New Records for Ancient Pests: Archaeoentomology in Egypt

Panagiotakopulu, Eva

doi:10.1006/jasc.2001.0697

Cited by 70 publications

(60 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Buckland 1991;Panagiotakopulu 2001), the fossil record confirms its Old World status. The species was first identified as a fossil in AngloScandinavian deposits in York (Buckland et al 1974), and then turned up so consistently in medieval deposits that Kenward (1975) was moved to write a paper on it, which was expanded (Kenward 1976) to include other records when its presence in the Roman period was confirmed.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 69%

“…Such is typified by the names of two widespread pests of stored products, Oryzaephilus surinamensis (L.), the saw-toothed grain beetle, and Rhyzopertha dominica (F.), the lesser grain beetle, whose naming by Linnaeus and Fabricius, respectively, would imply New World origins, and this has often subsequently been assumed (e.g. Hill 1994), although the fossil record has indicated otherwise (Buckland 1981(Buckland , 1991Panagiotakopulu 2001;Valamoti and Buckland 1995). The recovery of fossil material from archaeological deposits allows the historical biogeogeography of invasive species of Coleoptera and other insects to be examined, and this paper discusses one such species, an occasional associate with stored products, the blind flightless beetle, Aglenus brunneus Gyll., which has particular problems in dispersal and which has been recovered from medieval deposits in Iceland.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

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A failed invader in the North Atlantic, the case of Aglenus brunneus Gyll. (Col., Colydiidae), a blind flightless beetle from Iceland

Buckland¹,

Panagiotakopulu

Sveinbjarnardóttir³

2008

Biol Invasions

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The occurrence of an occasional pest of mouldy stored product residues, the blind flightless beetle Aglenus brunneus Gyll., in samples from the medieval farm at Reykholt in Iceland, along with several other strongly synanthropic beetles, is considered in relation to its fossil record. The species is dependent on man for its dispersal and survival and it probably had its primary habitat in the warm, decaying litter of the undisturbed forest floor in Europe. Now virtually cosmopolitan, it had been introduced to a remote site in the eastern desert of Egypt by the Roman period and was widespread in medieval northern Europe. The processes by which such an apparently stenotopic species could have invaded are discussed in relation to other evidence for anthropochorous dispersal.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 69%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

A failed invader in the North Atlantic, the case of Aglenus brunneus Gyll. (Col., Colydiidae), a blind flightless beetle from Iceland

Buckland¹,

Panagiotakopulu

Sveinbjarnardóttir³

2008

Biol Invasions

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“…Panagiotakopulu (2001) has drawn attention to an illustration in the Book of the Dead which shows a priest spearing a beetle (Book of the Dead, 36). She contends that this was connected with the fear of beetles eating away at the mummified bodies in the tombs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Peacock (1993) has also noted that several flesh-eating beetles (Dermestidae), such as Attagenus sp., Ctesias sp., and Thylodrias contractus Motsch, have been identified in contexts dated to 2700 to 2200 BC. Mummies, both human and animal, have provided an extensive source of food for insects since the time of their deposition (Panagiotakopulu 2001). Dermestidae are significant pests in museum collections held in tropical countries, specifically several species belonging to the genera Anthrenus, Attagenus, Dermestes, and Trogoderma (Nair 1986).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Damage caused by insects during the mummification process: an experimental study

Abdel-Maksoud

Al-Shazly

El-Amin

2011

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

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The process of mummification had been known since the Fourth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom (ca. 2600 BC) and continued to develop throughout ancient Egyptian history. Although mummification protected the body from decay, especially by microbes, some mummification techniques left the body susceptible to insect attack. Certain types of insects have been detected in the mummies. In scholarly publications, most authors have dealt with microorganisms, while few have concerned themselves in depth with the effect of insects on the mummies. This study aims to discuss the significance of insects and the changes they affected to the mummies during embalming. To achieve this goal, experiments were carried out replicating various mummification techniques using albino Wistar rats. Analysis and investigative techniques used included visual observation, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, investigation of the surface morphology by a scanning electron microscope, and color change by a spectrophotometer. The following insects could be identified as being present during the second and third processes of mummification: Dermestes maculatus, Necrobia rufipes, Saprinus gilvicornis, Chrysomya albiceps, Wohlfahrtia magnifica, and Attagenus fasciatus. In addition, the majority of our findings confirmed that the degradation by insects increased with the second and third methods of mummification. Finally, the experimental study conducted using the mummification techniques of the New Kingdom (ca. 1570-1070 BC) indicated that they were more resistant to insect attack than the other types.

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“…Boessneck, 1988;Vartavan and Asensi Amoros, 1997;Panagiotakopulu, 2001), there has been little attempt to reconstruct the detail of urban living conditions, and there are perhaps few places where terminal occupation deposits remain on the floors of abandoned houses. Amarna, near modern Minya in Middle Egypt (Fig.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%