Anaya,
>Bea, thank you for your response and interesting comments!
>
>No, the seeds I found at Malia (Minoan) are mineralised only so it seems
>that they were "fresh" seeds which became mineralised within a certain
>environment. Now, together with these seeds I found some charred seeds too
>and they seem to have followed another route of deposition...they might have
>been charred before getting in the seware, so the seware could have been a
>trap of several environments! Faecal remains but also "cleanings"...maybe!
>
>Regarding your interesting comments, I would like to know where husks are
>used to absorb seawater? Any references available and/or which areas are
>involved?
The saltmaking site is on Bohul Island in the Philippines.
>Yes, in Greece/Crete salt making was taking place near the sea up
>to quite recently..until it became a State monopoly and it became illegal
>for private interprises to "make "it...
Historically that's power for the course. Salt was frequently a
state
monopoly - still is for the most part in Syria today although they did
allow some
private saltmaking plots in the desert that I know of. However, they are
having trouble
with bitumin infiltration and have stopped private enterprise.
>However, yes salt was found in a Late
>Minoan site (Cave site) near Zakros (Ourania to Froudi Cave) (very East of
>Crete)(published by K.Kopaka and published in O.J.A.)
I have the paper and have been in touch with them. Have been trying
to
get an analysis of the salt crystals they found, but have never had a
response.
Have you seen any reports on a lab analysis?
>but the process you
>describe would have taken place in areas far from the sea where salt would
>have been of added value.
No, these saltmaking sites are coastal and they saturate the husks
with
seawater.
> Crete, as you know is surrounded by the sea so
>although salt would have been of some value in Minoan times depending of
>course on a multitude of factors, yet, it would not have been of such a high
>value to involve intriate methods of extraction as it happened in lots of
>areas of Western Europe (mainly inland areas).
Actually you cannot make salt everywhere along the coast because
there is
lots of seawater available. You need a dry warm climate with southerly
winds
and land to lay out solar evaporation ponds or sandy beaches to increase
the
saturation of seawater (96% of water has to be evaporated to recover the
2.9% NaCl
salt). Warm dry periods in protected bays are usually the ideal places.
But in Crete I understand salt was gathered from rocky sites (small
pools which
catch seawater which evaporate?). I believe its a very rocky coast?
But the climate
is good for that. You can't make much salt that way but in prehistoric
times that was
okay for local use.
>
>Regarding the porosity of seeds...yes, I suppose charring does make them
>more porous -although I would welcome comments on that effect- but there
>must have been other factors at play....ammonia to start with....and other
>minerals which I do not know and which I would like to go into. This is the
>reason I need some bibliographic leads or personal experience of colleague
>so that I could move forward....The other problem of course is deciphering
>forms of mineralised seeds...Sometimes it is quite easy but other times they
>have concretions which are difficult to identify...
>
>Thank you though for your somments and all comments are very welcome....
My pleasure,
Bea
>
>Best, Anaya
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Beatrice Hopkinson" <[log in to unmask]>
>To: "The archaeobotany mailing list" <[log in to unmask]>;
>"Sarpaki Anaya" <[log in to unmask]>
>Sent: Saturday, October 27, 2007 3:13 AM
>Subject: Re: cess pit mineralised material
>
>
>> Another correspondent from Crete has indicated there is quite a bit of
>> salt making on Crete and salt has been found at Minoan levels in a cave.
>> I was interested in your comment that the seeds in this pit were charred
>> and mineralized and am wondering if charring made these seeds more porous?
>>
>> I ask because I am aware of a salt making process that utilized husks to
>> absorb
>> seawater to increase the salt saturation. these husks eventually burned
>> to an ash
>> and filtered with seawater to produce a brine that could be economically
>> boiled.
>>
>> Bea
>>
>>>I am looking at few samples from a Minoan sewage at the site of Malia in
>>>Crete and I am quite baffled by what I see......what seems to me to be
>>>mineralised seeds, such as grape etc. However, legume seeds seem to also
>>>have been mineralised and also fragments of "pods". As my experience is
>>>with charred material I find quite difficult to "decipher" these forms. I
>>>would therefore appreciate to have any references which might help me with
>>>these. If anybody is working on cess pits/sewage mineralised material or
>>>has published on these, I would very much appreciate to have their contact
>>>address and/or references.
>>>
>>>Thank you for all the help,
>>>
>>>Anaya
>>>_____________
>>>Dr Anaya.Sarpaki
>>>Independent scholar
>>>137 Tsikalaria,
>>>73200 Souda - Chania, Crete.
>>>Tel: +30 28210 81641
>>>Fax: +30 28210 28452
>>>[log in to unmask]
>>
>>
>> Hon. Secretary Los Angeles Branch, Oxford University Society
>> AIA Board member, Los Angeles,
>> UCLA Institute of Archaeology Associate
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>
Hon. Secretary Los Angeles Branch, Oxford University Society
AIA Board member, Los Angeles,
UCLA Institute of Archaeology Associate
