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Interdisciplinary and trinational research into the late La Tène settlement. Landscape of the upper Rhine
... It also raises questions regarding the interaction of the protourban centre with its hinterland. The archaeological record of the southern Upper Rhine valley attests to numerous medium sized centres and smaller farmsteads around the Basel-Gasfabrik central site (Blöck et al., 2014). Most of these were probably rather short-lived, so that settlement shifts were common and may have been a source for people resettling into the larger, proto-urban centre. ...
... In addition, the archaeological record points to the existence of numerous farmsteads in the hinterland of Basel-Gasfabrik (Blöck et al., 2014). These smaller agricultural units may have bred domestic animals for the supply of the larger settlement, and their surroundings were possibly characterized by other geological conditions and bioavailable strontium than those dominating at the central site. ...
... The archaeological record of the southern Upper Rhine Graben revealed numerous sites of the Late La Tène period, including central places, such as Basel-Gasfabrik, but also medium centres and farmsteads (Blöck et al., 2014). Coins, non-ferrous metal products, andto a limited extentpottery suggest that central sites and medium centres were in close contact with each other. ...
The Basel-Gasfabrik site (Switzerland) is among the largest and best investigated proto-urban centres of the La Tène period (chiefly La Tène C2/D1; 200/150–80 BCE). Excavations revealed evidence of an urban lifestyle, crafts production as well as a multitude of imported goods. Human skeletal remains were recovered both from two cemeteries and from various settlement features. Strontium (87Sr/86Sr) and oxygen (δ18Op) isotope analyses aimed at an assessment of the role of residential changes in the makeup of the site's population, the positioning of Basel-Gasfabrik in local, regional, and long-distance networks, and the exploration of possible correlations between the complex mortuary practices and the individuals' residential history. The study involved 94 enamel samples from 54 human individuals, while archaeological animal teeth and modern vegetation and water samples provided baseline information. The 87Sr/86Sr and the δ18Op ratios of the human teeth varied widely between 0.70755 and 0.71655 and 14.7 and 19.3 ‰, respectively, with more variation among adult males and females than among juveniles. Both the archaeological setting and the isotope data attest to lively contacts of the central site to its hinterland, but also to distant regions, such as the Mediterranean. Differences in the isotope data of successively formed tooth crowns of some of the adult population point to residential changes in childhood. Possible explanations include fosterage as an important element in strengthening regional and interregional ties among Iron Age communities, settlement centralization, and mobile animal husbandry practices. However, areas of origin or patterns of mobility were not among the key factors which shaped the complex mortuary practices.
... Settlement and cemeteries were in use during the La Tène period . Millstone fragments of Rotliegend breccia and certain ceramic wares can be linked with neighbouring areas (Black Forest, Swiss Jura Mountains), whereas amphorae, Campana and other imports document Mediterranean contacts (Blöck et al., 2014). Furthermore, bioarchaeological data suggest imports of cereals, meat or animals on the hoof from the hinterland (Knipper et al., 2017;Kühn and Iseli, 2008;Stopp, 2008) and thus show close contacts to the surrounding countryside (Swiss Jura Mountains, Sundgau, Upper Rhine Valley, Vosges and Black Forest). ...
... Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses showed that pigs were mostly fed on vegetable food, while dogs had a more omnivorous diet (Knipper et al., 2017). In the light of contemporaneous smaller settlements and farmsteads around Basel-Gasfabrik (Blöck et al., 2014), it also seems plausible that some of the animals reflect supply of the proto-urban center from its regional network. Thus trade or exchange of animals needs to be considered as well. ...
... Combining the observations regarding the biologically available strontium, the suitability of soils for agriculture, and the archaeological record from the southern Upper Rhine Graben (Blöck et al., 2014), animal husbandry seems possible in all major landscapes around the Basel-Gasfabrik site. According to the modern vegetation data at locations that are considered suitable or well suitable for pasture, regionally herded animals may have had highly diverse 87 Sr/ 86 Sr isotope values of between 0.70814 and 0.71794 (Table 2). ...
