Geoarchaeology and taphonomy of plant remains in early urban environments in the Ancient Near East

A number of recent articles emphasize the fundamental importance of taphonomy and formation processes to interpretation of plant remains assemblages, as well as the value of interdisciplinary approaches to studies of environmental change and ecological and social practices. This paper examines ways in which micromorphology can contribute to integrating geoarchaeology and archaeobotany in analysis of the taphonomy and context of plant remains and ecological and social practices. Micromorphology enables simultaneous in situ study of diverse plant materials and thereby traces of a range of depositional pathways and histories. In addition to charred plant remains, also often preserved in semi-arid environments are plant impressions, phytoliths and calcitic ashes. These diverse plant remains are often routinely separated and extracted from their depositional context or lost using other analytical techniques, thereby losing crucial evidence on taphonomy, formation processes and contextual associations, which are fundamental to all subsequent interpretations. Although micromorphological samples are small in comparison to bulk flotation samples of charred plant remains, their size is similar to phytolith and pollen samples. In this paper, key taphonomic issues are examined in the study of: fuel; animal dung, animal management and penning; building materials; and specific activities, including food storage and preparation and ritual, using selected case-studies from early urban settlements in the Ancient Near East. Microarchaeological residues and experimental archaeology are also briefly examined.

The domestication of water: water management in the ancient world and its prehistoric origins in the Jordan Valley

The ancient civilizations were dependent upon sophisticated systems of water management. The hydraulic engineering works found in ancient Angkor (ninth to thirteenth century AD), the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan (thirteenth to fifteenth century AD), Byzantine Constantinople (fourth to sixth century AD) and Nabatean Petra (sixth century BC to AD 106) are particularly striking because each of these is in localities of the world that are once again facing a water crisis. Without water management, such ancient cities would never have emerged, nor would the urban communities and towns from which they developed. Indeed, the ‘domestication’ of water marked a key turning point in the cultural trajectory of each region of the world where state societies developed. This is illustrated by examining the prehistory of water management in the Jordan Valley, identifying the later Neolithic (approx. 8300–6500 years ago) as a key period when significant investment in water management occurred, laying the foundation for the development of the first urban communities of the Early Bronze Age.

A study of the microstructure and condition of thin sheets of painting support ivory using SEM and ESEM

This paper outlines a study of the microstructure of thin sheets of ivory used as a painting support for portrait miniatures. Warping of the ivory support is one of the main problems commonly found in portrait miniatures from the late eighteenth century and early nineteenth century. Portrait miniatures from this period are painted on very thin sheets of ivory that are often only 0.2 mm in thickness. Warping can lead to cracking of the ivory and can also accentuate flaking of the paint layer. The problem of warping in ivory has thus been of long-term interest to conservators who deal with portrait miniatures, including those at the Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum. The causes of warping are complex. However, it should be noted that artists normally stuck the thin ivory sheets onto paper or card before commencing the painting. The possible causes of warping therefore are thought to relate to the differential reactions of the ivory/adhesive/paper or card layers to changes in relative humidity (RH). It is well known that ivory is hygroscopic and anisotropic.1 However, only a few scientific studies have been carried out related to this subject and systematic analyses of the morphological and microstructural changes due to changes in RH or moisture in such thin sheets of ivory have yet to be investigated.

'The house of books': libraries and archives in Ancient Egypt

In 1957, John Sperry Jr. published an article in Libri entitled “Egyptian libraries: a survey of the evidence.” Some 55 years on, this article revisits the subject, taking into account research undertaken in the field of Egyptology over the last half a century. Based on an extended essay written for the online Certificate in Egyptology course at the University of Manchester, this article considers the evidence for the existence of “institutional” (that is, created for the use and functioning of the state) libraries and archives in Ancient Egypt throughout the dynastic period (c.3500−30 B.C.); their history, purpose and, to some extent, their administration. It also considers an aspect not explored in Sperry’s article, that of “private” libraries in Ancient Egypt (texts collected by an individual for their own personal use). Whilst estimated literacy levels within the general population precluded the widespread collection of texts for personal edification, there is evidence to suggest that private libraries were present in Ancient Egypt. The article concludes with a brief assessment of the legacy of these ancient libraries and their influence on the creation of the Library of Alexandria, in both its ancient and modern manifestations.

Morphological and physiological specialization for digging in amphisbaenians, an ancient lineage of fossorial vertebrates

Amphisbaenians are legless reptiles that differ significantly from other vertebrate lineages. Most species dig underground galleries of similar diameter to that of the animal. We studied the muscle physiology and morphological attributes of digging effort in the Brazilian amphisbaenid Leposternon microcephalum (Squamata; Amphisbaenia), which burrows by compressing soil against the upper wall of the tunnel by means of upward strokes of the head. The individuals tested (<72 g) exerted forces on the soil of up to 24 N. These forces were possible because the fibres of the longissimus dorsi, the main muscle associated with burrowing, are highly pennated, thus increasing effective muscle cross-sectional area. The muscle is characterized by a metabolic transition along its length: proximal, medial and distal fibres are fast contracting and moderately oxidative, but fibres closer to the head are richer in citrate synthase and more aerobic in nature. Distal fibres, then, might be active mainly at the final step of the compression stroke, which requires more power. For animals greater than a given diameter, the work required to compress soil increases exponentially with body diameter. Leposternon microcephalum, and probably some other highly specialized amphisbaenids, are most likely constrained to small diameters and can increase muscle mass and effective muscle cross-sectional area by increasing body length, not body diameter.

Cytogenetic Mapping of 5S and 18S rRNAs and H3 Histone Genes in 4 Ancient Proscopiidae Grasshopper Species: Contribution to Understanding the Evolutionary Dynamics of Multigene Families

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Leishmanial antigens in the diagnosis of active lesions and ancient scars of American tegumentary leishmaniasis patients

Cutaneous biopsies (n = 94) obtained from 88 patients with American tegumentary leishmaniasis were studied by conventional and immunohistochemical techniques. Specimens were distributed as active lesions of cutaneous leishmaniasis (n = 53) (Group I), cicatricial lesions of cutaneous leishmaniasis (n = 35) (Group II) and suggestive scars of healed mucosal leishmaniasis patients (n = 6) (Group III). In addition, active cutaneous lesions of other etiology (n = 24) (Group C1) and cutaneous scars not related to leishmaniasis (n = 10) (Group C2) were also included in the protocol. Amastigotes in Group I biopsies were detected by routine histopathological exam (30.2%), imprint (28.2%), culture (43.4%), immunofluorescence (41.4%) and immunoperoxidase (58.5%) techniques; and by the five methods together (79.3%). In Group II, 5.7% of cultures were positive. Leishmanial antigen was also seen in the cytoplasm of macrophages and giant cells (cellular pattern), vessel walls (vascular pattern) and dermal nerves (neural pattern). Positive reaction was detected in 49 (92.5%), 20 (57%) and 4 (67%) biopsies of Groups I, II and III, respectively. Antigen persistency in cicatricial tissue may be related to immunoprotection or, on the contrary, to the development of late lesions. We suggest that the cellular, vascular and neural patterns could be applied in the immunodiagnosis of active and cicatricial lesions in which leishmaniasis is suspected.