Fuelling the Ancient Maya Salt Industry

Journal of Archaeological Science, 2014

Journal of Archaeological Science

We present a new approach combining ethnoarchaeology and experimentation aiming towards a better understanding of prehistoric firewood use and management. The example of present fuel management practices among a residentially mobile group of Evenk Siberian reindeer herders, shows how ethnoarchaeology can provide an analytical background for the study of complex man-environment interrelations. Ethnographic observation confirmed in particular that the moisture content and structural soundness of the wood can be linked to hearth function: rotten conifers for instance, are used for hide smoking by several groups living in the boreal forests of the Northern hemisphere. Charcoal samples from an Evenk hearth fed with rotten Larix cajanderi (Siberian larch) showed a high proportion of microscopic features diagnostic of fungal alterations. A series of systematic experimental combustions on Pinus sylvestris (scots Pine) confirmed the existence of a relationship between the frequency and the intensity of fungal alterations visible after the combustion and the initial state of the wood used in the hearth. The establishment of an alteration index allows now to take a new parameter, the structural soundness of the wood, into account when performing archaeological charcoal analyses. Keywords: charcoal analysis; hearth, experimentation, ethnoarchaeology; Prehistory; fuel management

Journal of Anthropological Archaeology

Journal of Archaeological Science, 2009

Archaeological charcoal remains are often used to reconstruct local woodland composition in the past, but rarely address how and why people may have selected specific woody taxa for particular purposes. Models from the field of human behavioral ecology predict that people forage for wood resources by taking into account the relative usefulness, abundance, and handling time related to procuring different wood types. Archaeological and ecological data from the site of Gordion, in Central Anatolia (modern Turkey), were used to test expectations associated with such models. Results suggest that inhabitants of Gordion used wood types for fuel in proportion to their local availability, but that they selected specific, more distant woods for construction. In most occupation periods pine was preferred for construction, perhaps because it produces long, straight timbers for roofing, despite the distance at which it grows from the site. This case study demonstrates that behavioral ecology modeling can help to distinguish between multiple wood acquisition strategies potentially used in the past and improve our under- standing of wood use from archaeological charcoal remains.

Ethnoarchaeology, 2018

Prehistoric fuel management and hearth functions are key research issues that have benefitted from the development of experimental and ethnoarchaeogical approaches aimed at providing interpretative models for archaeological fire and fuel studies. In this paper, we present a selection of ethnographic, ethnoarchaeological and ethnohistorical data mostly collected among Evenks and Athabascans of East Siberia and North America. Our aim is to question and discuss the relationship between fuel and hearth functions from an ethnoarchaeobotanical perspective: what are the criteria for selecting plant fuels? How archaeologically visible can these diverse fuel types be and what do they tell us about past fire-related activities? Our data shows that the contents of combustion structures result from multiple people-environment interactions at different levels, few of which are accessible to the archaeologist. Nevertheless, ethnoarchaeology, by fostering a reflection on taphonomy issues in the broad sense, actively contributes to methodological developments leading to a better understanding of complex technical fire-related processes.

Latin American Antiquity, 2016

In this paper, we examine wood charcoal assemblages that were recovered from ash layers in Terminal Classic (A.D. 800–950) burials at the Maya site of Rio Bee to understand the use of fuel wood in funerary rites. Compared to charcoal deposits from domestic and non-funerary contexts, the spectrum of wood taxa used in the burial deposits is unique, which suggests specific fire-related practices. Members of the Sapotaceae family and Cordiasp. dominated all contexts and were clearly primary fuels. In contrast, the use of pine (Pinus sp.), which does not grow locally today, was limited to ritual practices. In addition, it seems that a deliberate effort was made to maximize the taxonomic richness of the fuel wood used in burials. Funerary charcoal deposits appear to have been carefully and intentionally “composed” for burning during funerary rites. We propose that this practice materialized the relationship between fire, ash, and the cycles of life and death, which are often symbolized by...

