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In the 12,000 years preceding the Industrial Revolution, human activities led to significant changes in land cover, plant and animal distributions, surface hydrology, and biochemical cycles. Earth system models suggest that this anthropogenic land cover change influenced regional and global climate. However, the representation of past land use in earth system models is currently oversimplified. As a result, there are large uncertainties in the current understanding of the past and current state of the earth system. In order to improve representation of the variety and scale of impacts that past land use had on the earth system, a global effort is underway to aggregate and synthesize archaeological and historical evidence of land use systems. Here we present a simple, hierarchical classification of land use systems designed to be used with archaeological and historical data at a global scale and a schema of codes that identify land use practices common to a range of systems, both implemented in a geospatial database. The classification scheme and database resulted from an extensive process of consultation with researchers worldwide. Our scheme is designed to deliver consistent, empirically robust data for the improvement of land use models, while simultaneously allowing for a comparative, detailed mapping of land use relevant to the needs of historical scholars. To illustrate the benefits of the classification scheme and methods for mapping historical land use, we apply it to Mesopotamia and Arabia at 6 kya (c. 4000 BCE). The scheme will be used to describe land use by the Past Global Changes (PAGES) LandCover6k working group, an international project comprised of archaeologists, historians, geographers, paleoecologists, and modelers. Beyond this, the scheme has a wide utility for creating a common language between research and policy communities, linking archaeologists with climate modelers, biodiversity conservation workers and initiatives.

In this paper we present the results of phytolith investigations at two archaeological sites in northwestern Morocco: Khil (Tangier) and Kaf Taht el-Ghar (Tétouan). The two sites located in Western Maghreb, one on the Atlantic and one on the Mediterranean coast, were investigated in the framework of the AGRIWESTMED project. Phytolith analysis complemented archaeobotanical, geoarchaeological and archaeological investigations to better identify plant use during the entire occupation sequence. At Khil 16 samples have been studied, coming from two profiles excavated in two different caves of the same system – grotte B and grotte C – that span a chronology comprised between the early Neolithic and the historic period. At Kaf Taht el-Ghar, 15 samples were analysed spanning from the Palaeolithic to the Historic period. Results show that at Khil plants are widely used from the very beginning of the Early Neolithic sequence. The surrounding vegetation was exploited and both C3 and C4 grasses were used, inside the cave. At the same time a wide array of other plants was utilised, such as palms and woody taxa. Phytolith analysis at the site of Kaf Taht el-Ghar indicates that crop processing was most probably not taking place on site. However, the predominance in the samples of C3 grasses morphologies agrees with the finding of previous macro botanical studies that identified cultivated wheat and barley in this cave deposits. A very interesting aspect of the phytolith assemblages of Kaf Taht el-Ghar is the widespread use of palm leaves and their gradual disappearance through time that coincides with an increase in the use of woody species., This research was conducted in the framework of the AGRIWESTMED project (ERC-2008-AdG Proposal No 230561). CL, SB and MM are part of the Culture and Socio-Ecological Dynamics Research Group (2017 SGR-212). The authors want to especially thank the National Institute for Archaeology and Heritage (INSAP) for granting the excavation permits. CL thanks Abel Ruiz-Giralt for help with graphics and R.

