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Dumps are always exciting places for archaeologists. They often tell us stories that are hidden or considered unimportant to share with future generations, but these stories provide unprecedented information about real life. Excavators sometimes find really exciting artifacts in piles of old middes – such as poops filled with parasitic worm eggs!
Research published today in the journal antiquity reveals that human excrements (coprolites) were found in the 8,000-year-old dump of the ancient city of Çatalhöyük, which overlooks the Konya Plain in present-day Turkey, and experts have discovered that They contain whipworm eggs.
"It was really great to find that parasite eggs had survived over 8,000 years because many other organisms in the soil can destroy them over time," said Cambridge researcher Piers Mitchell. at Ancient Origins.
The parasitic poop dates back to the early days of Çatalhöyük (7 100-6150 BC), suggesting that the transition from a hunting and gathering to agriculture probably took place. caused differences not only in social interactions and diet, but also in exposure to different diseases.
Skeleton 30928, possible female, aged 35 to 50, dating from 6700 to 6500 BC (Çatalhöyük research project) Microscopic egg whipworm from Çatalhöyük, Turkey. The black scale bar represents 20 micrometers. (Evilena Anastasiou)
The ancient city of Çatalhöyük
At a time when most people on the planet were nomadic hunter-gatherers, Çatalhöyük was a bustling city of up to 10,000 people.
Forming a large hill at the top of the southern Anatolian plateau, the site looks like a huge labyrinth of mud brick houses, often described as a "honeycomb city," composed of 18 successive layers of buildings representing different stages of the city and reflecting different times. of its history. The lower layer dates back to 7,500 BC. BC, while the upper layer dates back to 5 600 BC. for another 700 years until that, too, was abandoned.
The murals, the reliefs, the sculptures and other symbolic and artistic elements, as well as the remarkable layout of the city, testify to the evolution of the social organization and the cultural practices as beings. adapted to a more sedentary life. As a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is recognized as one of the best sites to understand human prehistory.
Find evidence of parasitic worms in old faeces
The discovery of whipworm eggs at Çatalhöyük is the first archaeological evidence of an intestinal parasitic infection on the Near East Continent. It was discovered when Cambridge researchers Piers Mitchell, Marissa Ledger and Evilena Anastasiou used microscopy to study preserved coprolites from the more than 8,000-year-old slime and soil found in the pelvic area of six burials. Eggs of intestinal parasites were found in the fossilized poop but not in the burials.
Old feces found on the site. (Evilena Anastasiou)
After confirming that the droppings had been left behind by the man, the researchers also discovered that there were whipworm eggs in two of the samples. It is uncertain whether the same person has emptied his bowels twice or that the coprolites are from two different people, but the researchers believe that this suggests that some people from the prehistoric village have been infected by this intestinal parasite.
You may be wondering why the people of Çatalhöyük were throwing their poop in the trash. Well, it was 3,000 years before the Mesopotamians invented the first identifiable toilets. The researchers therefore assume that "the inhabitants of Çatalhöyük either went to the dump to open their bowels, or carried their excrement from their homes to the discard pile in a container or basket to dispose of it".
Human Coprolite 8000 years old Çatalhöyük, Turkey. (Lisa-Marie Shillito)
New lifestyles Different diseases
About 10,000 years ago, the peoples of the Near East began to cultivate more than hunting and gathering. The population of Çatalhöyük consisted of primitive farmers who began cultivating crops such as wheat and barley and raising sheep and goats around 7,100 BC.
These changes have also brought about social changes. People began living in increasingly crowded living conditions and lived near garbage piles that were proven to have whipworm eggs in their stools.
Although consuming more domestic products than wild animals and plants may have reduced the presence of certain diseases, the new life situation has made other diseases more apparent. The researchers write in their article that "it is possible that other pest species will be identified if future work allows us to recover more coprolites from elsewhere on the site".
Dr. Mitchell thinks that this lifestyle change has probably also changed the diseases that people have become more susceptible to: "It has been suggested that this lifestyle change has resulted in a similar change in the types of diseases that affected them. . The village being one of the largest and most populous of its time, this study conducted in Çatalhöyük helps us better understand this process, "he says.
House in Çatalhöyük being excavated. (Scott Haddow)
Shit wrinkled by whipworm
The whipworm parasite found in the coprolites would have spread from contaminated food or water containing human excreta containing worm eggs. The parasites infected with whipworm have parasites that live on the lining of the intestine of the large intestine up to five years. When male and female whipworms mate, their eggs are mixed with the stool of the host. A whipworm can produce about 5,000 eggs each day.
However, researchers have found few examples of whipworm eggs in coprolites and no examples in soil samples of the pelvic area, which may be simply due to the fact that other eggs have not survived more 8,000 years old. They state in their paper that fungi and insects or the water flowing into the soil may also explain why they have found no examples of parasite eggs in the soil.
If the person or persons present actually had few whipworm eggs in their body, they would have shown no evidence of infection with the parasite. However, if they had a more serious whipworm infection than the archaeological evidence can show, they may have suffered from anemia, diarrhea, stunting and / or loss of intelligence in children.
Microscopic whipworm egg from Çatalhöyük, Turkey. The black scale bar represents 20 micrometers. (Evilena Anastasiou)
Dr. Mitchell told Ancient Origins that the remains of the human skeleton actually showed signs of anemia (an insufficient number of red blood cells) that could be caused by parasites or a diet low in certain nutrients such as iron. Skeletons also show signs of trauma, osteoarthritis and dental disease. "
Meaning of the discovery
Ledger thinks this research is useful for rebuilding life in Çatalhöyük. She writes: "Since writing was invented only 3000 years after Çatalhöyük, people were not able to record what had happened to them during their lives. This research allows us for the first time to imagine the symptoms experienced by some of the prehistoric people living in Çatalhöyük who have been infected by this parasite. "
Dr. Mitchell told Ancient Origins that researchers were now hoping to look for a parasitic infection in even older samples, especially from the pickers, so that we can understand the effects of sedentarization and agriculture on health. of our ancestors.
Top image: the ancient city of Çatalhöyük (scarface / Adobe Stock). Framed: 3D rendering of a whipworm ( 3drenderings / Adobe Stock )
By Alicia McDermott
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