Papers by Francesca Alhaique
CV Servizio di Bioarcheologia, Museo delle Civilta' - 2023, 2023
Servizio di Bioarcheologia del Museo delle Civiltà (Ministero della Cultura): elenco pubblicazion... more Servizio di Bioarcheologia del Museo delle Civiltà (Ministero della Cultura): elenco pubblicazioni 2023.
Bioarchaeology Service, Museum of Civilizations (Italian Ministry for Culture): 2023 publication list.
Environmental Archaeology, 2021
Although the amount of data on the Italian Copper Age has increased significantly in the last dec... more Although the amount of data on the Italian Copper Age has increased significantly in the last decades, little is known about the relationship between humans and the environment. Material culture su...
Servizio di Bioarcheologia del Museo delle Civiltà (Ministero della Cultura): elenco pubblicazion... more Servizio di Bioarcheologia del Museo delle Civiltà (Ministero della Cultura): elenco pubblicazioni 2022.
Bioarchaeology Service, Museum of Civilizations (Italian Ministry for Culture): 2022 publication list.
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2022
Large-scale excavations at Gabii, located approximately 18 km east of Rome, began in 2009 under t... more Large-scale excavations at Gabii, located approximately 18 km east of Rome, began in 2009 under the direction of Professor Nicola Terrenato (University of Michigan) and yielded a huge faunal assemblage spanning from the Iron Age to the Medieval period. The focus of this paper is the comparison of zooarchaeological material from deposits dating to the Iron Age through Archaic Period (8th-6th centuries BCE) and the Republican period (mainly 3rd-1st centuries BCE), with some preliminary data on the Imperial phase. This work examines variations in animal production, distribution, and consumption over time in the same settlement, as well as changes in urbanism, built environment, and the available faunal resources. Zooarchaeological data from Gabii provide detailed information for how animal procurement, rearing, and supply evolved alongside a changing city that increasingly interacted with Rome. Species range, herd composition, management strategies, production of secondary products, breeding improvements, and trade and mobility are all characteristics of the faunal assemblage that reflect society more broadly. Relating these characteristics to the economy and urbanism in Western central Italy, the zooarchaeological remains show that animal production and supply mirrored larger social and economic trends in the evolving city.
Science, 2022
Donkeys transformed human history as essential beasts of burden for long-distance movement, espec... more Donkeys transformed human history as essential beasts of burden for long-distance movement, especially across semi-arid and upland environments. They remain insufficiently studied despite globally expanding and providing key support to low- to middle-income communities. To elucidate their domestication history, we constructed a comprehensive genome panel of 207 modern and 31 ancient donkeys, as well as 15 wild equids. We found a strong phylogeographic structure in modern donkeys that supports a single domestication in Africa ~5000 BCE, followed by further expansions in this continent and Eurasia and ultimately returning to Africa. We uncover a previously unknown genetic lineage in the Levant ~200 BCE, which contributed increasing ancestry toward Asia. Donkey management involved inbreeding and the production of giant bloodlines at a time when mules were essential to the Roman economy and military.
This paper presents results from controlled experiments on breakage of cooked and uncooked (jresh... more This paper presents results from controlled experiments on breakage of cooked and uncooked (jresh) bones. The data do not uphold the distinctions between cooked and uncooked bones noted in some ethnoarchaeological studies. Spiral and longitudinal fractures are equally frequent in cooked and uncooked (fresh) bones. The fracture patterns of bones may be injluenced by many factors, including the unique structure of each skeletal element, species of animal, and specific treatment of the bone. The experiments demonstrate that the pattern of fractures should not be used as the sole means to determine whether an archaeological specimen of a bone was fractured before or after cooking.
Several faunal assemblages excavated in deposits of different antiquity (from Lower Paleolithic t... more Several faunal assemblages excavated in deposits of different antiquity (from Lower Paleolithic to Bronze Age), located in Northern, Central and Southern Italy, were studied from the archeozoological and taphonomic point of view. Data obtained by different Authors allow reconstruction of subsistence strategies adopted by prehistoric humans in these areas and through time, in particular as far as the exploitation of animal resources is concerned. The following assemblages were considered: Isernia La Pineta (Molise; Lower Paleolithic), Grotta Breuil (Latium; Middle Paleolithic), Grotta della Ghiacciaia (Verona; Middle Paleolithic), Riparo di Fumane and Riparo Tagliente (Verona; Middle and Upper Paleolithic), Riparo Mochi (Liguria; Upper Paleolithic), Grotta della Continenza (L'Aquila; Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic), Grotta dell'Edera (Trieste; Mesolithic and Neolithic), Grotta della Cala at Marina di Camerota (Salerno; Eneolithic), Contraguda (Sassari; Neolithic), Castellar...
