Paleo-environment and paleo-diet inferred from Early Bronze Age cow dung at Xiaohe Cemetery, Xinjiang, NW China

Well preserved Early Bronze Age cow dung in Xinjiang provides a unique opportunity to investigate important issues concerning environment, landscape, and livestock at about 3.4–3.7 ka in northwestern China. In this study, pollen and phytolith analyses, in conjunction with identification of macrofossil plant remains in the cow dung were carried out. Seeds, plant fragments, pollen and phytoliths extracted from four cow pies from the Xiaohe Cemetery indicate that the area was a typical oasis, where reeds (Phragmites australis), lovegrass (Eragrostis), and Aster-type Asteraceae probably served as the main cattle feed. Xerophilous taxa, such as Chenopodiaceae and Artemisia, were present as well. The paleo-diet of these cattle mainly consisted of C3 plants, accompanied by small numbers of C4 plants. Archaeological and archaeobotanical evidence reveals that the environmental conditions of ancient Xiaohe and the surrounding area were very different to that of the present day, surrounded by desert.