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Archaeobotany

Archaeobotany is the study of plant remains recovered from archaeological contexts. As a major branch of Environmental Archaeology, archaeobotany focuses on the interaction of past peoples and their environments and the way in which they used plant resources.

By studying archaeobotanical remains we can learn about past subsistence practices, agriculture and domestication, food preparation and cooking, fuel, crafts and building materials amongst others.

The University of York has a long history of involvement in archaeobotanical consultancy and research since the 1970s. Recently, archaeobotany has been incorporated into BioArCh as one of the key research areas granting access to cutting edge, collaborative work on ancient cooking practices, cuisine and diet in combination with an outstanding range of biomolecular techniques.

Our projects involve a range of collaborations with national and international institutions for the study of past food systems with the relationship between people and plants at the centre of attention.

Our people

Photo Name Role

Dr Lara González Carretero

Lecturer in Bioarchaeology
Researcher looking into a microscope

Focus areas

We are interested in archaeobotanical research on all time periods and geographical areas and our main areas of expertise are:

  • Past subsistence, agriculture and crop patterns
  • Cooking, cuisine and dietary choices
  • Microscopic techniques for the analysis of archaeological food remains

Please contact us if you have an interesting project to discuss. Please notice that we do not offer a commercial service as we work on a collaborative research basis.

Current projects

Close up image of researcher working on pottery artifact

Collaborations

Facilities

BioArCh provides the ideal setting for archaeobotanical research with state-of-the-art laboratory facilities. Additionally, our PalaeoHub facility allows access to larger teaching laboratories and the latest microscopic techniques including digital and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM).

Experiments involving ancient food preparation and cooking techniques at our Year Experimental Archaeology Research (YEAR) Centre are also an essential part of our archaeobotanical projects.

We are open to consultations, collaborations, and short-term external use of our reference collections for research purposes.

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