Gabii Project Reports vol.2, 2021
Spring Archaeology: Atti del Convegno, Siena, 15-17 maggio 2020
Environmental Archaeology, 2021
Although the amount of data on the Italian Copper Age has increased significantly in the last dec... more Although the amount of data on the Italian Copper Age has increased significantly in the last decades, little is known about the relationship between humans and the environment. Material culture suggests the occurrence of significant social interactions throughout the Italian Peninsula, while the funerary practices indicate that Copper Age groups were strongly rooted in their territories. Here, we attempt to define the relations within Copper Age groups by investigating one of the main culturally-constructed aspects of a society: dietary practices. These will be addressed through stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of human and animal bone collagen from a selection of central and southern Italian Copper Age sites ascribed to two of the most representative cultural groups, namely the Rinaldone and the Gaudo. The preliminary results show an overall homogeneity in the dietary habits, which appears to be in contrast with funerary data, and indicates a strong reliance on the local environments for subsistence, with local food choices.
Cremation 168 from the second half of the 8 th century BCE (Pithekoussai's necropolis, Ischia Isl... more Cremation 168 from the second half of the 8 th century BCE (Pithekoussai's necropolis, Ischia Island, Italy), better known as the Tomb of Nestor's Cup, is widely considered as one of the most intriguing discoveries in the Mediterranean Pre-Classic archaeology. A drinking cup, from which the Tomb's name derives, bears one of the earliest surviving examples of written Greek, representing the oldest Homeric poetry ever recovered. According to previous osteological analyses, the Cup is associated with the cremated remains of a juvenile, aged approximately 10-14 years at death. Since then, a vast body of literature has attempted to explain the unique association between the exceptionality of the grave good complex, the symposiac and erotic evocation of the Nestor's Cup inscription with the young age of the individual buried with it. This paper reconsiders previous assessments of the remains by combining gross morphology with qualitative histology and histomorphometric analyses of the burnt bone fragments. This work reveals the commingled nature of the bone assemblage, identifying for the first time, more than one human individual mixed with faunal remains. These outcomes dramatically change previous reconstructions of the cremation deposit, rewriting the answer to the question: who was buried with Nestor's Cup?.
Fierce lions, angry mice and fat-tailed sheep Animal encounters in the ancient Near East. Edited by Laerke Recht & Christina Tsouparopoulou, McDONALD INSTITUTE CONVERSATIONS, 2021
The Fox in Enki and Ninhursaĝa Dumuzi and the Fly Lugalbanda and Anzu Ninurta and the Anzu's chic... more The Fox in Enki and Ninhursaĝa Dumuzi and the Fly Lugalbanda and Anzu Ninurta and the Anzu's chick Inanna, Šukaletuda, and the Raven Conclusions: magical helpers and the metamorphosis human-animal Chapter 3 Canines from inside and outside the city: of dogs, foxes and wolves in conceptual spaces in Sumero-Akkadian texts 23 Andréa Vilela Canines from the 'inside': dogs Canines from the 'in-between': stray dogs Canines from the outside: wolves and foxes Conclusion Chapter 4 A human-animal studies approach to cats and dogs in ancient Egypt: evidence from mummies, iconography and epigraphy 31 Marina Fadum & Carina Gruber Human-cat relationships in ancient Egypt: the cat as an animal mummy Human-canine relationships in ancient Egypt: the dog as companion animal Conclusion Part II Animals in ritual and cult Chapter 5 Encountered animals and embedded meaning: the ritual and roadside fauna of second millennium Anatolia 39 Neil Erskine Deleuze, Guattari, and reconstructing ancient understanding Landscape, religion, and putting meaning in place Creatures, cult, and creating meaning Folding animals in ritual Bulls, boars, birds Folding animals on the road Human-animal interactions Conclusion vi Chapter 6 The dogs of the healing goddess Gula in the archaeological and textual record of ancient Mesopotamia 55 Seraina Nett The dogs of Gula in Mesopotamian art The Isin dog cemetery The dogs of Gula in Ur III documentary sources Conclusion
Environmental Archaeology, 2021
Although the amount of data on the Italian Copper Age has increased significantly in the last dec... more Although the amount of data on the Italian Copper Age has increased significantly in the last decades, little is known about the relationship between humans and the environment. Material culture suggests the occurrence of significant social interactions throughout the Italian Peninsula, while the funerary practices indicate that Copper Age groups were strongly rooted in their territories. Here, we attempt to define the relations within Copper Age groups by investigating one of the main culturally-constructed aspects of a society: dietary practices. These will be addressed through stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of human and animal bone collagen from a selection of central and southern Italian Copper Age sites ascribed to two of the most representative cultural groups, namely the Rinaldone and the Gaudo. The preliminary results show an overall homogeneity in the dietary habits, which appears to be in contrast with funerary data, and indicates a strong reliance on the local environments for subsistence, with local food choices.
