Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Faunal bone'

Following excavations in the Promontory Caves and at several open sites in the Provo River Delta region, Steward (1937) characterized the Promontory culture as large game hunters. He based this on the high number of bison bones recovered within the Caves. Excavations at additional Promontory sites along the Wasatch Front contain faunal assemblages which differ significantly from those in the caves, showing that people living at open sites relied more heavily on small game, waterfowl, and aquatic resources than large game. These differences have been mostly attributed to Steward's sampling strategy and lack of screening, but faunal material recovered during 2011 excavations at the caves support Steward's initial assessment: the people living in the caves were hunting large game and little else. Using faunal data from seven sites, I discuss how the faunal assemblages differ and the implications of hunting practices in discussions of Promontory culture.

This dissertation examines certain aspects of the Belgian archaeological record during the Lateglacial. It is geographically centred on the north-western Ardennes and has two main themes. The first is a re-evaluation of the known chronology and archaeology for this region during the Lateglacial. The main part of this is presented in chapter 2, and includes a discussion of recent radiocarbon dates from the Oxford AMS system, including some obtained in the course of this research. The second theme is an examination of a series of supposedly Lateglacial faunal assemblages from 5 cave sites in the north-western Ardennes, namely the Trou de Chaleux, the Trou des Nutons at Furfooz, the Trou du Frontal at Furfooz, the Grotte du Coleoptere and the Grotte de Sy Verlaine. All of these sites have yielded late Magdalenian archaeological finds, and the prime objective of the study of the faunal assemblages is to identify direct evidence for the human modification of animal bone. The study reveals some good evidence for the latter, but also certain bars to the interpretation of these assemblages, which are discussed in detail within the relevant chapters. This dissertation concludes with an overview of the results and interpretations presented in the dissertation. The final pages of this dissertation include a tentative exploration of the notion of ethnicity, and how this concept may be relevant to the interpretation of butchery evidence.

This analysis of faunal bones from Wolf Village focuses on large game and its utility, as evidenced by what is known as the modified general utility index (MGUI). The MGUI proposes that bones at sites reflect transportation and butchering choices made by hunters at kill-butchering sites. According to the assumptions associated with the MGUI, hunters should select animal portions with high food value. The MGUI has been used in Fremont archaeology to provide a rough measure of site function. The expectation is that faunal bones would accompany the prized cuts of large game meat at habitation sites – and the animal parts with little food value would remain at kill-butchering sites because they are not worth the cost to carry them to the village. My analysis of large game animal bones found in excavations at Wolf Village counter these expectations. Fremont hunters at Wolf Village were returning to the site with low-caloric portions of large game, at least part of the time. Results from strontium isotope analysis suggest that many of the large game individuals hunted by the Fremont were not local to the immediate area. This suggests that hunters saw utility in low-caloric elements not related only to food value. Some low-caloric skeletal elements were used by the Fremont to construct bone tools and other objects, and as possible symbolic objects used in abandonment rituals. The results of this research suggests that the MGUI is not appropriate for measuring the utility of animal portions to the Fremont. Only when considering the social and non-caloric economic reasons for transporting low caloric elements, can archaeologists discover the true utility of large game animal parts to Fremont hunters.

In recent years, causewayed enclosures have come to be regarded as being ceremonial or ritual sites. This classification is derived from a perceived lack of evidence pertaining to domestic settlement, in the form of houses and 'typical' domestic animal bone assemblages, and a perceived abundance of 'atypical' material and methods of deposition. This thesis explores the animal bone from the Etton causewayed enclosure in order to ascertain whether these perceptions have an empirical basis. Etton was excavated in the 1980s, and the published literature relating to the site appeared to conform to the stereotypes established for causewayed enclosure sites, however during preliminary analysis, it became clear that the animal bone data was not complete and that many of the inferences regarding the role of animals at Etton were the result of presumption or data being taken out of context. Specifically, this thesis looks at the nature of the fractures on the animal bones from Etton, and also from a similar causewayed enclosure at Staines in order to establish a clear taphonomic history for the faunal remains on the site, from which aspects of the role of animals can be deduced. In archaeological literature the absence of 'fresh', or helical fractures (which tend to result from the conscious decision to break a bone for marrow) is said to support the hypothesis that sites of this type were not domestic in nature. This assertion has been made despite the fact that no detailed studies into bone fracture at Neolithic sites have ever been undertaken. This thesis demonstrates that at both Etton and Staines, fresh fractures were abundant and considers the potential implications of this for these sites. In so doing it highlights the dangers of presuming evidence exists or does not exist, and of cherry-picking data to fit a preordained ideal rather than allowing the data to speak for itself. At Etton and Staines, the animal bone speaks not necessarily of a categorically ceremonial or ritual economy, divorced from the domestic economy of the time, but of a more mundane economy, with occasional 'atypical' activity, that was standard for the inhabitants of causewayed enclosures, whether at this type of site or elsewhere.

