P Szpak
Biographic Data
| ID | 19487 |
|---|---|
| NAME | P Szpak |
| GIVEN NAMES | P |
| FAMILY NAME | Szpak |
| SIGNATURE | SZPAK P |
| AFFILIATIONS | Trent University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-1364-6834 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 41 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 401 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 41 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2009 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 11 |
Variation in Human Bone Collagen Turnover Among Skeletal Elements
Documenting the extent of intra-bone isotopic variation
Bone collagen is a common material used for stable isotope analysis in archaeology, palaeontology, and ecology to generate insights about an individual's life history. The extent of intra-bone isotopic variation has generally been assumed to be small, and bone sample size is minimized to avoid unnecessary sample destruction. In this study, we extracted hundreds of subsamples ( n = 1226) from various regions of the midshaft of two kangaroo tibiae …
Ancient biomolecular analysis of 39 mammoth individuals from Kostenki 11-Ia elucidates Upper Palaeolithic human resource use
Circular structures made from woolly mammoth bones are found across Ukraine and west Russia, yet the origin of the bones remains uncertain. We present ten new mammoth radiocarbon dates from the largest circular structure at Kostenki 11-Ia, identifying two mammoth mandibles ∼200–1200 years older than the other dated materials from the site, suggesting skeletal material from long-dead individuals was scavenged and used in the site construction. Bio…
Pigs, pannage, and the solstice
Newgrange, the Neolithic monument and centerpiece of the Brú na Bóinne UNESCO World Heritage complex, is a high-profile example of prehistoric societies’ observation of, and reverence for, solar events. Comparatively little is known about how these concepts were remembered by those using Newgrange over subsequent millennia. While excavations have uncovered large quantities of later material culture, debate continues about what these subsequent ac…
What it means to be marine
Thule dog diets in the Hudson Bay reflect human dietary variability
An automated spreadsheet for determining analytical uncertainty of stable isotope measurements
The quantification and reporting of the analytical uncertainty that accompanies all stable isotope measurements is critical, providing a mechanism for assessing their comparability against other datasets. The ability to compare isotopic datasets generated across many labs is especially important as there has been a proliferation in the number of stable isotope databases across a range of disciplines, facilitating large scale metanalyses of a rapi…
Recommendations for stable isotope analysis of charred archaeological crop remains
Stable isotope analysis of plant remains recovered from archaeological sites is becoming more routine. There remains a lack of consensus, however, on how to appropriately select archaeological plant remains for isotopic analysis, how to account for differences in preservation and the effect of potential contamination, and how to interpret the measured isotope values in terms of the conditions in which the plants grew. In this paper, we outline th…
Strontium isotopes and the geographic origins of camelids in the Virú Valley, Peru
Textiles, dates and identity in the late occupation of the Huacas de Moche, Peru
Archaeological cultures present allegories of ethnic identities across the centuries or millennia but such conceptualisations are necessarily incomplete and lack the resolution to explore transitions between cultures. Here, exploration of the archaeological contexts, production methods, stylistic variation and radiocarbon dating of 20 preserved textile fragments facilitates an examination of cultural change at Huaca del Sol (Huacas de Moche, nort…
Comparing the performance of demineralization agents (HCl and Edta) for stable isotope analysis of bone collagen with implications for quality control criteria and collagen yield
Stable isotope analysis of ancient bone collagen is a powerful technique for studying diet, migration, and ecology in archeological contexts. These analyses are, however, limited by collagen preservation and prohibitively low collagen yields. Harsh chemical demineralization is required to isolate the collagen from the mineral component of the bone, which in turn reduces the yield of material available for analysis. Demineralization is typically p…
The role of status, diets, and mobility in understanding the impacts of urbanization in early medieval Bergen, Norway (St. Mary's Church)
This research examines the diets and mobility of higher status individuals buried in the St. Mary's (Mariakirken) churchyard (1140 and 1248 AD), located in Bergen, Norway. Stable isotope data are used to explore the role that diets (preferential access, choice of foods) may have played in mitigating the negative impacts of rapid urbanization. Dietary reconstruction involved analysis of carbon ( δ 13 C) and nitrogen ( δ 15 N) stable isotope ratios…
