An experimental assessment of the grinding characteristics of some native seeds used by Aboriginal Australians

Abstract

Numerous plant seeds (the caryopsis or achene) from a wide variety of genera were traditionally ground for food by hunter-gatherer peoples, including over 200 varieties by Aboriginal Australians. In Australia, these seeds varied greatly in size, shape and hardness. Except for a broad distinction being made between grass and tree seeds, differences in the morphological and other characteristics of seeds — in particular their performance in seed-grinding — are rarely documented. A recent experimental examination of the efficiency of millstones using commercial proxies for difficult to obtain Australian native seeds has shown significant differences in workability and output of different types of seeds. This paper tests predictions as to whether the grinding characteristics of a number of widely used native seeds also vary significantly, the implications this has for the selection, treatment and use of seeds by Aboriginal people in Australia and elsewhere, and generates quantitative data which can supplement and explicate other experimental research. It also makes a preliminary assessment of whether domesticated seeds can provide useful grinding analogues for unavailable native seeds. Our findings have broad relevance for an understanding of prehistoric seed-grinding and species selection in Australia and other parts of the world.