Archaeobotany or paleoethnobotany

            I was a botany student in graduation.......but fortunately and unfortunately I took archaeology going both for and against my comfort zone........but I must say....am quite proud of my decision.....
            People ask me...... u were studying botany how come u suddenly thought of taking and/or changing ur subject into archaeology ......out of blue moon......but they don't know..... Archaeologists also uses botanical remains for reconstructing our beautiful and hectic past.
             So , in this blog...... I have tried to introduce the topic archaeobotany ......hope u enjoy😄😊

ARCHAEOBOTANY :-

        Archaeobotany or palaeoethnobotany is the study of plant remains from archaeological sites, with the aim of understanding past human diet, food gathering and cultivation, an environmental change. The term encompasses both macroremains (seeds and wood or charcoal) and microremains( pollen and phytoliths) . Most archaeobotanists work on seeds remains, including in modern forensic science.
          Archaeobotany is a sub-specialization within environmental archaeology that studies human interaction with plants in the past. There are several approaches of recovering plant remains in archaeological contexts, from the collection of microscopic fossil pollen, starches and phytoliths to the recovery of macroscopic charred seeds and wood charcoal. If seeds are fired right they can preserve in the archaeological record for thousands even tens of thousands of years. Identification of seeds can help to assemble information on changes in agricultural production and plant consumption over time and over space. Plant remains can also help us to reconstruct ancient landscapes.
           

 ARCHAEOBOTANICAL RESEARCH HELPS IN:- 

          
             The study of the past human plants relationship and their changes over time. This includes studies on:-      

• Plant foods      
• Extractive strategies of plant foods and their changes overtime
• The craft uses of plants e.g. in construction, basket, textiles, clothing, medicine etc.
• Uses of plant for fuel.

 The effects of resource availability on settlement patterns. 
  The surrounding environment at the time of the formation of the deposit (i.e. occupation of the site) 
  Origin of agriculture and domestication.

 PRESERVATION:-

              Plant macro fossils are preserved through four main modes of preservation at archaeological sites. They are:-

• Plant remains usually cereal grains, charred seeds and charcoal are largely reduced to elemental carbon when they are heated in the reduced to elemental carbon when they are heated in the reducing atmosphere. These are referred to as 'charred' or 'carbonised' plant remains.
• Plant remains deposited in permanently waterlogged anoxic conditions are  preserved as the absence of oxygen prohibits microbial activity. This mode Of preservation occurs in deep archaeological features (fruit stones, nutshell, leaves, straws and other vegetative material) such as wells, lakes, rivers.
• Calcium-phosphate mineralization of plant remains (seeds of flavourings, fruit pips, fruit stones etc.) occurs usually in latrine pits , as plant remains are completely replaced by calcium-phosphate.
• Plant remains are preserved by desiccation in arid environments, where the absence of water limits decomposition. Delicate vegetative plant remains are preserved such as onion skin, and artichoke bructs, seeds of wild plants etc. 

RECOVERY METHODS:-

     

          Palaeoethnobotanists use a variety of methods to recover and identify plant remains. 

          Charred plant remains are usually recovered by flotation.

             

                      The matrix (soil from a suspected archaeological feature)

                                           +  agitated water

       

                                                             ↓

                      Soil, sand and other heavy materials sink to the bottom

                                                             ↓

                     Less dense organic material such as charred seeds, grains                          and charcoal tend to float to the surface and is poured into                        the sieve

                                                             ↓

                                          Organic materials gets dried out

                                                            ↓

                                Examined under low power microscope

                                                            ↓

                        Heavy materials are also gathered for later analysis.

        In waterlogged areas....Plant remains are first separated from the matrix by a combination of lueting-sieving and/or small scale flotation in laboratory.

        While, desiccated plant remains are usually recovered by dry sieving using a stack of different sieves to separate larger items such as cereal straw and fruit stones from smaller items such as weed seeds.

 IDENTIFICATION AND QUANTIFICATION:-

            Identification of microscopic plant remains is usually carried out under steremicroscope, using morphological characteristics in the case of shape and surface features or microanatomy in case of charcoal.

           Macroscopic plant remains are quantified on the basis of a sample.

           Paleoethnobotanists also recover and analyze microremains (such as phytoliths and pollen) , human and animal excrements (corpolites) or plant impressions in ceramic sherd and clay (such as in daub).

             Palynology and dendrochronology are also useful for archaeological studies.