Scientific Reports, 2021
This paper provides results from a suite of analyses made on human dental material from the Late ... more This paper provides results from a suite of analyses made on human dental material from the Late Palaeolithic to Neolithic strata of the cave site of Grotta Continenza situated in the Fucino Basin of the Abruzzo region of central Italy. The available human remains from this site provide a unique possibility to study ways in which forager versus farmer lifeways affected human odonto-skeletal remains. The main aim of our study is to understand palaeodietary patterns and their changes over time as reflected in teeth. These analyses involve a review of metrics and oral pathologies, micro-fossils preserved in the mineralized dental plaque, macrowear, and buccal microwear. Our results suggest that these complementary approaches support the assumption about a critical change in dental conditions and status with the introduction of Neolithic foodstuff and habits. However, we warn that different methodologies applied here provide data at different scales of resolution for detecting such changes and a multipronged approach to the study of dental collections is needed for a more comprehensive and nuanced understanding of diachronic changes. The transition from foraging to farming was a long-lasting and nonlinear process that took place over several millennia and enfolded at different times in different parts of the world (e.g. 1-3). While this process is clearly reflected in changes in material culture traditions, it can equally well be observed on skeletal evidence (e.g. 4-6). Among other human remains, teeth represent the privileged anatomical segment for the application of sophisticated analytical methods. Teeth are the most durable part of the human body; mineralized tissues capable of preserving valuable information about an individual's biological life history. As food passes through the mouth, teeth trap direct evidence of dietary practices-either through physical-chemical changes foodstuff causes in teeth (certain dental pathologies), traces of wear, and/or foods deposited in the matrix of mineralized dental plaque. Besides information on dietary practices, various physiological processes are also recorded in dental structures. In particular, carious lesions can be informative of the consumption of highly cariogenic wild and domesticated plant foods as they involve the progressive demineralization of the mineral component of the dental tissues by acids produced from the fermentation of food particles 7. Dental microwear analysis is commonly used to investigate shifts in dietary habits in past human populations 8-12. Foodstuffs chewing causes microscopic OPEN
This paper provides results from a suite of analyses made on human dental material from the Late ... more This paper provides results from a suite of analyses made on human dental material from the Late Palaeolithic to Neolithic strata of the cave site of Grotta Continenza situated in the Fucino Basin of the Abruzzo region of central Italy. The available human remains from this site provide a unique possibility to study ways in which forager versus farmer lifeways affected human odonto-skeletal remains. The main aim of our study is to understand palaeodietary patterns and their changes over time as reflected in teeth. These analyses involve a review of metrics and oral pathologies, micro-fossils preserved in the mineralized dental plaque, macrowear, and buccal microwear. Our results suggest that these complementary approaches support the assumption about a critical change in dental conditions and status with the introduction of Neolithic foodstuff and habits. However, we warn that different methodologies applied here provide data at different scales of resolution for detecting such changes and a multipronged approach to the study of dental collections is needed for a more comprehensive and nuanced understanding of diachronic changes. The transition from foraging to farming was a long-lasting and nonlinear process that took place over several millennia and enfolded at different times in different parts of the world (e.g. 1-3). While this process is clearly reflected in changes in material culture traditions, it can equally well be observed on skeletal evidence (e.g. 4-6). Among other human remains, teeth represent the privileged anatomical segment for the application of sophisticated analytical methods. Teeth are the most durable part of the human body; mineralized tissues capable of preserving valuable information about an individual's biological life history. As food passes through the mouth, teeth trap direct evidence of dietary practices-either through physical-chemical changes foodstuff causes in teeth (certain dental pathologies), traces of wear, and/or foods deposited in the matrix of mineralized dental plaque. Besides information on dietary practices, various physiological processes are also recorded in dental structures. In particular, carious lesions can be informative of the consumption of highly cariogenic wild and domesticated plant foods as they involve the progressive demineralization of the mineral component of the dental tissues by acids produced from the fermentation of food particles 7. Dental microwear analysis is commonly used to investigate shifts in dietary habits in past human populations 8-12. Foodstuffs chewing causes microscopic OPEN
ENVIRONMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY, 2021
The study of plant and animal remains from archaeological sites provides important evidence about... more The study of plant and animal remains from archaeological sites provides important evidence about past human diets and habits: this includes species selection, food preparation, consumption and disposal practices. Furthermore, such information may also provide inferences about social status. Data from refuse disposal features identified in some elite contexts in central Italy – a high-status residence in Celleno Vecchio (Viterbo) and the Baglioni-Santacroce castle in Graffignano (Viterbo), both in northern Latium, as well as the Santi Quattro Coronati ecclesiastical complex in Rome – allow to explore, using archaeobotanical, archaeozoological and genetic data, some of the different ways in which people expressed wealth by means of food during a period between the late Middle Ages and Renaissance.