Animals feature extensively in the iconography and written records of Bronze Age Crete, and in archaeological debates ranging from initial colonisation in the 7th millennium BC, through expansion of settlement across the island in the 4th-3rd millennia, to surplus mobilisation and feasting by the 2nd millennium palaces. To date, however, faunal remains---the most widely available evidence for human use of animals---have been neglected: detailed reports of large assemblages are non-existent and faunal evidence features rarely in works of synthesis. This thesis undertakes a diachronic study of a large faunal assemblage from Knossos---the largest and longest-lived site on Crete. The faunal assemblage derives from different excavations and areas, enforcing careful evaluation of retrieval, modification by previous analysts, survival and, where archaeological information permits, contextual variation in discard behaviour. Attrition is lower in built-up than open areas through the 7-3 millennia, and very low in the suggested 'public/elite' core area of 2nd millennium Knossos. Butchery into big 'parcels' and subsequent dispersal of bones in the former period suggests reciprocal sharing, while intensive butchery and structured deposition in the latter suggest assymetrical feasts emphasising distribution of meat to participants. Butchery evidence also indicates rapid, wholesale adoption of metal in the 3rd millennium. Feral populations of pigs and perhaps goats may have caused introductions of deer to fail. Domesticates, predominant throughout, were managed for diverse products in the 7-4 millennia, including traction with cows. Increased adult and male survivorship in the 3rd millennium indicates potential specialisation in traction, wool and hair, but persistence of this pattern in the 2nd millennium 'public/elite core' also suggests demand for impressively large carcasses. Results of broad significance include reciprocal sharing, early traction with cows, rapid adoption of metal and linkage between feasting and secondary products management.

For this thesis the animal bones collected from the archaeological excavations at the ancient site of Burgaz have been analyzed for the study of animal exploitation, human diet, social differentiation and the environment of Burgaz and Datç
a during the Classical Period. Comparison of the results with evidence from other sites to determine the extent to which there might have been local trends in animal husbandry. Because this kind of a research is not common among archaeologists specialising in the classical period the methodology and each process of the laboratory work has been set out. Burgaz/Datç
a is a coastal settlement but sea products do not have an important place in the human diet of the Datç
a Burgaz inhabitants. After analysis of the Burgaz bones it was determined that domestic cattle, sheep/goat, pig, horse, donkey and dog were present alongside wild goat, wild pig, fallow deer, red deer, roe deer, badger and birds as well as fish and shellfish from the sea. More than half of the bones that were identified, 220 of 430, come from floor filling levels beneath floors. It was understood that these bones were in filling materials that were brought from dump site(s). Among these bones were some worked cattle bones which have close parallels with Roman period finds at Sagalassos. Because of most of identified bones come from filling levels beneath floors it was not possible to reach definite conclusions about social hierarchy at ancient Burgaz. Sheep/goat and cattle were kept for their secondary products, such as milk, wool and power. They were slaughtered in their old age by experienced people and played an important place in diet of the Burgaz inhabitants. Pigs, on the other hand, were slaughtered when young. From the wild species found in the Classical and Hellenistic Periods it can be said that the Datç
a environment was diverse enough to accommodate a range of wild animals whose habitat indicates the existence of forested areas (with large leafed and coniferous trees) as well as of meadows and grasslands.

