Archéologie des Sociétés Méditerranéennes

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: In spite of the abundance of archaeological, bio-archaeological, historical and genetic data, the origins, historical biogeography, identity of ancient grapevine cultivars and mechanisms of domestication are still largely unknown. Here, analysis of variation in seed morphology aims to provide accurate criteria for the discrimination between wild grapes and modern cultivars and to understand changes in functional traits in relation to the domestication process. This approach is also used to quantify the phenotypic diversity in the wild and cultivated compartments and to provide a starting point for comparing well-preserved archaeological material, in order to elucidate the history of grapevine varieties. METHODS: Geometrical analysis (elliptic Fourier transform method) was applied to grapevine seed outlines from modern wild individuals, cultivars and well-preserved archaeological material from southern France, dating back to the first to second centuries. KEY RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Significant relationships between seed shape and taxonomic status, geographical origin (country or region) of accessions and parentage of varieties are highlighted, as previously noted based on genetic approaches. The combination of the analysis of modern reference material and well-preserved archaeological seeds provides original data about the history of ancient cultivated forms, some of them morphologically close to the current 'Clairette' and 'Mondeuse blanche' cultivars. Archaeobiological records seem to confirm the complexity of human contact, exchanges and migrations which spread grapevine cultivation in Europe and in Mediterranean areas, and argue in favour of the existence of local domestication in the Languedoc (southern France) region during Antiquity.

The Orce region has one of the best late Pliocene and early Pleistocene continental paleobiological records of Europe. It is situated in the northeastern sector of the intramontane Guadix-Baza Basin (Granada, Andalusia, southern Spain). Here we describe a new fossil hominin tooth from the site of Barranco León, dated between 1.02 and 1.73 Ma (millions of years ago) by Electron Spin Resonance (ESR), which, in combination with paleomagnetic and biochronologic data, is estimated to be close to 1.4 Ma. While the range of dates obtained from these various methods overlaps with those published for the Sima del Elefante hominin locality (1.2 Ma), the overwhelming majority of evidence points to an older age. Thus, at the moment, the Barranco León hominin is the oldest from Western Europe.

Abstract Modern humans have populated Europe for more than 45,000 years 1,2 . Our knowledge of the genetic relatedness and structure of ancient hunter-gatherers is however limited, owing to the scarceness and poor molecular preservation of human remains from that period 3 . Here we analyse 356 ancient hunter-gatherer genomes, including new genomic data for 116 individuals from 14 countries in western and central Eurasia, spanning between 35,000 and 5,000 years ago. We identify a genetic ancestry profile in individuals associated with Upper Palaeolithic Gravettian assemblages from western Europe that is distinct from contemporaneous groups related to this archaeological culture in central and southern Europe 4 , but resembles that of preceding individuals associated with the Aurignacian culture. This ancestry profile survived during the Last Glacial Maximum (25,000 to 19,000 years ago) in human populations from southwestern Europe associated with the Solutrean culture, and with the following Magdalenian culture that re-expanded northeastward after the Last Glacial Maximum. Conversely, we reveal a genetic turnover in southern Europe suggesting a local replacement of human groups around the time of the Last Glacial Maximum, accompanied by a north-to-south dispersal of populations associated with the Epigravettian culture. From at least 14,000 years ago, an ancestry related to this culture spread from the south across the rest of Europe, largely replacing the Magdalenian-associated gene pool. After a period of limited admixture that spanned the beginning of the Mesolithic, we find genetic interactions between western and eastern European hunter-gatherers, who were also characterized by marked differences in phenotypically relevant variants.

This article reviews key data and debates focused on relative sea-level changes since the Last Interglacial (approximately the last 132,000 years) in the Mediterranean Basin, and their implications for past human populations. Geological and geomorphological landscape studies are critical to archaeology. Coastal regions provide a wide range of resources to the populations that inhabit them. Coastal landscapes are increasingly the focus of scholarly discussions from the earliest exploitation of littoral resources and early hominin cognition, to the inundation of the earliest permanently settled fishing villages and eventually, formative centres of urbanisation. In the Mediterranean, these would become hubs of maritime transportation that gave rise to the roots of modern seaborne trade. As such, this article represents an original review of both the geo-scientific and archaeological data that specifically relate to sea-level changes and resulting impacts on both physical and cultural landscapes from the Palaeolithic until the emergence of the Classical periods. Our review highlights that the interdisciplinary links between coastal archaeology, geomorphology and sea-level changes are important to explain environmental impacts on coastal human societies and human migration. We review geological indicators of sea level and outline how archaeological features are commonly used as proxies for measuring past sea levels, both gradual changes and catastrophic events. We argue that coastal archaeologists should, as a part of their analyses, incorporate important sea-level concepts, such as indicative meaning. The interpretation of the indicative meaning of Roman fishtanks, for example, plays a critical role in reconstructions of late Holocene Mediterranean sea levels. We identify avenues for future work, which include the consideration of glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) in addition to coastal tectonics to explain vertical movements of coastlines, more research on Palaeolithic island colonisation, broadening of Palaeolithic studies to include materials from the entire coastal landscape and not just coastal resources, a focus on rescue of archaeological sites under threat by coastal change, and expansion of underwater archaeological explorations in combination with submarine geomorphology. This article presents a collaborative synthesis of data, some of which have been collected and analysed by the authors, as the MEDFLOOD (MEDiterranean sea-level change and projection for future FLOODing) community, and highlights key sites, data, concepts and ongoing debates.

