Insights into resource management and technological development through microbotanical and geoarchaeological characterisation of floor plasters from Neolithic Abu Hureyra, Syria, 8600-6000 cal. BC

Abstract

Plaster is a key technological innovation, manufactured and widely used during the Neolithic across SW Asia. Pre-pottery Neolithic B (PPNB) site, Tell Abu Hureyra, 8600-6000 cal. BC, located in the Middle Euphrates, Syria, has contributed significant evidence to our understanding of the development and construction of early farming settlements. Key features of the site's built environment include rectilinear mudbrick structures, painted plaster floors and substantial storage vessels. To investigate these technological developments, chronological and contextual variation in human resource selection, this pilot study integrates analysis of phytoliths, faecal spherulites and geochemical characterisation by pXRF, of multiphase floor plasters from Abu Hureyra. The ubiquity of faecal spherulites present in the plaster matrix indicate animal dung was an important resource for floor plaster construction at Abu Hureyra. A high proportion of the plant remains identified within the plaster matrix through phytolith analysis are likely also dung derived and indicate a mixed foddering regime of managed animals. Consistencies in the plaster make-up reveal traditions and sustainable practices which likely spanned several millennia. Differences in plaster technology when compared to other sites within the same resource catchment area suggest localised, site-specific preferences and cultures may have influenced technological choices.