A computational approach to selective attention in embodied approaches to cognitive archaeology.

This article proposes a novel computational approach to embodied approaches in cognitive archaeology called computational cognitive archaeology (CCA). We argue that cognitive archaeology, understood as the study of the human mind based on archaeological findings such as artefacts and material remains excavated and interpreted in the present, can benefit from the integration of novel methods in computational neuroscience interested in modelling the way the brain, the body and the environment are coupled and parameterized to allow for adaptive behaviour. We discuss the kind of tasks that CCA may engage in with a narrative example of how one can model the cumulative cultural evolution of the material and cognitive components of technologies, focusing on the case of knapping technology. This article thus provides a novel theoretical framework to formalize research in cognitive archaeology using recent developments in computational neuroscience.

Braiding Fruits and Flowers as a Wish of Prosperity and Victory over Death in the Carved Festoons of Ancient Rome.

Plant motifs had a significant role in ancient cultures, with decorative, artistic, and communicative values. However, little knowledge exists of the botanical composition of festoons, widely used in Greek-Roman art. We analysed 81 festoons, exclusively from sculpture artworks, collected from 13 museums and archaeological sites in Rome (1st century BC-3rd century AD). Using iconographic sources and previous data, we identified the represented species and analysed their abundance and composition using statistical methods (Cluster Analysis, Principal Components Analysis) and diversity indexes (Shannon and Evenness). We documented 3081 botanical elements, identifying 30 taxa, in which fruits with leaves (45%) or alone (10%) represented the most common ones. Laurus nobilis and Quercus cfr. robur were the most frequently depicted species, followed by "pomes" (Pyrus, Malus, Cydonia), Vitis vinifera, Punica granatum, and Ficus carica. Festoons with one or two species can be easily distinguished from those with multiple species, often arranged with figs or vine branches at the ends, with symbolic aims related to fertility, rebirth, and abundance values. A balanced botanical composition also exists, with flowers typically in the middle and a species distribution that is not casual. The results enriched our comprehension of ancient Roman society, considering funerary and celebrative events.

A novel dataset of Gupta archer type coins for machine learning-based classification.

In the field of numismatics, classifying ancient coins, especially those that have diverse information and cultural heritage is a difficult task. Machine learning algorithms have recently made remarkable advancements in these types of tasks. However, these algorithms largely rely on relevant datasets. This article presents a novel dataset of ancient Gupta archer-type coin images, collected from verified private collections and three popular auction houses with their permission. The images exclusively comprise authentic specimens of ancient Gupta archer-type coins. We aim to establish a reliable resource that adheres to the highest standards of numismatic research. These coins, characterized by their distinctive archer motifs, present a significant challenge in terms of identification due to their scarcity and the intricate nature of their design. To address this, we meticulously curated a dataset by annotating each coin through a combination of visual examination and leveraging insights from numismatic literatures. These coins inherit ancient Indian archaeological insights, and studying these coins could provide insights into ancient Indian archaeology.

Visitation, communication, and participation: an ethical and respectful strategy for engaging Australian South Sea Islander communities when sharing their lived experiences.

This study examines the experiences of three Australian South Sea Islanders from the same community who are part of a larger research team scheduled to engage in an archaeological research project in Mackay, Queensland, in 2021. The aim of the project was to highlight Australian South Sea Islander knowledge, voices, and lived experiences. However, owing to COVID-19 and persistent lockdowns in Queensland and New South Wales, the project faced significant delays. The timeline was adjusted, with plans to reintroduce the project to the community after an 18-month hiatus, aiming to rekindle interest and encourage participation. This study focuses on designing a community engagement strategy that builds on established protocols for researchers working with Australian South Sea Islander communities. The strategy includes three key steps: visitation, communication, and participation. By integrating the Tok Stori methodology-an Indigenous research approach from the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu-the strategy supports the decolonisation of the collaborative research process, enabling the sharing of Australian South Sea Islander lived experiences in a culturally safe manner. The authors provide contextualised reflections, offering insights from an Australian South Sea Islander perspective.

Analysis and comparison of tooth wear in late antiquity and early middle age in populations that lived in continental and coastal Croatia using digitized VistaMetrix method.