The first historically documented pandemic caused by Yersinia pestis began as the Justinianic Plague in 541 within the Roman Empire and continued as the so-called First Pandemic until 750. Although paleogenomic studies have previously identified the causative agent as Y. pestis , little is known about the bacterium’s spread, diversity, and genetic history over the course of the pandemic. To elucidate the microevolution of the bacterium during this time period, we screened human remains from 21 sites in Austria, Britain, Germany, France, and Spain for Y. pestis DNA and reconstructed eight genomes. We present a methodological approach assessing single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in ancient bacterial genomes, facilitating qualitative analyses of low coverage genomes from a metagenomic background. Phylogenetic analysis on the eight reconstructed genomes reveals the existence of previously undocumented Y. pestis diversity during the sixth to eighth centuries, and provides evidence for the presence of multiple distinct Y. pestis strains in Europe. We offer genetic evidence for the presence of the Justinianic Plague in the British Isles, previously only hypothesized from ambiguous documentary accounts, as well as the parallel occurrence of multiple derived strains in central and southern France, Spain, and southern Germany. Four of the reported strains form a polytomy similar to others seen across the Y. pestis phylogeny, associated with the Second and Third Pandemics. We identified a deletion of a 45-kb genomic region in the most recent First Pandemic strains affecting two virulence factors, intriguingly overlapping with a deletion found in 17th- to 18th-century genomes of the Second Pandemic.

Though chickens are the most numerous and ubiquitous domestic bird, their origins, the circumstances of their initial association with people, and the routes along which they dispersed across the world remain controversial. In order to establish a robust spatial and temporal framework for their origins and dispersal, we assessed archaeological occurrences and the domestic status of chickens from ∼600 sites in 89 countries by combining zoogeographic, morphological, osteometric, stratigraphic, contextual, iconographic, and textual data. Our results suggest that the first unambiguous domestic chicken bones are found at Neolithic Ban Non Wat in central Thailand dated to ∼1650 to 1250 BCE, and that chickens were not domesticated in the Indian Subcontinent. Chickens did not arrive in Central China, South Asia, or Mesopotamia until the late second millennium BCE, and in Ethiopia and Mediterranean Europe by ∼800 BCE. To investigate the circumstances of their initial domestication, we correlated the temporal spread of rice and millet cultivation with the first appearance of chickens within the range of red junglefowl species. Our results suggest that agricultural practices focused on the production and storage of cereal staples served to draw arboreal red junglefowl into the human niche. Thus, the arrival of rice agriculture may have first facilitated the initiation of the chicken domestication process, and then, following their integration within human communities, allowed for their dispersal across the globe.

Grapevine (Vitis vinifera), one of the most important fruit species in the Classical Mediterranean world, is thought to have been domesticated first in South-Western Asia, during the Neolithic. However, the domestication process remains largely unknown. Crucial unanswered questions concern the duration of the process (rapid or slow?) and the related geographical area (single or multiple-origins?). Seeds from domesticated grapevine and from its wild ancestor are reported to differ according to shape. Our work aims, first, to confirm this difference and secondly to identify the extent of domestication in the grapes cultivated by Romans in Southern France during the period 50 BCE-500 CE. We had the opportunity to analyze uncharred waterlogged grape pips from 17 archaeological sites. Based on an extended reference sample of modern wild grapevines and cultivars our work shows that both subspecies can be discriminated using simple measurements. The elongation gradient of the pip's body and stalk may be regarded as an indicator of the strength of the selection pressures undergone by domesticated grapes. Grapevines cultivated during the Roman period included a mix of morphotypes comprising wild, intermediate and moderately selected domesticated forms. Our data point to a relative shift towards more selected types during the Roman period. Domestication of the grapevine appears to have been a slow process. This could result from the recurrent incorporation into cultivation of plants originating from sexual reproduction, when grape cultivation essentially relies on vegetative propagation.

