2018/09/14 by Guy Sisma‐Ventura, Thomas Tütken, Irit Zohar +5 · 2 citations
Earth and Planetary Sciences · Arts and Humanities · Environmental Science · #Archaeology and ancient environmental studies #Maritime and Coastal Archaeology #Isotope Analysis in Ecology
paper · pdf · doi:10.1038/s41598-018-32468-1
openalex publication_date 2018/09/14 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/04
Abstract Past fish provenance, exploitation and trade patterns were studied by analyzing phosphate oxygen isotope compositions (δ 18 O PO4 ) of gilthead seabream ( Sparus aurata ) tooth enameloid from archaeological sites across the southern Levant, spanning the entire Holocene. We report the earliest evidence for extensive fish exploitation from the hypersaline Bardawil lagoon on Egypt’s northern Sinai coast, as indicated by distinctively high δ 18 O PO4 values, which became abundant in the southern Levant, both along the coast and further inland, at least from the Late Bronze Age (3,550–3,200 BP). A period of global, postglacial sea-level stabilization triggered the formation of the Bardawil lagoon, which was intensively exploited and supported a widespread fish trade. This represents the earliest roots of marine proto-aquaculture in Late Holocene coastal domains of the Mediterranean. We demonstrate the potential of large-scale δ 18 O PO4 analysis of fish teeth to reveal cultural phenomena in antiquity, providing unprecedented insights into past trade patterns.