Neolithic resinated wine

McGovern, Patrick E.; Glusker, Donald L.; Exner, Lawrence J.; Voigt, Mary M.

doi:10.1038/381480a0

Cited by 306 publications

(147 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…The chemical evidence does not distinguish between a beverage made from the cacao seeds and chicha made from the pulp, but we argue, on the basis of changes in serving vessels, that the distinctive Mesoamerican chocolate drink was a byproduct of earlier fermented drinks. The fact that natural products high in sugar were used to produce alcoholic beverages in many parts of the world at an early date, including Neolithic China (9) and the Near East (10)(11)(12), is consistent with our findings.…”

supporting

confidence: 90%

Chemical and archaeological evidence for the earliest cacao beverages

Henderson

Joyce

Hall

et al. 2007

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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169

114

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Chemical analyses of residues extracted from pottery vessels from Puerto Escondido in what is now Honduras show that cacao beverages were being made there before 1000 B.C., extending the confirmed use of cacao back at least 500 years. The famous chocolate beverage served on special occasions in later times in Mesoamerica, especially by elites, was made from cacao seeds. The earliest cacao beverages consumed at Puerto Escondido were likely produced by fermenting the sweet pulp surrounding the seeds.archaeology ͉ chemistry ͉ Honduras ͉ Mesoamerica

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supporting

confidence: 90%

Chemical and archaeological evidence for the earliest cacao beverages

Henderson

Joyce

Hall

et al. 2007

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

Self Cite

169

114

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“…Tartaric and syringic acid have been suggested as suitable biomarker compounds for wine in archaeological residues (73)(74)(75)(76)(77). Syringic acid is derived from malvidin and is only found in significant abundances in red wine, increasing with the age of the wine -no other plant contains significant amounts (72,76).…”

Section: Detecting Alcoholic Drinksmentioning

confidence: 99%

Organic Residues in Archaeology: The Highs and Lows of Recent Research

Steele

2013

ACS Symposium Series

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The analysis of organic residues from archaeological materials has become increasingly important to our understanding of ancient diet, trade and technology. Residues from diverse contexts have been retrieved and analysed from the remains of food, medicine and cosmetics to hafting material on stone arrowheads, pitch and tar from shipwrecks, and ancient manure from soils. Research has brought many advances in our understanding of archaeological, organic residues over the past two decades. Some have enabled very specific and detailed interpretations of materials preserved in the archaeological record. However there are still areas where we know very little, like the mechanisms at work during the formation and preservation of residues, and areas where each advance produces more questions rather than answers, as in the identification of degraded fats. This chapter will discuss some of the significant achievements in the field over the past decade and the ongoing challenges for research in this area.1341280_File000001_20903114.docPrinted 7/19/2013 2

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Section: T2450mentioning

confidence: 69%

“…The sharp, intense peaks at 2920 and 2850 cm-1 , as well as the absorption at 730-720 cm-1 , are the result of long straight-chain hydrocarbons (e.g., n-alkanes), which are accentuated in the chloroform extracts. Some hydrocarbon absorption, in conjunction with the small peak at 1790 cm-1 and a possible y-Iactone carbonyl absorption in the 1690-1670 cm-1 range, may also be due to an as yet unidentified plant resin or herb, as implied by previous research on ancient Near Eastern wine (McGovern et al 1996.According to gas chromatography-mass spectrometric (GCMS) analysis ( Figure 5b), C 23 H 48 , C 2s H s2 , C 27 H s6 , and C 29 H 6 o-characteristic n-alkanes in beeswax and thus marker compounds of honey (Evershed et al 1997;Xu et al 1989)-possibly account for the straight-chain hydrocarbon IR absorptions. Alternatively, these n-alkanes, with the C 29 compound usually most prominent (Kolattukudy 1976), might be explained by epicuticular waxes, which occur on the surfaces of leaves and fruits of many plants.…”

mentioning

confidence: 72%

Chemical Identification and Cultural Implications of a Mixed Fermented Beverage from Late Prehistoric China

McGovern¹,

Underhill²,

Fang³

et al. 2005

asi

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THE DISCOVERY AND REDISCOVERY of how to make a fermented beverage from a natural or derived source of simple sugars has occurred in many places and at many times. Before the modern period, only the Eskimos, the peoples of Tierra del Fuego at the southern tip of South America, and the Australian aborigines apparently lived out their lives without the medical benefits and mind-altering effects of alcohol, the principal drug in any fermented beverage. While polar regions lacked good resources for monosaccharides, honey and sugar-rich fruits and other plants are plentiful in temperate parts of the globe and the tropics. In the New World, maize (Zea mays) and the juice of the century plant (Agave americana) and the saguaro cactus (Carnegiea gigantea) were sweet enough to ferment directly into chicha, pulque, and cactus wine, respectively. Increasingly, archaeological, ethnographic, and textual evidence from around the world points to fermented beverages, especially in the context of feasting activities, as integral to cultures at many different levels: social, religious, economic, and political. Although the goals and behaviors of participants and the scale of feasting and drinking varied (Bray 2003; Dietler and Hayden 2001;Hayden 1995;Potter 2000), feasts everywhere involved favorite foods and, almost invariably, fermented beverages. Feasts marked critical events in the lives of communities and individuals, and often entailed public rituals (Pauketat et al. 2002). Late pre-Hispanic Peru (Hastorf and Johannessen 1993; Moore 1989) exemplifies Patrick E. McGovern is senior research scientist and adjunct associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. Gretchen R. Hall is a research assistant and Chen-shan Wang is a graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania Museum's Applied Science Center for Archaeology, Philadelphia. Anne P. Underhill is associate curator and Gary M. Feinman is curator and chair in the Anthropology Department at the Field Museum, Chicago. Hui Fang, Fengshi Luan, Haiguang Yu, and Fengshu Cai are professors in the Department of Archaeology, Shandong University, China. Zhijun Zhao is a researcher at the Institute of Archaeology, Beijing, China. ASIAN PERSPECTIVES • 44(2) • FALL 2005 how great the demand for fermented beverages has been in the Americas, comparable to what is attested in the Old World (e.g., Iron Age Europe [Dietler 1990] and from the Neolithic period through historical times in the Near East and the Mediterranean region [Joffee 1998;McGovern et al. 1997; McGovern 2000McGovern , 2003).The demand for fermented beverages often led to social change. In Peru, this perceived need probably contributed to an intensification of maize production (Hastorf and Johannassen 1993). In Iron Age Europe, exchange systems were hard pressed to satisfy the craving of political elites for Italian wine (Dietler 1990). In the Middle East, the prestige exchange of wine and special winedrinking ceremonies have been proposed as the motive in the spread of a Neolithic wine culture, w...

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Neolithic resinated wine

Cited by 306 publications

References 4 publications

Chemical and archaeological evidence for the earliest cacao beverages

Chemical and archaeological evidence for the earliest cacao beverages

Organic Residues in Archaeology: The Highs and Lows of Recent Research

Chemical Identification and Cultural Implications of a Mixed Fermented Beverage from Late Prehistoric China

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