This study argues that early farming life may have been more multifaceted than previously thought, and puts forward a reinterpretation of the traditional views on farming, wild plant gathering and social relationships during the Neolithic in the North East of the Iberian Peninsula.
The archaeobotanical data from 17 archaeological sites is presented (Sardo Cave; Camp del Colomer; Serra del Mas Bonet; La Dou Codella, 120; Cave La Draga; Bòbila Madurell; Carrer Reina Amàlia, 31‐33; Prehistoric Mines of Gavà; Can Sadurní Cave; Sant Llorenç Cave; Espina C; Pla del Gardelo; Puig del Collet; CIM “El Camp”; Fosca Cave). For each site, pioneering methods of investigating the origin and the representativeness of the data are applied. Following these evaluations, palaeoeconomic issues are targeted at diff erent scales, ranging from the context to the regional level. The detailed investigations performed at the site of La Draga particularly stand out, as this is the only Neolithic site with waterlogged conditions of preservation in the Iberian Peninsula. Innovative data on the history of crops like tetraploid naked wheat, tworow barley, naked barley and opium poppy as well as on the role of wild fruits in the economy is revealed, completing an important piece in the puzzle of the investigations concerning the Neolithic in Europe.
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Acknowledgements IX
1. Introduction 1
2. Plant food economy among early farmers in the North‐East of the Iberian Peninsula. Definition and state of research 3
2.1. Plant food production: crops and wild fruits 3
2.2. Early farming: a labour‐intensive and mixed economy? 5
2.3. The social significance of an intensive mixed economy: a hypothetical characterization of early farming communities 23
2.4. The North‐East of the Iberian Peninsula: an introduction to the area under study 27
2.5. Introduction to the studied region. The first farming communities of the the NE of the Iberian Peninsula (5400‐2300 cal BC) 35
3. Materials and methods 63
3.1 Materials: sites under analysis 63
3.1.1 Sardo Cave 64
3.1.2 Camp del Colomer 67
3.1.3. Serra del Mas Bonet 69
3.1.4. La Dou 71
3.1.5. Codella 73
3.1.6. 120 Cave 74
3.1.7. La Draga 76
3.1.8. Bòbila Madurell 79
3.1.9. Carrer Reina Amàlia, 31‐33 81
3.1.10. Prehistoric Mines of Gavà 82
3.1.11. Can Sadurní Cave 86
3.1.12. Sant Llorenç Cave 90
3.1.13. Espina C 92
3.1.14. Pla del Gardelo 93
3.1.15. Puig del Collet 95
3.1.16. CIM “El Camp” 96
3.1.17. Fosca Cave 97
3.2. Methods 99
3.2.1. Sampling: definitions, questions, general guidelines and data 100
3.2.2. Sediment processing techniques: flotation, wash‐over and water screening 107
3.2.3. Sorting and subsampling the different sieve fractions 109
3.2.4. Botanical identification 109
3.2.5. The database 110
3.2.6. Techniques of numerical description of seed and fruit remains: NR, CU, MNI and density 114
3.2.7. The ecological classification of the taxa 118
3.2.8. Sample amalgamation 119
3.2.9. Quantitative techniques and multivariate analyses used to compare archaeological contexts: Relative frequencies (proportions), Ubiquity, the Index of Relative Abundance and Correspondence Analysis 119
3.2.10. Taphonomic analysis of charred seed and fruit assemblages 120
3.2.11. Taphonomic analysis of subfossil cultural layers: from the sample to the grain 132
3.2.12. Approaching plant food economy in the past 135
4. Results and discussion per site 143
4.1. Sardo Cave 143
4.2. Camp del Colomer 152
4.3. Serra del Mas Bonet 181
4.4. La Dou 189
4.5. Codella 196
4.6. 120 Cave 199
4.7. La Draga 202
4.8. Bòbila Madurell 317
4.9. C/Reina Amàlia, 31‐33 342
4.10. Gavà Mines 351
4.11. Can Sadurní Cave 356
4.12. Sant Llorenç Cave 384
4.13. Espina C 388
4.14. Pla del Gardelo 391
4.15. El Collet 393
4.16. CIM “El Camp” 396
4.17. Fosca Cave 398
5. Discussion 403
5.1. Methodological discussion 403
5.2. Agricultural products and crop husbandry practices during the Neolithic (5400‐2300 cal BC) in the NE of the Iberian Peninsula 410
5.3. Wild fruit management during the Neolithic (5400‐2300 cal BC) in the NE of the Iberian Peninsula 437
5.4. Social and economic implications of the plant food economy during the Neolithic in the NE of the Iberian Peninsula 451
6. Conclusions 455
7. Conclusions (traducció al català) 459
References 463
Annexes Internet
1. Identification criteria of plant macroremains recovered in the investigated sites
2. Experimental work
3. Tables
4. Potential alimentary or medicinal uses of the identified taxa