BACKGROUND: Tooth wear is a non-pathological loss of hard tissues on the incisal and occlusal tooth surface. In archaeology, the loss of dental tissue through attrition is associated with living opportunities and habits, availability, characteristics and methods of food preparation. In forensics, tooth wear is used to estimate the dental age on cadavers. MATERIAL AND METHODS: For this study, we used an archaeological sample from two sample collections. In this study, tooth wear was compared in archaeological samples of well-preserved maxilla and mandible specimens (n=392) from Croatian coastal and continental populations from Late Antiquity (LA) and the Early Middle Ages (EMA). The computer system VistaMetrix 1.38 was used to analyse the abrasion and attrition of hard dental tissues. The Shapiro-Wilk and chi-square tests were performed for categorical data to test the difference between two historical periods and two geographical locations, while the Kruskal-Wallis test was performed for continuous data. RESULTS: There was a statistically significant difference in the proportion of tooth wear in total teeth area (P < 0.001) when comparing continental and coastal Croatia in LA and coastal Croatia between LA and EMA (P = 0.006 and P < 0.001, respectively). Samples from coastal Croatia from the LA period had the lowest percentage of tooth wear with a median of 8.35%, while samples from coastal Croatia from the EMA had the highest percentage of tooth wear with a median of 18.26%. Our results generally show greater tooth wear in the EMA period in male subjects. CONCLUSION: The results of the tooth wear research obtained with the Vista Metrix software can contribute to the study of life circumstances and changes that the analysed population has experienced in its historical development.

AI-accelerated Nazca survey nearly doubles the number of known figurative geoglyphs and sheds light on their purpose.

It took nearly a century to discover a total of 430 figurative Nazca geoglyphs, which offer significant insights into the ancient cultures at the Nazca Pampa. Here, we report the deployment of an AI system to the entire Nazca region, a UNESCO World Heritage site, leading to the discovery of 303 new figurative geoglyphs within only 6 mo of field survey, nearly doubling the number of known figurative geoglyphs. Even with limited training examples, the developed AI approach is demonstrated to be effective in detecting the smaller relief-type geoglyphs, which unlike the giant line-type geoglyphs are very difficult to discern. The improved account of figurative geoglyphs enables us to analyze their motifs and distribution across the Nazca Pampa. We find that relief-type geoglyphs depict mainly human motifs or motifs of things modified by humans, such as domesticated animals and decapitated heads (81.6%). They are typically located within viewing distance (on average 43 m) of ancient trails that crisscross the Nazca Pampa and were most likely built and viewed at the individual or small-group level. On the other hand, the giant line-type figurative geoglyphs mainly depict wild animals (64%). They are found an average of 34 m from the elaborate linear/trapezoidal network of geoglyphs, which suggests that they were probably built and used on a community level for ritual activities.

Female sex bias in Iberian megalithic societies through bioarchaeology, aDNA and proteomics.

Uncertainties regarding traditional osteological methods in biological sex estimation can often be overcome with genomic and proteomic analyses. The combination of the three methodologies has been used for a better understanding of the gender-related funerary rituals at the Iberian megalithic cemetery of Panoría. As a result, 44 individuals have been sexed including, for the first time, non-adults. Contrary to the male bias found in many Iberian and European megalithic monuments, the Panoría population shows a clear sex ratio imbalance in favour of females, with twice as many females as males. Furthermore, this imbalance is found regardless of the criterion considered: sex ratio by tomb, chronological period, method of sex estimation, or age group. Biological relatedness was considered as possible sociocultural explanations for this female-related bias. However, the current results obtained for Panoría are indicative of a female-centred social structure potentially influencing rites and cultural traditions.

Integrating musealized archaeological sediment collections into current geoarchaeological analytical frameworks for sustainable research practices.

We present a review of the latest framework achievements in geoarchaeological sciences applied to microstratigraphic and biomolecular studies of prehistoric archaeological contexts, highlighting the importance of musealized archaeological stratigraphies. We assess how today's scientific and technological accomplishments can be tailored for archaeological human ecology studies with analytical ensembles that provide unprecedented results. Sampling and processing workflows originating from resin consolidation and thin section micromorphology of undisturbed blocks of archaeological soils and sediments, guarantee subsampling accuracy at the micrometre scale granting access to individual components otherwise impossible to target: the achievable information yield makes even the smallest soil samples potential sources of pioneering discoveries. Yet, archaeological excavations are still the primary mode of retrieving new soil samples. We argue that, when dealing with archaeological sites that were excavated and partially musealised in the past, the exploration of related museum collections should be prioritized as perspective source of new study samples. Analysing old and potentially very informative samples, with an approach that we define as "Green Archaeology", may represent a source of well-structured primary data as well as a means for planning new excavations, delivering novel discoveries while safeguarding site integrity and promoting Third Mission valorisation of sites and heritage dormant collections.

A case study on the endeavour to identify the "unidentifiable" fallen soldiers of WWI on the Italian front.