In the 12,000 years preceding the Industrial Revolution, human activities led to significant changes in land cover, plant and animal distributions, surface hydrology, and biochemical cycles. Earth system models suggest that this anthropogenic land cover change influenced regional and global climate. However, the representation of past land use in earth system models is currently oversimplified. As a result, there are large uncertainties in the current understanding of the past and current state of the earth system. In order to improve representation of the variety and scale of impacts that past land use had on the earth system, a global effort is underway to aggregate and synthesize archaeological and historical evidence of land use systems. Here we present a simple, hierarchical classification of land use systems designed to be used with archaeological and historical data at a global scale and a schema of codes that identify land use practices common to a range of systems, both implemented in a geospatial database. The classification scheme and database resulted from an extensive process of consultation with researchers worldwide. Our scheme is designed to deliver consistent, empirically robust data for the improvement of land use models, while simultaneously allowing for a comparative, detailed mapping of land use relevant to the needs of historical scholars. To illustrate the benefits of the classification scheme and methods for mapping historical land use, we apply it to Mesopotamia and Arabia at 6 kya (c. 4000 BCE). The scheme will be used to describe land use by the Past Global Changes (PAGES) LandCover6k working group, an international project comprised of archaeologists, historians, geographers, paleoecologists, and modelers. Beyond this, the scheme has a wide utility for creating a common language between research and policy communities, linking archaeologists with climate modelers, biodiversity conservation workers and initiatives. Fil: Morrison, Kathleen D.. University of Pennsylvania; Estados Unidos Fil: Hammer, Emily. University of Pennsylvania; Estados Unidos Fil: Boles, Oliver. University of Pennsylvania; Estados Unidos Fil: Madella, Marco. University of the Witwatersrand; Sudáfrica. Universitat Pompeu Fabra; España Fil: Whitehouse, Nicola. University of Glasgow; Reino Unido Fil: Gaillard, Marie-Jose. Linnaeus University; Suecia Fil: Bates, Jennifer. University of Pennsylvania; Estados Unidos Fil: Linden, Marc Vander. Bournemouth University; Sudáfrica Fil: Merlo, Stefania. University of the Witwatersrand; Sudáfrica Fil: Yao, Alice. University of Chicago; Estados Unidos Fil: Popova, Laura. Arizona State University; Estados Unidos Fil: Hill, Austin Chad. University of Pennsylvania; Estados Unidos Fil: Antolin, Ferran. Universiat Basel; Suiza Fil: Bauer, Andrew. University of Stanford; Estados Unidos Fil: Biagetti, Stefano. University of the Witwatersrand; Sudáfrica. Universitat Pompeu Fabra; España Fil: Bishop, Rosie R.. University of Stavanger; Noruega Fil: Buckland, Phillip. Universidad de Umea; Suecia Fil: Cruz, Pablo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Unidad Ejecutora en Ciencias Sociales Regionales y Humanidades. Universidad Nacional de Jujuy. Unidad Ejecutora en Ciencias Sociales Regionales y Humanidades; Argentina Fil: Dreslerová, Dagmar. Institute Of Archaeology Of The Academy Of Sciences Of The Czech Republic; Hungría Fil: Dusseldorp, Gerrit. Leiden University; Países Bajos Fil: Ellis, Erle C.. University of Maryland; Estados Unidos. University Of Johannesburg; Sudáfrica Fil: Filipovich, Ruben Eduardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Bio y Geociencias del NOA. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales. Museo de Ciencias Naturales. Instituto de Bio y Geociencias del NOA; Argentina Fil: Foster, Thomas. University of Tulsa; Estados Unidos Fil: Hannaford, Matthew J.. Lincoln University.; Nueva Zelanda Fil: Harrison, Sandy P.. University of Reading; Reino Unido Fil: Hazarika, Manjil. Cotton University; India Fil: Herold, Hajnalka. University of Exeter; Reino Unido Fil: Hilpert, Johanna. Universitat zu Köln; Alemania Fil: Kaplan, Jed O.. The University Of Hong Kong; Hong Kong Fil: Kay, Andrea. Max Planck Institute For The Science Of Human History; Alemania Fil: Goldewijk, Kees Klein. Utrecht University; Países Bajos Fil: Kolár, Jan. Masaryk University; República Checa Fil: Kyazike, Elizabeth. Kyambogo University; Uganda Fil: Laabs, Julian. University of Bern; Suiza Fil: Lancelotti, Carla. Universitat Pompeu Fabra; España Fil: Lane, Paul. University of the Witwatersrand; Sudáfrica. University of Cambridge; Estados Unidos Fil: Lawrence, Dan. University of Durham; Reino Unido Fil: Lewis, Krista. University of Arkansas; Estados Unidos Fil: Lombardo, Umberto. University of Bern; Suiza Fil: Lucarini, Giulio. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche; Italia. University of Naples; Italia Fil: Arroyo Kalin, Manuel. Colegio Universitario de Londres; Reino Unido Fil: Marchant, Rob. University of York; Reino Unido Fil: Mayle, Francis. University of Reading; Reino Unido Fil: McClatchie, Meriel. University College; Irlanda Fil: McLeester, Madeleine. Dartmouth College; Estados Unidos Fil: Mooney, Scott. Unsw Sydney; Australia Fil: Moskal-Del Hoyo, Magdalena. Wladyslaw Szafer Institute Of Botany Of The Polish Academy Of Sciences; Polonia Fil: Navarrete, Vanessa. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; España Fil: Ndiema, Emmanuel. National Museums Of Kenya; Kenia Fil: Neves, Eduardo Góes. Universidade de Sao Paulo; Brasil Fil: Nowak, Marek. Jagiellonian University; Polonia Fil: Out, Welmoed A.. Moesgaard Museum; Dinamarca Fil: Petrie, Cameron. Universitat Pompeu Fabra; España. University of Cambridge; Estados Unidos Fil: Phelps, Leanne N.. Royal Botanic Gardens; Reino Unido. University of Edinburgh; Reino Unido Fil: Szakonyi, Zsolt. Eötvös University; Hungría Fil: Rostain, Stéphen. Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique; Francia Fil: Russell, Thembi. University of the Witwatersrand; Sudáfrica Fil: Sluyter, Andrew. Louisiana State University; Estados Unidos Fil: Styring, Amy K.. University of Oxford; Reino Unido Fil: Tamanaha, Eduardo. The Mamirauá Sustainable Development Institute; Brasil Fil: Thomas, Evert. The Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT; Perú Fil: Veerasamy, Selvakumar. Tamil University; India Fil: Welton, Lynn. University of the Witwatersrand; Sudáfrica Fil: Zanon, Marco. Institute of Pre- and Protohistoric Archaeology; Alemania

