Identifying Prehistoric Collected Wild Plants: A Case Study from Late Bronze Age Settlements in the French Alps (Gresine, Bourget Lake, Savoie)

• Published in: Economic botany Vol. 59; no. 3; pp. 255 - 267
• Main Authors: Bouby, L, Billaud, Y
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01.06.2005
• Subjects: Freshwater; France, Alps Mts; France, Rhone-Alpes, Bourget L
• DOI: 10.1043/0013-0001(2005)059[0255:IPCWPA]2.0.CO;2
• ISSN: 0013-0001

The late Bronze Age lakeshore settlements of Gresine (French Alps) have yielded archaeobotanical evidence of 14 cultivated and 153 wild plants. Some of the wild taxa may have been collected, but many are probably here by chance. Three criteria are used as evidence for human transport and manipulation of wild plant remains: number of items, fragmentation, and carbonization. Relations between these criteria and known ethnobotanical properties of the identified plants are statistically analyzed. Results display good evidence of the gathering of edible wild fruits and seeds. Other gathering practices are not documented. Edible fruits and seeds seem to have been gathered mainly from ruderal spring weed communities and, possibly, from forest clearances and hedge communities. Fragmentation appears to be less of a discriminating factor than number of plant remains and carbonization.Original Abstract: Les sites lacustres de l'age du Bronze final de Gresine (Alpes francaises) ont permis l'attestation archeobotanique de 14 plantes cultivees et de 153 plantes sauvages. Certains des taxons sauvages ont putre cueillis mais nombre d'entre eux sont probablement presents par accident. Trois criteres sont utilises pour montrer un apport et un traitement de ces plantes par l'homme: la representation quantitative, la fragmentation et la carbonisation. Les relations statistiques entre ces criteres et diverses proprietes ethnobotaniques sont analysees. Les resultats convergent pour attester la cueillette de fruits et graines sauvages comestibles. Aucune autre pratique de cueillette n'est mise en evidence. Les semences et fruits alimentaires proviennent plus particulierement des groupements de mauvaises herbes des cultures sarclees ou de printemps ainsi que, peut etre, des fruticees, haies, lisieres et clairieres. Le taux de fragmentation est un caractere moins discriminant que la representation quantitative et la carbonisation.