n-Alkyl nitriles and compound-specific carbon isotope analysis of lipid combustion residues from Neanderthal and experimental hearths: Identifying sources of organic compounds and combustion temperatures

Jambrina‐Enríquez, Margarita; Herrera‐Herrera, Antonio V.; Vera, Caterina Rodríguez de; Leierer, Lucia; Connolly,; Mallol, Carolina

doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2019.105899

Cited by 23 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…Using different plots commonly used in archaeological lipid analysis [21][22][23]65 also show that the differences in the position of our LS and DD samples (Fig. 3a-c) are mainly caused by the effect of the resin in the C 18:0 isotopic signal.…”

Section: Compound-specific Isotopic Values Our Results Show That Conmentioning

confidence: 68%

“…Despite the biases in δ 13 C 18:0 , previous studies suggest that δ 13 C 16:0 values can be used to discern between plant and animal sources in organic residues 22 . Our SMS sample, with a δ 13 www.nature.com/scientificreports/…”

Section: Compound-specific Isotopic Values Our Results Show That Conmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The figure shows that the fatty acids from resin control samples (R2 to R4) plot in the upper region of terrestrial herbivores 21,22,[65][66][67][68][69][70][71] , whilst R1 plots in the C3 wood ellipse 22 . The C 16:0 and C 18:0 values of certain seeds also plot in this region 22,65,66,68,72 , confirming the plant origin of the fatty acids in the resin. Regarding the differences between our DD and LS samples, all the paired samples plot in the same ellipse, including AX2 DD and LS samples, or at least in the surrounding zones, as the AX3 (DD and LS) and CS (DD and LS) samples.…”

Section: Compound-specific Isotopic Values Our Results Show That Conmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Fatty acids. Unsaturated fatty acids n-hexadecanoic acid (C 16:0 ) and n-octadecanoic acid (C 18:0 ), which are ubiquitous in nature, are commonly dominant in archaeological deposits and usually indicate degradation of more complex lipids 22,45,54 . We identified them in all the samples, as well as in our resin control samples.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Combining data from archaeological soil micromorphology and gas chromatography holds great potential for archaeological interpretation [18][19][20] . Micromorphology provides high resolution contextual data and gas chromatography provides molecular information on lipid content, particularly if coupled with isotopic ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) for compound specific isotope analysis (CSIA) [21][22][23] . Lipids are organic molecules that preserve well in sedimentary contexts for long periods of time [24][25][26] and they can be informative of human activities, diets and paleoenvironments [27][28][29] .…”

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confidence: 99%

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Micro-contextual identification of archaeological lipid biomarkers using resin-impregnated sediment slabs

Vera

Herrera‐Herrera

Jambrina‐Enríquez

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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Characterizing organic matter preserved in archaeological sediment is crucial to behavioral and paleoenvironmental investigations. This task becomes particularly challenging when considering microstratigraphic complexity. Most of the current analytical methods rely on loose sediment samples lacking spatial and temporal resolution at a microstratigraphic scale, adding uncertainty to the results. Here, we explore the potential of targeted molecular and isotopic biomarker analysis on polyester resin-impregnated sediment slabs from archaeological micromorphology, a technique that provides microstratigraphic control. We performed gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) and gas chromatography–isotope ratio mass spectromety (GC–IRMS) analyses on a set of samples including drill dust from resin-impregnated experimental and archaeological samples, loose samples from the same locations and resin control samples to assess the degree of interference of polyester resin in the GC–MS and Carbon-IRMS signals of different lipid fractions (n-alkanes, aromatics, n-ketones, alcohols, fatty acids and other high polarity lipids). The results show that biomarkers within the n-alkane, aromatic, n-ketone, and alcohol fractions can be identified. Further work is needed to expand the range of identifiable lipid biomarkers. This study represents the first micro-contextual approach to archaeological lipid biomarkers and contributes to the advance of archaeological science by adding a new method to obtain behavioral or paleoenvironmental proxies.

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Section: Compound-specific Isotopic Values Our Results Show That Conmentioning

confidence: 68%

Section: Compound-specific Isotopic Values Our Results Show That Conmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Compound-specific Isotopic Values Our Results Show That Conmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Micro-contextual identification of archaeological lipid biomarkers using resin-impregnated sediment slabs

Vera

Herrera‐Herrera

Jambrina‐Enríquez

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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Multi-proxy analysis of starchy plant consumption: a case study of pottery food crusts from a Late Iron Age settlement at Pada, northeast Estonia

Chen,

Johanson,

Matthews

et al. 2023

Veget Hist Archaeobot

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Characterisation of charred organic matter in micromorphological thin sections by means of Raman spectroscopy

Lambrecht

Vera

Jambrina‐Enríquez

et al. 2021

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

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Burned or charred organic matter in anthropogenic combustion features may provide important clues about past human activities related to fire. To interpret archaeological hearths, a correct identification of the organic source material is key. In the present work, Raman spectroscopy is applied to characterise the structural properties of char produced in laboratory heating- and open-fire experiments. This reference data set is compared to analyses of three different archaeological sites with Middle Palaeolithic combustion contexts. The results show that it is possible to determine whether a charred fragment is the product of burning animal-derived matter (e.g. meat) or plant-derived matter (e.g. wood) by plotting a few Raman spectral parameters (i.e. position of G and D bands, and intensity ratios HD/HG and HV/HG) against one another. The most effective parameters for discriminating animal- from plant-derived matter are the position of the G band and the HV/HG intensity ratio. This method can be applied on raw sample material and on uncovered micromorphological thin sections. The latter greatly compliments micromorphology by providing information about char fragments without any clear morphological characteristics. This study is the first of its kind and may provide archaeologists with a robust new method to distinguish animal- from plant-derived char in thin sections.

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n-Alkyl nitriles and compound-specific carbon isotope analysis of lipid combustion residues from Neanderthal and experimental hearths: Identifying sources of organic compounds and combustion temperatures

Cited by 23 publications

References 61 publications

Micro-contextual identification of archaeological lipid biomarkers using resin-impregnated sediment slabs

Micro-contextual identification of archaeological lipid biomarkers using resin-impregnated sediment slabs

Multi-proxy analysis of starchy plant consumption: a case study of pottery food crusts from a Late Iron Age settlement at Pada, northeast Estonia

Characterisation of charred organic matter in micromorphological thin sections by means of Raman spectroscopy

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