Anthropic activity markers and spatial variability: an ethnoarchaeological experiment in a domestic unit of Northern Gujarat (India)

Rondelli, Bernardo; Lancelotti, Carla; Madella, Marco; Pecci, Alessandra; Balbo, Andrea L.; Pérez, Javier Ruiz; Inserra, Fernanda; Gadekar, Charusmita; Ontiveros, Miguel Ángel Cau; Ajithprasad, P.

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2013.09.008

Cited by 55 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 34 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In that sense, some archaeological works have started to consider anthropic environmental changes that might have occurred before the transformations associated with agriculture, with works focusing on the distribution and richness of biodiversity and its relation to human activity (Boivin et al 2016), including the human-induced extinction of several animal species (Rule et al 2012, Sandom et al 2014, or climate change and changes in resources availability related to the presence of diverse cultural dynamics (Anderson et al 2007). Some other works are focusing on anthropic soil formation (anthrosols ;Woods 2003) or the identification of anthropic markers for human activities at different scales, from household (Rondelli et al 2014) to landscape (Iriarte 2009). Within these studies about environmental modifications, most have focused on land use changes associated with the setting of agricultural landscapes during prehistory, and bringing forward either loss of biodiversity (Haberle 2007) or increased biodiversity (Anderson and Wohlgemuth 2012).…”

Section: Coevolutionary Dynamicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Small-scale societies and environmental transformations: coevolutionary dynamics

Reyes‐García¹,

Zurro²,

Caro³

et al. 2017

E&S

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

ABSTRACT. This editorial introduces the special feature of Ecology and Society entitled Small-Scale Societies and Environmental Transformations: Coevolutionary Dynamics. The contributions to this feature explore coevolutionary dynamics developed between small-scale societies and environmental features and the larger-scale effects of these interactions in spatial and chronological terms. Acknowledging the importance of small-scale societies in our evolutionary past and nowadays, contributions to this issue use insights from both archaeological and anthropological case studies, concepts, and methods. This editorial introduces the contributions in three different ways. We start by reviewing the use of the term "small-scale society" in the literature. Then, we briefly examine the concept of "co-evolutionary dynamics" by providing examples of how the process operates between past and present small-scale societies and their surrounding environments. In the last section, we introduce each of the papers.

show abstract

Section: Coevolutionary Dynamicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Small-scale societies and environmental transformations: coevolutionary dynamics

Reyes‐García¹,

Zurro²,

Caro³

et al. 2017

E&S

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…They found that the density of phytoliths was higher in penning deposits, while the geochemical analysis demonstrated that penning areas were distinct from regional sediments and from features inside the settlements such as hearths (ShahackGross et al 2004). Rondelli et al (2014;see also Madella et al 2014) used geoarchaeology to look at different activity areas within an ethnographic site in North Gujarat, India, to determine if certain activities left specific signatures. They found that it was possible to distinguish food storage areas through high protein levels, food preparation areas through the presence of fatty acids and areas of burning and fuel use through geochemistry.…”

Section: Combined Approachesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…They found that it was possible to distinguish food storage areas through high protein levels, food preparation areas through the presence of fatty acids and areas of burning and fuel use through geochemistry. Notably, their results found that fire installations where dung had been used as the fuel source, had higher values of aluminium (Al), barium (Ba), calcium (Ca), cobalt (Co), chromium (Cr), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), molybdenum (Mo), nickel (Ni) and lead (Pb), while fire installations where wood had been used as the fuel source had higher values of Ca, potassium (K), magnesium (Mg), Al and P Rondelli et al 2014).…”

Section: Combined Approachesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethno-geochemical and Phytolith Studies of Activity Related Patterns: A Case Study from Al Ma’tan, Jordan

