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 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.

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.

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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.

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.

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.

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.

Avec le développement de l'archéologie de sauvetage au-delà des sites d'habitat, il est de plus en plus fréquent de rencontrer des traces de plantations antiques et préromaines. Les morphologies et les distances observées dans le Midi autorisent des interprétations en termes de viticulture et invitent à une relecture des textes agronomiques. Dans les cas les plus favorables (étendue de la fouille, faible recouvrement sédimentaire et bon contraste des sédiments), il est possible de restituer l'organisation de quelques domaines viticoles.

Bringing together the contributions of some twenty authors, this study presents a first evaluation conceming the earthen-ware used in the Languedoc from the VIIth to the XIth century. The material is presented in the form of notices, describing the contextes of the discoveries and proposing a tentative dating. The study ends with an attempted synthesis aiming to lay down the typo-chronology and circulate results. The identification of several zone of production, and an attempt to evaluate their areas of diffusion, tend to reveal the existence of regional trade ; this image is at variance with the traditional vision ofa selfsufficient rural economy.

La premire opration de fouilles de l'atelier de potier de la via dei Sepolcri, 29 (fig. J.-C. ont t dgags, a eu lieu en 2012. Une premire tude avait alors t ralise nous permettant d'tablir

Until recently, Gallo-Roman viticulture in the modern region of Languedoc-Roussillon situated in Narbonensis, has only been studied through investigations carried out on amphorae workshops. Now the wine production sites are better known thanks to an increasing number of excavations going on rural settlements. A dozen of these sites, villae and smaller farms recovered in the Gard, Hérault and Pyrénées-Orientales departments is depicted below. These new discoveries allow to give an outline of the historical development of provincial viticulture from the Conquest up to the beginning of the Early Middle Ages. The first signs showing the increase of the production in the territories of Nîmes and Béziers are strongly discernible at the turn of the 1rst century, prelude to a major development during the Early Empire. Numerous facts obviously confirm that production goes on after the 3rd century, but the impact of the viticulture in the regional agricultural economy during the Late Antiquity needs to be more precisely examined.

In the few available literary sources there is no evidence about the viticulture in Northern Gaul, but in the other hand we have accounts of its existence in the southern areas. Archaeological sources are mainly situated in the South, around Marseille, but also in Provence and Languedoc, where there are discoveries of pips, pollens, vine-shoots, land marks, implements and dolia. On the economical point of view, Marseille produces wine for exportation contrary to indigenous viticultural sites having a very low production. Lattes is a special case where we find an extensive vine cultivation during the 3rd -1st centuries BC.

La découverte de traces de fossés antérieurs à la première urbanisation de Lyon s'intègre dans le problème toujours débattu des origines de la ville. Les tronçons fouillés appartiennent à trois ouvrages distincts dont les caractéristiques morphologiques laissent présumer un usage militaire et de courte durée. Une accumulation inhabituelle d'amphores et d'ossements animaux dans l'un des tronçons (plus de 95% du matériel) évoque moins les usages alimentaires d'un habitat que ceux d'un campement. Le reste du matériel date ce dépôt aux alentours de 60 av. J.-C, toutefois une autre section présente du matériel plus récent. Après avoir envisagé diverses interprétations, l'auteur retient l'hypothèse d'un seul système défensif remontant à l'époque de la fondation de la colonie (43 av. J.-C), considérant comme non significatives les variations chronologiques entre les différents tronçons en raison de l'échantillonnage trop restreint du matériel.

Raw materials used for earth construction materials depend on local soil and sediment resources available in each locality. Two groups of techniques are usually distinguished in earth-based construction: Indirect shaping, with the earth materials shaped into a mould such as adobe or mud brick or sundried brick; and Direct shaping, including: the cob technique, in which materials are piled by layers, by clumps or by lumps, rammed earth within a temporary frame, and daub. This chapter describes key micromorphological features of mud bricks, cob and wattle and daub. The degradation of earth construction material is an important part of archaeological site-formation processes in general and in particular contributing to the formation of archaeological mounds. The most distinctive micromorphological features for identifying this process are slope-deposition features and evidence of low energy flows.