Laboratory Archaeology and Population in Africa, Anthropology Unit of the Department of Genetics and Evolution, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.
Department of Archaeology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
Am J Phys Anthropol. 2019 Jun;169(2):287-301. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.23831. Epub 2019 Apr 9.
This article reports on diet variability in the Dogon Country (Mali) through a bio-archeological study of pre-Dogon and early Dogon human remains (7th century to 19th century AD) from collective burial caves in the Bandiagara Escarpment.
Two hundred and twenty crania from collections curated in Leiden, Paris, and Bamako were studied for dental diseases. In a subset of teeth (n = 175), δ C and δ N were measured in bulk dentine samples.
δ C and δ N values vary widely (-15.4 to -6.0‰ for δ C, 6.0-14.8‰ for δ N, n = 175), and indicate diets dominated by C -based foods with a focus on plants; animal products played a minor role. There are significant differences between the δ C values from older (pre-Dogon) and younger (Dogon) periods. Frequencies of caries, antemortem tooth loss, and abscesses increase significantly through time. Individuals from northern caves have more positive δ C and δ N values than southern ones.
The temporal shifts are probably due to progressive diversification of foods, consistent with archeological evidence showing the addition of rice and vegetables to pearl millet. The geographical disparity is explained by a combination of climatic, environmental, and cultural factors. Last, intersite differences imply that different communities (or subsections thereof) disposed of their dead in different caves. Based on a large sample extending over a wider area and longer time frame than previous work, our study shows that diets in the Dogon Country were neither uniform nor continuous through time, as previously proposed. Our results attest to a complex history of settlement and foodways.
本文通过对班迪加拉悬崖集体墓葬洞穴中前多贡和早期多贡人类遗骸（公元 7 世纪至 19 世纪）的生物考古学研究，报告了多贡地区（马里）的饮食变化。
对来自莱顿、巴黎和巴马科收藏的 220 个头骨进行了牙齿疾病研究。在牙齿的一个子集中（n=175），在大块牙本质样本中测量了 δ C 和 δ N。
δ C 和 δ N 值变化范围很大（-15.4 到-6.0‰为 δ C，6.0-14.8‰为 δ N，n=175），表明饮食主要以植物为基础的 C 基食物为主；动物产品的作用较小。在较老（前多贡）和较年轻（多贡）时期的 δ C 值之间存在显著差异。龋齿、生前牙齿缺失和脓肿的频率随着时间的推移显著增加。来自北部洞穴的个体比南部的个体具有更积极的 δ C 和 δ N 值。
时间上的变化可能是由于食物的逐渐多样化所致，这与考古证据一致，表明在珍珠 millet 中添加了大米和蔬菜。地理差异是由气候、环境和文化因素的综合作用造成的。最后，遗址之间的差异表明，不同的社区（或其部分）将其死者埋葬在不同的洞穴中。与之前的工作相比，我们的研究基于更大的样本和更长的时间跨度，表明多贡地区的饮食既不是统一的，也不是连续的，这与之前的提议不同。我们的研究结果证明了定居点和食物方式的复杂历史。