Elite burial practices and processes of urbanization at Gabii, M. Mogetta ed., 2020
Interdisciplinaria Archaeologica, 2018
This paper reports the archaeobotanical and archaeozoological data from a disposal pit, whose use... more This paper reports the archaeobotanical and archaeozoological data from a disposal pit, whose use
started after the partial closure of a staircase, and from a mortar surface within a former porch in the
Santi Quattro Coronati complex in Rome, Italy. The two contexts were in use in the Early Modern
Age, when the complex served as a cardinal seat. The element that distinguishes the Santi Quattro
Coronati from other contemporaneous contexts is the presence of New World species, until now only
hypothesized based on a letter sent by the first resident bishop in Santo Domingo to Lorenzo Pucci, then
cardinal with the titulus of the Santi Quattro Coronati. Pumpkin seeds (Cucurbita pepo and C. maxima/
moschata) were found in the pit, while a pelvis of guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) was found in a former
porch. Numerous archaeobotanical remains preserved by mummification, identified mostly as food,
and many archaeozoological specimens were found in the pit. Based on the data, it is hypothesized
that the pit was used mainly as a deposit for table waste. The results as a whole help towards the
investigation of the eating customs and daily habits of a Renaissance high-status clerical community.
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Papers by Francesca Alhaique
Bioarchaeology Service, Museum of Civilizations (Italian Ministry for Culture): 2023 publication list.
Bioarchaeology Service, Museum of Civilizations (Italian Ministry for Culture): 2022 publication list.
started after the partial closure of a staircase, and from a mortar surface within a former porch in the
Santi Quattro Coronati complex in Rome, Italy. The two contexts were in use in the Early Modern
Age, when the complex served as a cardinal seat. The element that distinguishes the Santi Quattro
Coronati from other contemporaneous contexts is the presence of New World species, until now only
hypothesized based on a letter sent by the first resident bishop in Santo Domingo to Lorenzo Pucci, then
cardinal with the titulus of the Santi Quattro Coronati. Pumpkin seeds (Cucurbita pepo and C. maxima/
moschata) were found in the pit, while a pelvis of guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) was found in a former
porch. Numerous archaeobotanical remains preserved by mummification, identified mostly as food,
and many archaeozoological specimens were found in the pit. Based on the data, it is hypothesized
that the pit was used mainly as a deposit for table waste. The results as a whole help towards the
investigation of the eating customs and daily habits of a Renaissance high-status clerical community.
Bioarchaeology Service, Museum of Civilizations (Italian Ministry for Culture): 2023 publication list.
Bioarchaeology Service, Museum of Civilizations (Italian Ministry for Culture): 2022 publication list.
started after the partial closure of a staircase, and from a mortar surface within a former porch in the
Santi Quattro Coronati complex in Rome, Italy. The two contexts were in use in the Early Modern
Age, when the complex served as a cardinal seat. The element that distinguishes the Santi Quattro
Coronati from other contemporaneous contexts is the presence of New World species, until now only
hypothesized based on a letter sent by the first resident bishop in Santo Domingo to Lorenzo Pucci, then
cardinal with the titulus of the Santi Quattro Coronati. Pumpkin seeds (Cucurbita pepo and C. maxima/
moschata) were found in the pit, while a pelvis of guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) was found in a former
porch. Numerous archaeobotanical remains preserved by mummification, identified mostly as food,
and many archaeozoological specimens were found in the pit. Based on the data, it is hypothesized
that the pit was used mainly as a deposit for table waste. The results as a whole help towards the
investigation of the eating customs and daily habits of a Renaissance high-status clerical community.
Data from some elite residences, two in Northern Latium (Celleno and Graffignano) and one in Rome (Ss.Quattro Coronati complex), allow to explore, using archaeobotanical, zooarchaeological as well as genetic data, different ways people used to express wealth by means of food between the late Middle Ages and Renaissance.
7 dicembre 2018 ore 16:30
Sala Conferenze del Museo preistorico etnografico "Luigi Pigorini", Roma EUR