Plant blindness in archaeology: challenges and ways forward

Plant blindness in archaeology: challenges and ways forward

Dawn Elise Mooney

The importance of plants to human life cannot be underestimated. At the base of all food chains, all of the energy that we consume ultimately came from plants. Furthermore, in the past plants were used for heat, light, shelter, tools, medicines, textiles, cordage, resins, dyes and pigments, ornaments and decoration, and ritual elements. However, studies of plant remains in archaeology are often less visible than those of inorganic artefacts, or even of animal bones. This talk uses the concept of plant blindness – the idea that humans have evolved to pay little attention to plants – to explore why plants are often undervalued in our interpretations of the past. Using examples from Icelandic and Norwegian archaeology, I will examine why reconstructing past human-plant interactions is perceived as difficult, and how changing the way we think about archaeological plant remains can expand our knowledge. Lastly, I will discuss the potential of microbotanical analyses, for example starch grains and phytoliths, in gaining new knowledge about past plant use.

Fyrirlesturinn er hluti af Nýjar rannsóknir í fornleifafræði 2025, fyrirlestraröð Félags fornleifafræðinga og námsbrautar í fornleifafræði við Háskóla Íslands. Fyrirlesturinn fer fram í stofu 202 í Odda, Háskóla Íslands.