 34 S values compared to the geology of the Lake Mývatn region, indicating they may have been affected by sea-spray whilst being pastured closer to the coast, before being traded inland. Additionally, the combination of heavy d 15 N values coupled with light d 34 S values within pig bone collagen suggests that these omnivores were consuming freshwater fish as a significant portion of their diet. Arctic foxes were also found to be consuming large quantities of freshwater resources and radiocarbon dating of both the pigs and foxes confirmed previous studies showing that a large freshwater radiocarbon ( 14 C) reservoir effect exists within the lake. Overall, these stable isotope and 14 C data have important implications for obtaining a fuller reconstruction of the diets of the early Viking settlers in Iceland, and may allow a clearer identification of the marine and/or freshwater 14 C reservoir effects that are known to exist in human bone collagen.
Mobile or stationary? An analysis of strontium and carbon isotopes from Västerbjers, Gotland, Sweden
Journal of Archaeological Science Reports, 2021
The nature of the Neolithic Pitted Ware Culture (PWC) has been debated in Scandinavian archaeology since the beginning of the 20th century. This material culture postdates the inception of an agro-pastoral Neolithic economy in the region (TRB) but demonstrate a semi-foraging lifeway. The PWC is considered elusive in the sense that the economy has been interpreted as either based on maritime foraging (isotope analysis), or a mixed-Neolithic economy based on boar (Sus scrofa) (archaeozoology). The mobility of the PWC group on Gotland has not been studied previously. We provide an analysis of strontium data from the site Västerbjers, Gotland, and engage in the question whether this population was mobile (foragers) or stationary (mixed-Neolithic). We also discuss the strontium baseline of the island in the light of new data. The results presented demonstrate a group that was confined to the island and with no strontium data suggesting a supra-regional mobility. We cannot discriminate between a regional mobility pattern on Gotland (mobility between sites) and a local, stationary group (fully sedentary), but we present data that suggest the former. Thus, our conclusion is that the PWC group on Gotland was stationary, the sedentism disclosed being supported by a mixed-Neolithic economy based on boar (Sus scrofa). In fact, the PWC group is depicting less variance with respect to 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios than the TRB and Late Neolithic groups on the island, being more stationary than the agricultural groups.
STAR: Science & Technology of Archaeological Research
In this paper, we examine the exchange of crops and livestock through the application of strontium (87 Sr/ 86 Sr) isotope analysis on cereal grains and faunal tooth enamel from the regional center of Uppåkra and three nearby settlements in Scania, southern Sweden, dating to the first millennium AD. Around a third of the fauna have non-local 87 Sr/ 86 Sr values, indicating the import of livestock from several different regions. After cleaning, almost all of the cereal grains have non-local 87 Sr/ 86 Sr values, which is surprising given the nearby abundance of fertile agricultural soils. We therefore suggest considering non-locally grown crops to be those whose 87 Sr/ 86 Sr values fall outside the normal distribution; if this approach is used, around 20% of the analyzed crop samples are interpreted as having grown non-locally. This study demonstrates the potential of combining strontium isotopic data of archaeobotanical and zooarchaeological material for gaining insights into the movement of agricultural products in prehistory.
2016
Objectives: A previous multi-isotope study of archaeological faunal samples from Skutustaðir, an early Viking age settlement on the southern shores of Lake Myvatn in north-east Iceland, demonstrated that there are clear differences in d34S stable isotope values between animals deriving their dietary protein from terrestrial, freshwater, and marine reservoirs. The aim of this study was to use this information to more accurately determine the diet of humans excavated from a nearby late Viking age churchyard. Materials and Methods: d13C, d15N, and d34S analyses were undertaken on terrestrial animal (n=39) and human (n=46) bone collagen from Hofstaðir, a high-status Viking-period farmstead 10 km north-west of Skutustaðir. Results: d34S values for Hofstaðir herbivores were 6‰ higher relative to those from Skutustaðir (d34S: 11.4 ± 2.3‰ versus 5.6 ± 2.8‰), while human d13C, d15N, and d34S values were broad ranging (-20.2‰ to -17.3‰, 7.4‰ to 12.3‰, and 5.5‰ to 14.9‰, respectively). Discussion: Results suggest that the baseline d34S value for the Myvatn region is higher than previously predicted due to a possible sea-spray effect, but the massive deposition of Tanytarsus gracilentus (midges) (d34S: -3.9‰) in the soil in the immediate vicinity of the lake is potentially lowering this value. Several terrestrial herbivores displayed higher bone collagen d34S values than their contemporaries, suggesting trade and/or movement of animals to the region from coastal areas. Broad ranging d13C, d15N, and d34S values for humans suggest the population were consuming varied diets, while outliers within the dataset could conceivably have been migrants to the area.
STAR: Science & Technology of Archeological Research, 2020
In this paper, we examine the exchange of crops and livestock through the application of strontium (87 Sr/ 86 Sr) isotope analysis on cereal grains and faunal tooth enamel from the regional center of Uppåkra and three nearby settlements in Scania, southern Sweden, dating to the first millennium AD. Around a third of the fauna have non-local 87 Sr/ 86 Sr values, indicating the import of livestock from several different regions. After cleaning, almost all of the cereal grains have non-local 87 Sr/ 86 Sr values, which is surprising given the nearby abundance of fertile agricultural soils. We therefore suggest considering non-locally grown crops to be those whose 87 Sr/ 86 Sr values fall outside the normal distribution; if this approach is used, around 20% of the analyzed crop samples are interpreted as having grown non-locally. This study demonstrates the potential of combining strontium isotopic data of archaeobotanical and zooarchaeological material for gaining insights into the movement of agricultural products in prehistory. ARTICLE HISTORY