Unprecedented shift in Canadian High Arctic polar bear food web unsettles four millennia of stability
Changing human-cattle relationships in Ireland
Domesticated cattle were brought to Ireland during the Neolithic. By the early medieval period, 4000 years later, these animals were central to social and economic status in Irish communities and the landscape was organised around cattle husbandry to a degree unattested elsewhere in Europe. How this socio-economic importance developed is unclear. Here, using isotope data spanning six millennia, the authors identify a culturally driven shift towar…
Stable Carbon and Nitrogen Isotope Variability of Bone Collagen to Determine the Number of Isotopically Distinct Specimens
Archaeological and palaeontological excavations frequently produce large quantities of highly fragmentary bone. These bones can help to answer questions regarding past environments and human and animal lifeways via a number of analytical techniques but this potential is limited by the inability to distinguish individual animals and generate sufficiently large samples. Using stable carbon and nitrogen isotope values of bone collagen ( δ 13 C, δ 15…
Interpreting Past Human Diets Using Stable Isotope Mixing Models—Best Practices for Data Acquisition
Improved quality control criteria for stable carbon and nitrogen isotope measurements of ancient bone collagen
Migration and maize in the Virú Valley
Objectives Stable isotope analysis can provide crucial insight into the function and development of early state‐level societies on the north coast of Peru. Materials and Methods Multi‐tissue (bone collagen, tooth enamel, hair, nail, skin, and tendon) stable isotope analyses (carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, and strontium) were conducted for 13 individuals from the lower Virú Valley. Results Non‐seasonal changes in a predominantly C 4 ‐based terrestrial …
Isotopic Evidence for Garden Hunting and Resource Depression in the Late Woodland of Northeastern North America
Resource depression and garden hunting are major topics of archaeological interest, with important implications for understanding cultural and environmental change. Garden hunting is difficult to study using traditional zooarchaeological approaches, but isotopic analyses of animals may provide a marker for where and when people exploited nondomesticated animals that fed on agricultural resources. To realize the full potential of isotopic approach…
Stable Isotope Analysis
Interpreting Past Human Diets Using Stable Isotope Mixing Models
Storing fish
Analysis of individual animal bodies can provide numerous useful insights in archeology, including how humans provisioned such animals, which in turn informs on a variety of other past behaviors such as human dietary patterns. In this study, we conducted stable carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotope analysis of collagen and keratin from four types of tissues from a dog burial at the Ust'-Polui site in the Iamal region of Arctic Russia. Ust'-Po…
An Integrated isotopic study of Early Intermediate Period camelid husbandry in the Santa Valley, Perú
Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope compositions were determined for camelid bone collagen, hair, and wool (fibre) sampled from textiles from archaeological sites in the Santa Valley (north coast of Perú) occupied during Moche III (El Castillo, A.D. 300−500) and Moche IV (Guadalupito, A.D. 500−700) phases; a small number of camelid bone collagen samples were also analysed from the Late Suchimancillo Phase (A.D. 0−300). These data suggest that loca…
A comparison of nitrogen isotope compositions of charred and desiccated botanical remains from northern Peru
Plant sulfur isotopic compositions are altered by marine fertilizers
Influence of seabird guano and camelid dung fertilization on the nitrogen isotopic composition of field-grown maize (Zea mays)
Best practices for calibrating and reporting stable isotope measurements in archaeology
Improved quality control criteria for stable carbon and nitrogen isotope measurements of ancient bone collagen
Fish bone chemistry and ultrastructure
Large variation in nitrogen isotopic composition of a fertilized legume
Historical ecology of late Holocene sea otters (Enhydra lutris) from northern British Columbia
Origins of Prehispanic Camelid Wool Textiles from the North and Central Coasts of Peru Traced by Carbon and Nitrogen Isotopic Analyses
Carbon and nitrogen isotopic compositions of wool textiles from the north (Virú, Early Intermediate Period) and central (Chancay, Late Intermediate Period) coasts of Peru were used to reconstruct the diet and habitat of the camelids (llamas and alpacas) from which they were produced in order to better understand the regional political economies. The Chancay textiles were derived from camelids primarily raised on highaltitude C3 grasslands. Simila…
