ABSTRACT Zooarchaeological assemblages provide critical, diachronic data reflecting long-term subsistence trends influenced by changing technologies, environments, human activities and species introductions. Such data are imperative in regions such as the Caribbean where island ecosystems are facing rapid declines in biodiversity and increased habitat loss. While the Caribbean has received increased zooarchaeological attention in recent years, the southern islands of Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao (the ABC islands) remain understudied, with much of the existing data scattered throughout the published and grey literature. Here we combine faunal data from 26 archaeological sites dating from ca. 4000 BC to the late nineteenth century to provide the first synthesis of zooarchaeological data for the ABC islands. Our results identify spatial and regional trends in the available faunal assemblage data and reveal current knowledge gaps that prevent meaningful integration of zooarchaeological data into environmental and heritage conservation planning. We recommend that future research focused on (1) increasing taxonomic resolution; (2) clarifying the arrival and legacy effects of introduced fauna; (3) improving chronological resolution; and (4) increasing data availability and comparability can bridge these gaps, enhancing the applied value of zooarchaeological data for ongoing conservation and heritage management in the Southern Caribbean.

ABSTRACT Mollusc shells, commonly preserved in archaeological records worldwide, capture high-resolution, sub-annual environmental information at local scales through the incorporation of chemical elements during their formation. These geochemical signals can be used to infer the season of shellfish collection by past human populations. This study presents new seasonal data derived from magnesium-to-calcium (Mg/Ca) ratios in Patella caerulea Linnaeus, 1758 from the archaeological site of Haua Fteah in northern Cyrenaica (Libya, North Africa). Our data were obtained through elemental mapping using laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), which enables the visualisation of intra-shell geochemical variation at high spatial resolution. The results provide detailed reconstructions of shellfish collection seasonality from the Capsian to the Neolithic periods, covering a ∼5,000 year span from the latest Pleistocene through the Early-Mid Holocene. We demonstrate that mollusc gathering occurred throughout the year, with a higher frequency in the autumn and winter seasons, suggesting that marine resource use was more consistent than previously assumed. We compare our data with previous seasonality studies of different mollusc species to demonstrate that seasonal collection patterns varied between mollusc species, suggesting differences in marine exploitation subsistence strategies, probably related to the availability of other food resources, energetic return and mollusc processing techniques.

ABSTRACT Early sites (ca. 12000–10400 cal. BP) located at the Imilac and Punta Negra high Andean basin in the southern Puna de Atacama (24.5°) appear as open sites with little stratigraphic potential. Most of the record corresponds to abundant lithic material as opposed to a few bone remains. Nevertheless, the presence of numerous projectile points and artefacts related to the processing of fauna allows us to infer the importance of this resource. The scarce remains recovered are generally in a very poor state of preservation, fragmented and very fragile. To understand the taphonomic trajectories and the absence of bone remains in the records, we have implemented a line of histotaphonomic actualistic analysis in two ecological floors corresponding to the high ravine zone (4,000 masl) and the current borders of the Salar de Punta Negra (3,000 masl), where the sites are located. Through the sampling of modern skeletal remains, mostly from camelids in both sectors, we sought to explore diagenetic processes by means of histological analysis. Preliminary results based on transmitted light microscopy show that diagenetic modification conditions seem to be more dynamic and variable in the salt-flat sector than in the surrounding ravine environments associated with watercourses that come from the Llullaillaco volcano.

ABSTRACT Negative structures (pits), dated to the second half of the sixth millennium cal BC, have been documented at Lapiás das Lameiras (Sintra, Estremadura, Portugal), an open-air settlement in the Estremadura limestone area. Their sedimentary fill contains a large number of archaeological remains, of both biotic and abiotic origins. This paper presents the complete study of the invertebrates documented in these structures. Marine invertebrates living on a rocky substrate in the intertidal zone predominate: mainly molluscs (e.g. mussels), but also crustaceans (e.g. goose barnacles) are documented. Typical estuarine clams (e.g. Ruditapes decussatus) are less abundant. Gathering shellfish involved travelling to the coast, located today about 10 km from the site. Continental invertebrates are represented by land and fluvial molluscs. When compared with material from the Mesolithic period, the archaeofaunal study at Lameiras indicates continuity in the use of marine resources by the earliest Neolithic groups in the western Iberian Peninsula.

ABSTRACT Throughout the Aegean, the Late Bronze Age (LBA) to the Early Iron Age (EIA) has been characterised as a period of societal change. After the collapse of palatial economies in the south (c.1200 BC), Greece entered a phase referred to in the past as the ‘Dark Ages’. Research into the nature of EIA agriculture has been relatively limited and although this situation has improved within the last decade there are still significant knowledge gaps. This paper will shed new light on LBA-EIA arable agriculture by presenting crop stable isotope analysis from the site of Methone in northern Greece. These data are used to examine site-specific agricultural strategies as well as allowing for an evidence-based understanding of economic variability in this region. The results reported show that at Methone and likely throughout Greece in the Early Iron Age, inhabitants continued to pursue relatively ‘low-input’ agricultural systems that were adapted to specific local settings and environmental conditions, even in the face of a period of potential aridity. Ultimately, this research provides a fresh approach to Iron Age (IA) Aegean agriculture whilst also highlighting the need to proceed with further research from other IA Aegean sites.

