Marie Whall
Research Mentor: Kara Larson
Mentor Department: Anthropology; Museum of Anthropological Archaeology, LSA
Author(s): Julia McCuaig, Marie Whall
Session: Afternoon Session (12:00 PM – 1:00 PM)
Presentation Type:
Abstract
The study of macrobotanical remains—plant remains found at archaeological sites—is a valuable tool for understanding ancient foodways, agriculture, and diet, especially in European and Eurasian contexts. One important method used in this research is stable isotope analysis, which helps reveal how ancient societies managed plants and interacted with their environment. Many macrobotanical remains, however, are charred, meaning they’ve been burned in contexts like hearths. Recent studies have tested the isotopic differences between charred and dried (desiccated) plant remains, with one study by Nitsch et al. (2015) finding that charred Eurasian crops, such as cereals, show slight differences in stable carbon and nitrogen isotope values compared to dried samples. This concept has not yet been tested on North and South American crops, such as corn, squash, and peppers. The goal of this study is to experimentally char modern North and South American domesticated crops to determine if charring affects stable carbon and nitrogen isotope data, which could have major implications for how charred versus dried plant remains are used in archaeological research and the reliability of stable isotope data derived from these remains.