Early Horizon camelid management practices in the Nepeña Valley, north-central coast of Peru
South American camelids (llamas and alpacas) were of great economic, social and ritual significance in the pre-Hispanic Andes. Although these animals are largely limited to high-altitude (>3500 masl) pastures, it has been hypothesised that camelids were also raised at lower altitudes in the arid coastal river valleys. Previous isotopic studies of Early Intermediate Period (c. 200 BC–AD 600) and Middle Horizon (c. AD 600–1100) camelids support thi…
Interpreting Past Human Diets Using Stable Isotope Mixing Models
A Late Holocene vertebrate food web from southern Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia)
A comparison of nitrogen isotope compositions of charred and desiccated botanical remains from northern Peru
Interpreting Past Human Diets Using Stable Isotope Mixing Models—Best Practices for Data Acquisition
Isotopic Evidence for Garden Hunting and Resource Depression in the Late Woodland of Northeastern North America
Resource depression and garden hunting are major topics of archaeological interest, with important implications for understanding cultural and environmental change. Garden hunting is difficult to study using traditional zooarchaeological approaches, but isotopic analyses of animals may provide a marker for where and when people exploited nondomesticated animals that fed on agricultural resources. To realize the full potential of isotopic approach…
Plant sulfur isotopic compositions are altered by marine fertilizers
Regional ecological variability and impact of the maritime fur trade on nearshore ecosystems in southern Haida Gwaii (British Columbia, Canada)
The maritime fur trade (1785–1840s) led to the local extinction of sea otters (Enhydra lutris) in many parts of the northeast Pacific. On the basis of studies of extant sea otter populations, it has been established that they have a disproportionate effect on nearshore ecosystems by limiting sea urchin abundance and facilitating the establishment of nearshore kelp forests; in the absence of sea otters, a local reduction in kelp-derived carbon is …
An Integrated isotopic study of Early Intermediate Period camelid husbandry in the Santa Valley, Perú
Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope compositions were determined for camelid bone collagen, hair, and wool (fibre) sampled from textiles from archaeological sites in the Santa Valley (north coast of Perú) occupied during Moche III (El Castillo, A.D. 300−500) and Moche IV (Guadalupito, A.D. 500−700) phases; a small number of camelid bone collagen samples were also analysed from the Late Suchimancillo Phase (A.D. 0−300). These data suggest that loca…
Storing fish
Analysis of individual animal bodies can provide numerous useful insights in archeology, including how humans provisioned such animals, which in turn informs on a variety of other past behaviors such as human dietary patterns. In this study, we conducted stable carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotope analysis of collagen and keratin from four types of tissues from a dog burial at the Ust'-Polui site in the Iamal region of Arctic Russia. Ust'-Po…
From the Pacific to the Tropical Forests
The social groups that initially inhabited the hyper arid core of the Atacama Desert of northern Chile during the late Pleistocene integrated a wide range of local, regional and supra regional goods and ideas for their social reproduction as suggested by the archaeological evidence contained in several open camps in Pampa del Tamarugal (PdT). Local resources for maintaining their every-day life, included stone raw material, wood, plant and animal…
Stable Carbon and Nitrogen Isotope Variability of Bone Collagen to Determine the Number of Isotopically Distinct Specimens
Archaeological and palaeontological excavations frequently produce large quantities of highly fragmentary bone. These bones can help to answer questions regarding past environments and human and animal lifeways via a number of analytical techniques but this potential is limited by the inability to distinguish individual animals and generate sufficiently large samples. Using stable carbon and nitrogen isotope values of bone collagen ( δ 13 C, δ 15…
Effects of Sodium Hydroxide Treatment and Ultrafiltration on the Removal of Humic Contaminants from Archaeological Bone
This study compared bone collagen extraction techniques that included treatment with sodium hydroxide and 30 kDa ultrafilters using a set of well-preserved, humic-contaminated archaeological marine mammal bones. Treatment with sodium hydroxide was effective at removing humic contaminants from archaeological bone, although yields were significantly decreased. Yields were also significantly decreased by ultrafiltration although this study produced …
Migration and maize in the Virú Valley
