Lay of the Land
W
hen Columbus stumbled on to the New World some 500 years ago, he started a process that continues at an ever accelerating pace today. He was making this planet smaller and more homogeneous. In this issue of American Archaeology, author Brian Fagan focuses on food and how Columbus’s discovery changed what we all eat.Try to imagine Italy without the tomato,or Ireland without the potato.Try to imagine the Navajos without fry bread. While the exchange of germs cost the lives of millions on both sides of the Atlantic, the exchange of food undoubtedly saved millions by diversifying the world’s food supply.
Archaeologists are hard at work tracking down the origins of dozens of New World foods and their long and ponderous paths to domestication. Zea mays, or corn, took 3,600 years to become today’s staple feed grain. By the time Columbus arrived, Native Americans had domesticated 300 plants, far more than their European conquerors. Plant pollen and seeds preserve well for many centuries and they are telling archaeologists what was being grown hundreds of years ago.They also allow scientists to trace the progress from wild plant to domesticated staple. In modern archaeology, even the tiniest of remains can play a huge role in telling the
DARREN POORE
The Foods of the World
MARK MICHEL, President
story of the past, and in the case of food, that story is how the dinner tables of the world were filled.
“Esthetic, Entertaining and Educational” —Evelyn Billo and Robert (Bob) Mark of Rupestrian CyberServices
The ancient world of the shaman's ritual comes face to face with modern digital technology in this unique CD-ROM. OVER 200
ZOOMABLE, HIGH RESOLUTION PHOTOGRAPHS
INTERACTIVE 360° PANORAMIC PHOTOS of important archaeological sites along the Pecos and Devils Rivers COMMENTARY AND INTERPRETATION by recognized experts in the field MAPS AND TIMELINES to aid in the research and understanding of Pecos River Rock Art AN ILLUSTRATED GUIDE to the mysterious people who left this enduring record of their lifestyle and spiritual beliefs
CDROM available NOW for Macintosh™ and Windows™ computers!
Contact the Rock Art Foundation toll free at 1-888-ROCKART or visit us on ORG the internet at WWW.ROCKART.ORG and order your copy today for only $35 plus shipping.
Call 1-888-525-9907 or visit WWW.ROCKART. Minimum Requirements: Windows: 200 MHz Intel Pentium or AMD Celeron processor running Windows 95, 98, NT4, 2000 & 128 MB or more of free RAM Macintosh: 200 MHz PowerPC running MAC OS 7.5.3 or greater (OS X Classic Mode Only) & 128 MB or more of free RAM
2
fall • 2002
