Unique chemical parameters and microbial activity lead to increased archaeological preservation at the Roman frontier site of Vindolanda, UK

Waterlogged burial conditions impact upon artefact preservation. One major determinant of preservation is presence and behaviour of microorganisms, however, unravelling the mechanisms, especially in waterlogged conditions is challenging. In this study, we analysed elemental composition, bacterial diversity and community structure from excavation trenches at the Roman Site of Vindolanda, Northumberland, UK, using pXRF and 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. Excavation trenches provide information of different occupation periods. The results indicated that microbial communities were dominated by Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria at a phylum level. Samples which also had visible vivianite presence showed that there were marked increases in Methylophilus. Methylophilus might be associated with favourable preservation in these anaerobic conditions. More research is needed to clearly link the presence of Methylophilus with vivianite production. The study emphasises the need for further integration of chemical and microbiome approaches, especially in good preservation areas, to explore microbial and chemical degradation mechanisms.

Unique Chemical Parameters and Microbial Activity Lead to Increased Archaeological Preservation within Vindolanda, UK.

Waterlogged burial conditions impact upon artefact preservation. One major determinant of preservation is presence and behaviour of microorganisms, however, unravelling the mechanisms is challenging. In this study, we analysed elemental composition, bacterial diversity and community structure from excavation trenches at the Roman Site of Vindolanda, Northumberland, UK, using pXRF and 16s rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. Excavation trenches provide layers which can be classed as phosphorus sinks and which are strongly linked to the abundance of vivanite. The results indicated that microbial communities were dominant in Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria at a phylum level. Samples which also had visible vivianite presence showed that there were marked increases in Methylophilus. Methylophilus might be associated with favourable preservation in these anaerobic conditions. More research is needed to clearly link the presence of Methylophilus with vivianite production. The study emphasises the need for further integration of chemical and microbiome approaches, especially in good preservation areas, to explore microbial and chemical degradation mechanisms.

The Impact of Vegetation on Archaeological Sites in the Low Arctic in Light of Climate Change

Vegetation is changing across the Arctic in response to increasing temperatures, which may influence archaeological sites in the region. At the moment, very little is known about how different plant species influence archaeological remains. In this study we visited 14 archaeological sites stretching across a climatic gradient from the outer coast to the inner fjords in the Nuuk Fjord area of West Greenland to assess the impact of vegetation growth on archaeological preservation. Examination of the physical disturbance of archaeological layers and materials by roots from different plant species showed that horsetail (Equisetum arvense) was particularly destructive because of its deep penetrating rhizomes and ubiquity across the study area. Willow (Salix glauca) also caused physical disturbance due to a dense root network, but its roots were mainly found in the upper 30 cm of the soil. Focus was also given to the impact from vegetation on the visibility of sites, where growth of willow was found be the main problem, especially in the inner fjords. Historic descriptions and aerial photographs from the sites show that shrub growth was already widespread in the region by the 1930s, but photos of some of the sites investigated show that the willow shrubs are significantly taller today, which has decreased the visibility of site features. The impact from horsetail and willow on archaeological sites may be mitigated using geotextiles and grazing by livestock, but both methods require further studies before being implemented in the study area.

KNOCK! KNOCK! WHO'S THERE? AN ETHNOARCHAEOLOGICAL APPROACH IN FRENCH GUIANA

Amazonia and the Guianas possess exceptional potential for ethnoarchaeological studies because of the precolumbian heritage of modern-day Amerindian people. Surprisingly, minimal scholarship of this nature has been conducted in the South American lowlands. On the French Guiana coast, Maillard, a small Palikur village, was abruptly abandoned in 1990. I initiated an ethnoarchaeological study to pinpoint important differences between the interpretation of archaeological and ethnographic data. I recorded the topography of features and remains, compiled an inventory of artifacts and the contents of discard areas, inventoried the cultivated trees present, and described the characteristics of the surroundings. After analyzing the data using classical methods of archaeological inference to obtain a complete reconstruction of the village and the customs of its inhabitants, I invited the chief into his now-abandoned village to describe the settlement as it was while inhabited. In the twenty years since, I have made several visits to track the natural degradation of the site. This ethnoarchaeological approach shows that archaeologists dealing with field data can make many mistakes. Conversely, ethnographic accounts are distorted by the cultural rules and interdictions of interviewees. This experiment suggests the need for prudence in our interpretations and hypotheses, especially in the tropical lowlands, where archaeological preservation is particularly poor.

Dwelling in Hacıveliler: social-engineering policies in the context of space, place and landscape in rural, western Turkey

The Gediz valley of modern, western Turkey is a major gateway linking the Aegean spheres with the central Anatolian plateau. The making of cultural heritage in Anatolia plays out in very different ways depending on the physical location of the community and the level of implementation of the post-1923 social- and political-engineering agendas of the authorities of the Republic of Turkey. In this case-study we analyse one community, a village of just under 200 people known as Hacıveliler in the Marmara Lake basin of the Gediz valley in western Turkey (province of Manisa). We explore how this community continues to (re)define its heritage (from the 19th century to the present day) in light of contemporary policies. The approach combines historiographical, archaeological, preservation and ethnographical datasets.

The Effects of Food Processing on the Archaeological Visibility of Maize: An Experimental Study of Carbonization of Lime-treated Maize Kernels

This paper explores the effects of maize processing on the carbonization and preservation of maize kernels in the archaeological record. The shift to processing maize with lime (known as hominy production in the Eastern Woodlands and nixtamalization in Mesoamerica) in ancient times had the effect of making maize more nutritious through increasing the availability of calcium, niacin, dietary fiber, and essential amino acids. Less understood is how this process of cooking maize in a lime solution affects the archaeological preservation of maize; if there is a clear difference in the archaeological signature of maize remains that are and are not processed this way, then this process may be identifiable in the archaeological record. To this end, an experiment was constructed analyzing the variation in size between dried and alkali processed maize kernels before and after carbonization. Results indicate that alkali processed maize kernels are less likely to fragment during carbonization.