If there is a category of war victims for whom the identification process has been and still remains an extremely challenging issue, it is the soldiers of World War One. There are various reasons for this, including unreliable identity tags, the unprecedented number of casualties, and the level of destruction caused by the massive use of "new" weapons. In Italy, this phenomenon was so severe and well-known that a monument was erected in Rome specifically in memory of those unknown soldiers ("Tomba del Milite Ignoto"). However, modern techniques in forensic archaeology and anthropology can facilitate identification even in this extreme context. In the casework described here, the presence of human remains was reported to the judicial authorities, which were subsequently located and excavated in a remote region of the Italian Alps using a range of techniques, including drone imagery, GPR, and micromorphological surveying. During the archaeological excavation of the human remains, a World War One zinc identification tag in very poor condition was found adjacent to the body. The biological profile was estimated (male, 20-30 years old, 166 cm±3.27 cm), and a trauma survey was performed. Thanks to the restoration of the ID tag, parts of the name and enrolment number were found and cross-referenced with the anthropological data of the subject, matching the information in the available military records. The victim had no siblings or offspring, making it impossible to identify descendants. However, the operation led to a contextual/presumptive identification of the soldier and the discovery of his story. He was a native of Tuscany, who died during the "Punitive Expedition" (1916) and was buried, probably by his comrades, in a small flat area hidden from enemy lines. In investigations like this, the involvement of local communities, whether groups or individuals, is crucial. In this case report, it will be shown how multidisciplinary approaches and collective actions can play a pivotal role in resolving highly intricate scenarios, such as those pertaining to armed conflicts.

Searching for the earliest archaeological record: insights from chimpanzee material landscapes.

The origin of tool use is a central question in human evolutionary studies. Plio-Pleistocene core and flake technologies represent the earliest evidence of tool use in the human lineage. Some suggest this form of tool use is probably pre-dated by a phase of percussive tool use. However, there is currently no evidence for such a record. The archaeological signature of solely percussive behaviours is not as well understood as that associated with cores and flakes. The durable nature of primate percussive stone tools and their by-products provide an opportunity to investigate what such a record looks like. Here, we present a landscape-scale study of the chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes verus) material culture from the Djouroutou Chimpanzee Project, Taï Forest, Cote d'Ivoire. This study explores the interplay between behavioural and environmental factors in shaping the stone record of nut cracking. Through a survey of nut-cracking sites, the available nut species, and raw materials, we show how resource availability influences the resulting material signature of nut cracking. These results also reveal the diversity of material signatures associated with a purely percussive material record. We gain insight into the range of signatures that may be associated with a pre-core and flake archaeological record, providing new expectations for an earlier record of tool use.

The potential of aptamers for the analysis of ceramic bound proteins found within pottery.

Archaeological pottery are the most numerous objects found during excavations and reflect the culinary practices of the past. However, their functionality for cooking/storing specific foods or drinks cannot be deduced solely from comparing their shapes and sizes. Analysis of protein residues bound to ceramics can reveal the protein/animal type through their amino acid sequence, thus enabling direct identification of food types. Therefore, the aim of our experimental study was to test sixteen aptamers for the analysis of proteinaceous organic residues found within the porous structure of pottery. Traditionally prepared archaeological ceramic replicas were cooked for 5 days in various food/protein suspensions, were UV aged, buried for a year, excavated, and extensively cleaned. Their shards were analysed using immunofluorescence microscopy with aptamers. Results show that eight aptamers (Clone1 and Kirby for egg residuals; seqU5 and BLG14 for milk residuals; HA for blood residuals; Gli4 for gluten residuals; Par1 for fish residuals; and D1 for collagen residuals) produced a successful/specific immunofluorescence microscopy result when they were hybridised to shards containing target protein residuals. Interestingly, on whole egg control samples, when the egg lysozyme-targeting aptamer Kirby was used, fluorescence intensity was 3.1 times greater compared to that observed with anti-ovalbumin antibodies.

The archaeological visibility of chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) nut-cracking.

The earliest evidence for complex tool use in the archaeological record dates to 3.3 Ma. While wooden tools may have been used by our earliest ancestors, the evidence is absent due to poor preservation. However, insights into possible early hominin wooden tool use can be gained from observing the tool-use practices of our closest living relatives, chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). By using stone hammers used to crack various nuts, chimpanzees leave a durable material signature comprised of formal tools and associated diagnostic fragments. While the archaeological evidence of chimpanzee wooden tool use is temporary, the combination of stone hammers and wooden anvils can create a more enduring lithic record. This study explores the lithic assemblages associated with wooden and stone anvil use at nut-cracking sites in Taï National Park, Côte d'Ivoire, using technological and use-wear analyses. Our results indicate clear differences in density, fracture patterns, and use-wear in the lithic records between wooden anvil and stone anvil sites. New archaeological excavations at six chimpanzee nut-cracking sites reveal that the anvils' material directly influences the visibility of nut-cracking evidence in the archaeological record. By examining the nature of the lithic signatures associated with wooden anvil and stone anvil use by chimpanzees, we can formulate hypotheses about the probability of such behaviors being preserved and identifiable in the Plio-Pleistocene hominin archaeological record. The variability in material signatures from nut-cracking on different anvils suggests that stone anvils leave a clear archaeological record. Evidence for wooden anvil use is likely underrepresented due to the more ephemeral nature of the associated percussive damage and material signature. It may, however, still be possible, albeit challenging, to identify wooden anvil use in the archaeological record.