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Full-Text Articles in Archaeological Anthropology
Use Of Pollen Concentration In Paleopharmacology: Coprolite Evidence Of Medicinal Plants, Karl Reinhard, Donny L. Hamilton, Richard H. Hevly
Use Of Pollen Concentration In Paleopharmacology: Coprolite Evidence Of Medicinal Plants, Karl Reinhard, Donny L. Hamilton, Richard H. Hevly
Karl Reinhard Publications
Nearly 2,400 plant species have been documented ethnographically as having medicinal value among Native Americans. Therefore, it is not surprising that evidence of medicinal plants appears in some of the over 1,000 coprolites analyzed from the southwestern U.S. Three medicinal species identified in pollen analysis of coprolites are discussed. Willow (Salix) is the most common analgesic in the Native American pharmacopoeia. Prehistoric use of this plant is documented in coprolites from Bighorn Cave in the Black Mountains of Arizona and also in a burial from the Mimbres Valley, New Mexico. Historically, Mormon tea (Ephedra) served as …
Dietary And Parasitological Analysis Of Coprolites Recovered From Mummy 5, Ventana Cave, Arizona, Karl Reinhard, Richard H. Hevly
Dietary And Parasitological Analysis Of Coprolites Recovered From Mummy 5, Ventana Cave, Arizona, Karl Reinhard, Richard H. Hevly
Karl Reinhard Publications
Four coprolites were excavated with Burial 5 at Ventana Cave. a partially mummified five-year-old child. Two coprolites were granular and dark in color and two were fibrous and light in color. The coprolites are remains of the child's intestinal contents and were submitted for dietary and parasitological analysis. No parasites were found. The fibrous coprolites proved to be remains of highly masticated mesquite pods (Prosopis). The granular coprolites consist of seeds of saguaro cactus (Carnegiea gigantea). Pollen analysis reveals two dietary pollen types, both derived from cactus. No evidence of cultivated plants except for a trace amount of …