1. Re-evaluating Scythian lifeways: Isotopic analysis of diet and mobility in Iron Age Ukraine
- Author
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Alicia R. Ventresca Miller, Sergey Makhortykh, Petrus le Roux, Gennady Toschev, Svetlana Andrukh, Claudia Gerling, Cheryl A. Makarewicz, Nicole Boivin, Ludmilla Litvinova, James Johnson, Patrick Roberts, and Jana Zech
- Subjects
Teeth ,Steppe ,Physiology ,Digestive Physiology ,Social Sciences ,01 natural sciences ,law.invention ,law ,Medicine and Health Sciences ,0601 history and archaeology ,Radiocarbon dating ,media_common ,education.field_of_study ,Carbon Isotopes ,Multidisciplinary ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,060102 archaeology ,Geography ,Human migration ,Geology ,06 humanities and the arts ,Chemistry ,Archaeology ,Physical Sciences ,Ethnology ,Medicine ,Anatomy ,Ukraine ,Urbanism ,Research Article ,Chemical Elements ,010506 paleontology ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Science ,Human Migration ,Population ,Research and Analysis Methods ,Human Geography ,DNA, Mitochondrial ,Dentition ,education ,Chemical Characterization ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences ,Isotope Analysis ,Nutrition ,geography ,business.industry ,Biology and Life Sciences ,Geologic Time ,Diet ,Jaw ,Agriculture ,Iron Age ,Strontium ,Earth Sciences ,Cenozoic Era ,Human Mobility ,business ,Digestive System ,Head ,Diversity (politics) - Abstract
The Scythians are frequently presented, in popular and academic thought alike, as highly mobile warrior nomads who posed a great economic risk to growing Mediterranean empires from the Iron Age into the Classical period. Archaeological studies provide evidence of first millennium BCE urbanism in the steppe while historical texts reference steppe agriculture, challenging traditional characterizations of Scythians as nomads. However, there have been few direct studies of the diet and mobility of populations living in the Pontic steppe and forest-steppe during the Scythian era. Here, we analyse strontium, oxygen, and carbon isotope data from human tooth enamel samples, as well as nitrogen and carbon isotope data of bone collagen, at several Iron Age sites across Ukraine commonly associated with ‘Scythian’ era communities. Our multi-isotopic approach demonstrates generally low levels of human mobility in the vicinity of urban locales, where populations engaged in agro-pastoralism focused primarily on millet agriculture. Some individuals show evidence for long-distance mobility, likely associated with significant inter-regional connections. We argue that this pattern supports economic diversity of urban locales and complex trading networks, rather than a homogeneous nomadic population. Introduction Materials and methods - Cultural background - Radiocarbon dating - Bioarchaeological methods - Sampling for isotope analysis - Strontium isotope ratios of ancient humans - Geologic substrates and strontium isotope ratio estimation - Stable oxygen and carbon isotope values of ancient humans - Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope values of human bone collagen - Modern environmental and isotopic landscapes for carbon and oxygen isotope data - Statistical analysis Results - Individual mobility at Scythian cemeteries - Chronological variation in human mobility - Range of diets among Scythian era populations - Faunal and plant isotope references to understand human diet Discussion - Mobility strategies among Scythian era populations - Scythian diets: A complex Iron Age steppe Conclusions
- Published
- 2021