Direct evidence for human use of plants 28,000 years ago
Starch residues on stone artefacts from the northern Solomon Islands
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3209490 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Thomas H Loy, Thomas Loy (0000-0003-2853-6512, Australian National University), M Spriggs (0000-0002-7293-6778, Australian National University), Stephen Wickler (0000-0002-0467-1966, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa) |
| Year | 1992 |
| Volume | 66 |
| Issue | 253 |
| Pages | 898-912 |
| Publication date | 1992-12-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Antiquity (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0003-598X • E-ISSN: 1745-1744 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s0003598x00044811 |
| OpenAlex | W2199714367 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 140 |
| References cited | 16 |
The excavation of Kilu Cave and the discovery of a Pleistocene prehistory for the Solomon Islands have already been reported in ANTIQUITY by Wickler & Spriggs (62: 703-6). Residue analysis of stone artefacts from the site now provides the earliest direct evidence for the prehistoric use of root vegetables, in the form of starch grains and crystalline raphides identifiable to genus. The direct microscopic identification of starch grains opens new avenues for the study of the plant component of human diets in the distant past
Archaeology · Biology · Cave · Excavation · Geography · Pleistocene · Prehistory · Residue (chemistry) · Echinoderm biology and ecology · Island Studies and Pacific Affairs · Pacific and Southeast Asian Studies
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| Unique citing works | 140 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 4,24 |
| Citation span | 1993 - 2025 (33) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | Yes |
| Citation types | Neutral: 122 |