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The rich Mediterranean imports found in Early Celtic princely sites (7th-5th cent. BC) in Southwestern Germany, Switzerland and Eastern France have long been the focus of archaeological and public interest. Consumption practices, particularly in the context of feasting, played a major role in Early Celtic life and imported ceramic vessels have consequently been interpreted as an attempt by the elite to imitate Mediterranean wine feasting. Here we present the first scientific study carried out to elucidate the use of Mediterranean imports in Early Celtic Central Europe and their local ceramic counterparts through organic residue analyses of 99 vessels from Vix-Mont Lassois, a key Early Celtic site. In the Mediterranean imports we identified imported plant oils and grape wine, and evidence points towards appropriation of these foreign vessels. Both Greek and local wares served for drinking grape wine and other plant-based fermented beverage(s). A wide variety of animal and plant by-products (e.g. fats, oils, waxes, resin) were also identified. Using an integrative approach, we show the importance of beehive products, millet and bacteriohopanoid beverage(s) in Early Celtic drinking practices. We highlight activities related to biomaterial transformation and show intra-site and status-related differences in consumption practices and/or beverage processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Leaf wax n-alkanes from barley (Hordeum vulgare) from a field in Switzerland exhibited changes in δD values on the order of 20‰ over a growing season, while source water (soil water) and leaf water varied by 40‰. Additionally the seasonal variability in δD values of leaf wax n-alkanes of different barley leaves can only be found across different leaf generations (i.e. leaves that were produced at different times during the growing season) while n-alkane δD values did not vary significantly within a leaf generation. Interestingly, δD values of n-alkanes correlated best with the δD values of leaf water at midday of the sampling day but showed no significant correlation with soil water (e.g. precipitation) δD values. These results provide empirical evidence that leaf wax δD values record leaf water enrichment, and therefore integrate the isotopic effects of precipitation and evapotranspiration. Our results show that leaf wax n-alkane δD values from grasses are ‘locked in’ early during leaf development and hence record the environmental drivers of leaf water enrichment, such as vapor pressure deficit (VPD). Our data have important implications for the interpretation of paleorecords of leaf wax δD. We suggest that leaf wax n-alkane δD values from sedimentary records could be used to estimate changes in the degree of leaf water enrichment and hence VPD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthropogenic soil erosion is a problem of global concern and recently has become the focus of extensive research. In spite of this, our knowledge about the history of land-use and its long-term impact on soil erosion and the local environment remains limited. This study seeks to address this issue by investigating sediments of Lake Murten, Switzerland, using a multi-proxy approach to reconstruct the history of land-use and its impacts in the catchment. We analyzed pollen and charcoal to reconstruct past land-use and vegetation dynamics, and used the distributions of terrestrial leaf wax biomarkers, their δ13C isotopic composition and their soil retention time (compound-specific 14C) to evaluate long-term effects on past soil carbon dynamics. Arboreal pollen abundances, charcoal influx and cultural indicators match the archaeological evidence and reveal an eventful past around the lake. The first signs of human presence were detected around 5000 BCE, when Neolithic pile dwellers occupied the lake's shores. However, human land-use had no significant effect on the pollen and the sedimentary organic matter (OM) composition during Neolithic times and the Bronze Age. This changed during the Late Iron Age and the Early Roman Period (ca. 70 BCE). Coincident with the rise of Aventicum, a Roman city, large-scale deforestation and agriculture began in the region. Severe soil degradation and outwash of soil organic carbon (SOC) at this time is documented by enhanced input of soil-derived and pre-aged leaf waxes, and resulted in cultural eutrophication ca. 2000 years ago. Soil erosion decreased after the fall of the Roman Empire and a short period of renaturation followed. Although the export of SOC returned to pre-Roman values after ca. 200 years, the forest never recovered to its past extent. The last two detected periods of land-use change correlate with the onset of Medieval agriculture (ca. 1000 CE) and the Industrial Period (ca. 1800 CE). Today, the mean transit time of leaf waxes is almost five times longer compared to the Roman Period, suggesting that substantial soil erosion has occurred and that an even longer time period would be necessary for the soil carbon dynamics to recover to their natural state. • Pollen and leaf waxes from Lake Murten record land-use evolution since prehistory. • Large-scale Roman deforestation and farming around the city of Aventicum. • Land-use and vegetation recovery times following Roman disturbance took centuries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]