Rice domestication and climatic change: phytolith evidence from East China

Lü, Houyuan; Liu, Zhenxia; Wu, Naiqin; Berné, Serge; Saito, Yoshiki; Liu, Baozhu; Luo, Wei

doi:10.1080/030094802320942581

Cited by 177 publications

(78 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Some Pleistocene rice finds are not directly associated with human archaeology (i.e. no associated artefacts) and might be suggested to relate to wild populations, including phytoliths off of the Shanghai coast (Lu et al 2002) and perhaps the infamous rice husks of the palaeosol (peat) deposit at Sorori in Korea (Lee and Woo 2006;Kim et al 2008; however, the latter may represent later Holocene intrusive material: see critical comments in Ahn 2010). Interestingly, both sites date to ca.…”

Section: Chronological and Geographical Patterns In The Archaeology Omentioning

confidence: 96%

Consilience of genetics and archaeobotany in the entangled history of rice

Fuller

Sato

Castillo

et al. 2010

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

317

278

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Major leaps forward in understanding rice both in genetics and archaeology have taken place in the past decade or so-with the publication of full draft genomes for indica and japonica rice, on the one hand, and with the spread of systematic flotation and increased recovery of archaeological spikelet bases and other rice remains on early sites in China, India and Southeast Asia. This paper will sketch a framework that coherently integrates the evidence from these burgeoning fields. This framework implies a reticulate framework in the phylogeny of early cultivated rice, with multiple starts of cultivation (two is perhaps not enough) but with the key consolidations of adaptations that must have been spread through hybridisation and therefore long-distance cultural contacts.Archaeobotanical evidence allows us to document the gradual evolutionary process of domestication through rice spikelet bases and grain size change. Separate trends in grain size change can be identified in India and China. The earliest centre of rice domestication was in the Yangtze basin of China, but a largely separate trajectory into rice cultivation can be traced in the Ganges plains of India. Intriguingly, contact-induced hybridisation is indicated for the early development of indica in northern India, ca. 2000 BC. An updated synthesis of the interwoven patterns of the spread of various rice varieties throughout Asia and to Madagascar can be suggested in which rice reached most of its historical range of important cultivation by the Iron Age. The distribution of wild rice and genetic diversity in domesticated ricesRice is a highly diversified crop, being grown from the equator to over 40°N, from sea-level ca. 2,700 m in parts of the Himalayas and in a wide ecological range of cultivation systems. Although there is much less ecological variation found within its wild progenitor complex (Oryza rufipogon and Oryza nivara), these are nonetheless distributed over a wide geographical range and a spectrum of ecological niches from permanent to seasonal wetlands. As the origins of cultivation must have developed in places where hunter-gatherers were utilising wild populations, the distribution of the wild progenitor, in the past when cultivation began, is a key element in identifying the origins of rice. There are three lines of approach to inferring this without archaeological evidence, including (1) the Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (

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Section: Chronological and Geographical Patterns In The Archaeology Omentioning

confidence: 96%

Consilience of genetics and archaeobotany in the entangled history of rice

Fuller

Sato

Castillo

et al. 2010

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

317

278

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Double peaked glume cells can be used for identification of domesticated rice based on discriminant function analysis (Pearsall et al 1995;Zhao et al 1998Zhao et al , 2000. Oryza-type cuneiform bulliform cells can be recognized by fish-scale ornaments on the top and two lateral protrusions (Fujiwara 1993;Lu et al 2002). The scooped bilobate arranged in parallel is typical of tribe Oryzeae (Wang and Lu 1993;Jiang 1995).…”

Section: The Zbs Profile and Sample Collectionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Over the past two decades, phytoliths have played an important role in investigating early rice agriculture in China (e.g. Zhao et al 1998;Lu et al 2002;Fuller et al 2007;Itzstein-Davey et al 2007;Jin et al 2014;Wu et al 2014). Three morphological types are diagnostic for identifying rice: scooped bilobates and Oryza-type cuneiform bulliforms from the leaves and stems of rice; and Oryza-type peaked-shape glume cells from the rice husk (Fig.…”

Section: The Zbs Profile and Sample Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

New evidence for Neolithic rice cultivation and Holocene environmental change in the Fuzhou Basin, southeast China

