Archaeodiet in the Greek World: Dietary Reconstruction from Stable Isotope Analysis (Hesperia Supplement)

Synopsis

The Analysis Of Stable Isotope Ratios Of Carbon And Nitrogen In Bone Collagen Provides A Powerful Tool For Reconstructing Past Diets, Since It Provides The Only Direct Evidence Of The Foods That Were Actually Consumed. The Chapters That Comprise This Volume Describe The Application Of This Methodology To The Archaeology Of Greece, A Country Whose Archaeobotanical Remains Have Been Isotopically Studied More Extensively Than Any Other Place In The World. The Archaeological Issues That Can Be Addressed Using Stable Isotope Methods Include The Importance Of Fishing; The Possible Early Introduction Of Millet; The Nature Of Childrearing Including Weaning Age And Weaning Foods; Temporal Shifts In Protein Consumption; Differential Access To Certain Foods Associated With Social Status As Well As Gender And Age; And Cultural Differences In Dietary Patterns. Additionally, Diet Is Strongly Correlated With Health Or Stress Markers In The Teeth And Bones. Knowing What People Ate Has Vital Implications For Our Understanding Of Past Environments And Economies, Subsistence Strategies, And Nutrition.-- 1. Introduction / By Anastasia Papathanasiou And Sherry C. Fox -- 2. Stable Isotope Analysis Of Bone And Teeth As A Means For Reconstructing Past Human Diets In Greece / By Michael P. Richards -- 3. Stable Isotope Analyses In Neolithic And Bronze Age Greece : An Overview / By Anastasia Papathanasiou -- 4. Stable Isotope Analysis Of Skeletal Assemblages From Prehistoric Northern Greece / By Sevasti Triantaphyllou -- 5. Variations In Diet In Prehistoric Thebes : The Case Of The Bronze Age Mass Burial / By Efrossini Vika -- 6. Existence And Subsistence In Mycenaean-era East Lokris : The Isotopic Evidence / By Carina A. Iezzi -- 7. Dietary Reconstruction At The Geometric-period Burial Site Of Ayios Dimitrios / By Eleni Panagiotopoulou And Anastasia Papathanasiou -- 8. Diet And The Polis : An Isotopic Study Of Diet In Athens And Laurion During The Classical, Hellenistic, And Imperial Roman Periods / By Anna Lagia -- 9. Stable Isotope Evidence For Infant Feeding Practices In The Greek Colony Of Apollonia Pontica / By Cynthia S. Kwok And Anne Keenleyside -- 10. Bread, Oil, Wine, And Milk : Feeding Infants And Adults In Byzantine Greece / By Chryssi Bourbou And Sandra Garvie-lok -- 11. Summary: Patterns In The Carbon And Nitrogen Isotope Data Through Time / By Anastasia Papathanasiou And Michael P. Richards. Edited By Anastasia Papathanasiou, Michael P. Richards, And Sherry C. Fox. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.