The cesspit is an underground container for faeces, food residue and household waste. It is commonly found in archaeological excavations in medieval Europe and its contents often play a crucial...Show moreThe cesspit is an underground container for faeces, food residue and household waste. It is commonly found in archaeological excavations in medieval Europe and its contents often play a crucial role for comprehending past societies. For example, archaeobotanical remains can give information on dietary habits, agricultural practices and taphonomic processes. Despite its importance, the knowledge of which components are part of the diet of a lower household level in the Dutch late medieval period are poor and the diets effects on health are unknown. Therefore, this study applied two approaches to identify which plants were a part of the diet and if it was healthy based on the nutritional value: the lipids, proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals. The first method is a macrobotanical analysis on two sediment samples from a Dutch late medieval cesspit in Haarlemmerstraat, Leiden, the Netherlands and the second method is an investigation of the nutritional value of the edible plant taxa in the assemblage. This study revealed that out of the 27 identified taxa, 13 plants were edible, with a considerable quantity of Ficus carica seeds in sample 588.1 and a notable amount of waterside taxa in sample 589.1, particularly from the Juncus sp. The literature review showed that the nutrients gained from consumption of the edible plants was substantial. However, the insufficient lipids, proteins and the bulk of carbohydrates consisting of sugars, suggests that other food sources complemented the diet. This study’s findings indicate that the Dutch late medieval diet of the Haarlemmerstraat residents was diverse in plants and beneficial to health and physiological functions. For this field, future research is needed to confirm and expand the established knowledge. Therefore, this study suggests future work to adopt a multidisciplinary approach, especially the inclusion of fauna and pollen analysis.Show less
For a project, sediment samples of a lake located in the Libellenvallei, Meijendel (Wassenaar), were taken throughout the winter. Botanic macrofossils were extracted from these taken samples. These...Show moreFor a project, sediment samples of a lake located in the Libellenvallei, Meijendel (Wassenaar), were taken throughout the winter. Botanic macrofossils were extracted from these taken samples. These macrofossils got identified by multiple students of the University of Leiden. Taphonomic processes were the main focus of this project, and the choice was made to focus on the sexual strategies and the lifecycles of the found taxa. Sexual strategies can be considered a key element when it comes to the forming of a macrofossil assemblage. That can grant researchers plenty of information. The present can serve as a good indication of taphonomic processes that happened in the past. The mission of the project at Meijendel was to better understand the environmental context of archaeological sites. Knowing the taphonomic processes of a modern macrofossil assemblage and having good indications of how these macrofossils ended up at this location, can be a good source of information for less modern archaeological sites. The present can help us with making conclusions of vegetations of the past. Observations of taphonomic processes at different archaeological sites can allow predictive models to be constructed that can show palaeovegetation reconstruction. These predictive models are the reason why this research can be considered valuable for future archaeological research.Show less
This thesis explores the extent to which Middle English Romances's readers could have been familiar with the botanical matters referenced within these tales. The data has been gathered from 6...Show moreThis thesis explores the extent to which Middle English Romances's readers could have been familiar with the botanical matters referenced within these tales. The data has been gathered from 6 Middle English Romances: Lay le Freine, Sir Thopas, The Knight's Tale, Athelston, The Awntyrs off Arthur, and The Romaunt of the Rose. The research also includes explorations of non-romance texts and archaeobotanical results to discuss the presence of botanical matters in multiple facets of the lives of contemporary readers of the Middle English Romances.Show less
El Flaco is an Amerindian site located in the northwestern part of the Dominican Republic and has been excavated by the ERC-synergy research project NEXUS 1492. El Flaco is a precolonial hamlet...Show moreEl Flaco is an Amerindian site located in the northwestern part of the Dominican Republic and has been excavated by the ERC-synergy research project NEXUS 1492. El Flaco is a precolonial hamlet which was occupied between the 10th and 15th centuries AD. One of the goals of the NEXUS 1492 project is to gain new information about the human plant dynamics of the site. One way of investigating this is to conduct paleoethnobotanical analysis on hearth features in which food plants, fuel plants, and plant foods were processed, cooked, and consumed in different ways. The research described in this thesis consists of macrobotanical and phytolith analyses of five hearth features from El Flaco. The main aim of this research is to investigate which plant foods could have been part of the diet of the former inhabitants of El Flaco. With the macrobotanical analysis, only one taxon could be identified, which is Portulaca spp. This taxon is edible, but since it is a highly invasive plant, it was likely accidentally charred and not consumed. The results of the phytolith analysis showed that five taxonomic groups (six taxa) were likely consumed: Marantaceae/Cannaceae, Annonaceae, Cucurbitales (wild), Cucurbita spp. (domesticated), and Zea mays.Show less
