Neolithic landscape and firewood use: charcoal analysis of domestic and funerary contexts at La Dehesilla (Andalusia, Spain)

Taylor, Ruth; Monteiro, Patrícia; García-Rivero, Daniel

http://hdl.handle.net/10400.1/26829

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Authors

Taylor, Ruth

Monteiro, Patrícia

García-Rivero, Daniel

Abstract(s)

Cueva de la Dehesilla, a cave in the province of C & aacute;diz in southern Spain, was occupied throughout the Neolithic in the 6th to 4th millennia bce. Within this sequence, recent archaeological excavations have identified stratigraphic levels and contexts belonging to domestic and funerary activities dated to the Early, Middle and Late Neolithic periods. In this paper, we present the results of the wood charcoal remains from excavation areas C003, C005 and C006. The results are consistent with the Mediterranean taxa identified from other sites throughout the region and confirm the use of a wide range of woodland resources: Arbutus unedo, cf. Artemisia sp., Erica arborea, Ericaceae, Fraxinus sp., Juniperus sp., Olea europaea var. sylvestris/cf. Olea europaea var. sylvestris, Pinus pinea/pinaster, Pinus sp., Pistacia lentiscus, Quercus (deciduous and evergreen), Rhamnus/Phillyrea, monocotyledon and indeterminate angiosperm and gymnosperm taxa. The widest range of taxa, including trees, is from the Early Neolithic to early Middle Neolithic remains. The diversity of taxa decreases notably in the late Middle Neolithic and Late Neolithic, and becomes mainly shrubs. This pattern is consistent with the modification of the landscape as a result of woodland clearance, previously suggested by the pollen analyses at the site, and documented on a wider scale throughout the region. The procurement of firewood around La Dehesilla appears to have been opportunistic and conditioned by the resources that were available in the immediate landscape. At present, there is mixed evidence for the influence of good burning quality on the choice of fuel, as is illustrated by the concentrated charcoal remains found in particular domestic and ritual funerary contexts.