Osteological remains of small waders of the order Charadriiformes are regularly found in archaeological sites in Europe. Due to high taxonomic diversity, the rarity of some species in reference collections, and a lack of published diagnostic criteria, their identification poses challenges. To help resolve this issue, this study uses morphometric data, taken on a sample of extant wader skeletons, to identify metric criteria for species differentiation. Despite the relatively small sample size, the results show that multiple taxa can be distinguished using morphometrics. Used in conjunction with comparative morphological analysis, this morphometric method provides a valuable aid to zooarchaeologists working on wader remains from continental Northwestern Europe.

Zooarchaeological research all over Europe has suggested a generalised pattern of livestock size decrease during the transition between the Roman times and the Early Middle Ages. Different reasons have been proposed to explain this pattern, including a change in management and feeding practices, in the context of a shift of animal husbandry from large to small scale production. This paper is based on faunal material from Roman and early medieval Augusta Raurica, north-western Switzerland, and provides a first attempt to test this hypothesis, by combining zooarchaeological information (taxonomic frequencies and biometrical analysis) and stable carbon and nitrogen isotope data from bone collagen of cattle and pig. The results suggest important changes in livestock management, such as a shift towards pig husbandry, and evidence for increased use of pannage and forest pastures has been found.

Recent research on human exploitation of molluscs, echinoderms and crustaceans during the Mesolithic in the Cantabrian region (northern Iberia) has shown significant variability in the intensity of the use of coastal resources by the last hunter-fisher-gatherers throughout the ~ 4000-year expanse of the Mesolithic (10,700 – 6,700 cal BP). Previous studies have proposed hypotheses related to demographic changes to explain intensification events. In this paper we aim to unravel whether climatic and environmental changes, or other social factors, such as demography, were involved in the increase in the use of marine resources at certain times. We employed species representation, quantification and biometric analysis of the shell assemblages from the El Toral III archaeological site (Asturias, northern Iberia) to identify patterns in shell exploitation throughout the stratigraphic sequence. To establish the chronology and distinguish occupation phases of the site, we employed Bayesian modelling of radiocarbon measurements. Faunal results show that marine gastropods such as limpets of the Patella genus and topshells Phorcus lineatus (da Costa, 1778) were the most exploited species, while bivalves, echinoids and crustaceans were present in smaller quantities. The comparison of the results for El Toral III with other Mesolithic sites in the region reveals significant temporal differences in the intensity of collection of marine shell species. Results showed that intensification processes are not clearly related to climate change but to other social factors, such as demography, suggesting that intensification and relaxation in shell collection events were strategies adopted depending on the needs of the human groups at different times.

The structure and age of remains of two ancient walls located in the city of Nan, a former part of the Lanna Kingdom in modern northern Thailand, were investigated. The remains differ in appearance with a well-preserved brick wall present at Mahawong Road (MHW), while an earthwork with a brick reinforcement core is found at Phaya Wat Temple (PWT). We employed an electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) survey and optically stimulated luminescence dating (OSL) to determine the buried structure of the earthwork at the PWT site and the production age of bricks from both locations. The ERT results reveal lateral heterogeneous resistivity domains cross-cutting the wall, which presumably relates to the construction of a dam. According to OSL dating, the PWT wall was likely built during the time of the war with Burma that ultimately resulted in a foreign occupation of Nan in the sixteenth century. This structure played a role in both flood mitigation and military defence of the city. The structure at MHW represents a city wall that was built at the end of the nineteenth century after Nan was relocated to its present position and rather reflects representative and social needs.

Ifriqiya (roughly Tunisia and eastern Algeria) is believed to have played a significant role in the diffusion of ceramic glazed technologies into other regions of the Western Mediterranean. However, due to limited analysis on North African glazed ceramics, its role in technology transfer remains poorly understood. This paper uses SEM–EDS and petrographic analyses to understand the technology employed in the production of Tunisian ceramics through the study of 30 polychrome glazed ceramics from a medieval settlement at the site of Chimtou (ancient Simitthus), Tunisia, dated to the late ninth-twelfth century. The results show that these are lead-rich glazes with varying contents of alkalis, coloured with copper, iron and manganese oxide and applied over a calcareous body. Opaque glazes were obtained using cassiterite crystals as opacifier or by adding crushed quartz. The use of lead stannate as a colourant and opacifier in one light yellow glaze raises questions about the mechanisms of introduction of tin opacification technology in North Africa. Scrap metal seems to have been used as a source of lead for the glazes; while iron slag was probably used as a source of iron to colour the glaze in one sample, pointing to a cross-craft interaction between glazemaking and metallurgy.

High-definition approaches are currently revolutionizing our understanding of the archaeology of urban archives. Multi-proxy studies at a high spatial resolution offer especially an opportunity to capture their high data potential. Here we present a study of complex floor layers from an occupation phase dating to c. AD 790–830 uncovered in the Viking-age emporium Ribe, Denmark (c. AD 700–900). In order to better understand stratigraphy and the use of indoor space, mapping for soil geochemistry (portable X-ray fluorescence analysis, pXRF) on a high-resolution grid (0.25 × 0.25 m, n = 1059), was combined with targeted sampling for soil micromorphology and artefact distributions. The results show that the studied occupation phase was composed of several short-lived floor phases belonging to two consecutive houses that had been sampled in conjunction, and which exhibited a complex stratigraphy. The older house phase had a primarily domestic function, where ten functional areas could be defined, and are interpreted as designated spaces for food preparation, storage, sitting or sleeping, and weaving. A younger house phase contained a metal workshop in addition to domestic functions. Methodologically, a number of new, potentially anthropogenic, elements of archaeological interest, such as arsenic, manganese and sulfur, were identified that may contribute to interpretations, while the multi-proxy approach elucidates the refined scale at which we can understand a complex stratigraphic sequence and the integrity of its units. This study shows how the various aspects of Viking-age urban life (craft production, domestic life) were integrated, and sheds light on the dynamics of urban occupation.

The paper presents the results of an interim analytical approach to the Late Roman shipwreck of Ses Fontanelles recently found in the island of Mallorca (Balearic Islands, Spain). The excellent state of preservation of the hull and the cargo, including amphorae with painted inscriptions (tituli picti), and its location in shallow waters offshore of one of the main touristic beaches of the island makes this a unique finding in the Mediterranean. A first season of excavations and study of the cargo triggered an analytical approach to solve some of the problems pose by archaeological research, mainly related to the possible origin of the vessel. The analytical strategy combines petrographic analysis for the study of the provenance of the amphorae, archaeozoology and residue analysis to identify their content, and analysis of the wood and plant remains to understand the use of vegetal resources in shipbuilding and in the stow of the cargo. The results of the combination of the petrographic analysis, the study of the ichthyofauna and the organic residue analysis suggest that the boat probably departed from the area of Cartagena in the southeastern part of the Iberian Peninsula, carrying a cargo of fish sauce (liquaminis flos), oil, and wine (probably also some olives preserved in grape derivatives), transported in three main types of amphorae. The analysis of the wood shows, as known in Roman shipbuilding, a clear selection of forest resources. The shipbuilders used pine for longitudinal parts of the hull, while for the small pieces related to the assemblage system (pegged, mortise and tenons) and subjected to a great stress they selected harder woods mainly Cupressaceae, Olea europaea, and Laurus nobilis. In addition, the study reveals that mainly branches of Vitis vinifera, but also other herbaceous plants were used as dunnage protecting the cargo during the journey. The results help to shed some light into different aspects of this unique vessel sunk in Mallorcan waters and contributes to show the benefit of applying archaeological sciences in maritime archaeology.