Mobility and diet in Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age Germany : evidence from multiple isotope analysis
Year: 2012
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Prehistoric human diet can be \nreconstructed by the analysis of carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and sulphur \n(S) stable isotopes in bone, whereas ancient mobility and provenance can\n be studied using the isotopes of strontium (Sr) and oxygen (O) in tooth\n enamel, and of sulphur in bone. Although thirty years have passed since\n the first application of the stable isotope method to European skeletal\n material, gaps in biochemical research have remained within German \narchaeology. This dissertation seeks to fill these gaps by providing \nnovel evidence from multiple isotope analyses in different transitional \nperiods of German prehistory, including the earliest Neolithic farmers \nof the Linearbandkaramik culture, the Early Bronze Age necropolis site \nof Singen, and the elite burial population from the Early Iron Age site \nof Magdalenenberg. To assess the local characteristics of Sr isotopes in\n south-western Germany, environmental samples (n=93) were collected and \nanalysed from the different geological formations between the Black \nForest and Lake Constance. As a result of this work, these reference \ndata are now available for future research. \n\nA substantial dataset of C and N isotopes was obtained from the human \npopulations from the Linearbandkeramik sites of Derenburg, Halberstadt \nand Karsdorf (n=97) in Central Germany. The data provides information on\n early Neolithic subsistence and individual diet, and can be connected \nto evidence from a previous palaeogenetic study on lactose intolerance. \nFurthermore, the analysis of contemporary fauna (n=45) provides novel \nevidence on Neolithic livestock management strategies. The \nreconstruction of ancient mobility using the isotopes of Sr, O and S \nprovided information on human provenance at the Early Bronze Age \ncemetery site of Singen. While the population had been considered mobile\n because of exotic grave goods found at the site, biochemical evidence \nsuggests all sampled individuals (n=29) originated and lived locally in \nthe region of Lake Constance. A very distinct pattern was found at the \nEarly Iron Age monumental tumulus site of Magdalenenberg in the Black \nForest. The results of Sr, O and S analyses in the skeletal remains \n(n=90) of this elite Hallstatt Culture burial population suggest various\n regions of human origin. Only a small proportion of the people \noriginated locally. The majority of the burial population is derived \nfrom the Black Forest highlands or from the plains towards Lake \nConstance. In some cases, individual origin could be assigned to \nspecific areas in the Alps and Italy through the application of various \nisotope systems.
Author: Viktoria M. Oelze
Language: English
Subfield: Archeology
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1531319539