干旱区生态环境知识资源中心

Interpreting the behaviours of nomadic groups from the archaeological record is particularly challenging owing to the ephemeral remains produced by their lifestyle. As such, human burials - even from isolated contexts - provide a wealth of information about these transient groups. Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of a series of human skeletal remains (n=22) from isolated burials were utilized to reconstruct the diet of historic (ca. 13(th)-19(th) century CE) Bedouin from the Khirbat al-Mudayna vicinity in modern-day Jordan. Carbon isotope values ranging from -17.7 to -12.5 parts per thousand point to variable dietary contributions from both C-3- and C-4-based foods, while corresponding faunal C-13 ratios (x=-19.0 +/- 1.7 parts per thousand, 1 sigma) exhibit depletion in C-13 characteristic of a predominantly C-3 diet. While mean human N-15 values (=12.7 +/- 1.9 parts per thousand, 1 sigma) may suggest that the majority of protein consumed by these nomads came from animal and not plant sources, elevated N-15 ratios in some fauna may be indicative of N-15-enriched soils as reported in some arid desert environments. Considerable variability in both C-13 and N-15 values also points to differences in individual life histories and subsistence economies over time. Despite a lack of temporal cohesion, these data illustrate the information that can be gleaned from the isolated interments of nomadic or semi-nomadic individuals. Copyright (c) 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.