Late Neolithic plant subsistence and farming activities on the southern margins of the Massif Central (France)

Abstract

Seed and fruit remains from archaeological sites provide the most direct source of evidence on ancient crops and plant food resources. Earlier studies on late Neolithic sites (3500–2200 BC) in the Grands Causses and Hérault valley areas focused on cave and rock-shelter sites. Here, we discuss new and previously published archaeobotanical evidence from open-air settlements, which should be considered as more representative of the standard subsistence and farming economy. Patterns in the data have been analyzed through sample densities, diversity index, taxa ubiquities, and abundance by means of correspondence factor analysis. Contrary to what is assumed in other Western European regions for that period, the available dataset indicates that cereals were consumed and therefore probably cultivated on a regular basis in the Grands Causses and Hérault valley. The range of crops and collected wild fruits was the same in both areas but certain differences existed. As in other regions, einkorn played a significant role during the late Neolithic, but it was more common in the Hérault valley than in the Grands Causses plateaux. On the other hand, the collection of wild fruits seemed to be of more importance in the hinterland than in the littoral area. The more striking difference concerns crop processing activities and the use of glume wheat by-products. They are much more common in the Grands Causses samples.

Middle Neolithic farming of open-air sites in SE France: new insights from archaeobotanical investigations of three wells found at Les Bagnoles (L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, Dépt. Vaucluse, France)

“…This might suggest that during MN2 there could have been a change of preference to a richer grain in terms of taste and nutrients, which is more resistant to fungi and to harsh weather but also had possible uses of its straw for other activities. This preference could have been sustained in some areas of southern France until the Late Neolithic period (Bouby et al 2020b).…”

“…This could also be due to changes in preferences and uses of the crop by-products, for instance. As indicated by Bouby et al (2020b), einkorn was still an important crop in southern France during the Late Neolithic (3500-2200 bc), with an apparent lack of correlation with climatic events, which would suggest that the choice could have been just a matter of a greater interest in this crop. Ethnographic studies show that einkorn is used nowadays by people with less income (Peña-Chocarro et al 2009, p. 109), despite its lower productivity and higher workload requirements, such as for dehusking, but this could have been perceived in a different way in the past.…”

Early Neolithic (ca. 5850-4500 cal BC) agricultural diffusion in the Western Mediterranean: An update of archaeobotanical data in SW France

“…Post-harvest processing in bulk is especially likely concerning naked cereals-dominant during the Cardial/Epicardial-but is also possible for hulled wheats, even if not as straightforward because the removal of the glumes require time-consuming dehusking [72]. Processing in bulk has previously been hypothesized in Languedoc for the Late Neolithic [73].…”

An archaeobotanical and stable isotope approach to changing agricultural practices in the NW Mediterranean region around 4000 BC

“…Further dating of previously investigated sites should be undertaken in order to integrate all available data from this period within a precise and reliable chronology. In some parts of Southern France, it was also believed that einkorn only becomes important after 3500 BC ( Bouby et al, 2020b ), partly due to the lack of direct dating of most of the archaeobotanical assemblages.…”