Genomic studies conducted on ancient individuals across Europe have revealed how migrations have contributed to its present genetic landscape, but the territory of present-day France has yet to be connected to the broader European picture. We generated a large dataset comprising the complete mitochondrial genomes, Y-chromosome markers, and genotypes of a number of nuclear loci of interest of 243 individuals sampled across present-day France over a period spanning 7,000 y, complemented with a partially overlapping dataset of 58 low-coverage genomes. This panel provides a high-resolution transect of the dynamics of maternal and paternal lineages in France as well as of autosomal genotypes. Parental lineages and genomic data both revealed demographic patterns in France for the Neolithic and Bronze Age transitions consistent with neighboring regions, first with a migration wave of Anatolian farmers followed by varying degrees of admixture with autochthonous hunter-gatherers, and then substantial gene flow from individuals deriving part of their ancestry from the Pontic steppe at the onset of the Bronze Age. Our data have also highlighted the persistence of Magdalenian-associated ancestry in hunter-gatherer populations outside of Spain and thus provide arguments for an expansion of these populations at the end of the Paleolithic Period more northerly than what has been described so far. Finally, no major demographic changes were detected during the transition between the Bronze and Iron Ages.

Abstract Horses revolutionized human history with fast mobility 1 . However, the timeline between their domestication and their widespread integration as a means of transport remains contentious 2–4 . Here we assemble a collection of 475 ancient horse genomes to assess the period when these animals were first reshaped by human agency in Eurasia. We find that reproductive control of the modern domestic lineage emerged around 2200 bce , through close-kin mating and shortened generation times. Reproductive control emerged following a severe domestication bottleneck starting no earlier than approximately 2700 bce , and coincided with a sudden expansion across Eurasia that ultimately resulted in the replacement of nearly every local horse lineage. This expansion marked the rise of widespread horse-based mobility in human history, which refutes the commonly held narrative of large horse herds accompanying the massive migration of steppe peoples across Europe around 3000 bce and earlier 3,5 . Finally, we detect significantly shortened generation times at Botai around 3500 bce , a settlement from central Asia associated with corrals and a subsistence economy centred on horses 6,7 . This supports local horse husbandry before the rise of modern domestic bloodlines.

ABSTRACT The Early Middle Pleistocene site of Notarchirico (Basilicata, Italy) is a 7‐m‐thick fluvially emplaced sedimentary sequence rich in volcanic materials coming from the Monte Vulture stratovolcano. This site consists of 11 archaeological layers, some of which have yielded handaxes. One femur attributed to Homo heidelbergensis was also recovered from an upper level. We present in this study new 40 Ar/ 39 Ar and electron spin resonance ages that delimit the time of occupation of Notarchirico to between 670 ± 4 ka (14 ka) and 614 ± 4 ka (12 ka), therefore spanning mainly the glacial Marine Isotope Stage 16. Handaxes found in archaeosurface F are now securely dated to between 670 ± 4 ka (14 ka) and 661 ± 4 ka (14 ka) and prove that hominid populations living in southern Italy used Acheulian technology as early as the beginning of this stage. Futhermore, we placed the age of the human femur between 661 ± 4 ka (14 ka) and 614± 4 ka (12 ka). This fossil is therefore the oldest Middle Pleistocene human fossil discovered in Italy so far. Thanks to this new chronological framework, Notarchirico is now a key site in our understanding of the Early Acheulian culture in Western Europe.

En juillet 2008, nous avons eu connaissance de l’existence d’une nouvelle faune « villafranchienne » dans la carrière de basalte de Lézignan-le-Cèbe dans la basse vallée de l’Hérault (Sud de la France, Languedoc). Une expertise patrimoniale préliminaire nous a permis d’identifier une vingtaine de taxons de vertébrés. À la suite des pluies automnales, une vingtaine d’artefacts de type pebble culture ont été récoltés. La coulée de basalte située au-dessus du niveau fossilifère et autour de la butte-témoin ayant livré les artefacts accuse un âge de 1,57 Ma. Les informations nouvelles obtenues améliorent notre connaissance du Pléistocène ancien européen.