Stable nitrogen (N) isotope analysis of human bone collagen has been used for almost three decades for reconstructing the diets of ancient humans. A major limitation in this 'standard model', using the 15N-enrichment of human bone collagen δ15N values over associated herbivore bone collagen δ15N values to Fsredict the relative contribution of animal protein to human diet, is the assumption that the δ15Nvalues of plants consumed by humans and herbivores are identical. The work described in this thesis was carried out with the aim of determining the δ15N values of amino acids in crop species likely to be consumed by humans and herbivores and assessing how these contribute to bulk collagen δ15N values. This serves to refine interpretations of ancient human diet, allowing more accurate estimation of the relative contribution of plant and animal protein to human diet in the past. This is particularly pertinent at Neolithic sites, where relatively high human bone collagen 01SN values have been interpreted as due to consumption of high proportions of animal protein. These relatively high δ15N values could in fact be due to consumption of manured crops, with higher 01SN values _ than the plants consumed by associated herbivores. This study began by determining a method for the accurate and precise determination of plant and animal protein amino acid 01SN values by GC-C-IRMS. It was concluded that hydrolysis of lipid-extracted plant material, followed by purification of amino acids using ion-exchange chromatography and derivatisation to their N-acetyl-i-propyl esters, gives accurate and precise amino acid 01SN values. This method accounts for 75% of the N in human bone collagen, over 68% of the N in wheat and barley grain and over 58% of the N in pulses. A preliminary investigation of bone collagen amino acid 01SN values from humans and fauna at archaeological sites in South Africa illustrated the potential of amino acid 01SN values in elucidating the factors contributing to the bulk collagen δ15N value. The next step was to elucidate plant amino acid N cycling in agriculturally relevant crop species and in parts of the plant tending to be preserved in the archaeological record. Amino acid 01SN values of experimentally grown barley and bread wheat grains and rachis and broad beans and peas were found to broadly relate to metabolic pathways involved in their biosynthesis and catabolism. Manuring resulted in a consistent 15N-enrichment of cereal grain and rachis amino acid 01SN values but no 15N-enrichment of pulse amino acid δ15N values. Investigation of the chemical composition of modem charred grains and grains from archaeological sites was then carried out, to determine whether modern grains charred under experimental conditions can provide suitable analogues for their archaeological counterparts. Since 'charring of modem charred grains results in the conversion of starch and protein into melanoidins with alkyl and aromatic C moieties, whereas archaeological grains contain only aromatic C, it was concluded that heating of modem grains to 230°C does not account for all of the changes in chemical composition associated with diagenesis. Finally, N isotope analysis of amino acids from human and herbivore bone collagen isolates from three Neolithic sites, together with N isotope analysis of preserved cereal remains, was used to estimate amino acid δ15N values of the plants consumed by humans and herbivores and thus to elucidate dietary influences on bulk bone collagen δ15N values. This demonstrated the potential of bone collagen amino acid δ15N values in the elucidation of differential contributions of plant and animal protein to the human diet, drawing attention to the significant effect of plant N isotope signatures on palaeodietary interpretation using bone collagen δ15N values.

The adoption of bone tool technology in the Early Upper Palaeolithic of Europe by Neanderthals and anatomically modern humans has been the focus of considerable debate. In particular this debate has focused on the origins of the technology and the possible implications for the extinction of Neanderthals. This dissertation examines the context of element selection for use as raw material to produce bone tools, related to prey species in the Châtelperronian of the Grotte du Renne, Arcy-sur Cure and the Aurignacian of Abri Cellier, Dordogne. Current research indicates that there was little difference in the subsistence organization of Neanderthals and modern humans. As a more nuanced view of Neanderthal behavior emerges from recent studies, it is becoming apparent that differences between the two hominins are a matter of degree rather than absolute difference. The faunal analysis of the two assemblages in this dissertation found that both Neanderthals and modern humans were pursuing a foraging strategy to obtain prime age herbivores for food. Locally available taxa were taken. Carcasses were processed for meat, marrow and fat. Both assemblages show a preference for non-marrow bearing long bones or long bone shaft fragments to make tools. The raw material was chosen with reference to the mechanical properties of the bones, which exhibit elasticity necessary for use as awls or hide scrapers. Raw material was a by-product of the larger subsistence strategy. There is a difference in the use of antler. This is not used by Neanderthals. In the Aurignacian, it appears that the amount of antler represented by the points and tools at Abri Cellier could be obtained as part of a general foraging strategy. The appearance of bone tools in the Early Upper Palaeolithic has been argued as evidence for `modern' behavior. It might be more profitable to view the adoption of this new technology as a response by two different but related populations to particular ecological problems. It could be argued that the archaeological visibility of bone tools reflects an increasing investment in the production of more effective clothing by both Neanderthals and modern humans.

