<p>This integrated pedo-geoarchaeological study focuses on three abandoned pre-Hispanic terrace agricultural systems near Laramate in the southern Andes of Peru (14.5° S), aiming to unravel the pedological and land-use history of the region, which served as a significant agricultural hub during pre-Hispanic times. The key objectives of the investigation involved contextualizing the former agricultural management system within its geomorphological and palaeoecological framework and assessing the impact of agricultural practices on soil development and quality by comparing non-irrigated agricultural terrace soils with their undisturbed palaeo-pedological counterparts. The Laramate terrace complex, with its diverse terrace systems and varied geomorphological and geological settings, provided an ideal setting for the investigation. This comprehensive examination integrated a range of methodologies, including field surveys, digital mapping, and geomorphological analysis based on GIS and remote sensing applications, soil analysis (e.g. grain size, bulk chemistry, nutrient budget), plant microfossils (phytoliths and starch), and radiocarbon dating.</p>
<p>In the Laramate region, the geomorphological setting of terrace agricultural systems promotes their optimal functioning. The terraces are often located in sun-sheltered areas with western exposure on middle and lower slopes or valley bottoms, which mitigate intense solar radiation, reduce evapotranspiration, increase soil moisture, and minimize erosion. The study identifies three soil groups in the Laramate region: Phaeozems, Andosols, and Anthrosols. Unique characteristics of Phaeozems challenge typical descriptions, influenced by factors such as climatic seasonality, vegetation, fauna, lithology, and aeolian inputs. The terrace soils in the Laramate region are classified as Terric Anthrosols, showing no significant degradation even after long-term use. Their balanced acidity and nutrient levels support Andean crop cultivation. Traditional non-mechanized tools, such as the <i>chaquitaclla</i> and <i>rucana</i>, likely minimized soil disruption. The terrace tillage horizons have high organic<span id="page728"/> matter, indicating intentional organic manuring. Phytolith concentrations suggest intensive agricultural activity, particularly maize cultivation, with varying patterns suggesting changes in cultivation, fertilization, or mulching practices over time. Starch grain identification aligns with phytolith analyses, reinforcing maize's significance in the region. Although the use of animal-origin fertilizers requires further investigation, there is no evidence of nutrient maintenance through seasonal burning. Irrigation was minimal, and the abandonment of the pre-Hispanic cultivation system was unlikely due to soil exhaustion or terrace instability.</p>
<p>Overall, the pre-Hispanic history of terrace agriculture in the Laramate region extends over four development phases, reflecting dynamic interactions between environmental, cultural, and agricultural factors. The initial phase, from the Formative Paracas period to the Early Nasca period (800 BCE–200 CE), witnessed the establishment of agricultural terraces with simple terrace architecture, while the Middle Horizon (600–1000 CE) saw systematic areal expansion influenced by the Wari culture. Adaptations to drier conditions included terrace agriculture on volcanic soils. The Late Intermediate period (1000–1450 CE) witnessed hydrological variability and further terrace expansion to lower altitudes and less agriculturally suitable locations. The final phase, marked by the onset of the Hispanic colonial period in 1535 CE, saw the gradual abandonment of terrace agricultural systems due to demographic shifts and reorganization of production systems. Despite this, the historical trajectory underscores the adaptability and resilience of pre-Hispanic communities in the Laramate region, showcasing innovative terrace agriculture as a means of coping with changing environmental conditions across diverse landscape units.</p>
Silvia Amicone, Noémi S. Müller, Lars Heinze
et al.
This paper presents the results of a diachronic and multidisciplinary investigation into the production and consumption of cooking ware in the ancient city of Priene (Turkey). Three major chronological horizons are considered, covering the fourth to the first century BCE: the late Classical/early Hellenistic period, the middle Hellenistic period, and the late Hellenistic/early Roman Imperial period. Following a thorough typological and macroscopic study of fabrics, an integrated analytical approach combining petrography and elemental analysis (wavelength dispersive X-ray fluorescence) was applied to investigate the main macroscopic types and fabrics that characterised cooking wares. Integration of the results from the typological study with the subsequent analyses of 90 representative samples has provided high-resolution insights into cooking ware production and consumption at Priene over the study period. In addition to tracing transformations in local and regional manufacture over time, the results show that cooking wares were imported to the city from several places and, moreover, at a scale at least equivalent to that for other categories of ceramic vessels at that time. Changes in the manufacturing technology of local and regional products and the origin of imports are discussed in the context of significant historical developments that took place in this region over the period covered by the study.
Archaeology, Materials of engineering and construction. Mechanics of materials
Non-invasive research has been undertaken in the southern arm of the archaeological area of the Krzemionki exploitation field, which is one of the least excavated of its regions. Geophysical prospection covered an area of 3.5 ha, and in addition, an area of more than 5 ha was examined by surface collection. The image of the underground structures was obtained thanks to a comprehensive comparison of the results of magnetic, earth resistance and GPR measurements, as well as the distribution of archaeological finds on the ground surface. The study was supplemented with data obtained from the analysis of archival aerial photos and Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) derivatives. On the basis of these complementary data, it was possible to create a general image of the distribution of archaeological sources in the study area. When trying to determine the potential range of the exploitation field, the most legible results were obtained from earth resistance survey and magnetic gradiometry methods. In the most fully explored fragment of the area, anomalies suggesting the presence of prehistoric mining facilities are located in a strip 40–60 m wide, running in the NW-SE direction. Surface studies showed the presence of anthropogenic limestone debris in a zone of similar width (50–75 m) and the direction of its course, while the spread of flint and erratic stone finds turned out to be even greater (a belt 70–90 m wide). Geophysical surveys indicate the possibility of the existence of flint workshops and settlement facilities around the mining field. This can be confirmed in future by further systematic studies of its surroundings.
