Assessment of plant biodiversity from 3500-year-old ceramics recovered from the archaeological site of Kaymakçı using a metagenomics analytical approach

Date

2024-7

Author

Çele, Ayda Ecem

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This research delves into the connection between communities residing in the Kaymakçı citadel and their natural environment. By studying the ceramics found at the site using metagenomics, the goal was to assess the diversity of plants at genus level. Through analysis focusing on the rbcL (Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase Large Subunit) gene, a variety of plant species were identified, with Populus and Quercus being prominent among 95 plant genera. The rbcL gene sequence based phylogenetic tree derived from the ceramic samples suggests that the 33 labeled ceramic pieces (KAP2- KAP37) fall into four groups which are Cluster 1.a, 1.b, 1.c and 2. These groups are categorized based on the types of plants found and how often they appear; The first group is mainly Papaver, the second is mostly Populus, the third is dominated by Quercus and the fourth is predominantly Apium. This classification prompts archaeologists to investigate further to understand the connections, in terms of location and time periods. This study highlights the importance of investigation in archaeology offering insights into plant diversity and environmental intricacies.

Subject Keywords

Metagenomics Analysis, Ceramics, Ancient Plant Biodiversity, rbcL Gene, Kaymakçı Archaeological Site

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11511/110166

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Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, Thesis