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Skeletal remains of two equid species, Equus caballus (horse) and Equus asinus (donkey), have been found in archaeological contexts throughout Iberia since the Palaeolithic and Chalcolithic periods, respectively. These two species play different economic and cultural roles, and therefore it is important to be able to distinguish between the two species to better understand their relative importance in the past human societies. The most reliable morphological features for distinguishing between the two domesticated equids are based on cranial measure-ments and tooth enamel folds, leading to only a small percentage of archaeological remains that can be identified to species. Ancient DNA (aDNA) analysis can be used to reliably distinguish the two equids, but it can be cost prohibitive to apply to large assemblages, and aDNA preservation of non-cranial elements is often low. Collagen peptide mass fingerprinting by matrix-assisted laser desorption time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry, also known as zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry (ZooMS), is a minimally destructive and cost-effective alternative to aDNA analysis for taxonomic determination. However, current ZooMS markers lack resolution below the genus level Equus. In this paper, we report a novel ZooMS peptide marker that reliably distinguishes between horses and donkeys using the enzyme chymotrypsin. We apply this peptide marker to taxonomically identify bones from the Iberian Peninsula ranging from the Iron Age to the Late Modern Period. The peptide biomarker has the potential to facilitate the collection of morphological data for zooarchaeological studies of equids in Iberia and throughout Eurasia and Africa. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Palaeoradiology is increasingly being used in archaeological and forensic sciences as a minimally invasive alternative to traditional histological methods for investigating bone microanatomy and its destruction by diagenetic processes. To better understand ancient mortuary practices, taphonomic studies using microCT scanning methods are gaining an ever more important role. Recently it was demonstrated that 2D virtual sections obtained by microCT scanning of intact samples are comparable to physical sections for the rating and diagnosis of bioerosion in archaeological bone. Importantly, volume image data obtained from tomographic methods also allow the rendering and analysis of 3D models. Building on these methods we provide (1) detailed descriptions of bioerosion in 3D volume renderings, virtual sections, and traditional micrographs, and (2) accessible techniques for the visualization of bioerosion in skeletal samples. The dataset is based on twenty-eight cortical bone samples, including twenty femora (of which five are cremated), two ribs, two parietals, one mandibular ramus, one humerus, and two faunal long bones from five archaeological sites in Lower Austria dating from the Early Neolithic to the Late Iron Age. Notably, we reduce the need for time-consuming image segmentation by sequentially applying two noise-reducing, edge-preserving filters, and using an image-display transfer function that visualizes bioerosion, as well as Haversian and Volkmann canal structure and density in 3D. In doing so we are also able to visualize in 3D the invasion of canals by microbiota, which has previously only been reported in 2D sections. Unlike conventional thin sections, the 3D volume images shown here are easy to create and interpret, even for archaeologists inexperienced in histology, and readily facilitate the illustration and communication of microtaphonomic effects.

Glass mosaic decorations were used throughout the medieval Mediterranean as a powerful medium to convey religious and political agendas, yet we know next to nothing about the source of the materials and the transmission of the necessary technical know-how. Mosaics are generally considered a Byzantine art form, not least due to their prominence in Byzantine church architecture and because medieval Islamic textual sources assert that the glass tesserae of some of the most important early mosques were of Byzantine origin. This article provides solid analytical evidence that glass used in the tenth-century mosaics of the Great Umayyad Mosque of Córdoba (Spain) came from Byzantium. Most of the tesserae have high boron contents, for which the only compositional match are Byzantine glasses made with raw materials from Asia Minor. In addition, some of the glass has a chemical fingerprint that suggests that it was prepared by mixing local raw materials with imported high boron glass, indicative of local mosaic glassmaking. Our study thus illustrates the value of analytical studies in re-assessing long-held assumptions about the making of mosaics as well as the movement of materials and people across cultural barriers. The presence of Byzantine materials and craftsmen in Córdoba demonstrates that Muslims and Christians were interacting the length of the Mediterranean, corroborating the close diplomatic ties between the Caliphate of Córdoba and the Byzantine Empire during the tenth century. Our findings further underscore the importance of glass in trade and diplomatic exchange, reflecting its cultural and economic value in the medieval world. This work has received funding from the Cabildo of Cordoba Cathedral, Spain; Instituto Andaluz del Patrimonio Histórico, the European Research Council under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No. 647315 to NS), the Fundación General CSIC (ComFuturo Programme), the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT- MCTES) through the Research Unit VICARTE (UIDB/00729/2020) and C2TN (UIDB/04349/2020), the agreements IAPH & UPO, the Projects BIA2015-64878-R (Art-Risk, RETOS project of Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad and Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional) and PID2019-107257RB-I00 (FENIX. RETOS project of Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación), and the research team TEP-199 from Junta de Andalucía. M.A.G.M. is grateful to CEI PATRIMONIO for her fellowship and to the ENEA (FRASCATI) for her stay as visiting researcher. The authors wish to acknowledge professional support of the Interdisciplinary Thematic Platform from CSIC Open Heritage: Research and Society (PTI-PAIS).

