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Botanical Archaeology_M.A. Sem. II_Material Remains.ppt
1. Sachin Kr Tiwary
MA, Sem.II
C-III
Material Remains as Source of
Ancient Indian History & Culture
2. Unit-I
(A) Introduction: Nature, Retrieval and Classification of Data
(B) Prehistoric to Early Historic Excavated Remains
Reconstruction of Socio-Economic and Religious Life on the Basis of
Following:
1. Tools
2. Pottery
3. Beads
4. Seal-Sealing
5. Metal Objects
6. Non-Artificial Remains: Botanical and Zoological
3. Non-Artifactual Remains (Botanical and Zoological):
• Non-artifactual remains, including botanical and zoological remains such
as plant seeds, animal bones, and fossils, provide indirect evidence of
ancient socio-economic and religious activities.
• Analysis of botanical remains can reveal agricultural practices, food
sources, and environmental conditions, while zoological remains offer
insights into animal husbandry, hunting, and dietary preferences.
• The presence of domesticated plants and animals suggests settled
agricultural communities, while the absence of certain species may
indicate environmental changes or cultural preferences.
• Botanical and zoological remains found in religious contexts, such as
sacrificial deposits or burial sites, may reflect religious beliefs and rituals
related to food offerings, animal sacrifice, or funerary practices.
Non-Artifactual Remains
Species Climate
Wild-
Domestic
Uses Context Sources-
Origin Sizes
Purpose of
usage
4. Non-Artifactual Remains:
Archaeobotany, Botanical Archaeology,Paleoethnobotany
Archaeobotany
includes the
study of
Plant
macroremains
(grains, seeds,
chaff, fruits,
nuts)
Plant
microremains
(starch,
phytoliths,
and pollen)
Wood and
charcoal
Archaeobotanical studies include such diverse research
themes as:
1. The identification of beverages (Bouby et al., 2011),
2. The use of wild–domestic fruits (Fairbairn et al., 2007),
3. Plants and political complexity, social status and
organisation (Hastorf, 1993),
4. Plants as indicators of ethnicity (Scarry, 1993),
5. Spices (Livarda and Van der Veen, 2008),
6. Plants in ritual (Margaritis, 2014a; Heiss, 2014),
7. Human environmental impacts, land management and
use (Miller and Marston, 2012),
8. Plant domestication & cultivation (Zohary et al., 2012),
9. Crop husbandry (Jones et al., 2010),
10.Foodways (Hastorf, 2022).
5. • This entry focuses on plant macro
remains, mainly found charred in the
archaeological record, and discusses
subjects such as:
1. Preservation,
2. Sampling,
3. Recovery,
4. Taphonomy,
5. the key species found in
archaeological contexts and basic
steps in interpreting an
archaeobotanical assemblage.
Non-Artifactual Remains:
Archaeobotany, Botanical Archaeology, Paleoethnobotany
6. (A) Evidence of Wheat cultivation at the remains of Mehrgarh, Balochistan;1 (B) Gabar band wall to divert the flow of water at Tug
Valley, Sindh (C)Sindh; (D) Walls on the rivulet to close/restrict the flow of water and to divert the water towards the slope,
respectively, in Pakistan.
Baba A, Tsatsanifos C, Gohary FEI, et al. Developments in water dams and water harvesting systems throughout
history in different civilizations. Int J Hydro. 2018;2(2):155–171. DOI: 10.15406/ijh.2018.02.00064
