A RESEARCH ABOUT SUBSISTENCE BASED ON THE ANIMAL REMAINS IN LATE NEOLITHIC SHA YING RIVER PLAIN:A CASE FROM THE TUCHENGWANG SITE,HENAN PROVINCE
The Sha Ying River Plain,located in the southeast periphery of the Central Plain,is an important area connecting the Central Plain and the Huai River Valley.To improve our understanding of the subsistence in the Central Plain at this stage,this research focuses on the animal remains excavated from Tuchengwang site(33°40′08.86″N,114°04′50.19″E)(5600～4300 years ago)of Luohe City,Henan Province.Luohe City is located in the south-central part of Henan Province,as well the southern periphery in the Central Plain of China.This research analyzed 4507 animal bones(excluding molluscs)excavated from contexts of the late Neolithic at Tuchengwang site,and systemic zooarchaeological methods were employed on the animal remains,including species identification,measurement,taxonomic abundance by the number of identified specimens(NISP)and the minimum number of individuals(MNI),skeletal part frequencies by calculation of NISP and MAU(Minimum Number of Animal Units),estimates of dietary contribution,age structure and sex ratio,modification and pathologies.The results reveal that the number of identified specimens(NISP)among mammal bones of the late Neolithic was 2124 and the minimum number of individuals(MNI)was 81.Pig(Sus scrofa domesticus)were the main domestic animal and the predominant animal exploited as meat resource(NISP％=26.37％,MNI％=32.1％,dietary contribution=57.1％),deer(Cervus nippon,Elaphurus davidianus,Hydropotes inermis)were the main wild animals and an important supplementary meat resource(NISP％=62.66％,MNI％=40.8％,dietary contribution=31.8％),cervids bones and antler were also important raw material(82.9％)for bone-working.Compared with other regions in the Central Plain,the subsistence in the late Neolithic Sha Ying River Plain showed obvious mixed characteristics.On the one hand,animal resource procurement and exploitation pattern were more similar with the middle Huai River with more similar environmental background,but were different from the Pan-Mount Song Area,Western Henan area in the Central Plain:cervid-hunting was a more important activity,and pigs were raised through an extensive husbandry strategy,the raising level of pig was likely to be at the primary stage.It should be closely related to the environmental background of alluvial plain with dense wetland,abundant water and animal resources.On the other hand,agricultural structure was mixed farming of rice and millets but millets were the main crop,which was more similar with other regions in the Central Plain,such as the Pan-Mount Song Area,Western Henan area,this structure was directly influenced by the Yangshao culture.This study fills an important lacuna of research about the subsistence during the late Neolithic in Sha Ying River Plain and reflects the diversity of subsistence in the Central Plain during the late Neolithic,which is helpful for the further discussion about the complex relationship between subsistence and environment,culture.
animal remainssubsistenceSha Ying River Plainthe late Neolithicindigenous
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