Archaeobotanical implications of phytolith assemblages from cultivated rice systems, wild rice stands and macro-regional patterns

Weisskopf, Alison; Harvey, Emma; Kingwell-Banham, Eleanor; Kajale, M. D.; Mohanty, Rabi; Fuller, Dorian Q.

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2013.04.026

Cited by 64 publications

(47 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…4). In others words there is a spectrum from wet to dry (Weisskopf et al 2014;Fuller et al 2011). In some cases upland rice may be grown in slash-and-burn systems.…”

Section: What Was the Ecology Of Early Rice Cultivation In Different mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Over the past decade archaeobotanical research based at the UCL Institute of Archaeology and involving a wide range of collaborators in east, south, and southeast Asia has been seeking new insights into the processes by which rice evolved and rice cultivation systems evolved, and how these relate to cultural change and long-distance cultural relationships across Monsoon Asia. While this research began with critical reflections and debate surrounding the initial cultivation of rice in China (Fuller, Harvey and Qin 2007) and India (Fuller 2006), it has expanded into better documenting the evidence for morphological change during domestication ), the characterisation of variable wet and dry ecologies of early rice cultivation Fuller and Weisskopf 2010;Weisskopf et al 2014), and to tracking the spread of rice through the compilation and analysis of a large database of archaeobotanical evidence (Silva et al 2015). We have completed more than six years of research supported by major NERC (Natural Environment Research Council) grants (Grant NE/G005540/1 "The Identification of Arable Rice Systems in Prehistory" (2009)(2010)(2011)(2012); Grant NE/ K003402/1 "The impact of evolving rice systems from China to Southeast Asia" (2013)(2014)(2015)(2016)), developing and deploying new methods for establishing the past ecology of rice cultivation and its potential impact not just on social change, but also on the global environment through methane emissions produced by methanogenic bacteria that thrive in the warm stagnant water of paddyfields (Fuller et al 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pathways of Rice Diversification across Asia

Fuller

Weisskopf

Castillo

2016

Archaeology International

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The archaeology of rice has made important methodological advances over the past decade that have contributed new data on the domestication process, spread and ecology of cultivation. Growing evidence from spikelet bases indicates that non-shattering, domesticated forms evolved gradually in the Yangtze basin and that there were at least two distinct processes around the Middle Yangtze region pre-dating 6000 BC, and the in the Lower Yangtze region between 6000 and 4000 BC. Early rice cultivation in these areas was based on wet field ecologies, in contrast to rainfed rice that is indicated among the earliest systems in India. When rice first spread north it was not entirely suited to shorter temperate summer growth seasons, and we are able to infer from high levels of apparently green-harvested spikelets that genetic adaptations to temperate conditions evolved after 2000 BC. When rice first spread south, to mainland Southeast Asia, after 2500 BC, it was grown in rainfed, dry ecologies that were less labourdemanding and less-productive. More productive and intensive irrigated rice then redeveloped in Southeast Asia around 2000 years ago, supporting growing population densities and social complexity. IntroductionRice is one of the world's most widely eaten and most productive cereals. Over the past decade archaeobotanical research based at the UCL Institute of Archaeology and involving a wide range of collaborators in east, south, and southeast Asia has been seeking new insights into the processes by which rice evolved and rice cultivation systems evolved, and how these relate to cultural change and long-distance cultural relationships across Monsoon Asia. While this research began with critical reflections and debate surrounding the initial cultivation of rice in China (Fuller, Harvey and Qin 2007) and India (Fuller 2006),

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“…4). In others words there is a spectrum from wet to dry (Weisskopf et al 2014;Fuller et al 2011). In some cases upland rice may be grown in slash-and-burn systems.…”

Section: What Was the Ecology Of Early Rice Cultivation In Different mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pathways of Rice Diversification across Asia

Fuller

Weisskopf

Castillo

2016

Archaeology International

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“…Poaceae (grasses) are particularly well represented by phytoliths. Tropical plants of East Asia that produce diagnostic phytoliths include Oryza (rice), Musa (banana), Cyperaceae (sedges), and Palmae (palms) (Pearsall 1989;Weisskopf et al 2014). Over the past two decades, phytoliths have played an important role in investigating early rice agriculture in China (e.g.…”

Section: The Zbs Profile and Sample Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

New evidence for Neolithic rice cultivation and Holocene environmental change in the Fuzhou Basin, southeast China

