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

在Alexia Smith博士的指导下，Thomas Hart将分析2009年和2010年挖掘季节在叙利亚Tell Zeidan乌贝德时期遗址收集的古代植物遗骸。Tell Zeidan位于巴利克河和幼发拉底河的交汇处，在公元前6,000至3,800年间曾是美索不达米亚北部的区域中心，该遗址具有特别重要的意义，因为它是美索不达米亚南部心脏地带以外最大的定居点之一。此外，由于它连续被占领了2000多年，它为研究社会复杂性的最早发展之一提供了独特的机会。哈特的研究将使用新的考古技术，如植硅体和淀粉粒分析，以确定使向复杂社会过渡成为可能的生存方式。农业在促进复杂社会兴起和传播方面的重要性得到了广泛认可。然而，除了少数例外，人们对公元前六千年到四千年间大美索不达米亚(底格里斯-幼发拉底河分水岭)的生存实践知之甚少。了解复杂社会发展之前、期间和之后的粮食生产和消费模式，对于揭示农业在新出现的社会复杂性中的作用(如果有的话)至关重要。该项目将通过检查考古土壤、人工制品残留物、人类牙齿残留物以及与埋葬个人的胃内容物有关的土壤中发现的微观植物遗骸(植硅体和淀粉粒)，评估和记录从乌贝德时期到Tell Zeidan的植物食物生产和消费的每个阶段。同样，通过使用微观遗迹重建生产和消费模式，该项目将探索新的方法，在考古记录中识别以前看不见的社会复杂性标记。当与其他类型的数据结合在一起时，作为更大的站点内研究的一部分，如地理信息系统数据、烧焦的种子、动物骨骼和石器数据，该项目将提供促进复杂社会崛起的生存实践的真正整体图景。本研究将寻求在所提出的研究主题之外产生更广泛的影响。该项目的站内研究部分将促进叙利亚研究人员与欧洲和美国其他大学的研究人员之间的国际合作。该项目的结果将在同行评议的出版物中传播，而原始数据将在网上发布，从而使数据可供公众使用。在美国的公众宣传活动将包括在康涅狄格州自然历史博物馆的公开讲座，以及在康涅狄格州伍德伯里的非新奥格高中举办的关于早期农业和复杂社会的研讨会。这些努力将寻求提高公众对科学、考古学和人类学的理解。最后，这项研究希望通过改进康涅狄格大学的考古植物学实验室，并通过培训本科生研究助理掌握该领域科学研究和分析所需的技能，来促进未来的科学研究。

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.