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The ERC-funded FRAGSUS Project (Fragility and sustainability in small island environments: adaptation, culture change and collapse in prehistory, 2013–18) led by Caroline Malone has focused on the unique Temple Culture of Neolithic Malta and its antecedents. This third volume builds on the achievements of Mortuary customs in prehistoric Malta, published by the McDonald Institute in 2009. It seeks to answer many questions posed, but left unanswered, of the more than 200,000 fragments of mainly commingled human remains from the Xagħra Brochtorff Circle on Gozo. The focus is on the interpretation of a substantial, representative subsample of the assemblage, exploring dentition, disease, diet and lifestyle, together with detailed understanding of chronology and the affinity of the ancient population associated with the ‘Temple Culture’ of prehistoric Malta. The first studies of genetic profiling of this population, as well as the results of intra-site GIS and visualization, taphonomy, health and mobility, offer important insights into this complex mortuary site and its ritual. Remarkable evidence on the bioanthropology of care practised by these populations, together with a relatively low level of interpersonal violence, and examples of longevity, reveal new aspects about the Neolithic Maltese. Detailed case studies employing computerized tomography describe disease such as =scurvy and explore dietary issues, whilst physical activity and body size have been assessed through biomechanical analysis, supported by taphonomic study, isotopic analyses, a review of mortuary practices during prehistory and a robust new chronology. The results form a rich contextualized body of material that advances understanding of cultural change within the context of small island insularity, and provides biological comparisons for the graphic figurative art of early Malta. These data and the original assemblage are conserved in the National Museum of Archaeology in Valletta as a resource for future study., This project has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7-2007-2013) (Grant agreement No. 323727).

Powerpoint presentation for the talk delivered at the 2th Annual Meeting of the European Association of Archaeologists. Please note that those presented are preliminary results and more analyses are ongoing so there is a good chance that the final results might look different than the ones visible in the slides.

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International audience; The demographic expansion associated with the Neolithic Transition appears to have been a consequence of increased female fertility, due to a reduced interbirth interval, which increased reproductive fitness despite high infant mortality. This implies a more rapid weaning process, which can expose the weanling to nutritional stress and infectious risks. We explored these micro-evolutionary adaptations and life-history parameters in a chrono-culturally homogeneous Neolithic skeletal sample (Square Mouth Pottery, 4800-4400 cal BCE) from the Finalese area (Liguria, northwestern Italy; n=12). We jointly analyzed patterns in enamel growth disturbances (linear enamel hypoplasia, LEH) to explore early childhood stress, and diachronic dietary changes via isotopic (δ13C, δ15N) incremental dentine analysis (n=2). Based on evidence of a highly infectious local environment, we expected that the investment in immune defense with the cessation of breastfeeding would come as a cost to growth, resulting in a well-defined signal of developmental stress. Results indicate a statistically significant increase in enamel defects around 2.5-3 years, followed by a rapid decline. Isotopic data suggest the introduction of weaning foods by the first year, but also a rather long time for the reaching of the adult levels of δ15N. This suggests that maternal milk may have been supplemented well into the second year, as proposed for other Neolithic sites, and as observed ethnographically in areas with high pathogen load and limited nutritional resources. This may have been a strategy to maximize children immunity, although it may have been an unsuccessful strategy, given that all the individuals died before reaching adulthood.

It is still debated whether the major cultural changes that occurred in Europe during the Bronze Age (BA) were related to a circulation of knowledge or human migrations. Researches through multidisciplinary approaches (isotopes, archaeology) strongly contribute towards untangling these complex dynamics for pre-protohistoric communities. Since prehistoric times, Switzerland has played a major role in European exchanges for its strategic position between the Danube area and the Mediterranean, offering pivotal information towards reconstructing human mobility during BA period. Jointly analyzing anthropological, archaeological and isotopic data from three sites in western Switzerland (2200-800 cal. BCE), our aim is to shed light on residential mobility and social practices of BA European populations. We explored intersite/intrasite mobility throughout the BA via multi-element and multi-tissue isotope analysis (S on bone and dentine collagen; Sr on apatite enamel), by analysing sixty-three human and fauna samples.

