Analysis of three sherds and one soil sample from the South Bank site

Of the three sherds from the South Bank site, all appeared to have been used to process plant resources. Two of them, your 304 and 302 (my RL 468 and 469) were also used to process meat and/or fish resources. Fish is more likely with 304, and meat more likely for 302 in my view. One, your 301 (my RL 470) could not be interpreted as having been used to process meat, fish may have been present, but I couldn't be certain. These interpretations are based on the overall fatty acid composition, which in all samples were highly unsaturated and with the fatty acid C16:0 (palmitic acid) being the most abundant. This is typical of predominately plant-based fatty acids. All residues in the project contained plant sterols, including sitosterol, which are biomarkers for the presence of plant resources. Two, 304 and 302, also contained cholesterol, which is a biomarker for meat and/or fish resources.

Analysis of three sherds and one soil sample from the South Bank site Report