Abstract
The paper reports on the molecular analysis of samples of approximately 5,300-year-old grass found at the alpine archaeological site where the so-called Tyrolean Iceman was discovered. The grass comes from a ‘cloak’ made of long grass blades and/or the stuffing of the ‘snow footwear’ worn by the Iceman. The results show that while the largest fraction of the DNA extractable from the grass is of ‘foreign’ origin, a much smaller part belongs to the original genetic material of the grass itself, and can be used as a valuable taxonomic clue to the plant species utilized by neolithic men to manufacture their equipment. On the other hand, the ‘foreign’ DNA, or at least a portion of it, comes from microorganisms-mainly filamentous fungi and unicellular algae-which seem to have been associated with the grass since the time the grass was harvested.
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Rollo, F., Asci, W., Antonini, S. et al. Molecular ecology of a Neolithic meadow: The DNA of the grass remains from the archaeological site of the Tyrolean Iceman. Experientia 50, 576–584 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01921728
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01921728