Paleoethnobotany
Plants, People, and Archaeology. By Clarissa Cagnato.
  • Paleoethnobotany
  • Research
  • Macrobotanical Analysis
  • Starch Grain Analysis
  • Starch Grain Database
  • Resources
  • Publications
  • CV
  • Contact
  • Archaeology Blog

2012: My Favorite Archaeological Discoveries

1/7/2013

0 Comments

 
In my last post (and also the first one), I posted a link to Archaeology Magazine's favorite discoveries for 2012. In today's entry, I decided to upload some of my favorite stories, which include discoveries on ancient plants, hominin diets, Bronze Age trading and brewing, royal gardens, and of course, the new finds at the archaeological sites of La Corona and El Perú-Waka’. Enjoy!

-Grape seeds recovered from 1st century A.D. context are being DNA sequenced in order to understand the history of the Chianti vineyards.

-Very exciting find at the site of El Perú-Waka’, where a royal tomb of a queen was uncovered this past season.

-Bronze Age microbrewery uncovered in Cyprus. A kiln along with associated tools, and carbonized seeds give a glimpse into early beer making.

-By 3.5 million years ago, three members of the genus Australopithecus developed a taste for grass and sedges. Read on for a new view into early hominin diets.

-Orchids appear earlier than previously thought in Roman art, and fade as Christianity arrives.

-More evidence that the Vikings visited the New World earlier than Columbus! Click the link for more information on excavations at a site in Canada.

-A piece of cloth, found in Denmark’s richest burial, and made from nettle, suggests long-distance Bronze Age trading.

-One of the many mysteries of Easter Island has been uncovered! Watch this amazing video.

-Timely discovery of the second known reference to the so-called "end date" of the Maya calendar, found at the site of La Corona. And no, the world didn’t end!

-Fossilized pollen has revealed that local and exotic plants blossomed in Ramat Rahel's royal garden.  

-Residue analysis from ceramic beakers from Cahokia have found evidence of Black Drink, a highly caffeinated drink known to have been consumed by Native Americans, brewed from the Ilex vomitoria shrub.
0 Comments

    Archaeology News

    Follow the latest discoveries from the world of archaeology, plants, and people. 

    Archives

    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    January 2015
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012

    Categories

    All
    Agriculture
    Alcohol
    Ancient Maya
    Aztec
    Bronze Age
    Ceramics
    China
    Cosmetics
    Diet
    Disease
    Dna
    Dog
    Domestication
    Egypt
    Ethnobotany
    Europe
    Field School
    Fire
    Food
    Genome
    Harappa
    Hominin
    Inca
    Isotope
    Japan
    Mass Spectrometry
    Maya
    Medicine
    Neanderthal
    Neandethal
    Neolithic
    Olmec
    Orchid
    Organic Chemistry
    Osteology
    Patrimony
    Phytolith
    Pigment
    Pollen
    Polynesia
    Recipes
    Residue Analysis
    Ritual
    Shipwreck
    South America
    Starch
    Sweet Potato
    Teeth
    Teotihuacan
    Terraces
    Tobacco
    Trade
    Vikings
    Wine
    Zooarchaeology

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.