Domesticate Animal Herding and Procurement Strategies, and the Childhood Origin of the Human Mandible (SP1) from the Bronze Age Site of Punta di Zambrone, Calabria, Italy: a Laser Ablation Sr Isotope Study. Orea|Punta di Zambrone I Oriental and European Archaeology Volume 17|

Résumé 0

Strontium isotope analysis of human and faunal enamel has the potential to reveal human childhood origins, and herding and other movements of animals. Recent developments have included laser ablation sampling which dramatically increases the spatial resolution at which strontium isotopes can be measured. This allows time series of changes in strontium isotopes to be measured along the growth axis of enamel, giving a highly time-resolved measure of human and animal movement. Here we present the method and some examples of its application including our work attempting to identify the provenance of humans at the Bronze Age harbour site of Punta di Zambrone (possible inhabitants of the settlement or foreigners related to its destruction?) and to identify the extent of the agricultural catchment of this settlement through analysis of cattle, pig and other animal teeth. The Sr isotope results show a faunal catchment of approximately 15km, stretching from the coast to the inland high plain, and suggest that the individual SP1 was most likely local to the region.