Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) Dates Confirm Early <i>Zea Mays</i> in the Mississippi River Valley

Riley, Thomas J.; Walz, Gregory R.; Bareis, Charles J.; Fortier, Andrew C.; Parker, Kathryn E.

doi:10.2307/282461

Cited by 65 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…Similarly, the recent direct AMS dating of the arrival of maize in the southwestern United States at about 2000 1500 cal B.C. (Wills 1995), and in the eastern United States by cal A.D. 1 (Riley et al 1994) appear compatible with the AMS dates that mark the arrival of maize in Tamaulipas at about 2500 cal B.C., and the initial appearance of this domesticate in Tehuacan at 3500 cal B.C. (Long et al 1989).…”

Section: Slcerarlamentioning

confidence: 60%

Reconsidering the Ocampo Caves and the Era of Incipient Cultivation in Mesoamerica

Smith

1997

Latin Am. antiq.

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Section: Slcerarlamentioning

confidence: 60%

Reconsidering the Ocampo Caves and the Era of Incipient Cultivation in Mesoamerica

Smith

1997

Latin Am. antiq.

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“…The importance of maize in Central America (DeNiro & Epstein, 1981;White & Schwarcz, 1989), North America (Riley et al, 1994;Larsen et al, 1992) and South America (van der Merwe et al, 1981;Burger & van der Merwe, 1990) has been confirmed by stable isotope studies. There are also studies indicating the importance of C 3 plants in post-Neolithic diets in coastal Europe, associated with a move away from marine foods (Tauber, 1981;Richards & Hedges, 1999;Lubell et al, 1994), as well as preliminary studies indicating the importance of millet in China (Cai & Qui, 1984) and rice in Japan (Chisholm & Koike, 1996).…”

Section: Dietary Changes At the 'Neolithic Revolution'mentioning

confidence: 74%

A brief review of the archaeological evidence for Palaeolithic and Neolithic subsistence

Richards

2002

Eur J Clin Nutr

120

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Knowledge of our ancestor's diets is becoming increasingly important in evolutionary medicine, as researchers have argued that we have evolved to specific type of 'Palaeolithic' diet, and many modern nutritional disorders relate to the mismatch between the diet to which we have evolved, and the relatively newer agricultural-based 'Neolithic' diets. However, what is the archaeological evidence for pre-agricultural diets and how have they changed over the four million years of hominid evolution? This paper briefly introduces the three lines of evidence we have for Palaeolithic and Neolithic diets; morphological changes, archaeological material evidence, and direct measurement of diet from bone chemistry. The morphological changes, increasing gracilization of the mandible and increasing brain size have been interpreted (based on analogies with living primates) as the move from plants to higher-quality, more digestible, animal meat, although this is debated. The archaeological evidence is especially weak, as many organic materials, especially plants, do not survive well, and are therefore invisible in the archaeological record. Artefacts, such as stone tools which are likely to be used for hunting and animal bones with evidence of human processing and butchering do indicate that hunting did occur at many times in the past, but it is impossible to judge the frequency. Direct evidence from bone chemistry, such as the measurement of the stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen, do provide direct evidence of past diet, and limited studies on five Neanderthals from three sites, as well as a number of modern Palaeolithic and Mesolithic humans indicates the importance of animal protein in diets. There is a significant change in the archaeological record associated with the introduction of agriculture worldwide, and an associated general decline in health in some areas. However, there is an rapid increase in population associated with domestication of plants, so although in some regions individual health suffers after the Neolithic revolution, as a species humans have greatly expanded their population worldwide.

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“…Although maize has been found in Middle Woodland contexts in the Eastern Woodlands (Riley et al, 1994;Smith, 1989), its first appearance at archaeological sites in this region occurs well into the Late Woodland period, at about AD 580 (Asch and Asch, 1985b). Carbon isotope analyses demonstrate that maize is not a measurable part of the diet until after AD 800 (Bender et al, 1981;Buikstra et al, 1987;van der Merwe and Vogel, 1978).…”

Section: The Later Late Woodland Period: the Adoption Of Maize As A Dmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in long bone diaphyseal strength with horticultural intensification in west-central Illinois

Bridges

Blitz

Solano

2000

Am. J. Phys. Anthropol.

100

115

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This study examines changes in long bone diaphyseal strength in west-central Illinois from the Middle Woodland through the Mississippian periods. Significant differences occur between the Middle Woodland and the Late Woodland periods, at the time when use of native seed crops intensifies. In females, both humeral and femoral strength increases, which may be related to their role in growing and processing these crops. In males, right arm strength declines, which may be tied in part to the replacement of the atlatl by the bow. Fewer significant changes occur between the earlier and later Late Woodland periods, at the time when maize is introduced as a dietary staple, possibly because maize is at first grown as only one of a series of other starchy seeds. Finally, in the Mississippian period, when maize use intensifies, female left arm strength declines. This may be because maize is easier to process than native seeds, or it may reflect innovations in processing technology in the Mississippian period. External dimensions and shape indices, in part, reflect the trends seen in biomechanical strength. Comparisons are made to similar studies in other regions.

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Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) Dates Confirm Early Zea Mays in the Mississippi River Valley

Cited by 65 publications

References 10 publications

Reconsidering the Ocampo Caves and the Era of Incipient Cultivation in Mesoamerica

Reconsidering the Ocampo Caves and the Era of Incipient Cultivation in Mesoamerica

A brief review of the archaeological evidence for Palaeolithic and Neolithic subsistence

Changes in long bone diaphyseal strength with horticultural intensification in west-central Illinois

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