Basel-Gasfabrik (Switzerland) comprises an extensive La Tène (chiefly Lt D, 150–80 BCE) settlement and two associated cemeteries at which strontium (87Sr/86Sr) isotope analysis of human and animal teeth investigated regional and supra-regional contacts. The interpretation of the analytic data, however, requires information on the isotopic baseline values around the site. Using 102 modern vegetation and 9 water samples from 51 localities, this study characterizes the isotopic ratios of the biologically available strontium of geological units and watercourses around Basel and compares these to 28 human infant, 6 pig, and 5 dog teeth from the site. Furthermore, pedological criteria evaluate the suitability of landforms for crop and pasturelands. The 87Sr/86Sr ratios of the environmental samples from geological units in up to 50 km distance varied between 0.70776 and 0.71794. Human infant teeth exhibited much more homogeneous 87Sr/86Sr ratios (0.70847–0.70950), which coincided largely with those of potential arable soils around Basel and indicate targeted exploitation of landscapes for agriculture. The more variable values of the faunal teeth suggest more widely ranging habitats or imports from the site's hinterlands. Two local isotope ranges were defined based on archaeological enamel samples and modern vegetation data from a confined radius around Basel. The study documents the complexity of distinguishing local and non-local individuals in a geologically heterogeneous region as well as the potential of isotope analyses to explore prehistoric land-use patterns.
... Switzerland -Basel-Gasfabrik (Ct. Basel-Stadt / CH): The site is located within the modern city of Basel and comprises a settlement and two largely contemporaneous cemeteries (Hecht / Niederhäuser 2011;Blöck et al. 2014). In total, 42 individuals were sampled from both the settlement and cemeteries A and B. These included both complete skeletons and disarticulated skulls / jaws belonging to separate individuals (Pichler in print). ...
Being able to digest milk sugar beyond the age of weaning is a rather new trait in humans. The calculated age of the responsible mutations largely coincides with the introduction of dairy farming. Recent European populations exhibit a gradient of high levels of lactose tolerance in the north and lower numbers in the south. Lactase persistence is believed to have co-evolved with farming or livestock keeping as a selective advantage. Palaeogenetic data of prehistoric individuals, however, have so far not provided any clear evidence that the spread of the lactase persistence mutation predates the Roman period, while persistence increases throughout the Middle Ages. In contrast, evidence of dairy processing reaches back to the introduction of farming in the Neolithic. In this paper, we investigate lactase persistence in the La Tène period of the European Iron Age. 39 individuals from Austria, France, Hungary and Switzerland have been successfully genotyped for the two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) 13910C/T and 22018G/A, which are associated with lactose tolerance. None of those individuals carries the homozygous variant of either of the two SNPs, while four individuals are heterozygous at 22018G/A. This implies that during the Iron Age processed dairy products like cheese and yoghurt still represented the common supply of milk-derived nutrients while fresh milk played only a minor role in the regions studied here. The population-wide spread of the lactose tolerance trait in Europe therefore clearly post-dates the Iron Age.
... Depuis 1911, année de la découverte, les 15 hectares que couvre l'habitat n'ont cessé d'être l'objet d'investigations archéologiques, de même que les deux nécropoles qui s'y rat- tachent (nécropoles A et B), partiellement dégagées dans les années 1915, 1917et 2005-2007Hecht, Niederhäuser 2011, p. 6-20). Le site de Bâle-Gasfabrik correspond à un ha- bitat central dont les liens s'étendaient des environs proches jusqu'au monde méditerranéen (Blöck et al. 2014, Fig. 16.2). Au sein de la zone d'habitat fouillée, on a pu attester la présence de plus de 500 fosses de natures diverses (caves, silos, fosses ar- tisanales, etc.), de fossés, de trous de poteau, de successions de niveaux archéologiques, ainsi que de plusieurs fours de potiers et de vestiges d'autres activités artisanales, comme la métallur- gie du fer et des métaux non ferreux. ...
... In the Late Iron Age, the north western part of Switzerland is characterized by a well-established urban system, including the oppida of Basel Gasfabrik, Basel Münsterhügel and Vindonissa. Besides these fortified central places, medium centres and farmsteads shape the landscape (definition after Blöck & al. 2014). They often included storage facilities (e.g. ...
... In the Late Iron Age, the north western part of Switzerland is characterized by a well-established urban system, including the oppida of Basel Gasfabrik, Basel Münsterhügel and Vindonissa. Besides these fortified central places, medium centres and farmsteads shape the landscape (definition after Blöck & al. 2014). They often included storage facilities (e.g. ...
This paper deals with recently obtained archaeobotanical and archaeozoological results obtained from Gallo-Roman sites in the Moselle valley between Metz (Divodurum mediomatricorum) and Thionville and the adjacent areas. The results deriving from recent rescue excavations are giving evidence of Gallo-Roman agricultural practices in a time frame from the 2nd to the late 4th c. AD.
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