Diet uniformity at an early farming community in northwest Anatolia (Turkey): carbon and nitrogen isotope studies of bone collagen at Aktopraklık

Archaeol Anthropol Sci DOI 10.1007/s12520-017-0523-4 ORIGINAL PAPER Diet uniformity at an early farming community in northwest Anatolia (Turkey): carbon and nitrogen isotope studies of bone collagen at Aktopraklık Chelsea Budd 1 & Necmi Karul 2 & Songül Alpaslan-Roodenberg 3 & Alfred Galik 4,5 & Rick Schulting 1 & Malcolm Lillie 6 Received: 21 December 2016 / Accepted: 21 June 2017 # The Author(s) 2017. This article is an open access publication Abstract Aktopraklık is a settlement site composed of three areas (A–C) in the Marmara region of northwest Anatolia, with phases of occupation that date to the Late Neolithic and Early Chalcolithic periods, mid-seventh to mid-sixth millennium BC (ca. 6400–5600 cal. BC). Here, we present 54 human and fauna bone collagen stable isotope results from the site, alongside five modern fish bone collagen isotope results, to examine the nature of human diet. The stable isotope analysis shows that human diet comprised the consumption of select C3 terrestrial resources, with a preference for domestic animal proteins over plant proteins. The evidence to date suggests that animal husbandry was at the forefront of Late Neolithic and Early Chalcolithic subsistence practices. No isotopic difference in humans is observed between biological sex or between areas B and C at the settlement. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s12520-017-0523-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. * Chelsea Budd 1 School of Archaeology, University of Oxford, 36 Beaumont Street, Oxford OX1 2PG, UK 2 Prehistory Department, University of Istanbul, Istanbul, Turkey 3 Santpoort-Noord, The Netherlands 4 Austrian Archaeological Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Franz-Kleingasse 1, 1190 Vienna, Austria 5 Austria & Institute for Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, Veterinärplatz 1, 1210 Vienna, Austria 6 School of Environmental Sciences: Geography, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX, UK Keywords Neolithic . Anatolia . Turkey . Stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes . Palaeodietary reconstruction Introduction Understanding the process of Neolithization in western Anatolia is important, as it is often considered as the ‘jumping off point’ for the transmission of the Neolithic package from Central Anatolia and the Levant into the Balkans, the Aegean, and ultimately further beyond into mainland Europe (Roodenberg 2016). Recent genomic-wide data sampled from Neolithic Anatolian human bone samples has provided a persuasive argument that members of Anatolian communities formed part of the source population of Europe’s first farmers (Lazaridis et al. 2014; Mathieson et al. 2015). Multi-region zooarchaeological work provides convincing evidence that places the origins of western Eurasian domesticates (e.g. sheep, goats, cattle, and pigs) in the Fertile Crescent (Peters et al. 2014; Arbuckle and Atici 2013; Vigne et al. 2012; Zeder 2011). These recent studies, integrated within the existing framework of research for Neolithic Anatolia, provide evidence for a clear transmission of people and of livestock from the Fertile Crescent into western Turkey and beyond. In the last decade, there has been fluctuating debate surrounding the nature of subsistence practices in Neolithic northwest Anatolia (Arbuckle et al. 2014; Thissen et al. 2010; Çilingiroğlu and Çakırlar 2013). Previous studies have evaluated the implications of considerable quantities of aquatic remains at coastal sites such as Fikirtepe and Pendik, with further research of pottery residue analysis at contemporary sites in the region, including Barcın Höyük, Aşağı Pınar, Toptepe, Yarımburgaz, Fikirtepe, Hoca Çeşme, and Pendik, producing emphatic results for extensive dairying in Archaeol Anthropol Sci northwest Anatolia (Thissen et al. 2010; Türkekul-Bıyık and Özbal 2008; Evershed et al. 2008). Currently, the most persuasive arguments have emerged from zooarchaeology studies that utilize online data-sharing approach to examine subsistence methods across Anatolia (Arbuckle et al. 2014). The study provides compelling evidence to support a westward expansion of Neolithic subsistence economies that combined multiple routes and pulses and did not include a uniform ‘package’ of livestock domesticates (Arbuckle et al. 2014:1). At Aktopraklık, sheep, goat, and cattle dominate the faunal assemblage, with the evidence for domestic pigs appearing only sporadically in the archaeological record. Fallow deer are recovered in higher quantities from the Neolithic and Chalcolithic phases at Aktopraklık than domestic pigs (Galik et al., personal communication). At Aktopraklık, the phases of occupation date from the mid-seventh to mid-sixth millennia (i.e. Late Neolithic and Early Chalcolithic, respectively), with evidence for occupation spread over three areas (i.e. sites A–C). The aim of this paper is to examine the nature of diet at Aktopraklık, investigating differences in diet between sex and also between locations with burials (Aktopraklık B and Aktopraklık C). This study investigates human and faunal bone collagen from the Neolithic (ca. 6400–6000 cal. BC) and Chalcolithic (ca. 5900– 5750 cal. BC) periods. Aktopraklık C is characterized by the presence of round Late Neolithic building structures, Late Neolithic and Early Chalcolithic graves, alongside Late Roman building structures. Aktopraklık B dates to the Early Chalcolithic (both settlement and burials), and witnesses the introduction of rectangular mud-brick structures with surrounding ditches. There are small differences in burial goods between humans excavated from Aktopraklık B and those from Aktopraklık C. This study examines the nature of diet at the site, and aims to disentangle the relative contributions of animal proteins and plant proteins in human diet at Aktopraklık. Additionally, this paper investigates the isotopic information to examine whether there is any difference in dietary isotopes between humans interred at Aktopraklık C and humans interred at Aktopraklık B. There is a change in the type of building structures observed at the site areas. Aktopraklık C is characterized by wattle and daub structures and the structures at Aktopraklık B transition into rectangular mud-brick houses with a systematic layout (Karul 2011; Karul and Avci 2013). Aktopraklık B is also characterized by the presence of impresso-cardium pottery. The data will also be used to examine possible isotope differences between individuals of differing biological sex at the site. The study is addressed through the application of stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of bone collagen. Human, domestic fauna, and wild fauna bone collagen from the Neolithic and Chalcolithic layers of the site were analysed, alongside modern fish (bone collagen) species from the nearby freshwater Lake Uluabat. Modern aquatic species were analysed to investigate the possible inclusion of freshwater aquatic protei (...truncated)