When Roman administration and legions gradually withdrew from the outer provinces after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, they created a power void filled by various groups. The dynamic Migration Period that followed is usually considered to have ended when the Germanic Lombards allegedly left Central Europe and were replaced by Slavs. Whether or how Slavic and Germanic tribes interacted, however, is currently disputed. Here we report the first direct archaeological find in support of a contact: a bone fragment dated to similar to 600 AD incised with Germanic runes but found in Lany, Czechia, a contemporaneous settlement associated with Slavs. We documented and authenticated this artifact using a combined approach of use-wear analysis with SEM microscopy, direct radiocarbon dating, and ancient DNA analysis of the animal bone, thereby setting a new standard for the investigation of runic bones. The find is the first older fuark inscription found in any non-Germanic context and suggests that the presumed ancestors of modern Slavic speakers encountered writing much earlier than previously thought. Když se římská správa a legie po pádu Západořímské říše postupně stáhly z vnějších provincií, vytvořilo se mocenské vakuum vyplněné různými skupinami. Dynamické období migrace, které následovalo, se obvykle považuje za ukončené v okamžiku, když germánští Longobardi údajně opustili střední Evropu a byli nahrazeni Slovany. Zda nebo jak na sebe vzájemně působily slovanské a germánské kmeny, se v současné době diskutuje. Zde publikujeme první přímý archeologický nález na podporu kontaktu: fragment kosti datovaný okolo roku 600 n.l. s vyrytými germánskými runami, který však byl nalezen v na sídlišti v Lánech (jižní Morava), na sídlišti spojeném se Slovany. Tento artefakt jsme dokumentovali a ověřili pomocí kombinace různých metod: tafonomie s mikroskopií SEM, datování radiokarbonovou metodou a analýzou aDNA zvířecí kosti, čímž jsme stanovili nový standard pro výzkum runových kostí. Nález je prvním nápisem staršího futharku nalezeným v jiném než germánském kontextu, což naznačuje, že se předkové slovansky mluvících obyvatel střední Evropy setkali s písmem mnohem dříve, než se dříve myslelo. When Roman administration and legions gradually withdrew from the outer provinces after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, they created a power void filled by various groups. The dynamic Migration Period that followed is usually considered to have ended when the Germanic Lombards allegedly left Central Europe and were replaced by Slavs. Whether or how Slavic and Germanic tribes interacted, however, is currently disputed. Here we report the first direct archaeological find in support of a contact: a bone fragment dated to similar to 600 AD incised with Germanic runes but found in Lany, Czechia, a contemporaneous settlement associated with Slavs. We documented and authenticated this artifact using a combined approach of use-wear analysis with SEM microscopy, direct radiocarbon dating, and ancient DNA analysis of the animal bone, thereby setting a new standard for the investigation of runic bones. The find is the first older fuark inscription found in any non-Germanic context and suggests that the presumed ancestors of modern Slavic speakers encountered writing much earlier than previously thought.

