Understanding Final Neolithic communities in south-eastern Poland: New insights on diet and mobility from isotopic data

Abstract

We present the first comprehensive multi-isotopic data on human and animal remains from the Final Neolithic Corded Ware culture (ca. 2900–2300 cal. BC) in south-eastern Poland. The study focused on communities of two settlement areas located in the Małopolska Upland and in the Subcarpathian region. Carbon and nitrogen isotopes of bone collagen were investigated to obtain insights into human dietary preferences, whereas the strontium isotope composition of human tooth enamel was used to trace the mobility and provenance of individuals. Sr isotope data point to a non-local origin of at least one-quarter of the investigated individuals in the Subcarpathian region, consistent with associated allochthonous grave inventories of eastern or western origins. In contrast, all investigated individuals in the Małopolska Upland were of local origin. Furthermore, our study shows an example that the use of fauna for the assessment of the local 87Sr/86Sr range of an archaeological site can lead to incorrect conclusions and suggests that a detailed Sr isotopic survey of the geological background and its hydrologic elements is necessary to provide conclusive constraints for the identification of local and non-local individuals in prehistoric communities. Carbon and nitrogen isotope composition of bone collagen indicate an omnivorous diet that included C3-based terrestrial plant and animal resources, in which plant food dominated. In both regions, there were no significant sex differences in dietary intakes. Higher δ15Ncoll values of younger infants presumably reflect the effect of weaning.

Human Mobility in the Final Eneolithic Population of Święte, Jarosław District, South-Eastern Poland: Evidence from Strontium Isotope Data

“…On the other hand, the faunal data from Mirocin would lead to a completely different interpretation. This example confirms earlier suggestions that Sr isotope signatures of prehistoric and modern fauna do not provide a reliable 87 Sr/ 86 Sr baseline for investigating past human provenance and migration [Maurer et al 2012;Zieliński et al 2016;Szczepanek et al 2018].…”

“…At Dobkowice, the 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios of the fauna are very uniform. In contrast, at Mirocin, the faunal signatures vary within a wide range, even if we exclude the value of the horse because of its non-local provenance [see Szczepanek et al 2018]. If the signatures of the prehistoric animals at Dobkowice would really reflect an accurate estimate of local 87 Sr/ 86 Sr values, all individuals from Święte, except of a single male, would be identified as non-locals.…”

“…The Sr isotope composition of rainwater, the most non-radiogenic element of the local environment, is indicated. The shaded area indicates the range of Sr isotope signatures characteristic for the local Final Enolithic populations in the Subcarpathian region [afterSzczepanek et al 2018]…”

Corded Ware cultural complexity uncovered using genomic and isotopic analysis from south-eastern Poland

“…One of the most characteristic features of the CWC complex are the funeral rituals that quickly spread over a large part of the Central Europe 28 . Attempts have been made to identify and understand the migration patterns within this vast cultural complex, and whether there were regional subgroups or other kinds of subdivisions 11,12,20,29 . To identify and to understand how different subgroups of the Corded Ware complex interacted with each other and the surrounding populations, an in-depth analysis of individuals representing this cultural complex during a highly important period in prehistory (2800-2300 BCE) is of great importance 29 .…”

Light Stable Isotope Analysis of Diet in Corded Ware Culture Communities: Święte, Jarosław District, South-Eastern Poland

“…The local baseline was established using cattle (Bos taurus) and pig (Sus domesticus) sample values from the Early Bronze Age Mierzanowice culture, sites number 37 and 39 in Dobkowice near Jarosław in the same region of south-east Poland [Werens et al 2018]. The human results were then compared with published data from the Final Eneolithic and the Early Bronze Age sites in the Rzeszów Foothills in Poland and the Early Bronze Age Yampil Barrow Complex (YBC) sites in Ukraine [Goslar et al 2017].…”