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bunnyjadwiga) wrote2005-01-11 04:22 pm
bunnyjadwiga) wrote2005-01-11 04:22 pm
Archeobotanical samples from 13th & 14th c. Poland
Archaeobotany is the study of botanical remains, including pollen, plant parts, and other plant evidence in various sites. http://members.aol.com/postquem/32402f14.htm and http://www.pastperfect.info/archaeology/archaeobot.html give excellent overviews of the subject. There's also a charming grade school unit on the subject online at http://rla.unc.edu/lessons/Lesson/L205/L205.htm.
Recently, I came across an interesting article which included list of plants whose archaeobotanical remains have been found in 13th & 14th c. strata of Elblag or Kolobrzeg in Poland).
In addition to discussing some of the domesticated plants whose remains were found in those strata, it covered the probably wild plants whose remains were found in situations suggesting they were weeds. The authors discussed how the collected data could indicate the environmental conditions in the area at the time.
As students of medieval Eastern Europe, we are more interested in what this listing tells us about what plants we can document to our time period Of course this doesn't mean the plants were used, but it does mean the plants were accessible to people in our period of study.
The authors list Humulus lupulus [common hops], Brassica nigra [black mustard seed]. Linum usitatissimum [flax], Cannabis sativa [hemp], Panicum miliaceum [Wild-Proso Millet / Broomcorn Millet], Secale cereale [rye], Hordeum vulgare [barley] and Triticum aestivum [common wheat], Avena sativa [oats] were found as presumably cultivated grains at one or both sites. Of interest to herbalists are finds of chickweed, charlock, sheep sorrel, yarrow, creeping thyme, valerian, viola/pansies, dandelion, comfrey, sorrel, plantain, selfheal, woodland angelica, wild chervil, sowthistle, pennycress, stinging nettle, corn speedwell, shepherds' purse, gooseful, golden/dyer's chamomile, St. Johnswort, oregano, cinquefoil, meadow-rue, lambsquarters, corn spurry, cleavers, cowparsnip, and cowparsley.
Here is the authors' list of weeds found, with common names:
Weeds of cereals and flax:
Agrostemma githago (Corncockle), Anthemis arvensis (Corn Chamomile), Bromus secalinus (Rye Brome), Camelina alyssum (Mill.) (Gold-of-pleasure) , Camelina microcarpa (littlepod false flax) , Centaurea cynanus (Batchelor Button), Fallopia convolvulus (black bindweed), Galeopsis ladanum (Red hempnettle), Galium spurium (Cleavers? False Cleavers? Marin County Bedstraw?), Lithospermum arvense (corn gromwell), Lolium temulentum (Darnel ryegrass), Matricaria maritima subsp. inodora (scentless chamomile/scentless mayweed), Neslia paniculata (ballmustard), Papaver argemone (Long pricklyhead poppy), Raphanus raphanistrum (wild radish), Rhinanthus serotinus(Oborny var. apterus) (late-flowering yellowrattle), Scleranthus annuus (German knotgrass) , Silene gallica (common catchfly), Sinapis arvensis (charlock mustard), Spergul
a arvensis subsp. maxima (corn spurry), Valerianella dentata (narrowfruit cornsalad), Viola arvensis (field pansy)/Viola tricolor (johnny-jump-up/heartsease)
Weeds of millet, root crops, gardens and ruderal habitats.
