Tropical Archaeobotany looks at the examination, identification and interpretation of plant remains in tropical archaeology. It investigates the origins, spread, distribution and past use of tropical plants for food and other purposes. This volume details, with the use of case studies from a wide range of areas, the latest macroscopic, microscopic and chemical techniques for the analysis of plant remains, from seeds, roots and tubers to epidermal fragments, pollen and phytoliths. The manual should be useful to the professional and student archaeobotanist.

This volume tackles the issues of setting subsistence in its social context by focusing on food as a cultural artefact. It brings together contributors with scientific and biological expertise as well as those interested in the patterns of consumption and social change. The production and consumption of food can tell us much about different cultures, their construction and the cultural change of their world. The international contributors look at the interaction of food, biology and ecology reflecting the fact that food reaches out into all areas of life. The book is designed to throw light...

This technical and well-illustrated guide for archaeologists and conservators aims to provide a methodology for the identification of the woody taxa used to manufacture artefacts recovered from archaeological excavations', to provide the anatomical descriptions of the taxa and to present a list of characters of the taxa. The guide is heavily illustrated with photographs, maps, and tables to allow easy identification.

Hunter-Gatherer Archaeobotany shows how archaeobotanical investigations can broaden our understanding of the much wider range of plants that have been of use to people in the recent and more distant past. The book compromises sixteen papers covering aspects of the archaeobotany of wild plants ranging across the northern hemisphere from Japan, across America, Europe and into the Near East. Sites examined span the Upper Palaeolithic to the recent past and demonstrate how such studies can extend our understanding of human interaction with plants throughout our history.

Covers the examination, identification and interpretations of plant remains in tropical archaeology, whilst also the origins, spread, distribution and past use of tropical plants for food and other purposes.