Isotopic insights from carpological remains: one of the first datasets for the Italian Bronze Age

The dataset encompasses 180 carpological remains from various crop types, including Vicia faba, Triticum mococcum/dicoccum, Triticum aestivum, and Hordeum vulgare. These remains are derived from four archaeological sites situated in northern and central Italy, dating back to the Early-Middle Bronze Age: the pile-dwelling of Ledro, the settlement of S. Maria in Belverde, Grotta Nuova, and Grotta di Pastena.
The data are useful to reconstruct agricultural practices of ancient communities, filling partially the lack of data that characterized the Italian Bronze age. The aim of the work is to return a regional picture through the isotopic values obtained, becoming a pattern for future analyses. Prior to conducting stable isotope analysis, the samples underwent archaeobotanical studies. Microscopic analysis of seeds was carried out, aided by modern comparative collections and illustrated atlases. Seeds from Ledro are unburned, while those from S. Maria in Belverde, Grotta Nuova, and Grotta di Pastena are burned.
Given the absence of an established protocol for stable isotope analysis on carpological remains, two different methods were employed to assess whether chemical pre-treatment affected the isotopic signatures of the grains. Twenty samples underwent the ABA pre-treatment protocol (Fraser et al., 2013b), while the remaining seeds were individually crushed in a mortar, with the resulting powder fed into the isotope ratio mass spectrometer. There are no defined criteria for rejecting plant isotope measurements based on C/N ratios, so we adhered to the guidelines proposed by Vaiglova et al. (2014). To ensure the reliability of measurements, each grain was measured three times, following the recommendations of Mueller-Bieniek et al. (2019) and O’Connell et al. (2019).
The preparation of carpological remains took place at the Centre of Molecular Anthropology for Ancient DNA Studies at the University of Rome “Tor Vergata.” Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios were measured in a double run using a Delta Plus XP isotope ratio mass spectrometer coupled with a Flash 1112 Elemental Analyser via a Conflow IV interface (Thermo Scientific Milan, Italy) at the Food Quality and Nutrition Department, Traceability Unit – Fondazione Edmund Mach. Estimations of manuring rates were determined through comparison with various methodological approaches (e.g., Bogaard et al., 2007, 2013; Kanstrup et al., 2014; Styring et al., 2016; Treasure et al., 2016). The watering status of seeds was established through carbon values, following Ferrio et al. (2005) and Wallace et al. (2013).
In conclusion, the obtained results show how legumes and cereals have been manured and watered by humans; nevertheless, it seems that in settlements crops have been more subjected to human management; conversely in cave contexts agricultural practices were less significant.

本数据集收录了来自多种作物类型，包括鹰嘴豆（Vicia faba）、二粒小麦（Triticum mococcum/dicoccum）、小麦（Triticum aestivum）和大麦（Hordeum vulgare）的180件植物遗存。这些遗存源自意大利北部和中部四个考古遗址，时间跨度可追溯至青铜时代早期至中期：莱德罗的桩居、贝尔韦尔迪的圣玛丽亚定居点、新洞和帕斯泰纳洞。这些数据有助于重建古代社区的农业实践，在一定程度上弥补了意大利青铜时代数据资料的不足。研究目标是通过获得的同位素值描绘区域图景，为未来的分析树立典范。在进行稳定同位素分析之前，样本经历了考古植物学研究。通过现代比较收藏和插图图谱的辅助，对种子进行了显微镜分析。莱德罗的种子未经燃烧，而贝尔韦尔迪的圣玛丽亚、新洞和帕斯泰纳洞的种子则经过燃烧处理。

鉴于缺乏对植物遗存进行稳定同位素分析的标准协议，采用了两种不同的方法来评估化学预处理是否影响了谷物同位素特征。20个样本遵循了ABA预处理协议（Fraser et al., 2013b），而剩余的种子则被单独在杵臼中捣碎，所得粉末随后被送入同位素比质谱仪。基于C/N比值的植物同位素测量尚无明确的拒绝标准，因此我们遵循了Vaiglova et al. (2014)提出的指南。为确保测量的可靠性，每颗谷物均测量了三次，遵循Mueller-Bieniek et al. (2019)和O’Connell et al. (2019)的建议。

植物遗存的处理在罗马“托尔·维加塔”大学的古代DNA研究分子人类学中心进行。碳和氮稳定同位素比值使用Delta Plus XP同位素比质谱仪，通过Conflow IV接口与Flash 1112元素分析仪相连，在食品质量与营养部——溯源单位——恩德芒奇基金会进行双次测量（Thermo Scientific米兰，意大利）。通过比较各种方法论方法（例如，Bogaard et al., 2007, 2013；Kanstrup et al., 2014；Styring et al., 2016；Treasure et al., 2016）确定了施肥率的估计。通过碳值确定了种子的灌溉状况，遵循Ferrio et al. (2005)和Wallace et al. (2013)的方法。

总之，获得的结果展示了人类如何施肥和灌溉豆类和谷物；然而，似乎在定居点中，作物更多地受到人类管理的影响；相反，在洞穴环境中，农业实践的重要性较低。