Agropyron repens (quackgrass), Anthemis cotula (stinking chamomile), Atriplex nitens (hoary orache), Aptriplex patula (orache?), Ballota nigra (black horehound), Berteroa incana (hoary false madwort), Capsella bursa-pastoris (Shepherd's purse), Chenopodium album (lambsquarters), Chenopodium glaucum (oakleaf goosefoot), Chenopodium hybridum ( mapleleaf goosefoot), Chenopodium murale (nettleleaf goosefoot), Chenopodium polyspermum (manyseed goosefoot), Cichorium intybus (chicory), Cirsium arvense (Canada thistle), Cirsium vulgare (bull thistle), Conium maculatum (poison hemlock), Echinochloa crus-galli (barnyardgrass), Euphorbia helioscopia (madwoman's milk), Fallopia dumetorum (copse bindweed), Galium aparine (stickywilly), Hyoscyamus niger (black henbane), Lamium album (white deadnettle), Lapsana communis (common nipplewort), Linaria vulgaris (butter and eggs), Melandrium album (bladder campion), Mentha arvensis (wild mint), Myosotis arvensis (field forget-me-not), Plantago major (common plantain), Poa annua (annual bluegrass), Polygonum persicaria (spotted ladysthumb), Potentilla anserina (silverweed cinquefoil), Ranunculus repens (creeping buttercup), Rumex acetosella (common sheep sorrel), Rumex crispus (curly dock), Setaria italica (foxtail bristlegrass), Setaria pumila (yellow bristlegrass), Setaria viridis (green bristlegrass)/ verticillata (hooked bristlegrass), Solanum nigrum (black nightshade), Sonchus arvensis (field sowthistle), Sonchus asper (spiny sowthistle), Sonchus oleraceus (common sowthistle), Spergula arvensis (corn spurry), Stachys arvensis (staggerweed), Stellaria media (common chickweed), Thlaspi arvense (field pennycress), Urtica dioica (stinging nettle), Urtica urens (dwarf nettle), Veronica arvensis (corn speedwell), Xanthium strumarium (rough cockleburr).
Meadows in wet and fresh habitats
Achillea millefolium (common yarrow), Angelica sylvestris (woodland angelica), Anthriscus sylvestris (wild chervil), Barbarea vulgaris (garden yellowrocket), Caltha palustris (yellow marsh marigold), Campanula patula (spreading bellflower), Carex cfr dioica (bog sedge?), Carex panicea (grasslike sedge), Centaurea jacea (brownray knapweed), Cerastium holosteoides (big chickweed), Cirsium oleraceum (cabbage thistle), Danthonia decumbens (common heathgrass), Festuca rubra (fescue), Filipendula ulmaria (queen of the meadow), Galium cfr mollugo (false baby's breath), Galium uliginosum (fen bedstraw), Heracleum maculatum (cowparsnip?), Iris cfr sibirica (Siberian Iris?), Juncus conglomeratus (Compact Rush)/effusus (common rush), Juncus cfr. effusus, Leontodon autumnalis (Autumn Hawkbit), Leucanthemum vulgare (oxeye daisy), Linum catharticum (Fairy Flax), Lychnis flos-cuculi (ragged robin), Lythrum salicaria (purple loosestrife), Melandrium rubrum (red catchfly), Molinia caerulea (moor grass), Myosotis palustris (forget-me-not), Plantago lanceolata (narrowleaf plantain), Poa pratensis (Kentucky bluegrass)/Poa trivialis (rough bluegrass), Polygonum bistorta (meadow bistort), Potentilla erecta (erect cinquefoil), Prunella vulgaris (common selfheal), Ranunculus acris (tall buttercup), Ranunculus sardous (hairy buttercup), Rhinanthus serotinus (late-flowering yellowrattle), Rumex acetosa (garden sorrel), Rumex thyrsiflorus (garden sorrel), Scirpus sylvaticus (woodland bulrush), Stachys palustris (marsh hedgenettle), Stellaria graminea (grasslike starwort), Symphytum officinale (comfrey), Taraxacum officinale (dandelion), Thalictrum flavum (common meadow-rue), Valeriana officinalis (garden valerian), Viola cfr canina (Heath dog-violet)
Dry grasslands and pasture
Anthemis tinctoria (golden chamomile), Arenaria serpyllifolia (thymeleaf sandwort), Bromus hordeaceus (soft brome), Campanula glomerata (Dane's blood), Centaurea scabiosa (greater knapweed), Cerastium arvense (field chickweed), Dianthus armeria (Deptford pink), Hypericum perforatum (common St. Johnswort), Knautia arvensis (field scabiosa), Luzula campestris (field woodrush), Luzula multiflora (field woodrush), Origanum vulgare (oregano), Picris hieracioides (hawkweed oxtongue), Potentilla argentea (silver cinquefoil), Potentilla neumanniana (spring cinquefoil), Potentilla recta (sulphur cinquefoil), Ranunculus bulbosus (St. Anthony's turnip), Silene vulgaris (maidenstears), Thalictrum simplex (Small Meadow-rue), Thymus serpyllum (creeping thyme).
Source:
Malgorzata Latalowa, Monika Badura1 and Joanna Jarosinacuteska.