The crematory funerary rites practiced by those living in parts of mainland Britain during the first millennium AD included burning complete or parts of animals on the pyre. This thesis highlights the potential for archaeozoological analysis of faunal pyre goods using assemblages from the first millennium AD as a dataset. Experimental study and the integration of current research from a number of disciplines is used to suggest that although pyrolysis and cremation practices fragment and distort burnt bone assemblages, careful analysis can reveal a wealth of data leading to the interpretation of various forms of pyre good. The results of the author's analysis of material from the sites of Brougham, Cumbria, St. Stephen's, Hertfordshire, Castleford, West Yorkshire and Heath Wood, Derbyshire are combined with data from other published cemeteries to suggest a series of chronological and regional continuities in the use of animals but with a distinct change at the start of the Early Medieval period. The results from Brougham are particularly significant as they alter preconceived views on the utilisation of animals in Romano-British funerary practice. Cremation burials in first millennium AD Britain are shown to include the burnt remains of predominantly domestic taxa with occasional wild species. The pyre goods are interpreted as representing food offerings, companions, amulets, gaming items and sacrifices. This thesis demonstrates that cremated animal bone should not be disregarded but rather valued as source of archaeozoological data, and a significant functional tool for interpreting past funerary behaviour and animal utilisation.

Les objectifs principaux de cette thèse sont d’étudier la structure, le fonctionnement et la dynamique de différents assemblages de faune associée aux émissions de fluides froids de Méditerranée orientale. Trois principaux sites ont été étudiés: la mer de Marmara, la ride méditerranéenne et le delta profond du Nil. Cette thèse tente de déterminer la « signature environnementale» des sites méditerranéens et les caractéristiques de la faune qui y est associée dans un contexte de marges européennes et mondiale. Les objectifs spécifiques sont (1) de déterminer la composition, la diversité, la densité et la biomasse des assemblages d’invertébrés (2) de caractériser les conditions biogéochimiques au sein des différents microhabitats à proximité des organismes; (3) de caractériser les relations trophiques sur les différents assemblages de faune par une approche isotopique (en collaboration) et finalement, (4) de comparer la distribution spatiale et les caractéristiques des assemblages à différentes échelles spatiales (locale, à l’échelle d’une structure géologique, régionale). Les résultats montrent que : (1) le volcan de boue Napoli est le site le plus riche en taxons alors que les sites du delta du Nil nécessiteraient un échantillonnage plus approfondi ; (2) il existe une grande variabilité entre les microhabitats ainsi qu’au sein d’un même microhabitat; (3) les gradients en méthane, en oxygène ainsi que la nature du substrat sont les principaux facteurs abiotiques expliquant la distribution de la faune, (4) les caractéristiques des microhabitats, plutôt que la zone d’étude, influencent la structure des communautés benthiques associées aux écosystèmes de fluides froids méditerranéens
The major objectives of this thesis were to study the structure, functioning and dynamics of different faunal assemblages associated with cold seep ecosystems in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. We focused our study on three main sites: the Marmara Sea, the Mediterranean ridge and the Nile deep sea fan. This thesis aims at determining the environmental signature of Mediterranean sites and the characteristics of the associated fauna at European and global scales. The specific objectives were to (1) determine the composition, diversity, density, biomass of invertebrate assemblages, (2) characterize biogeochemical conditions within different microhabitats in the vicinity of organisms, (3) to define the trophic relationships amongst seep fauna using stable isotope analyses (collaboration) and lastly, (4) to compare the spatial distribution and assemblage characteristics at different spatial scales (local, structure-scale, regional). The results show that (1) the Napoli mud volcano is the richest structure in terms of numbers of taxa while the Nile deep-sea fan sites need additional sampling, (2) a high variability is observed both between the different microhabitats but also within a single microhabitat, (3) the methane and oxygen gradients as well as substratum type are the main structuring factors explaining the distribution of the fauna and (4) the characteristics of the microhabitats, rather than the study area, influence the structure of benthic communities associated with Mediterranean cold seeps