International audience; La transition vers le mode de vie néolithique (économie basée sur la domestication des plantes et animaux) a impacté en manière significative l’état sanitaire, l'alimentation, et l'activité humaine. Les nouvelles stratégies de subsistance ont permis l’introduction d’aliments de sevrage qui ont réduit la durée de l'allaitement et limité les intervalles entre les naissances, donnant lieu à une croissance démographique. En même temps, plusieurs études suggèrent que le passage à l'agriculture ait pu provoquer une détérioration des conditions de vie et sanitaires. Les groupes néolithiques ont été impacté par des facteurs de stress environnementaux, probablement causés par des changements des pratiques alimentaires, des stratégies de subsistance, de la pression démographique et de la diffusion de nouveaux pathogènes. Reconstituer l’histoire-de-vie d’un individu de la naissance jusqu'à la fin de l’enfance, est fondamental pour apprécier les adaptations humaines. La Ligurie (nord-ouest de l'Italie) est une région clé pour l'étude des adaptations bio-culturelles humaines néolithiques grâce à la découverte de nombreux sites liés à ces communautés. Cette étude porte sur les perturbations ontogénétiques par l'analyse de l'hypoplasie linéaire de l'émail (HLE) observés sur 38 dents de 12 inhumés des grottes de Ligurie (phase chrono-culturelle VBQ, c. 5000-4300 cal BC). Les HLE ont été analysés avec des images macrophotographiques à haute résolution. Une augmentation significative des HLE a été observée entre l'âge de 2,5-3 ans, et certains auteurs avancent l'hypothèse que, dans des échantillons archéologiques, les défauts de l'émail entre deux et quatre ans pourraient être liés au stress causé par le sevrage. Même s'il est impropre de corréler un seul défaut hypoplasique à une cause spécifique, les résultats obtenus suggèrent la présence de troubles précoces de la croissance dentaire, probablement due à une adaptation environnementale associée à une période de sevrage réduite par rapport au paléolithique (4-5 ans).

Résultats des fouilles menées par le Laboratoire archéologique et anthropologique de l'UniGe en février et mars 2019 au Koweit dans la région de al-Subiyah.

International audience; The Copper Age in Liguria show the affirmation of the transhumant pastoralism towards the summer pasture of the upland. The collective burials in caves suggest a social organisation with a kinship structure. The possibility to move and to assemble alimentary resources in specific locations, also in rough ones, sustain the emerge of early and consistent mining practices, both of copper mineral and lithic (red jasper) raw materials. The territory is widely occupied, while the controlled fire practice is the principal used by herders, farmers and miners. By carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes analysis on human bones collagen from the funerary cave Prima Ciappa in Val Frascarese (Genoa) (4300-3900 BP; n=6), and on contemporary archaeobotanical remains (4400-3300 BP; n=9) from one of the rare multi-stratified open site, Castellaro dell’Uscio (Genoa), we attempted to reconstruct some features of the environmental resources management. The homogeneity of the diet choices, resulting from the isotopic values, seems to reveal a close link with the territory, basically unchanged in time considering the long occupation of the two contexts. This could lead to theorise the adaptation and the implementation of the socio-economic choices to particular climatic and environmental situations. Of particular interest the isotopic data from the botanical remains, that would reflect specific climatic condition and soil management (humid environment, no manuring practices, probability of mixed crop). These data are more significant if compared to the paleodiet reconstructions of the Neolithic and Bronze Age contexts obtained in the lasts years. This group of information allow a diachronic reconstruction, on a wide temporal span, of the resources management and their consume in an heterogeneous regions as Liguria is, suggesting further systematic studies in this perspective.

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Increasing archaeological evidence suggests that the Bronze Age in Europe was a very dynamic period, but several aspects concerning human behaviour must be clarified, such as the spread of new agricultural practices, changes in the management of local resources as well as the emergence of new networks of exchanges. This research, through a multi-proxy and multi-isotopic approach, aims to study changes in dietary habits and mobility of individuals in Western Switzerland, a region at the crossroads of Europe. Human teeth and bones were analysed in association with terrestrial and aquatic animalsandcrop remains. Concerning agricultural strategies, isotopic analyses carried outon carpological remains seem to suggest an increase in soil fertilization during the Bronze Age. The animal and human results indicate a diet based on terrestrial resources for all the communities considered, nevertheless, we can identify a change in human food choices during the Final Bronze age due to the consumption of new cereals, such as millet, compared to previous periods. Regarding mobility, sulphur analysesshowthat thehumangroups are locals, except for a few isolated individuals.