"Archaeobotanical samples from non-specific urban contexts as a tool for reconstructing environmental conditions (examples from Elblaogong and Kolstrokobrzeg, northern Poland)," Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, 12:2 (September 2003), pp 93 - 104.
Note: images of many of these can be found in the USDA plant database: http://plants.usda.gov/
Recently, I came across an interesting article which included list of plants whose archaeobotanical remains have been found in 13th & 14th c. strata of Elblag or Kolobrzeg in Poland).
In addition to discussing some of the domesticated plants whose remains were found in those strata, it covered the probably wild plants whose remains were found in situations suggesting they were weeds. The authors discussed how the collected data could indicate the environmental conditions in the area at the time.
As students of medieval Eastern Europe, we are more interested in what this listing tells us about what plants we can document to our time period Of course this doesn't mean the plants were used, but it does mean the plants were accessible to people in our period of study.
The authors list Humulus lupulus [common hops], Brassica nigra [black mustard seed]. Linum usitatissimum [flax], Cannabis sativa [hemp], Panicum miliaceum [Wild-Proso Millet / Broomcorn Millet], Secale cereale [rye], Hordeum vulgare [barley] and Triticum aestivum [common wheat], Avena sativa [oats] were found as presumably cultivated grains at one or both sites. Of interest to herbalists are finds of chickweed, charlock, sheep sorrel, yarrow, creeping thyme, valerian, viola/pansies, dandelion, comfrey, sorrel, plantain, selfheal, woodland angelica, wild chervil, sowthistle, pennycress, stinging nettle, corn speedwell, shepherds' purse, gooseful, golden/dyer's chamomile, St. Johnswort, oregano, cinquefoil, meadow-rue, lambsquarters, corn spurry, cleavers, cowparsnip, and cowparsley.
Here is the authors' list of weeds found, with common names:
Weeds of cereals and flax:
Agrostemma githago (Corncockle), Anthemis arvensis (Corn Chamomile), Bromus secalinus (Rye Brome), Camelina alyssum (Mill.) (Gold-of-pleasure) , Camelina microcarpa (littlepod false flax) , Centaurea cynanus (Batchelor Button), Fallopia convolvulus (black bindweed), Galeopsis ladanum (Red hempnettle), Galium spurium (Cleavers? False Cleavers? Marin County Bedstraw?), Lithospermum arvense (corn gromwell), Lolium temulentum (Darnel ryegrass), Matricaria maritima subsp. inodora (scentless chamomile/scentless mayweed), Neslia paniculata (ballmustard), Papaver argemone (Long pricklyhead poppy), Raphanus raphanistrum (wild radish), Rhinanthus serotinus(Oborny var. apterus) (late-flowering yellowrattle), Scleranthus annuus (German knotgrass) , Silene gallica (common catchfly), Sinapis arvensis (charlock mustard), Spergul
a arvensis subsp. maxima (corn spurry), Valerianella dentata (narrowfruit cornsalad), Viola arvensis (field pansy)/Viola tricolor (johnny-jump-up/heartsease)
Weeds of millet, root crops, gardens and ruderal habitats.
Agropyron repens (quackgrass), Anthemis cotula (stinking chamomile), Atriplex nitens (hoary orache), Aptriplex patula (orache?), Ballota nigra (black horehound), Berteroa incana (hoary false madwort), Capsella bursa-pastoris (Shepherd's purse), Chenopodium album (lambsquarters), Chenopodium glaucum (oakleaf goosefoot), Chenopodium hybridum ( mapleleaf goosefoot), Chenopodium murale (nettleleaf goosefoot), Chenopodium polyspermum (manyseed goosefoot), Cichorium intybus (chicory), Cirsium arvense (Canada thistle), Cirsium vulgare (bull thistle), Conium maculatum (poison hemlock), Echinochloa crus-galli (barnyardgrass), Euphorbia helioscopia (madwoman's milk), Fallopia dumetorum (copse bindweed), Galium aparine (stickywilly), Hyoscyamus niger (black henbane), Lamium album (white deadnettle), Lapsana communis (common nipplewort), Linaria vulgaris (butter and eggs), Melandrium album (bladder campion), Mentha arvensis (wild mint), Myosotis arvensis (field forget-me-not), Plantago major (common plantain), Poa annua (annual bluegrass), Polygonum persicaria (spotted ladysthumb), Potentilla anserina (silverweed cinquefoil), Ranunculus repens (creeping buttercup), Rumex acetosella (common sheep sorrel), Rumex crispus (curly dock), Setaria italica (foxtail bristlegrass), Setaria pumila (yellow bristlegrass), Setaria viridis (green bristlegrass)/ verticillata (hooked bristlegrass), Solanum nigrum (black nightshade), Sonchus arvensis (field sowthistle), Sonchus asper (spiny sowthistle), Sonchus oleraceus (common sowthistle), Spergula arvensis (corn spurry), Stachys arvensis (staggerweed), Stellaria media (common chickweed), Thlaspi arvense (field pennycress), Urtica dioica (stinging nettle), Urtica urens (dwarf nettle), Veronica arvensis (corn speedwell), Xanthium strumarium (rough cockleburr).
