The Contribution of Canímar Abajo, Cuba to an Understanding of Early Populations in the Greater Antilles
Author(s): David Smith
Year: 2015
Summary
Excavation at the site of Canímar Abajo, situated in northern Cuba, has yielded new data that contribute to our understanding of early populations in the Greater Antilles. AMS radiocarbon dates on human bone collagen provide a secure chronology for a mortuary context dating to the 2nd millennium BC. Analysis of starch grains recovered from human dental calculus demonstrates that common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) was cultivated by at least 1200 BC. Stable isotope analysis of human bone collagen provides evidence of dietary preferences and indicates that a C4 plant, possibly maize (Zea mays) was consumed.
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Cite this Record
The Contribution of Canímar Abajo, Cuba to an Understanding of Early Populations in the Greater Antilles. David Smith. Presented at The 80th Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, San Francisco, California. 2015 ( tDAR id: 396631)
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Keywords
General
common bean
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Cuba
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dietary preference
Geographic Keywords
Caribbean
Spatial Coverage
min long: -90.747; min lat: 3.25 ; max long: -48.999; max lat: 27.683 ;