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Experimental crop growing in Jordan to develop methodology for the identification of ancient crop irrigation

Mithen, S. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3391-7443, Jenkins, E., Jamjoum, K., Nuimat, S., Nortcliff, S. and Finlayson, B. (2008) Experimental crop growing in Jordan to develop methodology for the identification of ancient crop irrigation. World Archaeology, 40 (1). pp. 7-25. ISSN 0043-8243

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To link to this item DOI: 10.1080/00438240701843561

Abstract/Summary

Crop irrigation has long been recognized as having been important for the evolution of social complexity in several parts of the world. Structural evidence for water management, as in the form of wells, ditches and dams, is often difficult to interpret and may be a poor indicator of past irrigation that may have had no need for such constructions. It would be of considerable value, therefore, to be able to infer past irrigation directly from archaeo-botanical remains, and especially the type of archaeo-botanical remains that are relatively abundant in the archaeological record, such as phytoliths. Building on the pioneering work of Rosen and Wiener (1994), this paper describes a crop-growing experiment designed to explore the impact of irrigation on the formation of phytoliths within cereals. If it can be shown that a systemic and consistent relationship exists between phytolith size, structure and the intensity of irrigation, and if various taphonomic and palaeoenvironmental processes can be controlled for, then the presence of past irrigation can feasibly be inferred from the phytoliths recovered from the archaeological record.

Item Type:Article
Divisions:Science > School of Archaeology, Geography and Environmental Science > Department of Geography and Environmental Science
Science > School of Archaeology, Geography and Environmental Science > Department of Archaeology
Science > School of Archaeology, Geography and Environmental Science > Scientific Archaeology
Science > School of Archaeology, Geography and Environmental Science > Earth Systems Science
Interdisciplinary centres and themes > Soil Research Centre
ID Code:3830
Uncontrolled Keywords:ancient irrigation crop-growing experiments phytoliths Jordan WHEAT DOMESTICATION GROWTH YIELD
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