Objectives Stable isotope analysis can provide crucial insight into the function and development of early state‐level societies on the north coast of Peru. Materials and Methods Multi‐tissue (bone collagen, tooth enamel, hair, nail, skin, and tendon) stable isotope analyses (carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, and strontium) were conducted for 13 individuals from the lower Virú Valley. Results Non‐seasonal changes in a predominantly C 4 ‐based terrestrial …
An automated spreadsheet for determining analytical uncertainty of stable isotope measurements
The quantification and reporting of the analytical uncertainty that accompanies all stable isotope measurements is critical, providing a mechanism for assessing their comparability against other datasets. The ability to compare isotopic datasets generated across many labs is especially important as there has been a proliferation in the number of stable isotope databases across a range of disciplines, facilitating large scale metanalyses of a rapi…
Unprecedented shift in Canadian High Arctic polar bear food web unsettles four millennia of stability
Isotopic Analyses Reveal Geographical and Socioeconomic Patterns in Historical Domestic Animal Trade Between Predominantly Wheat- And Maize-Growing Agricultural Regions in Eastern North America
Historical zooarchaeologists have made significant contributions to key questions about the social, economic, and nutritional dimensions of domestic animal use in North American colonial contexts; however, techniques commonly employed in faunal analyses do not offer a means of assessing many important aspects of how animals were husbanded and traded. We apply isotopic analyses to faunal remains from archaeological sites to assess the social and e…
Changing human-cattle relationships in Ireland
Domesticated cattle were brought to Ireland during the Neolithic. By the early medieval period, 4000 years later, these animals were central to social and economic status in Irish communities and the landscape was organised around cattle husbandry to a degree unattested elsewhere in Europe. How this socio-economic importance developed is unclear. Here, using isotope data spanning six millennia, the authors identify a culturally driven shift towar…
A Late Holocene vertebrate food web from southern Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia)
Fish bone chemistry and ultrastructure
Historical ecology of late Holocene sea otters (Enhydra lutris) from northern British Columbia
Influence of seabird guano and camelid dung fertilization on the nitrogen isotopic composition of field-grown maize (Zea mays)
Carbon and Nitrogen Isotopic Survey of Northern Peruvian Plants
The development of isotopic baselines for comparison with paleodietary data is crucial, but often overlooked. We review the factors affecting the carbon (δ(13)C) and nitrogen (δ(15)N) isotopic compositions of plants, with a special focus on the carbon and nitrogen isotopic compositions of twelve different species of cultivated plants (n = 91) and 139 wild plant species collected in northern Peru. The cultivated plants were collected from nineteen…
Regional ecological variability and impact of the maritime fur trade on nearshore ecosystems in southern Haida Gwaii (British Columbia, Canada)
The maritime fur trade (1785–1840s) led to the local extinction of sea otters (Enhydra lutris) in many parts of the northeast Pacific. On the basis of studies of extant sea otter populations, it has been established that they have a disproportionate effect on nearshore ecosystems by limiting sea urchin abundance and facilitating the establishment of nearshore kelp forests; in the absence of sea otters, a local reduction in kelp-derived carbon is …
Complexities of nitrogen isotope biogeochemistry in plant-soil systems
Nitrogen isotopic studies have the potential to shed light on the structure of ancient ecosystems, agropastoral regimes, and human-environment interactions. Until relatively recently, however, little attention was paid to the complexities of nitrogen transformations in ancient plant-soil systems and their potential impact on plant and animal tissue nitrogen isotopic compositions. This paper discusses the importance of understanding nitrogen dynam…
Small scale camelid husbandry on the north coast of Peru (Virú Valley)
Large variation in nitrogen isotopic composition of a fertilized legume
Early Horizon camelid management practices in the Nepeña Valley, north-central coast of Peru
South American camelids (llamas and alpacas) were of great economic, social and ritual significance in the pre-Hispanic Andes. Although these animals are largely limited to high-altitude (>3500 masl) pastures, it has been hypothesised that camelids were also raised at lower altitudes in the arid coastal river valleys. Previous isotopic studies of Early Intermediate Period (c. 200 BC–AD 600) and Middle Horizon (c. AD 600–1100) camelids support thi…
Origins of Prehispanic Camelid Wool Textiles from the North and Central Coasts of Peru Traced by Carbon and Nitrogen Isotopic Analyses
