The research of polychrome ceramics from northern Gran Nicoya, Nicaragua started in a classificatory and descriptive manner, had (and has) many concerns with chronology but has slowly but steadily...Show moreThe research of polychrome ceramics from northern Gran Nicoya, Nicaragua started in a classificatory and descriptive manner, had (and has) many concerns with chronology but has slowly but steadily evolved into a discipline that tries to explain the culture behind the pottery. In order to do so, many different techniques have been used. Decorations and forms are examined and compared to those of other culture areas from the very beginning. Also, the function of the ceramics are researched. In later times the clay of which the ceramics are made itself is also examined and conclusions about provenience and links between different areas can be made. Although the methods that each author applies are different, the common thought in all of the research on polychrome ceramics from northern Gran Nicoya is the hypothesis that it is influenced by the Mesoamerican culture area to the North, more than the Peruvian culture area to the South. The main influence is thought to come from the Maya area and apart from that Aztec influences can be seen. The Mixteca-Puebla stylistic tradition has also left its mark on Nicaraguan ceramic styles. Other authors stress the high level of resemblance with ceramic types from Honduras and El Salvador. In spite of the many examples of influence from the North, Gran Nicoya has still developed in a rather isolated fashion. Therefore I think Gran Nicoya belongs to the periphery of Mesoamerica, just like Honduras and El Salvador, instead of being in the centre of its cultural influence. It is also generally accepted that the Nicarao and Chorotega came to Nicaragua in different migration waves. This is supported by archaeological as well as ethnographic evidence. Furthermore, a general theory of the history of archaeology is discussed which leads us to the conclusion that the historical approach to the study of ceramics provides a special vantage point from which subjectivities from different authors can be filtered out so a higher level of objectivity is achieved.Show less
Humans colonized the Balearic Islands between roughly 3000 and 2000 BC. They arrived there in a uniquely adapted ecosystem with Myotragus balearicus as a very important species. This animal went...Show moreHumans colonized the Balearic Islands between roughly 3000 and 2000 BC. They arrived there in a uniquely adapted ecosystem with Myotragus balearicus as a very important species. This animal went extinct rapidly after human arrival on the islands. During the same time period a marked vegetation change occurred. Several hypotheses have been proposed to explain the extinction of Myotragus balearicus and its relation to human arrival. For the present study ancient DNA analysis was performed on preserved coprolites from Myotragus balearicus, providing information on its diet and palaeo-environment. DNA barcodes (rbcL, trnL and nrITS1) were used for the identification of ancient plant DNA. Targeted amplification of part of the 12S mitochondrial DNA of Myotragus balearicus was performed as well. The Sanger based approach allowed the retrieval of numerous DNA sequences, despite the unfavourable thermal age of the coprolites. The information acquired showed, in combination with pollen analysis performed on the same coprolites, that Myotragus balearicus was heavily dependent on Buxus balearica during part of the year and that it was most probably a browser. This suggests that the extinction of Myotragus balearicus can be related to the drastic decline and regional extinction of Buxus balearica that occurred on the Balearic Islands during the same time humans arrived. The vegetation change is thought to be caused by increased aridity occurring throughout the Mediterranean during this period. No evidence for direct human influence on its extinction could be found, and previous hypotheses relating the extinction of Myotragus balearicus directly to the arrival of humans on the island must be rejected.Show less