Females and diet at the beginning of farming (5th – 3rd millennium BC, France): a bio-anthropological approach

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Année de publication: 2012-2013; International audience; The Ligury, known for its particular abundanceof archaeological findings dated tothe Pre and Proto-historic period, is a regionwell-suited for scientific studies on paleodiet.In this paper, a summary of the resultson carbon and nitrogen stable isotopesanalyses, performed on human and animalremains selected from sites placed in thewestern part of Ligury, is presented. A moredetailed description focuses on unpublishedresults obtained from two sites of theBronze Age and early Iron Age: Grotta delPertuso and Buco del Diavolo (Triora, Imperia).The diachronic analyses of the wholedata set shows how, during the later Prehistorystage, two important ruptures occurredin terms of food habits. The first oneis related to the phenomenon of the settling;indeed terrestrial resources effectively replacedthe aquatic resources in the diet. Thesecond relevant change was detected duringthe Iron Age: terrestrial resources representthe main intake. But it is interesting to notethat an appreciable amount of C4 plantswere consumed in addition to the traditionalintroduction of C3 plants, evidenced by asignificant shift in stable isotope levels. Severalhypotheses are proposed in order to explainthe isotopic variations and the highlighteddietary diversity; La Ligurie, de par sa richesse en découvertesarchéologiques datant de la période Pré- etProto-historique, est un terrain favorablepour développer des études spécifiques surla paléoalimentation. Dans ce travail, unesynthèse des résultats sur les analyses desisotopes stables du carbone et de l’azote estprésentée. Ces résultats ont été obtenus àpartir de restes humains et animaux de différentssites de la partie ouest de la Ligurie.Une description plus détaillée est consacréeaux résultats inédits de deux communautésde l’âge du Bronze-début âge du Fer: Grottadel Pertuso e Buco del Diavolo (Triora, Imperia).L’analyse diachronique de l’ensembledes données montre comment, au cours de laPréhistoire récente, se manifestent deuxgrandes ruptures en termes d’habitudes alimentaires.La première se produit avec lanéolithisation, lorsque les ressources terrestresdominent très largement les ressourcesaquatiques dans le régime alimentaire. Ladeuxième est détectée à l’âge du Fer: les ressourcesterrestres sont à la base de l’alimentationmais il est intéressant de noter l’introductiondes plantes de type C4 (tel que lesmillets) dans l’alimentation. Différentes hypothèsessont proposées dans le but d’expliquerles variations isotopiques et la diversitéalimentaire mise en évidence; La Liguria, per la particolare ricchezza diritrovamenti archeologici di epoca Pre eProtostorica, ha permesso di sviluppareun’approfondita analisi di tipo paleonutrizionale.In questo lavoro viene presentatauna sintesi di quanto emerso dall’analisidegli isotopi stabili di carbonio ed azoto diresti umani e animali di alcune comunitàdel Ponente ligure. Una descrizione maggiormentedettagliata è dedicata ai risultatiinediti ottenuti da due siti dell’età delBronzo-inizio età del Ferro: Grotta del Pertusoe Buco del Diavolo (Triora, Imperia).Nel complesso, l’analisi diacronica mettein evidenza come, nel corso della Preistoriarecente, si siano verificati due grandi momentidi rottura a livello di abitudini alimentari.La prima si manifesta con il fenomenodella sedentarizzazione, dove lerisorse terrestri vengono a sostituire le risorseacquatiche nella dieta e un secondoconsiderevole cambiamento si rileva incorrispondenza dell’età del Ferro: purmantenendosi le risorse terrestri alla basedell’alimentazione, si nota come a piantedi tipo C3 si integri un consumo apprezzabiledi piante di tipo C4 con un notevoleshift a livello isotopico. Vengono illustratedifferenti ipotesi per spiegare le origini diquesti variazioni

Power Point presentation given at the 12th International Meeting on Phytolith Research (IMPR) held in Khiel, Germany as part of the International Meeting of the EUropean Association of Archaeologists. The work is part of the ERC funded Starting Grant RAINDROPS (ERC-Stg 759800)., The data used to create this presentation will be uploaded as soon as possible.

Power Point presentation given at the 12th International Meeting on Phytolith Research (IMPR) held in Khiel, Germany as part of the International Meeting of the EUropean Association of Archaeologists. The work is part of the ERC funded Starting Grant RAINDROPS (ERC-Stg 759800).

International audience