The project is focused on creating an Access database which will be used to compare archaeobotanical data between sites and also relate these data to other types of evidence, such as the artistic, textual and ethnohistorical records for the species present. The data recorded in the database includes:
Site
Sample #
Region
Latitude & longitude
Phase (e.g. - range of Dynasties covered by site)
Period - (e.g. - Old Kingdom, Late Period, Ptolemaic)
Site type - (e.g. - Urban - large scale town; Tomb - rural, elite)
Dating method - (e.g. - C14, King’s list, mud sealings, scarabs, stratigraphy)
Recovery method - (e.g. - machine or bucket flotation, dry sieved, hand picked)
Smallest sieve size used for recovery
Volume of soil sample (in litres)
Number of samples per site
Number of taxa per sample
Number of items per sample
Percentage of sample sorted
Taxa group (i.e. – cereal, legume, fruit, weed, etc.)
Whether or not animal dung is present (a common fuel source)
Preservation type - (e.g. - charred, desiccated, mineralised, waterlogged)
Context type - (e.g. - floor, hearth, pit fill, etc.)
Context class - (e.g. - house - occupation; public - storage, etc.)
Entity - (e.g. - house, bakery, storage area)
Interior or Exterior - (whether found inside or outside a structure)
Plant part - (e.g. seed, fruit, root, flower head, pod, etc.)
ID level - (e.g. Family, genus, species, including cf. identifications)
Abundance - (a scale of 1 to 5000+)
Yearly habit of taxa - (e.g. - annual, perennial, biennial)
Growth habit of taxa - (e.g. - erect, climbing, sprawling)
Habitat preference of taxa - (e.g. - cereal field, wet areas, waste places)
Phytogeographical zone of taxa - (e.g. – Mediterranean, Saharo-Arabian)
Use of taxa - (e.g. as food, animal fodder, fuel, building materials, temper)
Associations of taxa - (e.g. in the artistic, textual, ethnographic records)
Types of evidence used - (in terms of artistic, textual, ethnographic, etc.)