The Pine Hill collection was discovered in the archaeology lab at State University of New York College at Potsdam after remaining unstudied for over 30 years since its initial excavation in the 1960s and 1970s. Pine Hill has been identified as a fifteenth century St. Lawrence Iroquois village site, located in St. Lawrence County, New York. The faunal remains and bone tools from the site indicate food procurement strategies, seasonal activities, the presence of discrete activity areas at the site, and the production and use of a wide range of bone tools. Replication experiments conducted on several bone tool types provide insight about how these tools were made, used, and how quickly they might be discarded. As one of the first reports on a St. Lawrence Iroquois site in the region, this study presents important information about this group.

Culture types in Pacific Northwest archaeology are characteristic artifact assemblages distinguishing different prehistoric periods. Assemblages indicate a culture type transition during the 2,630 BP–270 BP occupation of Willows Beach (DcRt-10), southeastern Vancouver Island. Faunal remains could reveal links to subsistence patterns, following Croes’s theory that culture type change reflects subsistence intensification. Five dated DcRt-10 faunal assemblages underwent taxonomic and size classification, weighing and MNI calculation. Vertebrate weight and NISP percentages were compared between stratigraphic units associated with the later Gulf of Georgia and earlier Locarno Beach culture types. The youngest assemblage contains a smaller proportion of land mammal bone, suggesting increased sea mammal, fish, and bird procurement. Faunal remains also suggest a greater variety of taxa exploited over time. Faunal assemblages suggest that culture type change at DcRt-10 is the product of subsistence change, increasing knowledge of the culture historic sequence of this region.

The faunal remains from four archaeological sites on the northwest shore of Mingo Lake, in the interior of Southern Baffin Island, are examined in this thesis. All four sites are radiocarbon dated to Pre-Dorset times (4500 – 2700 BP). The faunal assemblage is dominated by caribou remains. As such, this study is the first, large-scale faunal analysis of an interior Pre-Dorset site with caribou as a main subsistence resource. In total 18,710 faunal bones were examined. Elemental frequencies, fracture patterns, bone burning, and butchering patterns will provide important insights into the lifeway of the Pre-Dorset. The results of the thesis indicate that the Pre-Dorset were utilizing the Mingo Lake area during the late summer into early fall. The main activity at all four sites was caribou hunting with a focus on marrow extraction. The sites served dual purposes as habitation and butchering sites and were occupied for varying lengths of time.