In this research, multiple proxies have been studied in order to reconstruct the environment of Barnham. At this site, lithic artefacts as well as many organic remains are found. The site itself...Show moreIn this research, multiple proxies have been studied in order to reconstruct the environment of Barnham. At this site, lithic artefacts as well as many organic remains are found. The site itself correlates to the Hoxnian interglacial (MIS 11), which is dated to approximately 430 to 360 Kyr BP. Multiple excavation campaigns have occurred at the site, but only since the campaign of 2016 the site has yielded botanical macrofossils. This is a datatype that was before not yet studied at Barnham. In this thesis the sample taken from the field is studied and related to the existing data and the data of other sites in East Anglia. The study of this data has provided more detailed information of the local vegetation which grew in and around the waterbody of Barnham. The macrofossils confirm the existing environmental reconstruction, which is that of a mixed deciduous woodland and open grassland area with a waterbody present which is still to slow moving. Researching environment, especially at sites like Barnham, help to better understand hominin behaviour and the context they lived in.Show less
Research master thesis | Arts and Culture (research) (MA)
open access
This thesis focused on several female collectors in the seventeenth century in the Low Countries and what their influence has been on for example the science of botany, garden design, and...Show moreThis thesis focused on several female collectors in the seventeenth century in the Low Countries and what their influence has been on for example the science of botany, garden design, and entomology. The main figures that are discussed are Maria Sybilla Merian, Magdalena Poulle, and Agnes Block.Show less
Les Cottés is Palaeolithic cave site located in the Vienne region in South-Western France. It is located near the Gartempe river. Nowadays it is a small river but in the past it influenced the...Show moreLes Cottés is Palaeolithic cave site located in the Vienne region in South-Western France. It is located near the Gartempe river. Nowadays it is a small river but in the past it influenced the environment in the valley. There is evidence that correlates the river to the site in the form of pebbles and flint but virtually nothing is known about the landscape shaped by the river during occupation of the cave. This thesis is an initial research and tries to comprehend the difficult fluvial landscape here. By mapping the fluvial history research questions can be answered regarding the influence of the environment in the Gartempe valley on human behaviour. With an augering transect eight different units were distinguished of fluvial depositions and erosion and showed the existence of two palaeochannels buried beneath the surface. The oldest channel had an infilling of peat and was studied in the form of a palynological research. The general picture, which consisted of Pinus and Betula, dated the infilling to the Allerød or Preboreal period. This was done by comparing it to several other sites in France which include the same environment. The local environment in this period shows that the channel got cut off and was not active anymore in this phase. There was still open water present but the accumulation of peat was in progress. The valley would have been characterised by wetland conditions. Two phases identified in this thesis could be of interest for the research at Les Cottés. One interpretation is that the terrace in front of the site is older than the research at Les Cottés and this means that the Pleistocene surface would be buried beneath current floodplain deposits. This terrace in front of the site could have been used as an overview point. The other interpretation is that the terrace was shaped after the occupation at Les Cottes. This would mean that the relative height difference between the cave and the site was very small. Both interpretations would have an impact on the archaeology. This shows that the Gartempe influences could have been bigger in the past.Show less
On the Norfolk and Suffolk coasts artifacts have been found at Pakefield and Happisburgh 3, indicating the presence of hominid activity. These artifacts were assigned to the organic layers of the...Show moreOn the Norfolk and Suffolk coasts artifacts have been found at Pakefield and Happisburgh 3, indicating the presence of hominid activity. These artifacts were assigned to the organic layers of the Cromer Forest-bed Formation. Pakefield is dated to 700 ka and resembled a Mediterranean climate, while the Happisburgh 3 artifacts are associated with a temperate boreal climate with an age of 780 ka. Research in understanding the Palaeolandscape and climate needs to be conducted on the organic layers at the Norfolk and Suffolk coasts. In this paper the lower organic layer at Beeston has been investigated. The research in this paper identified the macrofossils of 200 cubic centimeters from the first ten centimeters of the top of the lower organic layer. The local vegetation is consistent with a Potometea community, the local environment is a flooded basin or back-swamp in a River delta with some marine influences, and the climate represents a temperate climate. Other research of the layer as a quickscan of macrofossils through the entire layer shows no significant change of vegetation in the layer. Therefore we can assume that the layer represents one distinguished type of vegetation. Pollen data in the 10-11 centimeters of the layer shows an abundance of boreal mixed forests with wetland conditions. The identified local environment, vegetation, and climate is also found in the West Runton Freshwater Bed (MIS 15-17) and Happisburgh 3 (MIS 21,25). The West Runton Freshwater Bed is part of the hypothetical “Ancaster River”. The resemblance in vegetation and climate of Happisburgh 3 and Beeston indicates a possible presence of hominid activity within the lower organic layer of Beeston. However, the presenceof hominids and age of the lower organic layer cannot yet be determined.Show less