Carbon and nitrogen isotopic compositions of wool textiles from the north (Virú, Early Intermediate Period) and central (Chancay, Late Intermediate Period) coasts of Peru were used to reconstruct the diet and habitat of the camelids (llamas and alpacas) from which they were produced in order to better understand the regional political economies. The Chancay textiles were derived from camelids primarily raised on highaltitude C3 grasslands. Simila…
Best practices for calibrating and reporting stable isotope measurements in archaeology
Effects of Sodium Hydroxide Treatment and Ultrafiltration on the Removal of Humic Contaminants from Archaeological Bone
This study compared bone collagen extraction techniques that included treatment with sodium hydroxide and 30 kDa ultrafilters using a set of well-preserved, humic-contaminated archaeological marine mammal bones. Treatment with sodium hydroxide was effective at removing humic contaminants from archaeological bone, although yields were significantly decreased. Yields were also significantly decreased by ultrafiltration although this study produced …
Isotopic Analyses Reveal Geographical and Socioeconomic Patterns in Historical Domestic Animal Trade Between Predominantly Wheat- And Maize-Growing Agricultural Regions in Eastern North America
Historical zooarchaeologists have made significant contributions to key questions about the social, economic, and nutritional dimensions of domestic animal use in North American colonial contexts; however, techniques commonly employed in faunal analyses do not offer a means of assessing many important aspects of how animals were husbanded and traded. We apply isotopic analyses to faunal remains from archaeological sites to assess the social and e…
Stable Isotope Sourcing of Wool from Textiles at Pacatnamú
Stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic compositions were determined for wool textiles from the Lambayeque ( c . ad 1100–1320) occupation at Pacatnamú in the Jequetepeque Valley, northern Peru. The isotopic data demonstrate that the wool was not obtained via long‐distance exchange with the highlands and was most probably derived from locally raised camelids. In light of other lines of evidence (diversity of dyes used to produce the same colours in te…
An Integrated isotopic study of Early Intermediate Period camelid husbandry in the Santa Valley, Perú
Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope compositions were determined for camelid bone collagen, hair, and wool (fibre) sampled from textiles from archaeological sites in the Santa Valley (north coast of Perú) occupied during Moche III (El Castillo, A.D. 300−500) and Moche IV (Guadalupito, A.D. 500−700) phases; a small number of camelid bone collagen samples were also analysed from the Late Suchimancillo Phase (A.D. 0−300). These data suggest that loca…
A comparison of nitrogen isotope compositions of charred and desiccated botanical remains from northern Peru
Plant sulfur isotopic compositions are altered by marine fertilizers
From the Pacific to the Tropical Forests
The social groups that initially inhabited the hyper arid core of the Atacama Desert of northern Chile during the late Pleistocene integrated a wide range of local, regional and supra regional goods and ideas for their social reproduction as suggested by the archaeological evidence contained in several open camps in Pampa del Tamarugal (PdT). Local resources for maintaining their every-day life, included stone raw material, wood, plant and animal…
Stable Isotope Analysis
Interpreting Past Human Diets Using Stable Isotope Mixing Models
Storing fish
Analysis of individual animal bodies can provide numerous useful insights in archeology, including how humans provisioned such animals, which in turn informs on a variety of other past behaviors such as human dietary patterns. In this study, we conducted stable carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotope analysis of collagen and keratin from four types of tissues from a dog burial at the Ust'-Polui site in the Iamal region of Arctic Russia. Ust'-Po…
Stable Carbon and Nitrogen Isotope Variability of Bone Collagen to Determine the Number of Isotopically Distinct Specimens
Archaeological and palaeontological excavations frequently produce large quantities of highly fragmentary bone. These bones can help to answer questions regarding past environments and human and animal lifeways via a number of analytical techniques but this potential is limited by the inability to distinguish individual animals and generate sufficiently large samples. Using stable carbon and nitrogen isotope values of bone collagen ( δ 13 C, δ 15…
Interpreting Past Human Diets Using Stable Isotope Mixing Models—Best Practices for Data Acquisition
Improved quality control criteria for stable carbon and nitrogen isotope measurements of ancient bone collagen
Isotope Analysis in Ecology (36 works) · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies (35 works) · Geography (26 works) · Archaeology (25 works) · Biology (25 works) · Ecology (23 works) · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology (15 works) · Stable isotope ratio (15 works) · Geology (14 works) · Isotope analysis (14 works)