Isotopic Landscapes in Bioarchaeology

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xii

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2. Unanswered Questions in the Evolution of Biomineralisation

   • Elizabeth M. Harper

   Pages 1-13

3. Cremations: Anthropology, Mineralogy, Radiocarbon Dating

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 15-15

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   2. Complexities of the Ancient Mortuary Rite of Cremation: An Osteoarchaeological Conundrum

      • Jacqueline I. McKinley

      Pages 17-41

   3. Bones, Rocks, and Flames: Mineralogy and Petrology of Slags and Cremated Bones from Ritual Immolation Sites in Tyrol

      • Peter Tropper

      Pages 43-67

   4. Radiocarbon Dating of Cremated Bones: An Overview

      • Mark Van Strydonck

      Pages 69-89

   5. Mineralogic Characterisation of Archaeological Bone

      • Wolfgang W. Schmahl, Balazs Kocsis, Anita Toncala, Gisela Grupe

      Pages 91-110

4. Geological Aspects of Isotopic Landscapes

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 111-111

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   2. Assessing the “Local” 87Sr/86Sr Ratio for Humans

      • James H. Burton, Rachel Hahn

      Pages 113-121

   3. Determination of Geo-dependent Bioavailable 87Sr/86Sr Isotopic Ratios for Archaeological Sites from the Inn Valley (Austria): A Model Calculation

      • Frank Söllner, Anita Toncala, Stefan Hölzl, Gisela Grupe

      Pages 123-140

   4. Provenancing Bronze: Exclusion, Inclusion, Uniqueness, and Occam’s Razor

      • Igor M. Villa

      Pages 141-154

5. Ecological Aspects of Isotopic Landscapes

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 155-155

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   2. Linking Oxygen Isotopes of Animal-Bone Phosphate with Altimetry: Results from Archaeological Finds from a Transect in the Alps

      • Christoph Mayr, Gisela Grupe, Anita Toncala, Christina M. Lihl

      Pages 157-172

   3. Oxygen and Hydrogen Stable Isotopes in Earth’s Hydrologic Cycle

      • Robert van Geldern, Johannes A. C. Barth

      Pages 173-187

   4. Toward an Integrated Isotope Zooarchaeology

      • Cheryl A. Makarewicz

      Pages 189-209

6. Processing Multi-isotope Signatures

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 211-211

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   2. Assigning Elephant Ivory with Stable Isotopes

      • Stefan Ziegler, Bruno Streit, Dorrit E. Jacob

      Pages 213-220

   3. Towards Predicting Places of Origin from Isotopic Fingerprints: A Case Study on the Mobility of People in the Central European Alps

      • Markus Mauder, Eirini Ntoutsi, Peer Kröger, Hans-Peter Kriegel

      Pages 221-233

7. Back Matter

   Pages 235-238

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This work takes a critical look at the current concept of isotopic landscapes ("isoscapes") in bioarchaeology and its application in future research. It specifically addresses the research potential of cremated finds, a somewhat neglected bioarchaeological substrate, resulting primarily from the inherent osteological challenges and complex mineralogy associated with it. In addition, for the first time data mining methods are applied. The chapters are the outcome of an international workshop sponsored by the German Science Foundation and the Centre of Advanced Studies at the Ludwig-Maximilian-University in Munich. Isotopic landscapes are indispensable tracers for the monitoring of the flow of matter through geo/ecological systems since they comprise existing temporally and spatially defined stable isotopic patterns found in geological and ecological samples. Analyses of stable isotopes of the elements nitrogen, carbon, oxygen, strontium, and lead are routinely utilized in bioarchaeologyto reconstruct biodiversity, palaeodiet, palaeoecology, palaeoclimate, migration and trade. The interpretive power of stable isotopic ratios depends not only on firm, testable hypotheses, but most importantly on the cooperative networking of scientists from both natural and social sciences. Application of multi-isotopic tracers generates isotopic patterns with multiple dimensions, which accurately characterize a find, but can only be interpreted by use of modern data mining methods.

• Anthropology
• Bioarchaeology
• Biomineralization
• Cremation
• Isotopic Landscapes
• Migration
• Mineralogy
• Radiocarbon Dating

• Biozentrum, LMU München, Martinsried, Germany

  Gisela Grupe

• Staatssammlung f. Anthropologie und Paläoanatomie, München, Germany

  George C. McGlynn

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