Roman black gloss ceramics from two different locations and separated by 50–80 years were investigated by X-ray absorption near edge structure analysis in full field hard X-ray transmission microscopes. These spectro-microscopy measurements were complemented by Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction spot analyses to gain insights into possible differences in manufacturing technology. Our results indicate that the two vessels underwent significantly different firing protocols, suggesting that there was a surprisingly quick evolution of a complex technological process in response to changing needs and tastes of a burgeoning empire. Furthermore, our results show that the ability of the full field X-ray spectro-microscope to investigate large sample areas (from hundreds of µm2 to as much as 2 mm2) with high spatial resolution (of 300 nm down to 30 nm) together with its ability to correlate sample porosity (derived from tomography) with the distribution of chemical phases makes it an invaluable tool in the investigation of nanoscale processes in hierarchically heterogeneous chemical systems—from Roman ceramics to some of the most advanced technological products of today.

The rock shelter of Moche Borago in Wolayta Province, South-west Ethiopia, has provided evidence of human occupation during part of the Holocene. Recovery of more than 30,000 animal bones has allowed reconstruction of the exploitation of animals by humans from the 4th millennium BC until the first half of the 1st millennium AD. It could be demonstrated that humans exploited (mainly for food) a great diversity of mammals, especially bovids, and that there were very few diachronic changes observed in the fauna during the occupation. Remains of domestic animals have not been found, even in the most recent part of this period, suggesting that animal husbandry was a late introduction into this mountainous and isolated part of Ethiopia. The human inhabitants of the shelter appear to have exploited the surrounding environment, using its favourable position at the end of a stepped valley for mass killing of African buffaloes (Syncerus caffer). The rich and diverse environments of Wolayta favoured the development of a specialised society that mastered the exploitation of wild animals throughout much of the Holocene.

The absorption spectra, redox behavior, and luminescence properties (both at 77 K in rigid matrices and at room temperature in fluid solution) of a series of [2x2] molecular grids have been investigated. The latter were prepared either by means of sequential self-assembly, or by a stepwise protection/deprotection procedure, and are based on a ditopic hexadentate ligand 1 in which two terpyridine-like binding sites are fused together in a linear arrangement. The molecular grids studied include the homometallic species [[Fe(1)](4)](8+) (Fe(2)Fe(2)), and the heterometallic species [[Ru(1)](2)[Fe(1)](2)](8+) (Ru(2)Fe(2)) and [[Os(1)](2)[Fe(1)](2)](8+) (Os(2)Fe(2)). For comparison purposes, the properties of the mononuclear complexes [Ru(1)(2)](2+) (1-Ru) and [Os(1)(2)](2+) (1-Os) have been studied. All these compounds exhibit very intense absorption bands in the UV region (epsilon in the 10(5)-10(6) M(-1) cm(-1) range, attributed to spin-allowed ligand-centered (LC) transitions), as well as intense metal-to-ligand charge-transfer (MLCT) transitions (epsilon in the 10(4)-10(5) M(-1) cm(-1) range) that extend to the entire visible region. The mononuclear species 1-Ru and 1-Os exhibit relatively intense luminescence, both in acetonitrile at room temperature (tau=59 and 18 ns, respectively) and in butyronitrile rigid matrices at 77 K. In contrast, the tetranuclear molecular grids do not exhibit any luminescence, either at room temperature or at 77 K. This is attributed to fast intercomponent energy transfer from the Ru- or Os-based subunits to the low-lying metal-centered (MC) levels involving the Fe(II) centers, which leads to fast radiationless decay. The redox behavior of the compounds is characterized by several metal-centered oxidation and ligand-centered reduction processes, most of them reversible in nature (as many as twelve for Fe(2)Fe(2)). Detailed assignment of each redox process has been made, and it is apparent that these systems can be viewed as multilevel molecular electronic species capable of reversibly exchanging a number of electrons at accessible and predetermined potentials. Furthermore, it is shown that the electronic interaction between specific subunits depends on their location in the structure and on the oxidation states of the other components.

To obtain a precise radiocarbon Holocene chronology in coastal areas, it is necessary to estimate the modern 14 C reservoir age R(t) and its possible variations with time in relation to paleoenvironmental changes. The modern reservoir 14 C age was estimated by comparing AMS 14 C ages of 2 recent mollusk shells found in sediment cores sampled in the Palavasian lagoonal system (south of France) with ages derived from 210 Pb and 137 Cs data and historical accounts of identifiable storm events. The calculated modern R(t) value of 943 ± 25 14 C yr is about 600 yr higher than the global mean sea surface reservoir age. This high value, probably due to the relative isolation of the lagoon from marine inputs, is in good agreement with other R(t) estimates in Mediterranean lagoonal systems (Zoppi et al. 2001; Sabatier et al. 2008). 14 C ages were also obtained on a series of Holocene mollusk shells sampled at different depths of the ∼8-m-long core PB06. Careful examination of the 14 C ages versus depth relationships suggests that R(t) in the past was lower and similar to the value presently measured in the Gulf of Lion (618 ± 30 14 C yr, Siani et al. 2000). The change in R(t) from 618 to 943 yr is thought to result from final closure of the coastal lagoon by the sandy barrier, due to the along-shore sediment transfer.

