Stable isotopic evidence for diet in a Roman and Late Roman population from Leptiminus, Tunisia

Stable isotope and multi-analytical investigation of Monte da Cegonha: A Late Antiquity population in southern Portugal

“…The results from Monte da Cegonha are consistent with the Roman diet, as reported in literature sources, which focused on a "Mediterranean triad" of cereals, wine and olive oil, together with dry legumes (Keenleyside et al, 2009;Prowse et al, 2005). Prowse et al (2004) suggested that cereals made up around 70-75% of the dietary intake of the Roman diet, while meat and other animal products were not major dietary components.…”

“…Stable isotope analysis is based on the principle that human and animal body tissues reflect the isotopic composition of the food and water ingested (Britton et al, 2008;Budd et al, 2013;Keenleyside et al, 2009;Müldner and Richards, 2007). Measuring the carbon (δ 13 C co ) and nitrogen (δ 15 N) isotopic ratios of bone collagen is a well-established technique for reconstruction of ancient diets (Bogaard et al, 2007;Craig et al, 2009;Keenleyside et al, 2009).…”

“…Measuring the carbon (δ 13 C co ) and nitrogen (δ 15 N) isotopic ratios of bone collagen is a well-established technique for reconstruction of ancient diets (Bogaard et al, 2007;Craig et al, 2009;Keenleyside et al, 2009). Carbon isotope values can be used to distinguish plants using the C 3 and C 4 photosynthetic pathways and the individuals consuming these plants (Budd et al, 2013;Chenery et al, 2010).…”

“…Apatite-collagen spacing (δ 13 C apa-col spacing) has been used to estimate the type and proportion of protein in the overall diet (Turner et al, 2012). Nitrogen isotope values are used to infer the position of an individual in the food chain (Keenleyside et al, 2009), based on increased δ 15 N values (2-6‰; Hedges and Reynard, 2007) with each trophic level, and are useful for distinguishing meat-rich diets from plant-rich diets, as well as the consumption of marine and freshwater resources (Bocherens and Drucker, 2003;Hedges and Reynard, 2007).…”

Eski̇ Topluluklarin Yaşam Bi̇çi̇mleri̇ni̇n Tanimi Akdeni̇z Havzasi'nda Beslenme, Kemi̇kler Ve İzotoplar

“…Figure 4 presents a comparison between carbon and nitrogen stable isotope data of all roman sites previously mentioned, as well as data from Leptiminus (Tunisia,. Isotopic values recorded at Leptiminus witness a large consumption of fish/marine foodstuffs by this population, mixed with terrestrial plant resources (Keenleyside et al 2009 (Salamon et al 2008). Indeed, as for La Selvicciola, the subsistence economy of Castro dei Volsci (6th AD) is based on land foodstuffs with a variation of animal protein intake between individuals, while a significant amount of fish resources seems to contribute to the diet of subjects living in Rome during the 15th century (Salamon et al 2008).…”