Integrating microfossil records from livestock dung burned as fuel in Menorca, Balearic Islands. (February 2023)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Portillo, Marta; Llergo, Yolanda; Dudgeon, Kate; Anglada, Montserrat; Ramis, Damià; Ferrer, Antoni
• Is Part Of: Journal of archaeological science. Volume 47(2023)
• Publication Date: 2023-02
• Subjects: Mediterranean -- Firing -- Animal dung -- Archaeobotany -- Ethnoarchaeology -- Experimental archaeology; Archaeology -- Periodicals; Archaeology -- Research -- Periodicals; 930.1
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2022.103791
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2352-409X

Abstract

Highlights: Dung is an important combustion material which is commonly overlooked in archaeology. The focus in the present work is on microfossil evidence from cattle, sheep and pig dung from the Balearic Islands. It provides new records on seasonality of plant and faecal microfossils embedded within the dung. Further experimental firing reference records provide modern reference microfossil comparative datasets. These provide critical information on the taphonomy and impact of fuelling on livestock dung. Abstract: Interdisciplinary microarchaeological approaches including integrated studies of plant and faecal microfossils are fundamental to identify and interpret fuel remains within combustion installations such as hearths and ovens which are common across the Mediterranean. This is particularly critical in cases when other sources of archaeobotanical evidence such as charred macroremains are partially uninformative or absent, in order to assess the nature of burnt fuel, as similar plant records may derive from plant-based fuels and other fuel types including animal dung. The current research illustrates the contribution of integrated analytical methods in archaeobotany to interdisciplinary approaches on the identification, seasonality, and the impact of fuelling on modern livestock dung. The focus is on pollen, phytoliths, and calcitic dung spherulites embedded within cattle, sheep and pig faeces collected in different seasons of the year and farms from UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Menorca, Balearic Islands, Western Mediterranean. Experimental firing reference records provide modern comparative datasets on factors affecting the microfossil content and preservation of animal faeces used as a fuel source, as well as on the range of natural and anthropogenic pathways influencing these which are critical to identify and accurately interpret fuel remains. The results reported here are also compared to laboratory-controlled experimental datasets as well as ethnoarchaeological records including firing measurements (time and temperature) from cooking installations that have followed a similar integrated methodological approach. Experimental and ethnoarchaeological records provide fundamental information on taphonomic issues that are understudied, such as variation in the production and its integrity among different animal defecators, as well as on seasonality of plant and faecal microfossils that are embedded within the dung, and the impact of fire on these as a result of fuel use, as an important combustion material which is still commonly overlooked.