Numerous and extensive 'Stone Walled Sites' have been identified in southern African Iron Age landscapes. Appearing from around 1200 CE, and showing considerable variability in size and form, these settlements are named after the dry-stone wall structures that characterize them. Stone Walled Sites were occupied by various Bantu-speaking agropastoral communities. In this paper we test the use of pXRF (portable X-ray fluorescence analysis) to generate a 'supplementary' archaeological record where evident stratigraphy is lacking, survey conditions may be uneven, and excavations limited, due to the overall site size. We propose herein the application of portable X-ray fluorescence analysis (pXRF) coupled with multivariate exploratory analysis and geostatistical modelling at Seoke, a southern African SWS of historical age (18th century CE). The aim of the paper is twofold: to explore the potential of the application of a low cost, quick, and minimally invasive technique to detect chemical markers in anthropogenic sediments from a Stone Walled Site, and to propose a way to analyse the results in order to improve our understanding of the use of space at non-generalized scales in such sites., This research is funded by Fundación Palarq, calls 2019 and 2020, project ”Geo-EtnoArqueologia y uso del espacio (GEA)” entrusted to SB. SM and FM received financial support from the Office of Research and Development at the University of Botswana. The work of SGA was funded by the European Union’s MapDung project funded by the EU Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No H2020-MSCA-IF-2017-794823. SB, JAM, ARG, CL and SGA are members of CaSEs Research Group of the Catalan Research Agency (AGAUR SGR-212), which is an associated unit (Unidad Asociada) to the Institucion Mila Y Fontanals of the Spanish Research National Council (CSIC). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

A pilot archaeological survey has revealed evidence for forty monumental stone cairns preserved in good conditions in the Mudug region, Puntland, in the Horn of Africa. These monuments were digitally recorded and are presented here as part of a first assessment of the archaeological potential of the region. While such monuments are not uncommon in eastern Africa, this particular discovery starts to shed light on an area that has not previously been explored archaeologically. Our paper reveals the rich potential of the Mudug region and paves the way for further research and development action in a key geopolitical area.

International audience; Sensory archaeology is a recent and dynamic field of research in English-speaking countries, but it is still in its infancy in France. Nonetheless, recent interdisciplinary studies have shown the interest of cross data between experimental sciences and human sciences from such a perspective. The importance of the use of the senses (sight, touch, hearing, taste, and smell) during the technical operational processes, which are by nature intangible, has been demonstrated by ethnological studies. The craftsman is attentive to what the material is “saying” while it is being transformed, and it guides that process thanks to the perception of those signs

International audience; As part of the ethnoarchaeological study carried out by S. Burri and A. Durand on the way of life of current charcoal burners in Morocco, archaeometric analyses of samples from the floor of a hut in Naour were carried out in order to identify the presence of chemical concentrations. These analyses were performed in order to understand the chemical traces left by the various activities during the occupation of the hut and to provide data that could, in the future, serve as a framework for the interpretation of the archaeological record.The samples, taken from the floors in and around the hut, were analyzed by spot tests designed to identify the presence of phosphates, fats, and protein residues. Although it is not always possible to correlate certain concentrations with specific activities, in general, the analysis allowed for the traces of some domestic activities to be recognized, such as the preparation and consumption of food, both inside and outside the hut.