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van den Hurk Y, Sikström F, Amkreutz L, Bleasdale M, Borvon A, Ephrem B, Fernández-Rodríguez C, Gibbs HMB, Jonsson L, Lehouck A, Cedeira JM, Meng S, Monge R, Moreno M, Nabais M, Nores C, Pis-Millán JA, Riddler I, Schmölcke U, Segschneider M, Speller C, Vretemark M, Wickler S, Collins M, Nadeau MJ, Barrett JH. The prelude to industrial whaling: identifying the targets of ancient European whaling using zooarchaeology and collagen mass-peptide fingerprinting. R Soc Open Sci 2023; 10:230741. [PMID: 37711146 PMCID: PMC10498027 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230741] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2023] [Accepted: 08/21/2023] [Indexed: 09/16/2023]
Abstract
Taxonomic identification of whale bones found during archaeological excavations is problematic due to their typically fragmented state. This difficulty limits understanding of both the past spatio-temporal distributions of whale populations and of possible early whaling activities. To overcome this challenge, we performed zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry on an unprecedented 719 archaeological and palaeontological specimens of probable whale bone from Atlantic European contexts, predominantly dating from ca 3500 BCE to the eighteenth century CE. The results show high numbers of Balaenidae (many probably North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis)) and grey whale (Eschrichtius robustus) specimens, two taxa no longer present in the eastern North Atlantic. This discovery matches expectations regarding the past utilization of North Atlantic right whales, but was unanticipated for grey whales, which have hitherto rarely been identified in the European zooarchaeological record. Many of these specimens derive from contexts associated with mediaeval cultures frequently linked to whaling: the Basques, northern Spaniards, Normans, Flemish, Frisians, Anglo-Saxons and Scandinavians. This association raises the likelihood that early whaling impacted these taxa, contributing to their extirpation and extinction. Much lower numbers of other large cetacean taxa were identified, suggesting that what are now the most depleted whales were once those most frequently used.
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Affiliation(s)
- Youri van den Hurk
- Department of Archaeology and Cultural History, University Museum, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
- Groningen Institute of Archaeology, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Fanny Sikström
- Department of Archaeology and Cultural History, University Museum, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Luc Amkreutz
- National Museum of Antiquities, Papengracht 30, 2301EC Leiden, The Netherlands
- Faculty of Archaeology, Leiden University, Einsteinweg 2, 2333 Leiden, The Netherlands
| | | | - Aurélia Borvon
- CNRS, UMR 7041 ArScAn Equipe Archéologies Environnementales, Nanterre, France
- Laboratoire d'Anatomie Comparée, ONIRIS (École Nationale Vétérinaire, Agroalimentaire et de l'Alimentation, Nantes-Atlantique), Nantes, France
| | - Brice Ephrem
- CNRS, UMR 6566 CReAAH Laboratoire Archéosciences, University of Rennes, Campus de Beaulieu, 35042 Rennes Cedex, France
| | | | | | - Leif Jonsson
- Osteology, Aschebergsgatan 32, Gothenburg, SE 41133, Sweden
| | - Alexander Lehouck
- Abbey Museum of the Dunes, Koninklijke Prinslaan 6–8, 8670 Koksijde, Belgium
| | - Jose Martínez Cedeira
- Coordinadora para o Estudio dos Mamíferos Mariños, Rúa do Ceán, No 2, 36350 Nigrán, Pontevedra, Spain
| | - Stefan Meng
- Institute of Geography and Geology, University of Greifswald, Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn Strasse 17A, 17487 Greifswald, Germany
| | - Rui Monge
- UNIARQ – Centro de Arqueologia da Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Letras, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, 1600-214, Portugal
| | - Marta Moreno
- Instituto de Historia - CSIC, Albasanz 26-28, Madrid, 28037, Spain
| | - Mariana Nabais
- Institute of Geography and Geology, University of Greifswald, Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn Strasse 17A, 17487 Greifswald, Germany
- IPHES-CERCA - Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, Zona Educacional 4, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007 Tarragona, Spain
- Departament d'Història i Història de l'Art, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002 Tarragona, Spain
| | - Carlos Nores
- INDUROT – Instituto de Recursos Naturales y Ordenación del Territorio, Universidad de Oviedo, Mieres, 33600, Spain
| | - José Antonio Pis-Millán
- Centro de Experimentación Pesquera, Dirección General de Pesca Marítima, Gobierno del Principado de Asturias, 33212 Gijón, Spain
| | - Ian Riddler
- Independent Researcher, Schloss Gottorf, Schleswig, Germany
| | - Ulrich Schmölcke
- Centre for Baltic and Scandinavian Archaeology (ZBSA), Schloss Gottorf, Schleswig, Germany
| | - Martin Segschneider
- Lower Saxony Institute for Historical Coastal Research, Viktoriastrasse 26/28, 26382 Wilhelmshaven, Germany
| | - Camilla Speller
- Department of Anthropology, University of British Columbia, 6303 NW Marine Drive, Vancouver V6T 1Z1, Canada
| | | | | | - Matthew Collins
- Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- The Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen, Kobenhavns, Denmark
| | - Marie-Josée Nadeau
- National Laboratory for Age Determination, NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Erling Skakkes Gate 47b, 7491 Trondheim, Norway
| | - James H. Barrett
