Palaeodiet of Mesolithic and Neolithic populations of Meuse Basin (Belgium): evidence from stable isotopes

Bocherens, Hervé; Polet, Caroline; Toussaint, Michel

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2006.03.009

Cited by 69 publications

(47 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Isotope investigations on the Belgian Neanderthal specimens aside , the chronologically earliest human remains were analyzed by Bocherens et al (2007) who investigated dietary patterns in 93 Mesolithic and Neolithic specimens from the Meuse Basin. This study documented dietary changes occurring in Belgium during the early Holocene and revealed subtle dietary differences which were interpreted as variations in the consumption of terrestrial and freshwater foods.…”

Section: Diet Reconstruction Using Stable Isotope Ratiosmentioning

confidence: 99%

Isotopic examination of links between diet, social differentiation, and DISH at the post‐medieval Carmelite Friary of Aalst, Belgium

Quintelier

Ervynck

Müldner

et al. 2013

American J Phys Anthropol

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Stable isotope ratios (δ(13) C and δ(15) N) were measured in human burials from the post-medieval (16th-18th c. AD) Carmelite friary burial grounds at Aalst, a town in Flanders, Belgium. Dietary patterns of 39 adult individuals were analyzed, from a mixed monastic and lay population buried in three different locations, reflecting groups with differing social status. The data show significant variation in the consumption of perhaps meat, but certainly also marine protein between females and males. This result represents a remarkable continuity with medieval dietary patterns, suggesting that the social and economic changes of the early modern period had a limited effect on everyday life. When both sexes were examined together, individuals buried in the cloister garth consumed significantly less marine protein compared to people buried in the church, likely reflecting social stratification. No statistical differences were observed between isotopic values from the church and the cloister alley, suggesting a similarly diverse diet of the monastic part of the buried population and that of the richer lay population. Finally, the hypothesis that diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) is linked to a diet rich in animal protein was tested. No systematic or statistically significant differences between pathological and non-pathological bones from the same individuals affected with DISH were observed, and no statistical differences were found between individuals with DISH and individuals without DISH.

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Section: Diet Reconstruction Using Stable Isotope Ratiosmentioning

confidence: 99%

Isotopic examination of links between diet, social differentiation, and DISH at the post‐medieval Carmelite Friary of Aalst, Belgium

Quintelier

Ervynck

Müldner

et al. 2013

American J Phys Anthropol

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“…Stable isotope studies focused on the Neolithic have been conducted on material from various geographic areas. In Europe, some regions are better documented than others, such as the Baltic (Tauber, 1981;Lidén, 1995;Eriksson, 2003;Milner et al, 2003;Richards et al, 2003b;Lidén et al, 2004), Northern Europe, and the Atlantic coast (Lubell et al, 1994;Richards and Hedges, 1999;Schulting and Richards, 2001;Richards et al, 2003b; Bocherens et al, 2005a, Bocherens et al, 2006 as well as Central Europe (Bonsall et al, 1997;Lillie and Richards, 2000;Cook et al, 2001;Bonsall et al, 2004;Ogrinc and Budja, 2005). The Eastern Mediterranean has been studied by various researchers (Lange-Badré and Le Mort, 1998;Papathanasiou, 2003;Richards et al, 2003a); however, studies in the Western Mediterranean are scarce.…”

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confidence: 99%

Southern French Neolithic populations: Isotopic evidence for regional specificities in environment and diet

Herrscher

Goude

2009

American J Phys Anthropol

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The Middle Neolithic of the Northwestern Mediterranean area ( approximately 4500-3500 BC cal) is characterized by the development of food production techniques as well as by increasing social complexity. These characteristics could have had an impact on human dietary patterns. To evaluate human dietary practices and lifeways of the Middle Neolithic populations from the South of France, stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis was carried out on 57 human and 53 faunal bones from seven archaeological sites located in the Languedoc and Garonne regions between 20 and 100 km from the Mediterranean Sea, respectively. Results show regional differences in carbon isotope values. Animal and human bones from the Languedoc region are significantly enriched in (13)C relative to the Garonne. Conversely, human and dog bones from the Garonne region are significantly enriched in (15)N compared to human and dog bones from the Languedoc region. These results highlight the importance of the local ecosystem in human and animal diet as well as a regional differentiation of palaeodietary behavior, which probably relates to economic and social factors. The comparison of stable isotope data with archaeological and biological evidence does not show any significant intra- or interpopulation differences. However, the presence of human outliers suggests that migration probably occurred, perhaps in relation to the trade of animals and/or materials. This study also highlights the importance of investigating local animal stable isotope values for the interpretation of human palaeodiet.

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“…However, before discussing the analytical results it is also important to note that trace element analysis and estimation of isotopic ratios of Carbon and Nitrogen have a great potential and significant feature to reconstruct the palaeodiet and past history of ancient animal population [19][20][21][22][23][24]. It is also well known that the archaeological remains in any archaeological sites are well preserved when environmental condition [19].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Study of Preservation Status and Dietary Reconstruction in the Human Remains Recovered from Roopkund Lake through Chemical Analysis of Faunal Remains

Farswan¹,

Singh²

2015

JCCE

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Present study is carried out in the bone samples collected from Roopkund Lake in district Chamoli Garhwal, Uttarakhand which is located at 5,029 meters from main sea level in between Nanda Ghunghti and Trishuli peak. This historical site belongs to 9th century A.D. All the samples selected for the study were dried in room temperature as well as hot air oven at 32 o C. Cleaning, pretreatment and digestion process of faunal remains was followed through established scientific methods. Chemical analysis i.e. concentration of different elements such as calcium, strontium, barium, magnesium and zinc as well as isotopic ratios of Carbon and Nitrogen was estimated with the help of ICP (inductively coupled plasma spectroscopy) and AAS (atomic absorption spectrophotometer). The results obtained from the chemical analysis are significant. On the basis of concentration of different elements and ratios of Nitrogen and Carbon isotopes, the dietary habits of the peoples buried in the Roopkund Lake are identified, which is different from sample to sample person to person. Besides this, the results are also significantly helpful for knowing the preservation status of faunal remains in Roopkund Lake. Finally this study also indicated the potentiality of chemical analysis for reconstructing the palaeodiet behaviour and preservation status of bone remains.

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Palaeodiet of Mesolithic and Neolithic populations of Meuse Basin (Belgium): evidence from stable isotopes

Cited by 69 publications

References 33 publications

Isotopic examination of links between diet, social differentiation, and DISH at the post‐medieval Carmelite Friary of Aalst, Belgium

Isotopic examination of links between diet, social differentiation, and DISH at the post‐medieval Carmelite Friary of Aalst, Belgium

Southern French Neolithic populations: Isotopic evidence for regional specificities in environment and diet

Study of Preservation Status and Dietary Reconstruction in the Human Remains Recovered from Roopkund Lake through Chemical Analysis of Faunal Remains

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