Mariana
The First Nations peoples of the North American northwest coast are
recorded as having used (are using?) Pseudotsuga menziesii, Thuja
plicata and an unidentified pine-like sp bark as fuel. See Nancy
Turner's (in the past publishing sometimes as Nancy Chapman Turner)
ethnobotanical works.
Some other references are as follows:
Albert, Rosa M., Steve Werner, Ofer Bar-Yosef & Liliane Meignen, 2000,
'Phytoliths in the Middle Palaeolithic deposits of Kebara Cave, Mt
Carmel, Israel: study of the plant material used for fuel and other
purposes', Journal of Archaeological Science 27: 931-47
Carneiro, Robert L., 1978, 'The knowledge and use of rain forest trees
by the Kuikuru Indians of central Brazil', in Richard I. Ford, ed, 1978.
The Nature and Status of Ethnobotany, Anthropological Paper No. 67,
Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan:
201-16
212. "Many (but not all) trees make suitable firewood and the Kuikuru
consciously select these rather than picking up the first piece of dry
wood they come across. Sometimes they girdle or even fell a tree known
to make especially good firewood, like iñúi or kuó, so it will dry out
and be ready to use when the time comes.
[Kúo] makes good firewood as well, and its bark produces a low flame
over which arrow cane can be safely heated [213] and straightened."
Kocher Schmid, Christin, 1991, Of People and Plants: A Botanical
Ethnography of Nokopo Village, Madang and Morobe Provinces, Papua New
Guinea, Ethnologisches Seminar der Universtät und Museum für
Völkerkunde, in Kommission bei Wepf & Co. AG Verlag, Basel
204. "When preparing kwanguldung [unident.] timber for heavy
construction, Nokopo people keep the removed bark as valuable fuel."
Soerianegara, Ishemat & R.H.M.J. Lemmens, Ed, 1993, Plant Resources of
South-East Asia, No. 5(1): Timber trees: Major commercial timbers, Pudoc
Scientific Publishers, Wageningen
127. Calophyllum pauciflorum A.C. Smith is good as a green fuel
Calophyllum peekelii Lauterb. The bark is used as a fuel
Sosef, M.S.M., L.T. Hong & Soenardi Prawirohatmodjo, Ed, 1998, Plant
Resources of South-East Asia, No. 5(3): Timber trees: Lesser-known
timbers, Backhuys Publishers, Leiden
257. Glenniea Hook.f. (Sapindaceae) The bark is easily flammable and
used for kindling fires
I think the following article by Sillar gives a coherent description of
some of the factors in choice of fuel, and how both burning qualities
and social/cultural/economic factors influence fuel choice.
Sillar, B., 2000, 'Dung by preference: the choice of fuel as an example
of how Andean pottery production is embedded within wider technical,
social and economic practices', Archaeometry 42:43-60
If you come across other bark references could you pass them on please.
And I would love to see your report into the charcoals.
best wishes
nic
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