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A Reconsideration of Neanderthal Diets in Late Pleistocene Europe

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A Reconsideration of Neanderthal Diets in Late Pleistocene Europe B052884 University of Edinburgh Archaeology School of History, Classics & Archaeology Dissertation presented for the MA in Archaeology, April 2017 What was on their plate? A reconsideration of Neanderthal diets in Late Pleistocene Europe Exam number: B052884 Supervisor: Dr Catriona Pickard Word count: 11,585 1 B052884 Contents Abstract............................................................................................................................................... 3 Acknowledgements.......................................................................................................................... 3 Illustrations......................................................................................................................................... 4 Abbreviations..................................................................................................................................... 4 Introduction........................................................................................................................................ 5 Chapter 1 Neanderthals: a primer..............................................................................................7 Who, where, and when were the Neanderthals?................................................................... 7 Why Neanderthals and why now?..........................................................................................11 How Neanderthals ate and why it matters from a medical perspective........................... 13 Chapter 2 Neanderthal diets: literature review.................................................................... 17 Review of past research...........................................................................................................17 Dental wear patterns.........................................................................................................17 Lithic material.....................................................................................................................19 Review of current practice....................................................................................................... 20 Stable isotopes: what they are........................................................................................20 How we know what stable isotopes indicate.........................................................23 How to use stable isotopes for reconstructing Neanderthal diets..................... 23 Dental calculus: what it is.................................................................................................26 How we know what dental calculus indicates.......................................................28 How to use dental calculus for reconstructing Neanderthal diets..................... 29 Faecal biomarkers: what they are and their potential uses........................................31 Chapter 3 Materials and methods............................................................................................32 Chapter 4 Results.........................................................................................................................35 Chapter 5 Neanderthal diets: discussion.............................................................................. 46 Review of the isotopic evidence for Late Pleistocene Europe...........................................46 Neanderthal diets and stable isotopes: the assumptions........................................... 54 Neanderthal diets and stable isotopes: the challenges...............................................60 Reconstructing Neanderthal diets using alternative methods............................................63 Heavier stable isotopes....................................................................................................63 Dental calculus.................................................................................................................. 64 Faecal biomarkers.............................................................................................................67 Reconsidering the ‘meat-eater’ narrative for Neanderthals................................................69 Conclusions..................................................................................................................................... 71 Bibliography..................................................................................................................................... 73 Note: items on this page include hyperlinks. Left click to navigate to a section of your choice. 2 B052884 Abstract Archaeological research on Neanderthal diets has the potential to contribute to our understanding of present-day human health and nutrition. Neanderthal diets can be reconstructed on the basis of stable isotope ratios, as well as dental calculus samples and faecal biomarkers, providing analogous data for non-archaeologists to engage with. Interdisciplinary research on Neanderthals from Late Pleistocene Europe in particular deepens our understanding of current human population health, aligning the interests of archaeology with that of medicine and food policymakers. Acknowledgements I want to thank Dr Catriona Pickard and Dr Karen Hardy for their incisive comments and for their continued support as mentors. This piece of work would not be possible without them. 3 B052884 Illustrations Figures Figure 1. Geographic distribution of Neanderthal fossils in Europe and western Asia 8 Figure 2. Palaeoenvironments of Late Pleistocene Europe 9 Figure 3. Chronology, temperatures, and sea levels for the Pleistocene epoch 10 Figure 4. Carbon and nitrogen isotope fractionation 21 Figure 5. Carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios for terrestrial and marine organisms 22 Figure 6. Dental calculus formation 27 Figure 7. Dental calculus deposit from a Neanderthal, El Sidrón, Spain 27 Figure 8a. FRUITS results for Neanderthal S-EVA-2152.1 ['control' D-BO] 36 Figure 8b. FRUITS results for Neanderthal S-EVA-2152.1 ['radical' D-BO] 37 Figure 8c. FRUITS results for Neanderthal M300 ['control' D-BO] 38 Figure 8d. FRUITS results for Neanderthal M300 ['radical' D-BO] 39 Figure 8e. FRUITS results for Neanderthal M400 ['control' D-BO] 40 Figure 8f. FRUITS results for Neanderthal M400 ['radical' D-BO] 41 Figure 8g. FRUITS results for Neanderthal M100 ['control' D-BO] 42 Figure 8h. FRUITS results for Neanderthal M100 ['radical' D-BO] 43 Figure 8i. FRUITS results for Neanderthal RFB7000 ['control' D-BO] 44 Figure 8j. FRUITS results for Neanderthal RFB7000 ['radical' D-BO] 45 Figure 9. Map of Late Pleistocene Neanderthal sites with isotope data 49 Figure 10. Isotopic variations in Late Pleistocene European mammals and plants 57 Figure 11. Possible causes of carbon isotopic variations in herbivores and plants 58 Figure 12. Possible causes of nitrogen isotopic variations in herbivores and plants 58 Tables Table 1. Energetics and foraging data for selected hunting and gathering populations 15 Table 2. List of published isotopic results for Late Pleistocene Neanderthals 47 Table 3. Summary of published isotopic results for Late Pleistocene mammals 48 Note: items on this page include hyperlinks. Left click to navigate to a section of your choice. Abbreviations C Carbon δ13C Ratio between 13C and 12C N Nitrogen δ15N Ratio between 15N and 14N D-BO Diet-body offset ‰ Parts per thousand, permil FRUITS Food Reconstruction Using Isotopic Transferred Signals 4 B052884 Introduction Neanderthal studies began more than 150 years ago with the discovery of a skullcap and partial skeleton at Neander Valley, Germany. This discovery led to the classification of Neanderthals as part of the genus Homo (King 1864), laying the foundations for decades of research to build upon. The reasons for focusing on Neanderthals relate to the stories they have to tell us about our evolutionary history. The key motivation for writing this dissertation is to explore how Neanderthal studies can benefit current human populations. In relation to Neanderthal diets, there is potential for interdisciplinary research to provide essential information about the evolution and health of our own species, as well as inform our understanding about past environments in Europe during periods of environmental change such as the Late Pleistocene (Bocherens 2011). Information about past environments is all the more important in light of present-day concerns about climate change and its effect on landscapes, sea levels, and patterns of precipitation around the world (RS and USNAS 2014; see also Carlsson-Kanyama and González 2009). With this in mind, the research questions for this dissertation are: 1. In Europe, what archaeological evidence is there for Neanderthal diets during the Late Pleistocene and how has that evidence been interpreted? 2. How can archaeological accounts about Neanderthal diets contribute to the health and well-being of current human populations? 3. What are the possible directions for Neanderthal research moving forward? In order to answer the research questions outlined above, this dissertation presents a synthesis of recent findings about Neanderthal diets in Late Pleistocene Europe. The piece begins with an overview of who Neanderthals were, why they’re important, and how their species lies at an intersection between medical and archaeological science. What follows is 5 B052884 a review of past and current research methods for appraising Neanderthal-related material. The subsequent discussion features published stable isotope data for Late Pleistocene Neanderthals;
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