Zheng

Rolett

et al. 2016

Veget Hist Archaeobot

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A stratified profile of the Zhuangbianshan (ZBS) archaeological site (Fuzhou Basin, Fujian) was studied to investigate Neolithic era anthropogenic influence and associated environmental changes. Analysis of the archaeological sediments focused on phytoliths, palynomorphs and microcharcoal. Until now, a lack of direct evidence for agriculture has made it difficult to know if Neolithic cultures of this area relied on the exploitation of wild plants such as nuts and sago palm, or a combination of farming and foraging. Three types of rice phytoliths were found in ZBS archaeological deposits, providing robust evidence for rice farming as part of a broad-spectrum Neolithic subsistence economy centered on fishing and hunting. Chronologies based on AMS 14 C dates and artifact typology place the earliest rice during the Tanshishan (TSS) Period (5,000-4,300 cal BP) followed by a shift to economic dependency on rice in the Huangguashan (HGS) Period (4,300-3,500 cal BP). The ZBS phytolith assemblage contains high frequencies of rice husk (peaked-shape glume cells) phytoliths, with far fewer leaf and stem types. This indicates late stage processing activities such as dehusking, implying a focus on consumption rather than rice production. High concentrations of charcoal in the Neolithic ZBS deposits indicate local human settlement and peaks in fire use. The ZBS pollen record also reflects human settlement and peaks in local forest clearance during the Neolithic. Forest cover was renewed when the site was temporarily abandoned following the Neolithic. Rapid formation of the Min River floodplain began *2,000 cal BP in association with retreating sea level and intensifying anthropogenic influence. Prior to that, rice farming in the Fuzhou Basin was limited by the scarcity of wetlands suitable for agriculture.

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“…Most palaeoecological and archaeological work to date has been based on the cataloguing of sediment-phytolith assemblages in terms of morphology, size and frequency, in order to deduce the taxa present and to infer vegetation types and environmental conditions (Twiss et al, 1969;Fredlund and Tieszen, 1994; Barboni et al, 1999;Parker et al, 2004). Important applications include identifying the domestication of important food types, for example, Cucurbita (Piperno and Stothert, 2003) and rice (Lu et al, 2002), bananas (Lejju et al, 2006) and wheat (Rosen, 1993). In addition, further insight into climate and environment has been deduced from the application of phytolith indices including tree cover density (Alexandre et al, 1997), aridity (Diester-Haas et al, 1973) and climate (Twiss, 1987).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Silicon, oxygen and carbon isotope composition of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) phytoliths: implications for palaeoecology and archaeology

Hodson

Parker

Leng

et al. 2008

J Quaternary Science

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2008. Silicon, oxygen and carbon isotope composition of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) phytoliths: implications for palaeoecology and archaeology.ABSTRACT: Six mature wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) plants from one crop were collected one week before harvest, and organs were separated as follows: culm, rachis, leaf sheaths, leaf blades and inflorescence bracts. Percentage silica (% SiO 2 ), % C, % N and d 13 C were determined in these samples. Phytoliths isolated from the individual organs were subsequently analysed for d 29 Si, d 30 Si, and d 18 O, as well as % C, % N and d 13 C from occluded organic material within the phytoliths. Percentage silica was highest in the leaf sheaths and leaf blades and lower in the inflorescence bracts, culm and rachis. d 30 Si and d 29 Si were highly correlated, and both increased in the upper parts of the plant. It appears there are two routes for Si transport within the plant, and that heavier isotopes increase towards the end of both routes. The d 18 O results indicate that the culm and the leaf blades were the sites of highest d 18 O, with lower values in the rachis, leaf sheath and inflorescence. There was no correlation between the accumulation of either heavy silicon isotope ( 29 Si and 30 Si) and heavy oxygen accumulation ( 18 O). d 13 C values were typical of C3 species, and whole plant and isolated phytolith values were similar. Low % N concentrations were detected in phytoliths. # Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

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Rice domestication and climatic change: phytolith evidence from East China

Cited by 177 publications

References 23 publications

Consilience of genetics and archaeobotany in the entangled history of rice

Consilience of genetics and archaeobotany in the entangled history of rice

New evidence for Neolithic rice cultivation and Holocene environmental change in the Fuzhou Basin, southeast China

Silicon, oxygen and carbon isotope composition of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) phytoliths: implications for palaeoecology and archaeology

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