The arrival of millets to the Atlantic coast of northern Iberia.

Despite being one of the most important crops in the recent prehistory of Eurasia, the arrival and exploitation of millets in the westernmost part of Europe are still largely underexplored. Here and for the first time, we report multipronged biomolecular evidence of millet consumption along the Atlantic façade of northern Iberia through a combination of radiocarbon dating, stable isotopes, and dental calculus analyses on the human individuals found in the burial site of El Espinoso cave (Asturias, Spain). The high-resolution chronological framework established for individuals placed the burials between 1235 and 1099 cal. BC. The discovery of high δ13C values on their bone collagen and the identification of polyhedral starch grains within their dental plaque underline the relevance of C4 plants in their diet and highlights the timing of the systematic consumption of millets in the Late Bronze Age. Our data support previous regional archaeobotanical evidence and establish a more precise chronology of the dispersal of millets into northern Iberia during the Bronze Age, becoming an essential crop until the arrival of maize from America after AD 1492. This study emphasizes the importance of multidisciplinary methods to ascertain the origin and development of agricultural practices during recent prehistory.

Osteolytic lesions on the os petrosum of a Bronze Age individual from La Llana cave (Northern Spain) compatible with a possible case of otitis media. A multifaceted methodological approach.

OBJECTIVE: To encourage the use of different methodological approaches for the identification of paleopathological lesions and to evaluate osteolytic lesions found on a temporal bone from La Llana cave (Spain). MATERIALS: Cranial remains recovered from from La Llana cave (Spain) dated to the Bronze Age, 3300 ±â€¯25 BP (1631-1509 cal BC). METHODS: The cranium underwent macroscopic, microscopic and computed tomography scan examinations. RESULTS: The Tegmen tympani of the left temporal bone is present but is missing on the right. Both cochleae are intact. Both the right and left temporal bones display osteolytic lesions, with the left Tegmen tympani displaying deep and profuse pits on the endocranial surface, exposing the ear channel. CONCLUSIONS: The lesions are compatible with otitis media (atticitis). By using different methods of analysis, the presence and effects of infection were identified. SIGNIFICANCE: This systematically described case contributes to our understanding of disease in the past and describes otitis-related lesions in archeological contexts for comparative purposes. LIMITATIONS: The fragmentary and damaged cranial remains rendered evaluation difficult and diagnosis tentative. SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH: The use of different approaches to diagnose otitis media in archeological skeletal collections is recommended to improve the knowledge of health status and lifestyle of past populations.