ИСТИНА

The aim of this study is to define diagnostic forms of phytoliths found in important species of domesticated grasses within the forest and forest-meadow temperate zone of the European part of the Northern Hemisphere that can be used to identify ancient cultivated land. Phytoliths extracted from stems, leaves and husks of three species of wheat (Triticum spelta, Triticum dicoccum and Triticum aestivum), rye (Secale cereale), oat (Avena sativa), millet (Panicum miliaceum) and barley (Hordeum vulgare) were studied. To ensure these diagnostic morphotypes are found only in domesticated cereals, they were compared with phytoliths from several wild grasses of meadow communities within the temperate zone - Agróstis gigántea, Brachypōdium pinnātum,  Calamagróstis arundinácea, Calamagróstis canéscens, Festuca pratensis, Glycéria, Mélica nútans, Poa praténsis. Even a single occurrence of a phytolith that reliably belongs to domesticated grass (e.g., dendritic and cross-shaped phytoliths) in a sample from either archaeological cultural layer or soil within the forest temperate zone is sufficient to indicate the presence of these domesticated plants in the past. If samples contain only common forms of grass phytoliths with no diagnostic morphotypes of cereals leading to an unacceptably high probability of making a wrong conclusion. Our studies confirmed both the diagnostic significance of Elongate Dendritic forms and their uniformity for a large group of cultivated cereals. Elongate dibbate forms can also be used for diagnostic purposes. Millet is the only cultivated cereal that forms diagnostic phytoliths type (Cross) that distinguishes it from other cultivated cereals. Our conclusions are only applicable for materials from temperate forest and forest-meadow zones of the European part. In other climates, the same forms can be indicators of other species of cereals or can commonly occur in wild grasses.