The recording of age at death is an important aspect of zooarchaeological analysis as it provides evidence about a variety of research questions, spanning from the origins of domestication to husbandry strategies.\ud \ud \ud \ud Age estimation based on tooth eruption and wear is a commonly used method to establish the age at death of archaeological populations. However, this approach has its limitations. It relies on the principle that tooth wear rate is relatively constant in different populations but, since no method has ever been developed to quantify the rate of wear, such an assumption has never been fully verified. As a consequence, the extent to which variable speeds of wear in different populations may affect age estimations is still unknown. To clarify this bias and offer transparency into the issue, the development of a method to assess wear rate in archaeological teeth is of paramount importance. In this paper, we propose a simple system that allows such an assessment to be undertaken. The system has been developed for pig mandibular/lower teeth but can also be extended to other species.\ud \ud \ud \ud The methodology is then tested on several English Late Medieval and Early Modern pig assemblages which represent ideal case studies as they cover a historical period when extensive changes in pig dietary regimes occurred.\ud \ud \ud \ud The evidence reassuringly suggests that differences in wear rates between these periods were not substantial, which bodes well for the comparability of kill-off patterns. However, comparisons with several outgroups indicate that the potential range of wear rates is much greater than attested in our core case study. Wild boars and prehistoric pigs, in particular, appear to wear their molars more slowly. Caution is therefore needed and it is suggested that tooth wear rates (TWR) and average wear rates (AWR) should routinely be calculated when tooth-based age profiles are analysed.

Refitting and conjoinable pieces have long been used in archaeology to assess the consistency of discrete spatial units, such as layers, and to evaluate disturbance and post-depositional processes. The majority of current methods, despite their differences, rely on the count and proportion of refits within and between spatial units. Little attention is paid to the distribution and topology of the relationships between fragments, although this is now known to have significant effects on archaeological interpretation. This paper presents a new methodological approach for refitting studies. The TSAR approach (Topological Study of Archaeological Refitting) draws on concepts and methods from graph theory to model the network of connections observed between refitting fragments. Measures of cohesion and admixture of spatial units are defined using the structural properties of the sets of refitting relationships. To ensure reproducibility and reusability, the TSAR method is implemented as an R package, which also includes a simulator generating refitting fragments scattered in two spatial units. The advantages of the topological approach are discussed by comparing it to: 1) the results of a survey in which archaeologists were asked to rank examples of stratigraphic admixture; and 2) other computational methods. The approach is applied to simulated data, and empirical data from the Liang Abu rock shelter (East Borneo) are presented. Finally, the use of the TSAR simulation approach to test different scenarios of site formation processes is demonstrated.; Les remontages entre restes sont, de longue date, utilisés en archéologie pour évaluer la cohérence d'unités spatiales discrètes, telles que les couches, et pour caractériser les perturbations et les processus post-dépositionnels. La majorité des méthodes actuelles, malgré leurs différences, sont définies à partir du nombre et de la proportion de remontages dans et entre les unités spatiales. La distribution et la topologie des relations entre les fragments a fait l'objet de peu d'attention, bien que l'on sache désormais qu'elles aient des conséquences importantes pour l'interprétation archéologique. Cet article présente une nouvelle méthode pour l'étude des remontages archéologiques. L'approche TSAR (Topological Study of Archaeological Refitting) s'appuie sur des concepts et méthodes empruntés à la théorie des graphes pour modéliser le réseau des relations de connexions physiques observées entre des fragments. Les propriétés structurelles des ensembles de relations de connexion permettent de définir des mesures de cohésion et de mélange entre unités spatiales archéologiques. Pour garantir la reproductibilité et la réutilisation, la méthode TSAR est mise en œuvre sous la forme d'un package R, qui comprend un simulateur permettant de générer des fragments dispersés dans deux unités spatiales et liés par des relations de connexions. Les avantages de l'approche topologique sont discutés en la comparant à : 1) les résultats d'une enquête où des archéologues ont été invités à classer des exemples de mélange stratigraphique ; 2) d'autres méthodes de calcul. L'approche TSAR est appliquée à des données simulées, et des données empiriques provenant de l'abri sous roche de Liang Abu (Bornéo Est). Enfin, l'utilisation de la méthode de simulation TSAR afin de tester différents scénarios de mise en place de niveaux archéologiques est présentée.