Zheng

Rolett

et al. 2016

Veget Hist Archaeobot

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A stratified profile of the Zhuangbianshan (ZBS) archaeological site (Fuzhou Basin, Fujian) was studied to investigate Neolithic era anthropogenic influence and associated environmental changes. Analysis of the archaeological sediments focused on phytoliths, palynomorphs and microcharcoal. Until now, a lack of direct evidence for agriculture has made it difficult to know if Neolithic cultures of this area relied on the exploitation of wild plants such as nuts and sago palm, or a combination of farming and foraging. Three types of rice phytoliths were found in ZBS archaeological deposits, providing robust evidence for rice farming as part of a broad-spectrum Neolithic subsistence economy centered on fishing and hunting. Chronologies based on AMS 14 C dates and artifact typology place the earliest rice during the Tanshishan (TSS) Period (5,000-4,300 cal BP) followed by a shift to economic dependency on rice in the Huangguashan (HGS) Period (4,300-3,500 cal BP). The ZBS phytolith assemblage contains high frequencies of rice husk (peaked-shape glume cells) phytoliths, with far fewer leaf and stem types. This indicates late stage processing activities such as dehusking, implying a focus on consumption rather than rice production. High concentrations of charcoal in the Neolithic ZBS deposits indicate local human settlement and peaks in fire use. The ZBS pollen record also reflects human settlement and peaks in local forest clearance during the Neolithic. Forest cover was renewed when the site was temporarily abandoned following the Neolithic. Rapid formation of the Min River floodplain began *2,000 cal BP in association with retreating sea level and intensifying anthropogenic influence. Prior to that, rice farming in the Fuzhou Basin was limited by the scarcity of wetlands suitable for agriculture.

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“…By contrast at RV, no evidence of African millets were found, but two specimens of Chinese foxtail millet (Setaria italica) were identified. Separating Setaria italica from the South Indian native Brachiaria ramosa can be a challenge (see Fuller et al 2004;Kingwell-Banham and Fuller 2014), and one specimen has been assigned to a B. ramosa/S. italica category.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Agricultural systems in Bangladesh: the first archaeobotanical results from Early Historic Wari-Bateshwar and Early Medieval Vikrampura

Rahman

Castillo

Murphy

et al. 2020

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

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The present paper reports the first systematic archaeobotanical evidence from Bangladesh together with direct AMS radiocarbon dates on crop remains. Macro-botanical remains were collected by flotation from two sites, Wari-Bateshwar (WB), an Early Historic archaeological site, dating mainly between 400 and 100 BC, with a later seventh century AD temple complex, and Raghurampura Vikrampura (RV), a Buddhist Monastery (vihara) located within the Vikrampura city site complex and dating to the eleventh and sixteenth centuries AD. Despite being a tropical country, with high rainfall and intensive soil processes, our work demonstrates that conventional archaeobotany, the collection of macro-remains through flotation, has much potential towards putting together a history of crops and agricultural systems in Bangladesh. The archaeobotanical assemblage collected from both sites indicates the predominance of rice agriculture, which would have been practiced in summer. Spikelet bases are of domesticated type rice, while grain metrics suggest the majority of rice was probably subspecies japonica. The presence of some wetland weeds suggests at least some of the rice was grown in wet (flooded) systems, but much of it may have been rainfed as inferred from the Southeast Asian weed Acmella paniculata. Other crops include winter cereals, barley and possible oat, and small numbers of summer millets (Pennisetum glaucum, Sorghum bicolor, Setaria italica), a wide diversity of summer and winter pulses (14 spp.), cotton, sesame and mustard seed. Pulse crops included many known from India. Thus, while most crops indicate diffusion of crops from India eastwards, the absence of indica rice could also indicate some diffusion from Southeast Asia. The later site RV also produced evidence of the rice bean (Vigna umbellata), a domesticate of mainland Southeast Asia. These data provide the first empirical evidence for reconstructing past agriculture in Bangladesh and for the role of connections to both India and mainland Southeast Asia in the development of crop diversity in the Ganges delta region.

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Archaeobotanical implications of phytolith assemblages from cultivated rice systems, wild rice stands and macro-regional patterns

Cited by 64 publications

References 30 publications

Pathways of Rice Diversification across Asia

Pathways of Rice Diversification across Asia

New evidence for Neolithic rice cultivation and Holocene environmental change in the Fuzhou Basin, southeast China

Agricultural systems in Bangladesh: the first archaeobotanical results from Early Historic Wari-Bateshwar and Early Medieval Vikrampura

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