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Ancient feces reveal how 'marsh diet' left Bronze Age Fen folk infected with parasites
EurekAlert! ^ | Thursday, August 15, 2019 | University of Cambridge

Posted on 08/22/2019 5:50:31 PM PDT by SunkenCiv

New research published today in the journal Parasitology shows how the prehistoric inhabitants of a settlement in the freshwater marshes of eastern England were infected by intestinal worms caught from foraging for food in the lakes and waterways around their homes.

The Bronze Age settlement at Must Farm, located near what is now the fenland city of Peterborough, consisted of wooden houses built on stilts above the water. Wooden causeways connected islands in the marsh, and dugout canoes were used to travel along water channels.

The village burnt down in a catastrophic fire around 3,000 years ago, with artefacts from the houses preserved in mud below the waterline, including food, cloth, and jewellery. The site has been called "Britain's Pompeii".

Also preserved in the surrounding mud were waterlogged "coprolites" -- pieces of human faeces -- that have now been collected and analysed by archaeologists at the University of Cambridge. They used microscopy techniques to detect ancient parasite eggs within the faeces and surrounding sediment...

Disposal of human and animal waste into the water around the settlement likely prevented direct faecal pollution of the fenlanders' food, and so prevented infection from roundworm -- the eggs of which have been found at Bronze Age sites across Europe.

(Excerpt) Read more at eurekalert.org ...


TOPICS: History; Science; Travel
KEYWORDS: ancientautopsies; bronzeage; dietandcuisine; godsgravesglyphs; mustfarm; peterborough
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To: SunkenCiv

“Giant kidney worms can reach up to a metre in length.”

That’ll keep me awake tonight.


21 posted on 08/22/2019 6:43:40 PM PDT by moovova
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To: PGR88
It's always the same old shit

Yes but it's a different day.

22 posted on 08/22/2019 6:54:36 PM PDT by JPG (MAGA!)
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To: blueunicorn6

I resemble that remark.


23 posted on 08/22/2019 6:55:13 PM PDT by Mrs. Don-o (:o)
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To: Rebelbase

“And his hair was perfect.”


24 posted on 08/22/2019 7:01:53 PM PDT by Deaf Smith (When a Texan takes his chances, chances will be taken that's fore sure)
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To: SunkenCiv

The Paleo diet, Atkins or the Fecal Intestinal Worm diet?

Choose wisely.


25 posted on 08/22/2019 7:10:11 PM PDT by TheNext (Diversity: Darker Replaces Lighter)
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To: blueunicorn6

Or, tune in to Fox when Karl Rove is speaking...


26 posted on 08/22/2019 7:22:47 PM PDT by rfp1234 (NBC: Putting the TURD in Saturday.)
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To: SunkenCiv
Disposal of human and animal waste into the water around the settlement likely prevented direct faecal pollution of the fenlanders' food, and so prevented infection from roundworm -- the eggs of which have been found at Bronze Age sites across Europe.

Makes no sense.

Read other versions of this article which did not make this statement.

Regards,

27 posted on 08/22/2019 8:32:57 PM PDT by alexander_busek (Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.)
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To: SunkenCiv

Imagine writing your doctoral theses about feces.


28 posted on 08/22/2019 8:44:25 PM PDT by The Great RJ ("Socialists are happy until they run out of other people's money." Margaret Thatcher)
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To: blueunicorn6
So they were digging through crap?

Enhancing that law school application.

Think of the opportunities in San Fagsicko today!

29 posted on 08/22/2019 9:41:17 PM PDT by doorgunner69
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To: yarddog

british aristocracy teeth went bad sometime after 1500 with the introduction of sugar from the west indies. sugar rotted the teeth of lower classes as it became more inexpensive over the centuries. for the first couple hundred years or so it was an upper class luxury.


30 posted on 08/23/2019 7:33:58 AM PDT by ckilmer
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