Ways of Old
Earliest evidence of primate captivity and translocation supports gift diplomacy between Teotihuacan and the Maya
Nawa Sugiyama et al.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 22 November 2022
Abstract:
A multimethod archaeometry study (zooarchaeological, isotopic, ancient DNA, paleobotanical, and radiocarbon dating) of a spider monkey sacrificed in the ceremonial center of Teotihuacan, Mexico (1 to 550 CE) is interpreted as a diplomatic gift exchange with neighboring Maya. Not only does this spider monkey provide the earliest known instance of primate translocation and captivity in Mesoamerica, it helps date incipient modes of interregional diplomacy between two major powers during Early Classic Mesoamerica: Teotihuacan and the Maya. Details of human–primate interaction include age at capture and transport (before ∼3 y of age), captive duration (over 2 y), anthropogenic diet (staple was maize, though secondary resources unique to anthropogenic diet including arrowroot and chili pepper were also found), context of sacrifice (tethered and associated with complete golden eagle and an array of other statecrafts), and general site context (including presence of Maya vessels and Maya-style murals). The timing of the spider monkey’s sacrifice (250 to 300 CE) and its life history suggest a reconsideration of epigraphically attested militaristic involvement of Teotihuacan at certain Maya sites. We propose that a period of more multilateral and fluid ritual exchange with Maya dignitaries preceded the Teotihuacan state’s eventual ascent to prominence.
Collapse, complexity, and caprines: Zooarchaeological investigations of the Hittite state and its afters
Sarah Adcock
Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, forthcoming
Abstract:
This paper analyzes zooarchaeological evidence from the Late Bronze Age collapse of the Hittite empire in central Turkey (ca. 1200 BCE), placing it in dialogue with broader discussions of societal collapse and its aftermath. Zooarchaeological data from the Hittite capital, Hattuşa, and from a nearby rural center, Çadır Höyük, are used to reconstruct day-to-day economic life in the Hittite heartland and to analyze local responses to the disintegration of the Hittite political superstructure. This work allows for the assessment of two common collapse narratives. The first assumes that the state is an integrated whole, characterized by massive scale systemic inter-dependence, so that when one aspect of the state’s organizational structure (e.g., its political system) fails, its other organizational structures (e.g., its economic systems) must follow. The second assumes that rural settlements tend to be considerably less affected by societal collapse than major centers. Drawing on several lines of zooarchaeological evidence, the results of this analysis show that, while changes in central Anatolian lifeways did occur following the collapse of the Hittite empire, the nature of these changes does not always follow the trajectories assumed in conventional narratives of societal collapse.
Cooking in caves: Palaeolithic carbonised plant food remains from Franchthi and Shanidar
Ceren Kabukcu et al.
Antiquity, forthcoming
Abstract:
Research on Palaeolithic hunter-gatherer diet has focused on the consumption of animals. Evidence for the use of plant foods is comparatively limited but is rapidly expanding. The authors present an analysis of carbonised macro-remains of processed plants from Franchthi Cave in the Aegean Basin and Shanidar Cave in the north-west Zagros Mountains. Microscopic examination of the charred food remains reveals the use of pounded pulses as a common ingredient in cooked plant foods. The results are discussed in the context of the regional archaeobotanical literature, leading the authors to argue that plants with bitter and astringent tastes were key ingredients of Palaeolithic cuisines in South-west Asia and the Eastern Mediterranean.
A cost for signaling: Do Hadza hunter-gatherers forgo calories to show-off in an experimental context?
Duncan Stibbard-Hawkes, Dorsa Amir & Coren Apicella
Evolution and Human Behavior, forthcoming
Abstract:
Hadza food-sharing is extremely generous and often extends to individuals outside the household. Some anthropologists have proposed that individuals, especially men, share food beyond the household in order to signal foraging skill. While correlational data have been used to both evidence and critique this hypothesis, it has less often been experimentally tested. Here, we conducted an incentivised experiment to test whether Hadza adults are indeed willing to forgo caloric resources in order to signal their foraging skills. In this study, 196 Hadza adults were given the opportunity to participate in two games - an aim game and a search game - designed to advertise their skill as foragers. We varied the incentive structure of both games, adjusting i) whether there was a caloric cost (i.e., honey) to play, and ii) whether success in each game was rewarded with a prize (i.e., a colored bracelet), which functioned as a visible signal of skill. Although the aim game was universally popular when there was no cost to play, we found that individuals generally valued calories more than signaling opportunities and were unwilling to forgo caloric resources to continue participation in either game. In line with signaling theory, we did observe age and gender difference in willingness to wager calories for signaling opportunities. Men were more likely than women to forgo calories in order to participate. Younger people (<37), especially younger men, were also more likely to forgo calories to play than older people.
The rise of idiôtês: Micro-politics of death and community reproduction in Bronze Age Hungary
Tamás Polányi
Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, forthcoming
Abstract:
The Hungarian Bronze Age witnessed rapid sociopolitical transformation during the 16th century BCE as large communities scattered across the landscape, most long inhabited tell-settlements were reorganized, and centuries-old cemeteries were abandoned. Historical change on this scale is often perceived as a single, momentous episode elusive in the process, but visceral and consequential in its effect. This study develops a multiscalar approach to recover unfolding sequences of actions that led to such fundamental transformation of Bronze Age society. Examining material assemblages of five cemeteries in central Hungary, I explore the ways broadening economic activities, and increasing importance and control of bronze led to changing interpersonal relations and finally to disarticulation of communities. The study integrates a series of theoretical concepts to develop a middle-range theory of mortuary practice. This approach can recover material signatures of micro-political discourse during singular funerary occasions illuminating processes behind the transformation of Bronze Age society.
The provenance of the raw material and the manufacturing technology of copper artefacts from the Copper Age hoard from Magyaregres, Hungary
Zsuzsanna Siklósi et al.
PLoS ONE, November 2022
Abstract:
In 2016, a Stollhof-type copper hoard was found during an excavation in Magyaregres, Hungary. It was placed in a cooking pot, and deposited upside down within the boundaries of an Early Copper Age settlement. Similar hoards dating to the end of the 5th millennium BCE are well-known from Central Europe, however, this hoard represents the only one so far with thoroughly documented finding circumstances. The hoard contained 681 pieces of copper, 264 pieces of stone and a single Spondylus bead, along with 19 pieces of small tubular spiral copper coils, three spiral copper bracelets, and two large, spectacle spiral copper pendants. Until now, information on the provenance of raw materials and how such copper artefacts were manufactured has not been available. The artefacts were studied under optical microscopes to reveal the manufacturing process. Trace elemental composition (HR-ICP-MS) and lead isotope ratios (MC-ICP-MS) were measured to explore the provenance of raw materials. The ornaments were rolled or folded and coiled from thin sheets of copper using fahlore copper probably originating from the Northwestern Carpathians. A complex archaeological approach was employed to reveal the provenance, distribution and the social roles the ornaments could have played in the life of a Copper Age community. Evidence for local metallurgy was lacking in contemporaneous Transdanubian sites, therefore it is likely that the items of the hoard were manufactured closer to the raw material source, prior to being transported to Transdanubia as finished products. The method of deposition implies that such items were associated with special social contexts, represented exceptional values, and the context of deposition was also highly prescribed. The Magyaregres hoard serves as the first firm piece of evidence for the existence of a typologically independent Central European metallurgical circle which exploited the raw material sources located within its distribution.