Figure - available from: Vegetation History and Archaeobotany
This content is subject to copyright. Terms and conditions apply.
Source publication
In this paper, we present the results of the plant macrofossil analyses from the site of Tel Lachish, Israel with focus on the botanical assemblage of the Middle and Late Bronze Age layers collected in two different areas of the tell: Area S, a trench on the western edge of the site, whose samples belong to Late Bronze Age deposits, and Area P, the...
Similar publications
The study area is the city of Zintan, in northwestern Libya, which has grown over the past 30 years. Its current population is roughly 30,000. Although the city is in part commercial, most of the population engages in agriculture and primarily grows cereal crops (wheat and barley). The demand of the growing city for agricultural products has increa...
Citations
... The proportions of emmer wheat in the Levant assemblages start decreasing in later periods in favor of free threshing wheat. It is still present in MBA and LBA sites especially in the Southern Levant, in some cases even in high proportions (e.g., Tel Lachish, Nicoli' et al. 2022). This crop preference has been associated with the influence of the Egyptian political power on these sites, since in Egypt emmer remained the main cereal crop species until the Graeco-Roman period and was used in bread and beer production together with barley (Nesbitt and Samuel 1996). ...
... The MBA assemblage of Tel Lachish, 162 km south of Tel Kabri, also belongs to a palatial area (Nicoli' et al. 2022). No natural springs are present around Tel Lachish, except for a seasonal stream. ...
... Similar to Tel Kabri, olive has been identified as the most ubiquitous crop, but here it is followed by barley. It is during the LBA that we have an increase of species at Tel Lachish, but fruit cultivation was already present during the MBA (Nicoli' et al. 2022;Helbaek 1958). The presence of fig seeds is considerable in the MBA assemblage of Tel Lachish and in general in all the sites in the southern region (Fig. 8), which seems a phenomenon characterizing this area. ...
Recent excavations at the site of Tel Kabri have brought some extraordinary fndings, including the earliest wine cellar in the ancient Near East discovered in 2013. During these excavations, archaeobotanical samples were collected continuously and then processed in 2019. The archaeobotanical studies focus on the Middle Bronze Age palace in Area DW and the Early Bronze Age domestic deposits in Area L. The results confrm the diferent nature of the two contexts. Legumes form a large
portion of the crop remains in the Early Bronze Age Area L: Lathyrus sativus (grass pea), Vicia faba var. minor (faba bean), and Lens culinaris (lentil), all showing no drought stress and similar growing conditions in terms of moisture availability, as
indicated by stable carbon isotope measurements. For Area L, several wild seeds have been identifed to represent weeds of cereal crops, whereas Area DW is strongly afected by small wild seeds that entered the sediments as modern contaminants. Fruit crops are present in both assemblages with Olea europaea (olive), representing the most ubiquitous taxon, and Vitis vinifera (grape), with most of its pips found mineralized. The identifed remains also include cereal crops, primarily Triticum dicoccum (emmer), which appears cultivated under exceptionally dry conditions. The stable nitrogen values for emmer also raised some questions regarding the growing location and cultivation strategy. Correspondence analysis has been applied, comparing the archaeobotanical assemblages of Tel Kabri within the wider geographical and chronological Levantine context and determining their placement in sub-regional patterns
Evaluating archaeobotanical data from over 3.9 million seeds and 124,300 charcoal fragments across 330 archaeological site phases in Southwest Asia, we reconstruct the history of olive and grape cultivation spanning a period of 6,000 years. Combining charcoal and seed data enables investigation into both the production and consumption of olive and grape. The earliest indication for olive and grape cultivation appears in the southern Levant around ca. 5000 BC and 4th millennium BC respectively, although cultivation may have been practiced prior to these dates. Olive and grape cultivation in Southwest Asia was regionally concentrated within the Levant until 600 BC, although there were periodic pushes to the East. Several indications for climate influencing the history of olive and grape cultivation were found, as well as a correlation between periods of high population density and high proportions of olive and grape remains in archaeological sites. While temporal uncertainty prevents a detailed understanding of the causal mechanisms behind these correlations, we suggest that long distance trade in olives, grapes and their associated products was integral to the economic, social, and demographic trajectories of the region.