- Department of Archaeology and Cultural History, University Museum, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
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Trolle Jensen TZ, Mackie M, Taurozzi AJ, Lanigan LT, Gundelach C, Olsen J, Sørensen SA, Collins MJ, Sørensen M, Schroeder H. The biomolecular characterization of a finger ring contextually dated to the emergence of the Early Neolithic from Syltholm, Denmark. R Soc Open Sci 2020; 7:191172. [PMID: 32218948 PMCID: PMC7029941 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.191172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2019] [Accepted: 11/22/2019] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
We present the analysis of an osseous finger ring from a predominantly early Neolithic context in Denmark. To characterize the artefact and identify the raw material used for its manufacture, we performed micro-computed tomography scanning, zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry (ZooMS) peptide mass fingerprinting, as well as protein sequencing by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). We conclude that the ring was made from long bone or antler due to the presence of osteons (Haversian canals). Subsequent ZooMS analysis of collagen I and II indicated that it was made from Alces alces or Cervus elaphus material. We then used LC-MS/MS analysis to refine our species identification, confirming that the ring was made from Cervus elaphus, and to examine the rest of the proteome. This study demonstrates the potential of ancient proteomics for species identification of prehistoric artefacts made from osseous material.
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Affiliation(s)
- Theis Zetner Trolle Jensen
- Section for Evolutionary Genomics, The Globe Institute, Faculty of Health, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5-7, 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark
- BioArCh, Department of Archaeology, Environment Building, Wentworth Way, University of York, York YO10 5NG, UK
| | - Meaghan Mackie
- Section for Evolutionary Genomics, The Globe Institute, Faculty of Health, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5-7, 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research, University of Copenhagen, Blegdamsvej 3b, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Alberto John Taurozzi
- Section for Evolutionary Genomics, The Globe Institute, Faculty of Health, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5-7, 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Liam Thomas Lanigan
- Section for Evolutionary Genomics, The Globe Institute, Faculty of Health, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5-7, 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Carsten Gundelach
- Department of Physics, NEXMAP, Technical University of Denmark, Fysikvej 311, 2800 Kgs Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Jesper Olsen
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 120, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
| | | | - Matthew James Collins
- Section for Evolutionary Genomics, The Globe Institute, Faculty of Health, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5-7, 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark
- McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, West Tower, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3ER, UK
| | - Mikkel Sørensen
- The Saxo Institute, Department of Archaeology, University of Copenhagen, Karen Blixens vej 4, 2300 København S, Denmark
| | - Hannes Schroeder
- Section for Evolutionary Genomics, The Globe Institute, Faculty of Health, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5-7, 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark
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Devièse T, Karavanić I, Comeskey D, Kubiak C, Korlević P, Hajdinjak M, Radović S, Procopio N, Buckley M, Pääbo S, Higham T. Direct dating of Neanderthal remains from the site of Vindija Cave and implications for the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017; 114:10606-10611. [PMID: 28874524 PMCID: PMC5635904 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1709235114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous dating of the Vi-207 and Vi-208 Neanderthal remains from Vindija Cave (Croatia) led to the suggestion that Neanderthals survived there as recently as 28,000-29,000 B.P. Subsequent dating yielded older dates, interpreted as ages of at least ∼32,500 B.P. We have redated these same specimens using an approach based on the extraction of the amino acid hydroxyproline, using preparative high-performance liquid chromatography (Prep-HPLC). This method is more efficient in eliminating modern contamination in the bone collagen. The revised dates are older than 40,000 B.P., suggesting the Vindija Neanderthals did not live more recently than others across Europe, and probably predate the arrival of anatomically modern humans in Eastern Europe. We applied zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry (ZooMS) to find additional hominin remains. We identified one bone that is Neanderthal, based on its mitochondrial DNA, and dated it directly to 46,200 ± 1,500 B.P. We also attempted to date six early Upper Paleolithic bone points from stratigraphic units G1, Fd/d+G1 and Fd/d, Fd. One bone artifact gave a date of 29,500 ± 400 B.P., while the remainder yielded no collagen. We additionally dated animal bone samples from units G1 and G1-G3 These dates suggest a co-occurrence of early Upper Paleolithic osseous artifacts, particularly split-based points, alongside the remains of Neanderthals is a result of postdepositional mixing, rather than an association between the two groups, although more work is required to show this definitively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thibaut Devièse
- Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit, Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QY, United Kingdom;
| | - Ivor Karavanić
- Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb, HR-10000 Zagreb, Croatia
- Department of Anthropology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071
| | - Daniel Comeskey
- Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit, Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QY, United Kingdom
| | - Cara Kubiak
- Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit, Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QY, United Kingdom
| | - Petra Korlević
- Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, D-04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Mateja Hajdinjak
- Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, D-04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Siniša Radović
- Institute for Quaternary Palaeontology and Geology, Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, HR-10000 Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Noemi Procopio
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, Manchester M1 7DN, United Kingdom
| | - Michael Buckley
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, Manchester M1 7DN, United Kingdom
| | - Svante Pääbo
- Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, D-04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Tom Higham
- Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit, Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QY, United Kingdom
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Speller C, van den Hurk Y, Charpentier A, Rodrigues A, Gardeisen A, Wilkens B, McGrath K, Rowsell K, Spindler L, Collins M, Hofreiter M. Barcoding the largest animals on Earth: ongoing challenges and molecular solutions in the taxonomic identification of ancient cetaceans. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2016; 371:20150332. [PMID: 27481784 PMCID: PMC4971184 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2015.0332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/28/2016] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Over the last few centuries, many cetacean species have witnessed dramatic global declines due to industrial overharvesting and other anthropogenic influences, and thus are key targets for conservation. Whale bones recovered from archaeological and palaeontological contexts can provide essential baseline information on the past geographical distribution and abundance of species required for developing informed conservation policies. Here we review the challenges with identifying whale bones through traditional anatomical methods, as well as the opportunities provided by new molecular analyses. Through a case study focused on the North Sea, we demonstrate how the utility of this (pre)historic data is currently limited by a lack of accurate taxonomic information for the majority of ancient cetacean remains. We then discuss current opportunities presented by molecular identification methods such as DNA barcoding and collagen peptide mass fingerprinting (zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry), and highlight the importance of molecular identifications in assessing ancient species' distributions through a case study focused on the Mediterranean. We conclude by considering high-throughput molecular approaches such as hybridization capture followed by next-generation sequencing as cost-effective approaches for enhancing the ecological informativeness of these ancient sample sets.This article is part of the themed issue 'From DNA barcodes to biomes'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camilla Speller
- BioArCh, Department of Archaeology, University of York, Environment Building, York, North Yorkshire YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Youri van den Hurk
- Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 31-34 Gordon Square, London WC1H 0PY, UK
| | - Anne Charpentier
- CEFE UMR 5175, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier, EPHE - CNRS, Montpellier Cedex 5, France
| | - Ana Rodrigues
- CEFE UMR 5175, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier, EPHE - CNRS, Montpellier Cedex 5, France
| | - Armelle Gardeisen
- Archéologie des Sociétés Méditerranéennes, UMR 5140, CNRS, Labex Archimede IA-ANR-11-LABX-0032-01, Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier, 34970 Lattes, France
| | - Barbara Wilkens
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Natura e del Territorio, Università degli Studi, Sassari, Italy
| | - Krista McGrath
- BioArCh, Department of Archaeology, University of York, Environment Building, York, North Yorkshire YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Keri Rowsell
- BioArCh, Department of Archaeology, University of York, Environment Building, York, North Yorkshire YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Luke Spindler
- BioArCh, Department of Archaeology, University of York, Environment Building, York, North Yorkshire YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Matthew Collins
- BioArCh, Department of Archaeology, University of York, Environment Building, York, North Yorkshire YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Michael Hofreiter
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Potsdam, 14476 Potsdam, Germany
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