Macro-botanical evidence for plant use at Neolithic Catalhöyük south-central Anatolia, Turkey (original) (raw)
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Plant stores at Pottery Neolithic Höyücek, southwest Turkey
Eleven samplcs comprising an estimated 39,000 plant remains were analysed f h m a bumt destruction level at the pottery Ncolithic site of Hoyiicek. so~~thwcst Turkey (radiocarbon dated 7550-7350 uncalibrated bp, 6400-6100 calibrated BC). Large stores of ernmer (?i.itictmt ciic.occiir~r), lice threshing wheat (Gilictrnl ne.stivirrr~/ditr-LIIII). lentils (Lmls cdirtcrris), bitter vetch (I4cic1 crvilicr) and chickpea (Cicw cirirfinrrtn) wwc identified and these plants were interpreted as crops. The low levels of weeds and crop processing by-products suggest most of the samples were remains ol'stores of human food. Two san~plcs in which wild components (lbr cxa~nple, 7kiticum boeticun~, Mcdiccrgo, Aegilops) dominated were interpreted as crop processing by-products, presumably stored for fodder. The presence ol'thcse stores in a structure interpreted as having a religious fiinction shows that domestic activities also took place there. Comparison with otlia-Ncolithic and Chalcolithic sites ol'wcst central Turkey demonstrates a good correspondence in the range of crops. The poor representation of barley at Hoyiicek cloubtlcss reflects the small number of sainplcs liom the site.
The aim of this project is to produce new archaeobotanical evidence for the early-mid Neolithic sequence of Çatalhöyük in Central Anatolia, and use it as a basis for investigation into the nature and scale of crop husbandry at a long-living early farming settlement in south-west Asia. The archaeobotanical weed record is here considered the primary source of information on the aspects of crop husbandry indicative of different cultivation practices (i.e. permanence, seasonality and intensity) and crucial for distinguishing between contrasting agricultural systems (i.e. intensive vs.
Vegetation history and archaeobotany, 2001
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Wild plant seed storage at Neolithic Çatalhöyük East, Turkey
Vegetation History and …, 2007
Full analysis of eight seed samples collected in the 1960's excavations at Neolithic Ç atalhöyük East, Turkey, is presented. Detailed investigation of the composition and context of the samples suggests that the Neolithic population collected, processed and stored seeds from Capsella sp. and Descurainia sp. (wild crucifers) for food use. In addition seeds of Vicia/Lathyrus sp. (wild vetch), Helianthemum spp. and Taeniatherum caputmedusae mixed with Eremopyrum type (grasses) were also found, some of which may have been used for food or other purposes. The analysis demonstrates that wild seed exploitation was a regular part of subsistence practice alongside the economic staple of crop production, and again demonstrates how diverse plant use practices were at the site.
Plant remains from the Late Neolithic settlement of Polgár-Bosnyákdomb
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Charred plant remains were recovered at the Polgar-Bosnyakdomb site dated to the Middle Neolithic period (the Tisza–Herpaly–Csőszhalom culture), corresponding to the first half of the Vth millenium BC. Among cultivated plants found as dispersed within the archaeological features and in daub pieces, remains of emmer wheat Triticum dicoccon were the most frequent. Also, leguminous plants were used as demonstrated by seeds of lentil Lens culinaris. Among wild herbaceous plants, taxa of field and ruderal habitats prevailed (Chenopodium type album, Galium spurium, Polygnum mite and Bromus sp.) as well as those coming from dry grasslands (Stipa sp.). The analysis of charcoal remains showed that mostly wood belonging to Quercus sp., Ulmus sp. and Cornus sp. were collected as firewood from the proximity of the settlement, mainly from oak-dominated wooded steppes developed on the elevated surfaces and floodplain forests from the seasonally flooded alluvium. The most frequently found plant re...
Proceedings of the 12th International Congress on the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East, 2023
The 1st millennium BCE witnessed significant social and economic transformations with increasing maritime connectivity and improved terrestrial transportation systems including a greater degree of transference of biological specimens, together with foodways and identities, across the Mediterranean. However, Turkey and its role in the distribution of plants are poorly understood puzzle-pieces in this stage of long-distance encounters. Available archaeobotanical data is rudimentary in coastal Turkey compared to more extensively studied regions such as Greece, the western Mediterranean basin, and non-Mediterranean Europe. With this paper, the multiproxy investigations from the sites of Zincirli, Tell Tayinat, Sirkeli, and Dülük Baba Tepesi aim to fill this gap in the eastern Mediterranean. The overall archaeobotanical results indicate a very environment-dependent local resource utilization with an increasing dependency to the interregional networks in resource management/acquisition at the end of the millennium. These can only be made graspable and comparable through a comprehensive systematic sampling strategy applied to all investigated sites. For this reason, in addition to a part of our preliminary results on macro-botanical and phytolith analyses, the connection between sampling methods and the integration of the results into the archaeological context will be discussed. The presentation of different sampling strategies from ongoing excavations will also serve as a reference point for further projects.
Early to Mid-Holocene Vegetation History and Human Settlement in Anatolia
Winds of Change: Environment and Society in Anatolia (editors: Christopher H. Roosevelt, John Haldon). Koç University Press & University of Chicago Press, 2022
In this chapter we discuss the vegetation history and palaeoecology of Anatolian woodlands, focusing on insights gained through the analysis of anthracological remains from prehistoric habitation sites. In the semi-arid regions of Anatolia, anthracology provides direct evidence of the presence and spread of pioneer woodland species, which often go undetected by pollen analysis, including the entomophilous Rosaceae (e.g., Amygdalus) and poor and/or irregular pollen dispersers (Juniperus, Pistacia, and riparian taxa such as Salicaceae and Fraxinus). We also review anthracological data from Anatolia indicating the development of woodland management practices and anthropogenic woodland habitats by Neolithic agropastoral communities during the early to mid-Holocene period.
Plant macrofossil analysis, phytolith analysis and AMS radiocarbon dating at Pınarbaşı in central Anatolia confirm the presence and continuity of plant gathering practice as a key subsistence strategy from c. 9000–7700 cal BC. Results demonstrate the use of almond, terebinth and hackberry as food plants, similar to Palaeolithic/Epipalaeolithic subsistence strategies in the Antalya region. Crop and/or crop progenitor use is unsupported, with sporadic cereal macrofossils rare and shown by direct radiocarbon dating to be intrusive, a conclusion supported by the phytolith analysis. Seed exploitation is also rejected. Results confirm the presence of sedentary foragers from 9000 cal BC in central Anatolia, contemporary with the Levantine PPNA-Early PPNB, suggest a different plant subsistence focus to contemporary forager societies in the Fertile Crescent and indicate economic differences with contemporary sites in central Anatolia which were already cultivating crops.