These ceramic vessels provide clues to who was trading what with whom and when. Foley collaborated with Maria Hansson at Lund University in Lund, Sweden to sample traces of ancient DNA from inside the amphorae to determine what they held. The 3-foot-tall amphora on the right was made in Chios and contained olive and oregano (probably used as either flavoring or a preservative). The origin of the amphora on the left is still unknown, but its DNA analysis showed that it contained terebinth, a resin from a shrub related to pistachios.
[back]
|