Meadows in wet and fresh habitats
Achillea millefolium (common yarrow), Angelica sylvestris (woodland angelica), Anthriscus sylvestris (wild chervil), Barbarea vulgaris (garden yellowrocket), Caltha palustris (yellow marsh marigold), Campanula patula (spreading bellflower), Carex cfr dioica (bog sedge?), Carex panicea (grasslike sedge), Centaurea jacea (brownray knapweed), Cerastium holosteoides (big chickweed), Cirsium oleraceum (cabbage thistle), Danthonia decumbens (common heathgrass), Festuca rubra (fescue), Filipendula ulmaria (queen of the meadow), Galium cfr mollugo (false baby's breath), Galium uliginosum (fen bedstraw), Heracleum maculatum (cowparsnip?), Iris cfr sibirica (Siberian Iris?), Juncus conglomeratus (Compact Rush)/effusus (common rush), Juncus cfr. effusus, Leontodon autumnalis (Autumn Hawkbit), Leucanthemum vulgare (oxeye daisy), Linum catharticum (Fairy Flax), Lychnis flos-cuculi (ragged robin), Lythrum salicaria (purple loosestrife), Melandrium rubrum (red catchfly), Molinia caerulea (moor grass), Myosotis palustris (forget-me-not), Plantago lanceolata (narrowleaf plantain), Poa pratensis (Kentucky bluegrass)/Poa trivialis (rough bluegrass), Polygonum bistorta (meadow bistort), Potentilla erecta (erect cinquefoil), Prunella vulgaris (common selfheal), Ranunculus acris (tall buttercup), Ranunculus sardous (hairy buttercup), Rhinanthus serotinus (late-flowering yellowrattle), Rumex acetosa (garden sorrel), Rumex thyrsiflorus (garden sorrel), Scirpus sylvaticus (woodland bulrush), Stachys palustris (marsh hedgenettle), Stellaria graminea (grasslike starwort), Symphytum officinale (comfrey), Taraxacum officinale (dandelion), Thalictrum flavum (common meadow-rue), Valeriana officinalis (garden valerian), Viola cfr canina (Heath dog-violet)
Dry grasslands and pasture
Anthemis tinctoria (golden chamomile), Arenaria serpyllifolia (thymeleaf sandwort), Bromus hordeaceus (soft brome), Campanula glomerata (Dane's blood), Centaurea scabiosa (greater knapweed), Cerastium arvense (field chickweed), Dianthus armeria (Deptford pink), Hypericum perforatum (common St. Johnswort), Knautia arvensis (field scabiosa), Luzula campestris (field woodrush), Luzula multiflora (field woodrush), Origanum vulgare (oregano), Picris hieracioides (hawkweed oxtongue), Potentilla argentea (silver cinquefoil), Potentilla neumanniana (spring cinquefoil), Potentilla recta (sulphur cinquefoil), Ranunculus bulbosus (St. Anthony's turnip), Silene vulgaris (maidenstears), Thalictrum simplex (Small Meadow-rue), Thymus serpyllum (creeping thyme).
Source:
Malgorzata Latalowa, Monika Badura1 and Joanna Jarosinacuteska.
"Archaeobotanical samples from non-specific urban contexts as a tool for reconstructing environmental conditions (examples from Elblaogong and Kolstrokobrzeg, northern Poland)," Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, 12:2 (September 2003), pp 93 - 104.
Note: images of many of these can be found in the USDA plant database: http://plants.usda.gov/