The present study focuses on archaeobotanical analyses performed at the Phoenicians site of Motya, a small island (ca. 45 ha) located in Stagnone di Marsala, western Sicily.The macro-remains focused two closed contexts: votive favissa by sacred area “Cappiddazzu”, and disposal pit Area D, both dating between 8th 6th century BC. In latter context, palynological were also performed. allows to rec...

Phytolith analysis is a well-established archaeobotanical tool, having provided important insights into pre-Columbian crop cultivation and domestication across Amazonia through the Holocene. Yet, its use as palaeoecological tool in infancy effectiveness for reconstructing land-use beyond archaeological sites (i.e., ‘off-site’) has so far received little critical attention. This paper examines b...

This paper presents new archaeobotanical data from the Lower Cerovačka Cave located in Dalmatia, Croatia. At site a high density of carbonized plant remains was recovered, indicating remnants burnt crop store dating to Late Bronze Age. Overall, assemblage is dominated by lentil (Lens culinaris) and free-threshing wheat (Triticum aestivum/durum), lesser extent, emmer dicoccum), einkorn monococcu...

The identification of archaeological charred grape seeds is a difficult task due to the alteration of the morphological seeds shape. In archaeobotanical studies, for the correct discrimination between Vitis vinifera subsp. sylvestris and Vitis vinifera subsp. vinifera grape seeds it is very important to understand the history and origin of the domesticated grapevine. In this work, different car...

The beginning of agriculture is one of the most important developments in human history, with enormous consequences that paved the way for settled life and complex society. Much of the research on the origins of agriculture over the last 40 years has been guided by Flannery's [Flannery, K. V. (1969) in The Domestication and Exploitation of Plants and Animals, eds. Ucko, P. J. & Dimbleby, G. W. ...

Domestication is the process by which plants or animals evolved to fit a human-managed environment, and it is marked by innovations in plant morphology and anatomy that are in turn correlated with new human behaviours and technologies for harvesting, storage and field preparation. Archaeobotanical evidence has revealed that domestication was a protracted process taking thousands of plant genera...