) disappeared from the entire North Atlantic in still-mysterious circumstances. Here, we test the hypotheses that both species previously occurred in the Mediterranean Sea, an area not currently considered part of their historical range. We used ancient DNA barcoding and collagen fingerprinting methods to taxonomically identify a rare set of 10 presumed whale bones from Roman and pre-Roman archaeological sites in the Strait of Gibraltar region, plus an additional bone from the Asturian coast. We identified three right whales, and three grey whales, demonstrating that the ranges of both of these species historically encompassed the Gibraltar region, probably including the Mediterranean Sea as calving grounds. Our results significantly extend the known range of the Atlantic grey whale, and suggest that 2000 years ago, right and grey whales were common when compared with other whale species. The disappearance of right and grey whales from the Mediterranean region is likely to have been accompanied by broader ecosystem impacts, including the disappearance of their predators (killer whales) and a reduction in marine primary productivity. The evidence that these two coastal and highly accessible species were present along the shores of the Roman Empire raises the hypothesis that they may have formed the basis of a forgotten whaling industry.

ABSTRACT The Neolithic transition is a particularly favorable field of research for the study of the emergence and evolution of cultures and cultural phenomena. In this framework, high-precision chronologies are essential for decrypting the rhythms of emergence of new techno-economic traits. As part of a project exploring the conditions underlying the emergence and dynamics of the development of the first agro-pastoral societies in the Western Mediterranean, this paper proposes a new chronological modeling. Based on 45 new radiocarbon ( 14 C) dates and on a Bayesian statistical framework, this work examines the rhythms and dispersal paths of the Neolithic economy both on coastal and continental areas. These new data highlight a complex and far less unidirectional dissemination process than that envisaged so far.

In the north‐western Mediterranean area, the first Iron Age is characterized by intense contacts and cultural interactions between populations. Archaeological remains such as ceramic vessels or metal and glass objects are usually good indicators of the nature and the intensity of these exchanges, but can also be used to determine the way in which these populations were living at their time. In contrast, organic substances, despite their importance in a wide variety of activities, are rarely investigated due to their low degree of preservation. The recent discovery of a series of amorphous organic residues with adhesive properties at the site of Cuciurpula provided a unique opportunity to address questions related to the types of natural substances exploited, their provenance, their uses and their informational input to intercultural relationships. Our results, based on GC and GC–MS analysis of organic residues preserved at the site of Cuciurpula, provide strong evidence for the most southern use of birch bark tar in Western Europe, and also for the simultaneous use of this substance with pine resin. Beeswax was also identified in some samples. The combined study of residue composition, aspect and location on ceramic sherds reveals a variety of uses, highlighting a complex technical system.

The authors attempt to specify the diffusion pattern of the Impressed-Ware Neolithic (Im­presso-cardial complex, ICC), from south-eastern Italy onto the French Mediterranean coasts. Using ChronoModel® software, a Bayesian model was built with sets of dates obtained on well-contextualised, short-lived samples. The results highlight a clear tightening of the chronology in the so-called nuclear area (Apulia, Basilicata, Calabria) and a pioneer dispersal at record speed in the Tyrrhe­nian Basin. Moreover, they question the origins and initial developments of the Impressed-Wares techno-complex.

Over the last few centuries, many cetacean species have witnessed dramatic global declines due to industrial overharvesting and other anthropogenic influences, and thus are key targets for conservation. Whale bones recovered from archaeological and palaeontological contexts can provide essential baseline information on the past geographical distribution and abundance of species required for developing informed conservation policies. Here we review the challenges with identifying whale bones through traditional anatomical methods, as well as the opportunities provided by new molecular analyses. Through a case study focused on the North Sea, we demonstrate how the utility of this (pre)historic data is currently limited by a lack of accurate taxonomic information for the majority of ancient cetacean remains. We then discuss current opportunities presented by molecular identification methods such as DNA barcoding and collagen peptide mass fingerprinting (zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry), and highlight the importance of molecular identifications in assessing ancient species' distributions through a case study focused on the Mediterranean. We conclude by considering high-throughput molecular approaches such as hybridization capture followed by next-generation sequencing as cost-effective approaches for enhancing the ecological informativeness of these ancient sample sets.This article is part of the themed issue 'From DNA barcodes to biomes'.