Mining and Dining – Prehistoric Miners’ Foodways

Microscopic and biomolecular dietary analysis of Bronze Age and Iron Age human paleofeces from the Hallstatt salt mines

New bioarchaeological methods are opening up fascinating insights into the diet of past societies. Paleofeces – preserved human excrement – represent a particularly valuable but, until now, rarely exploited source at this level of detail for reconstructing the individual eating and cooking habits of prehistoric people.

The aim of this project is to draw a detailed picture of the diet of the miners at the Hallstatt salt mines (Bronze Age and Iron Age), based on 50 fecal samples. Three central research questions are the focus:

• Individual dietary profiles: How diverse and complex was the diet of the prehistoric salt miners in reality?
• Gut microbiome: Which microorganisms can be detected in the gut microbiome, and do they provide evidence of fermented foods or beverages, as well as of complex food processing methods?
• Sex and diet: In the Iron Age, are there statistically demonstrable correlations between genetic sex and specific dietary patterns?

To answer these questions, the project combines a broad methodological spectrum: palynology, archaeobotany, archaeology, genomics, proteomics, and paleoparasitology are brought together in an interdisciplinary approach.

The exceptionally large sample size (n=50), together with the outstanding preservation of the find material, makes it possible to investigate current research questions on the complexity of prehistoric diets, processed foods, and the human microbiome at a level of detail rarely achieved before.

Furthermore, the project makes a valuable contribution to the knowledge of the UNESCO World Heritage site Hallstatt-Dachstein/Salzkammergut by providing new, previously inaccessible insights into the daily life and lifestyle of the prehistoric inhabitants of this unique cultural landscape.