Magdalena Sudoł-Procyk, Magdalena Malak, Hubert Binnebesel
et al.
Many varieties of siliceous raw materials can be found in the territory of Poland. Known exclusively from in situ outcrops in the Holy Cross Mountains area until recently, striped flint is distinctive in terms of its technical and visual features. The authors present the state of knowledge about the variety of striped flint from the Ryczów Upland, the outcrops of which were found only about a decade ago. New data obtained from the central part of the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland has cast interesting light on the issues of the origin of striped flint and the ways it was used by the prehistoric communities inhabiting the region. Identifying the sites of siliceous rocks outcrops, extraction and distribution are extremely important at not only the local but also trans-regional level.
The book under review is the fifth volume of the series ‘Corpus of Indus Seals and Inscriptions’ and the first one dealing with artefacts not from the Indus valley but from the territory of the Indo-Iranian borderland. In the preface to the book Asko Parpola explains why non-Indus seals and other small objects are published in a series about Indus seals and inscriptions. The author’s intension is to supplement the corpus of Indus inscriptions with foremost geometric seals that predated the Indus civilization and were also found in the Indus valley. Some of the signs or symbols that can occasionally be found on the objects from the Indo-Iranian borderlands are the forerunners of the Indus script. Thus, the book appears to be an important contribution to the study of the origin of Indus writing and seal production. As emphasized in the preface, no such rich collection of photographs has ever been published for the region of the Indo-Iranian borderlands before. It is, therefore, an important contribution to the field that may allow us to study potential relations of this region with its two major contemporary neighbours, Mesopotamia in the west and the Indus valley in the east.
Artykuł poświęcony jest szkliwionym naczyniom i płytkom posadzkowym odkrytym na Wysokiej Górce w Chełmie (stanowisko nr 1) w trakcie badań wykopaliskowych prowadzonych
w latach 2010–2016. Ceramikę poddano analizie technologicznej, morfologicznej i stylistycznej, która wykazała związki z modelem wytwórczości garncarskiej o genezie rusko-bizantyńskiej. Wyróżnia się on stosowaniem białych glin kaolinitowych, nakładaniem szkliwa na wypalone wyroby oraz szczególnym asortymentem naczyń stołowych, ze zdecydowaną przewagą dzbanów. Ustalono, że naczynia szkliwione docierały w większej liczbie na teren rezydencji książęcej przez bardzo krótki czas – maksymalnie dwa dziesięciolecia XIII w. Odkryte na Wysokiej Górce liczne płytki posadzkowe z białej gliny najprawdopodobniej nie stanowiły elementu wystroju znajdujących się tu budowli sakralnych, ale budynków mieszkalnych uznawanych za kolejne siedziby księcia wołyńsko-halickiego, a później króla Rusi – Daniela Romanowicza.
Auxiliary sciences of history, Prehistoric archaeology
In the wake of the Kura-Araxes horizon, a major cultural shift brake out with painted ware replacing the glossy black burnished pottery. Painted ware, also termed Urmia Ware, became widespread in Northwest Iran in the Middle Bronze Age. The same scenario is reflected at the archaeological mound of Barde Zard in the Little Zab Basin. Situated in Piranshahr city of West Azerbaijan Province, this settlement represents one of the several formed across the basin in prehistoric times. The fieldwork at the site was aimed at specifying the occupation sequence, the cultural interactions of its residents with neighboring regions, and the characteristics of the Middle Bronze Age there. The excavations at the mound brought to light a mid-Bronze structure associated with a burial. Also identified were cultural ties with the Urmia Lake Basin and inspirations from the Khabur tradition of Mesopotamia.
Analysis of organic residues in pottery vessels has been successful in detecting a range of animal and plant products as indicators of food preparation and consumption in the past. However, the identification of plant remains, especially grain crops in pottery, has proved elusive. Extending the spectrum is highly desirable, not only to strengthen our understanding of the dispersal of crops from centres of domestication but also to determine modes of food processing, artefact function and the culinary significance of the crop. Here, we propose a new approach to identify millet in pottery vessels, a crop that spread throughout much of Eurasia during prehistory following its domestication, most likely in northern China. We report the successful identification of miliacin (olean-18-en-3β-ol methyl ether), a pentacyclic triterpene methyl ether that is enriched in grains of common/broomcorn millet (Panicum miliaceum), in Bronze Age pottery vessels from the Korean Peninsula and northern Europe. The presence of millet is supported by enriched carbon stable isotope values of bulk charred organic matter sampled from pottery vessel surfaces and extracted n-alkanoic acids, consistent with a C4 plant origin. These data represent the first identification of millet in archaeological ceramic vessels, providing a means to track the introduction, spread and consumption of this important crop.
SummaryThe Atlantic peninsulas of western Europe present intriguing cultural parallels that reach back into later prehistory. Furthermore, direct evidence of interconnections from the fifth millennium BC is revealed by the movement of specific materials such as Iberian variscite. Brittany and Galicia were key nodes within this potential network of maritime interaction, but debate continues as to the routes that were chosen and the navigational abilities involved. Did early seafarers keep close to the coast and did long journeys involve many intermediate landfalls? Or did crews venture direct crossings of the Bay of Biscay? In the absence of surviving evidence for the kinds of vessel likely to have been used by Neolithic seaborne navigators, modern wind and current data are here used to generate models indicating journey times for small sea‐going craft powered only by oars, following the coastal or the direct route. The results are discussed within the context of selected material flows (jadeitite, variscite, copper, Beakers) and against a background of potentially changing maritime technology.