Although the Shephelah region (Israel) is of a great archaeological significance and has been intensively excavated, very little is known about its landscape history. This study presents two large‐scale charred wood assemblages (>2300 items) that were recovered from Tel Azekah and Tel Lachish in order to reconstruct the ancient vegetation of the Shephelah. The two assemblages cover a temporal range from the Middle Bronze Age through the Hellenistic period (c.2000–100 BC). This new diachronic environmental investigation demonstrates that the natural arboreal vegetation in the Shephelah was dominated by oak and pistachio. From the perspective of the regional fruit tree horticulture, olive was the dominant component, indicating that the region included extensive olive orchards. Other documented fruit trees are grapevine, fig, sycamore fig, carob, date palm and almond. The high frequencies of olive remains throughout all investigated periods point to climatic conditions in the region being close to what we are facing today, with at least 400–450 mm of annual precipitation, which is required for a profitable grove. During the Iron Age II, the proportion of olive remains reached its zenith, most probably as a result of Assyrian agroeconomic management that assigned the Shephelah to olive oil production. At the same time, a reduction in natural Mediterranean trees was identified, representing intense human pressure on the natural environment. The discovery of charred cedar of Lebanon remains only at Lachish points to the high status of the site within the region.
The Oarța de Sus-Ghiile Botii archaeological site offers a
comprehensive view into the ritual and agricultural practices of the Middle
Bronze Age Wietenberg II and III cultures. Located in a strategically significant
hilly terrain, the site consists of a unique sanctuary characterized by a circular
ditch, numerous pits, and an external trench likely purposed for defence.
Among the artefacts found in pits are ceramics, metal objects, osteological
remains, but also an impressive quantity of charred seeds.
Two pits offer particularly compelling data. Pit no. 18 contained 3.486 kg of
carbonized seeds, and 10 % of whole sample was Claviceps purpurea (ergot), a
potentially lethal harvest season. Pit no. 22, which also yielded the skeleton of
a 4-year-old infant, contained a massive 10.590 kg kg of collected material. The
charred grains from both pits are believed to have been burned intentionally,
likely as ritualistic offerings. Such practices resonate with the broader religious
and cultural contexts of the Bronze Age, specifically within the Wietenberg
culture. They reflect a range of potential ritualistic intentions- from spiritual
communication and purification to symbolic remembrance - thereby greatly
enhancing our understanding of the socio-cultural and spiritual life of the
communities inhabiting the region during the Bronze Age.
Near Eastern monumental buildings once hosted institutions with a variety of economic and environmental footprints. In this article examining a Middle Bronze Age II (seventeenth century BC) building complex at Zincirli, Turkey, we integrate bioarchaeological remains with ceramic and artifactual evidence to evaluate whether this building was a specialized node in a broader network and centralized economy. Combining seed/fruit/chaff analysis with charcoal, phytolith, diatom, and spherulite investigations and zooarchaeology allows for a more holistic identification of the building’s environmental and economic catchments. The pronounced presence of conifer, probably related to the building’s architecture, suggests an elite function of the complex. A broad range of activities took place within the complex, such as the preparation, storage, and consumption of different food and drink products, alongside craft activities. There is evidence for centralized storage of diverse crops and production of wine and textiles. The building seems to have functioned as a kind of estate, possessing access to large areas of land. The bioarchaeological remains evidence the exploitation of the varied environments surrounding the site, where economically valuable resources were locally available and exploited, such as cedar, pine, grapes, and large hunting game. Complex DD provides evidence of wetland exploitation, agropastoral production, wood procurement, and hunting in the semi-steppe batha environments of the Islahiye plain and the woodland forests of the Amanus.