Jenkins

Allcock

Elliott³

et al. 2017

Environmental Archaeology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Understanding Neolithic sites in southwest Asia is often difficult because of the lack of preservation of organic remains and the effects of various taphonomic processes that alter the original record. Here, we use an ethnographic approach to test the potential of using plant phytoliths and geochemistry to aid our interpretation of southwest Asian Neolithic sites. Our study of a recently abandoned stone and mud constructed village in Jordan, shows that for certain activity types, phytoliths and geochemistry can help distinguish different construction methods and functions, particularly for burnt areas, animal use areas and where there has been the addition of a specific construction material. For features constructed from the same source materials distinctions are more problematic. Geochemical and phytolith proxies were individually effective in distinguishing activity areas and construction materials, but signals were diminished when the statistical analysis was run on both forms of evidence combined. It is therefore recommended that the data from plant phytolith and geochemical analyses are subject to separate statistical tests and that the two sets of results are used in combination to interpret archaeological sites and their uses. ARTICLE HISTORY

show abstract

“…In semi-arid soils in particular, P is fixed in soils from sources such as human and animal waste, stabling and grazing, and remains fixed through archaeological time scales (Holliday, 2004). Although P analysis is not indicative of specific activities, ethnoarchaeological work shows that high P presence is associated, among others, with cattle enclosures and food consumption events (Shahack-gross et al, 2003;Rondelli et al, 2014).…”

Section: Post-depositional Anthropic Processesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We interpret this accumulation of fine sediments on the top of dunes (attesting pastoral occupations) as the result of debris from vanished structures build with clay and silt collected in interdunal vertisols. Such structures as cooking platforms, floors and pit plastering are indeed attested in current pastoral ethnoarchaoelogical contexts in North Gujarat (Bhan, 2011;Rondelli et al, 2014). In archaeological contexts, malaxed clay balls and clay plastering are emblematic in Anarta and later pastoral contexts (Rajesh et al, 2013).…”

Section: Anthropic Markers: Upper Slope and Dune Topmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multi-proxy survey of open-air surface scatters in drylands: Archaeological and physico-chemical characterisation of fossilised dunes in North Gujarat (India)

Conesa

Lobo

Alcaina

et al. 2017

Quaternary International

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This research aims at improving our understanding of open-air archaeological surface scatters in drylands, their extension and the intensity of human activities during their occupation. To do so, the study of physico-chemical proxies is integrated to that of archaeological artefacts by means of systematic field survey combined with laboratory sedimentary analyses and a robust statistical approach. In most dry regions, archaeological survey has traditionally aimed at the collection of artefacts. When present, the study of physical and geochemical samples has been limited to excavated archaeological levels. In this work, we evaluate the archaeological significance of physico-chemical proxies from surface samples collected within and around four mid and late-Holocene surface scatters in North Gujarat, a semi-arid region located at the south-west margin of the Thar Desert in India. The four archaeological scatters are found on top of fossilised sand dunes. Archaeologically, they represent subsistence strategies based on hunting and gathering, agro-pastoralism, or a succession/ mixture of the two. The four locations were systematically sampled across a linear transect. For each sampling unit, the archaeological materials were quantified and classified by means of a Linear Discriminant Analyses. Physio-chemical variables were ordinated in a PCA space and clustered through a Hierarchical Clustering. Results were displayed along the dune transect and integrated into a Correspondence Analysis. Significant differences are attested in the spatial distribution and content of Ca, P and grain size, allowing us to suggest a set of distinct cultural soilscapes that characterise the dunes of the study area: vertisols (agric horizons in interdunal lower slopes), aridisols (relict dune surfaces in the mid-slope), and anthrosols (top dune). The last show a strong correspondence with the presence of archaeological artefacts, and the different intensity of human footprint are discussed accordingly to potential past subsistence strategies and the intensity of human occupation.

show abstract

Anthropic activity markers and spatial variability: an ethnoarchaeological experiment in a domestic unit of Northern Gujarat (India)

Cited by 55 publications

References 34 publications

Small-scale societies and environmental transformations: coevolutionary dynamics

Small-scale societies and environmental transformations: coevolutionary dynamics

Ethno-geochemical and Phytolith Studies of Activity Related Patterns: A Case Study from Al Ma’tan, Jordan

Multi-proxy survey of open-air surface scatters in drylands: Archaeological and physico-chemical characterisation of fossilised dunes in North Gujarat (India)

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About