Case studies

Confirming the practice of keeping kosher of medieval Jews in St Aldates, Oxford, using ORA in combination to historical and faunal records.

Project commissioned by: Ed Biddulph, Oxford Archaeology

Summary: the archaeological identification of specific religious dietary practices is very rare. However, excavations of the early medieval Oxford Jewish quarter yielded an assemblage of animal bones marked by a dominance of kosher birds, and a complete absence of pig remains. ORA of pottery revealed that the vessels were utilised solely to process ruminant carcass products. Comparative analyses were carried out on pottery from the earlier (Saxon) phase of the site, and from a contemporaneous site in the city (The Queen’s College), highlighting different dietary practices involving processing of both ruminant and non-ruminant (pig) carcasses.

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Confirming the use of a stone cresset as a post-medieval lamp

Project commissioned by: Chiz Harward, Urban Archaeology

Summary: ORA was undertaken on a stone cresset with visible carbonised remains, which was found in a post-medieval dump of soil outside Dulverton House, Gloucester. ORA, used for the first time on this type of vessel, indicated that the residues contained a mixture of ruminant animal fat (probably tallow) with up to 50% non-ruminant fat (possibly pig, or poultry). The analysis demonstrated that stone vessels could be used directly as lamps, and did not always require an inner ceramic vessel.

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ORA of pottery from Principal Palace to probe subsistence practices of Early Neolithic populations of London, and accurate dating of the vessels through compound-specific radiocarbon analysis (CSRA) of lipids.

Project commissioned by: Jonathan Cotton, MOLA

Summary: Excavations of Principal Palace (Shoreditch, London) revealed the largest assemblage recorded, to date, of Early Neolithic pottery from the City of London and its environs. Through ORA, it was possible to determine that the vessels were used to process ruminant (beef and mutton) meat and dairy products. In addition, through a new technique developed at the University of Bristol, radiocarbon dating of the absorbed lipids confirmed the vessels were used in the mid-4th millennium (cal BC).