ABSTRACT The Early and Middle Holocene was a key period in the process of human settlement of the Fuegian archipelago, being also a period of several climatic and environmental fluctuations that affected human societies. Analysis of charred woody and carpological remains from the oldest layers of Binushmuka I, Túnel I, and Imiwaia I, provides valuable vegetation use and management data during this period. Anthracological studies identified 7 taxa, with Nothofagus pumilio and Berberis sp. being the most abundant of all sites. Túnel I had the highest taxonomic diversity, while Imiwaia I had the lowest. In addition, carpological analysis revealed that Poaceae, Empetrum rubrum and Galium antarcticum were dominant in the record. These results indicate differences in plant use and environmental conditions between the sites, contributing to a broader understanding of local vegetation dynamics and human-environment interactions in the Fuegian Archipelago during the Holocene.

ABSTRACT In the Eastern Torres Strait, a multi-proxy approach combining micro- and macro-scale geoarchaeological techniques has been applied at Ormi (Dauar Island), an archaeological midden site dating from 2600–2250 cal. BP. This study combines soil micromorphology with particle size analysis and geochemical analyses (Carbon/Nitrogen ratios; Total Phosphorus (Pt) and Portable X-ray Fluorescence (pXRF)) to assess integrity of the deposits. The geoarchaeological analyses provide new insights into site formation processes, while microscopic analyses on paleosols allow settlement chronologies (including those associated with pottery) to be refined.

ABSTRACT By reviewing traditional, sunken, groundwater-harvesting agroecosystems (SGHAS) in coastal and inland aeolian sand situated in Iran, Egypt, Gaza Strip, Algeria and Iberia, coupled with image interpretation and geospatial analysis, we study the innovation and function of recently excavated Early Islamic (EI; tenth-twelfth century), Plot-and-Berm agroecosystems along the southeastern Mediterranean coast of Israel. The SGHAS and EI agroecosystems, usually affiliated with nearby towns, possess an aeolian sand substrate enrichened with urban refuse and/or organic material. The long-term investment in SGHAS attained profitable water security in the form of temporally continuous, shallow groundwater, replenished by rainfall. The crops in SGHASs include a wide range of vegetables, watermelons, dates and grapes, implying that the EI crops were partly or fully different. The spotty, historic appearance of SGHAS since the fifteenth–sixteenth centuries temporally lags after the abandonment of the EI agroecosystems, does not support spatial and temporal connectivity of sand agriculture knowledge, but probably exemplifies the appearance of site-specific ingenuities derived from growing agro-technological knowledge, crop variety and needs for food security. This study demonstrates the importance of traditional analogues for interpreting research gaps of archaeological, agricultural landscapes and provides insight for establishing traditionally-based, sustainable agriculture in sand.

ABSTRACT The first Russian settlers developed relatively large cities and a new phenomenon called ‘urban habitat’ to the north of Western Siberia. This article presents the results of a study on soil samples taken from the cultural layer of Berezov city during excavations of the city’s kremlin, or civic centre, posad, or town settlement area, and the farmstead within the posad. The samples are dated from the XVI to the end of the XVIII century. Examination of the samples revealed 12 types of parasite eggs from both humans and animals. The city's cultural layer was found to be relatively highly contaminated with parasite eggs. The species composition of parasite eggs in samples collected from the cultural layer varied according to land use, i.e. whether public, communal, or livestock, or sanitary condition in Berezov city. An analysis of historical and archaeological data enabled the reconstruction of certain nutritional aspects of the population in Berezov city at the time. Additionally, certain cultural and abiotic factors contributing to the high parasite infestation of humans and domestic animals were identified, and similarities can be found in the research of other Russian cities of Siberia in the XVI–XIX centuries.

ABSTRACT Water reservoirs located on the mining fronts were essential for the operation of Roman gold mining. They served purposes such as the extraction and washing of gold deposits, and the final disposal of waste. The history of a Roman gold mine is intricately linked to its hydraulic network. Therefore, dating the construction, usage, and abandonment layers of water reservoirs enables us to comprehend the evolution of mining operations. In this paper, we present a methodological approach consisting of the opening of archaeological sondages in the water reservoirs to understand their stratigraphy and operating phases, together with sampling to obtain chronological and pollen information. We present the work carried out in four case studies located in various mining areas in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula. Results indicate that water reservoirs serve as paleoenvironmental archives, facilitating the chronological unravelling of mining operations and the landscape reconstruction from the period immediately preceding the onset of mining operations to their abandonment. Results also have highlighting some of the challenges when interpreting radiocarbon results. We conclude that the archaeological analysis of hydraulic mining infrastructure is an effective methodology for understanding the evolution of mining landscapes.