Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant: Phytoliths, Starch Grains, and Emerging Social Complexity at Tell Zeidan, Syria

University Of Connecticut, Storrs CT

Investigators

Abstract

Under the guidance of Dr. Alexia Smith, Thomas Hart will analyze ancient plant remains gathered during the 2009 and 2010 excavation seasons at the Ubaid period site of Tell Zeidan, Syria. Tell Zeidan is located at the confluence of the Balikh and Euphrates Rivers and served as a regional center in northern Mesopotamia between 6,000 and 3,800 B. C. The site is of particular importance because it is one of the largest settlements outside of the southern Mesopotamia heartland. In addition, since it was continuously occupied for over 2000 years, it provides a unique opportunity to study one of the earliest developments of social complexity. Mr. Hart's research will use new archaeological techniques, such as phytolith and starch grain analysis, to determine the subsistence practices that made the transition to complex society possible. The importance of agriculture in facilitating the rise and spread of complex societies is widely accepted. However, with a few exceptions, very little is actually known about subsistence practices in Greater Mesopotamia (the Tigris-Euphrates watershed) between the 6th and 4th millennia B. C. Knowledge of food production and consumption patterns before, during, and after the development of complex societies is essential for revealing the role, if any, of agriculture in emerging social complexity. This project will assess and document each stage of plant food production and consumption from the Ubaid period at Tell Zeidan by examining microscopic plant remains (phytoliths and starch grains) found in archaeological soils, artifact residues, human teeth residues, and the soils associated with the stomach contents of buried individuals. Likewise, by using microscopic remains to reconstruct production and consumption patterns, this project will explore new ways to identify previously invisible markers of social complexity in the archaeological record. When combined with other types of data as part of a larger intra-site study, such as geographic information system data, charred seeds, animal bones, and stone tool data, this project will provide a truly holistic picture of the subsistence practices facilitating the rise of complex society. This research will seek to have a broader impact beyond the research topics presented. The intra-site study component of this project will foster international collaboration between Syrian researchers and researchers from other universities in Europe and within the U.S. The results from this project will be disseminated in peer-reviewed publications while the raw data will be distributed online thereby making the data available for public use. Public outreach efforts in The United States will include public lectures at the Connecticut State Museum of Natural History and workshops on early agriculture and complex society at the Nonnewaug High School, Woodbury, Connecticut. These efforts will seek to improve public understanding of science, archaeology, and anthropology. Finally, this research hopes to facilitate future research in the sciences by improving the Archaeobotany Laboratory at the University of Connecticut and by training undergraduate research assistants in the skills necessary for scientific research and analysis in this field.