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. 2016
The analysis of faunal remains from archaeological sites can reveal much about past behaviour, palaeoenvironments and bone technology. This is especially pertinent for the Middle Stone Age (MSA): a period that corresponds to both the behavioural and anatomical development of Homo sapiens. In this thesis, I examine the faunal remains from Blombos Cave (BBC) and Klipdrift Shelter (KDS), two significant MSA sites about 45 km apart along the present-day southern Cape coast. The focus of the analyses is on the Still Bay (SB) layers (c. 75 – 68 thousand years ago [ka]) at BBC and the Howiesons Poort (HP) layers (c. 65 – 59 ka) at KDS. The aim of this thesis is to explore subsistence behaviour and environmental conditions during the SB and HP in the fynbos region of the southern Cape. I also investigate the effects of trampling on bone and whether trampling and other types of taphonomic modification can be used to infer occupational intensity in cave and rock shelter sites. Taphonomic data indicate that significant differences exist between the SB and HP faunal assemblages at BBC and KDS, respectively. Carnivores and scavengers had a greater effect on the SB than on the KDS assemblage. Furthermore, subsistence activities at KDS focused on marrow extraction while filleting was probably an important strategy at BBC. Taxonomic analyses indicate that the representative fauna from both sites is generally consistent with what is expected in the fynbos biome but with some noticeable differences. Grazers, for example, are significantly more prevalent at KDS than BBC while seal is more common at BBC. Other zooarchaeological data also show differences in prey selection strategies. Diet breadth is more extensive at KDS than at BBC, although bovid mortality profiles at BBC are more juvenile-dominated. I propose that many of these contrasting patterns imply that subsistence intensification is more evident in the HP layers at KDS than in the SB at BBC. Moreover, the taphonomic data suggest that the SB at BBC was a low-intensity, sporadically occupied period in contrast to the high-intensity occupations, particularly during the middle layers of the HP at KDS. The results of the KDS analysis also indicate a shift in environmental conditions during the HP and show links between prey selection, the environment and occupational intensity during this period. Trampling experiments indicate that trampling can generally be distinguished from butcherymarks, although bioturbation in shelly deposits can sometimes result in marks that mimic cutiii marks. More importantly, experiments show that pitting and abrasion are a more significant indicator of trampling than lines that resemble cut-marks. Based on these experiments, I argue that trampling modification can be used to infer occupational intensity at archaeological sites. Trampling marks in the KDS assemblage, for example, correspond well with the high occupational periods as indicated by other taphonomic data. Trampling and taphonomic data support the notion that BBC was a low-intensity, sporadically occupied site during the SB. By incorporating taxonomic, taphonomic and novel methods of skeletal-part analyses, this study contributes to our knowledge of human subsistence and palaeoenvironments during the SB and HP in the southern Cape. This thesis strengthens and adds to other research that has demonstrated variability in subsistence behaviour during the MSA.
LG2017