Journal of Anthropological …, 2011

In archaeological literature, the study of trees and wood remains is a topic of relatively marginal interest, especially compared to texts on crops and human–animal relations. However, charcoal is the most frequent botanical remain found in archaeological sites. Charcoal analysis can therefore play a major role in the development of studies in both landscape and palaeoethnobotanical reconstruction. The majority of the archaeological charcoal assemblages reflect the exploitation of wood as an energy source (fuel). The archaeological study of firewood selection has been predominantly developed from ‘‘eco utilitarian’’ or ‘‘subsistence economy’’ perspectives, but has not yet considered fuel collection and use as one of the most enduring categories of human–environment interactions, nor has archaeology looked into its potential as a source of empirical information on past perceptions of, and interactions with, ancient landscapes. The aim of this paper is to expand previous archaeological work on the interpretation of charcoal macroremains through the study of firewood collection as a historically constituted, socially mediated and archaeologically observable landscape practice. In order to achieve this, we present an ethnoarchaeological case study from the Fang society of Equatorial Guinea (central Africa) aimed at gaining a better understanding of the complex interactions between cultural, ecological and economic variables in firewood collection strategies.

Journal of archaeological science, 2003

This paper presents the results of the analysis of wood charcoal macro-remains from the multi-period prehistoric rock shelters of Pinarbasi in the Konya plain, south-central Anatolia. Retrieval and analytical methods are also reported in detail, together with some methodologies previously untested in the field of charcoal analysis aiming at the quantitative description of context-related variation in the preservation status of archaeological wood charcoal assemblages. The patterns observed in the charcoal record are interpreted as a reflection of the prehistoric strategies for firewood exploitation in their local and regional palaeoenvironmental context.

Quaternary International, 2017

Monte Mozinho (NW of Portugal) is a large Roman settlement occupied since the beginning of the era until the late 5th century BC which spans over an area of 20 ha. Beginning in 2008, the excavations were centered in a new, previously unknown area, sector A-2008, where several soil samples were collected in 3rde4th century levels, in order to obtain relevant archaeobotanical data. This paper focuses on the charcoal analysis carried out in three different combustion structures and surrounding areas in this sector's compartment 1 and 3. In Compartment 1, in samples associated with a hearth, Castanea sativa was the dominant taxa identified, followed by Quercus deciduous, Leguminosae and Populus. In the west corner of the compartment, a high concentration of charcoals e unrelated with the previous structure e was also identified. The vast majority of the charcoal collected there were from Pinus pinaster. The results from Compartment 3 relate to its defining structure: a large oven. Even if the range of species is roughly the same as in the other compartment, its proportion, quantity and dendrological data were very different. Leguminosae fragments with strong ring curvatures make up the majority of the analysed material, followed by Quercus deciduous and Castanea sativa. The comparative analysis of the charred material from these contexts allowed the understanding of different selective usages of wooden resources related to the structures' typologies and purposes. In Compartment 1, the small concentration of charcoals was most likely associated with a single combustion event. The hearth in the same compartment was used as a structure where fires were frequently set. The charred content of Compartment 3's oven proved to correspond to its use as a food oven, as ethnographic data demonstrates that Leguminosae was the preferred firewood for such usages. Additionally, the extensive presence of Castanea sativa, namely throughout Compartment 1, allowed the discussion of its role in the regional Roman ecological and economical dynamics.

Observation of archaeological charcoal records from Maya sites, and in particular, the Classic site of Naachtun (Northern Peten, Guatemala), indicates that certain woody taxa tend to occur in proportions that are highly inconsistent with their representation in the local forests today. We note this phenomenon for two taxa in particular: 1) the genus Manilkara, which dominates the charcoal assemblages of Naachtun, but grows in relatively low proportions in modern Central Lowlands forests, and 2) breadnut (Brosimum alicastrum), which is widespread in the modern forests of the region, but whose wood is almost absent in the archaeological record. Based on ethno-graphic and ethnohistoric accounts, many researchers have argued that both of these trees would have played a major role in ancient Maya agroforestry. Therefore, it becomes necessary to determine how accurately the occurrence of Manilkara and Brosimum in archaeological charcoal records reflects their use in the past. We explore the hypothesis that combustion processes may create taphonomic biases that lead to the differential preservation of certain Maya Lowland tree taxa, and thus distort the representivity of the charcoal spectra recovered from ancient Maya sites. To evaluate this hypothesis, we conducted 35 experimental fires using five of the principal tree species of the modern forest around the site of Naachtun, including Manilkara and Brosimum. The charcoal assemblages produced through these fires were systematically identified and studied using quantitative methods. Our results indicate that significant differences exist among these taxa as a result of combustion, and that these phenomena are consistently observed for each taxon through multiple controlled trials. Thus, anthracological analyses are indeed appropriate for reconstructing human-environmental interactions in the Central Lowland forest, but certain predictable taphonomic biases must be taken into account when interpreting the charcoal data.