A presente dissertação tem por desígnio central a caracterização da dieta das comunidades humanas que ocuparam o território português durante o Mesolítico final e o Neolítico final/Calcolítico, mediante a realização de análises químicas dos ossos, concretamente de oligoelementos e dos isótopos estáveis de carbono e de azoto. Encerrando a dieta uma componente biológica indissociável das expressões de natureza comportamental assume a maior relevância na compreensão do modo de adaptação dos indivíduos ao meio ambiente e, por conseguinte, dos padrões de subsistência perfilhados, pelo que com a sua investigação procura-se aportar um novo olhar sobre as comunidades de caçadores-recolectores-pescadores e agro-pastoris, em essência trazer a lume outros sabores do passado. Para o efeito são perscrutados os cocheiros de Muge (Cabeço da Amoreira, Cabeço da Arruda e Moita do Sebastião) e do Sado (Arapouco, Cabeço das Amoreiras, Cabeço do Pez, Poças de S. Bento e Vale de Romeiras), datados grosso modo entre 7500 e 5500 anos BP, e seis sítios arqueológicos do Neolítico final/Calcolítico ( Abrigo da Carrasca, Eira Pedrinha, Gruta dos Alqueves, Hipogeu de S. Paulo, Pai Mogo I e Tholos Cabeço da Arruda), com balizas cronológicas que se situam entre 4780 e 3800 anos BP. Com o intuito de determinar as concentrações dos diferentes elementos presentes nos ossos foram submetidos à análise instrumental por activação com neutrões (INAA) 200 amostras ósseas, correspondentes a 186 indivíduos humanos e a 14 animais. A análise dos isótopos estáveis de carbono e de azoto no colagénio de ossos humanos foi realizada num total de 18 amostras ósseas humanas. Dos resultados auferidos é de salientar a constatação de marcadas diferenças no regime alimentar entre as comunidades do Mesolítico final e as do Neolítico final/Calcolítico, mais diversificado nas primeiras, baseado na exploração de um amplo espectro de recursos alimentares disponíveis do Tejo e do Sado, designadamente de origem marinha e terrestre, animal e vegetal. A importância relativa dos alimentos marinhos na dieta é mais acentuada nos concheiros de Muge, com uma proporção da ordem dos 50%, do que nos seus congéneres do Sado, onde estes recursos constituem aproximadamente 30% da dieta. As sociedades agro-pastoris do Neolítico final/Calcolítico exibem uma maior homogeneidade, uma vez que se baseiam sobretudo em alimentos de origem terrestre, sendo todavia, de notar uma certa diversidade no que respeita à relevância da agricultura e da pastorícia nas distintas comunidades. A pastorícia representa uma actividade económica de peso apenas nos grupos populacionais do interior, Abrigo da Carrasca e Gruta dos Alqueves, costituindo a agricultura cerealifera e de leguminosas a actividade preponderante, pese embora a intensidade da sua exploração seja, mais uma vez, variável. O contributo dos alimentos marinhos não é significativo, com excepção do Hipogeu de S. Paulo, onde estes compõem perto de 32% da dieta. A heterogeneidade constatada, quer nas comunidades do Mesolítico final, manifestamente mais acentuada, quer nas do Neolítico final/Calcolítico parece decorrer de adaptações particulares ao seu meio ambiente. PALAVRAS-CHAVE Paleodiedas, Oligoelementos, Isótopos estavéis de carbono e de azoto, Ossos humanos e faunísticos, Mesolítico final, Neolítico final/Calcolítico, Portugal.
The present thesis main purpose is the diet characterization of the human communities who occupied the Portuguese territory between the Late Mesolithic and the Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic, through chemical analysis of bones, namely trace elements and carbon and nitrogen stadie isotopes. Since diet encloses a biological component inseparable from the expressions of behavioural nature, it assumes a major relevance in the comprehension of how individuals adapt to their environments and therefore of the subsistence patterns adopted. So, with this investigation a new insignt into these nunter-gatherers-nsners and agro-pastoral communities is pursued, essentiany, it is our purpose to oring to light other flavours from the past. With this aim the Muge shell middens (Cabeço da Amoreira, Cabeço da Arruda and Moita do Sebastião) and their counterparts of Sado /Arapouco, Cabeço das Amoreiras, Cabeço do Pez, Poças de S. Bento and vale de Romeiras) dated between 1500 and 5500 BP are anaryseo, as wen as six Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic archaelogical sites , Abrigo da Carrasca EiraPedrinha, Gruta dos Alqueves, Hipogeu de S. Paulo, Pai Mogo I and Tholos Cabeço da Arruda, with choronological boundaries between 4780 and 3800 BP. The trace elements analysis took place at Instituto Tecnológico e Nuclear, in Sacavém, Portugal, where by means of instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) the concentrations of the elements Ca, Sr, Zn,Ba, MG, Mn and y existent in human and raunai bones were determined, in a total of 200 samples, corresponding to 186 human individuals and 14 animal ones. The carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes analysis of human bone collagen was performed in a total of 18 human bone samples. From the resuits obtained it is important to nignngnt the marked amerences in diet between the Late Mesolithic and Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic populations, more diverse on the first ones, based on the exploration of a large spectrum of the available food resources in Tejo and Sado estuaries, namely of marine and terrestrial, animal and vegetable sources. The relative importance of marine food in diet is more pronounced in the Muge shen middens,with a proportion of 50%, than in the sadd ones, where these resources made up nearry 50% of the diet. The agro-pastoral societies from the Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic show a greater homogeneity, since they primarily rest on terrestrial foods. Nevertheless, it should be noted some diversity in respect to the importance of agriculture and herding of livestock in the amerent communities the neroing of investock represents an important economic activity ony in the inner population groups, Abrigo da Carrasca and Gruta dos Alqueves, being the cereal and leguminous cultivation the main activity, although the intensity of its exploration is, once again, variable. The contribution of marine food is not significant, except to Hipogeu de S. Paulo, where they made up almost 32% of the diet, the observed neterogenery dotn in Late Mesonthic, ciearry more pronounced, and in the Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic seems to resuit from particular adaptatains to their environments.