Cereal remains, plant impressions and 14C direct dating from the Neolithic pottery of Arene Candide Cave (Finale Ligure, NW Italy)

The systematic examination of the VI and early V millennium BCE pottery from the Arene Candide Cave (Finale Ligure, Western Liguria) revealed several charred macroremains embedded in the paste, as well as imprints of a wide range of botanical remains. The analysis was conducted in stereomicroscopy (10–750 ×) on charred vegetal remains that were either extracted from the ceramic fabric or studied via intracavitary casts. Some of them were further investigated by SEM.Most of the bioclasts belong to cereals: Triticum monococcum, Triticum dicoccum, Hordeum vulgare and phytoliths of Pooideae. We also recognized endocarps belonging to Prunus mahaleb and Rubus cf. R. idaeus and woods of Rosaceae Prunoideae, Quercus t. ilex/coccifera, cf. Juniperus sp. and Pinus t. sylvestris. The imprints of fern fronds attributable to two typical of wetlands - Osmunda regalis and Thelypteris palustris – are of particular interest.The extraction of bioclasts allowed the identification and sampling of organic material suitable for 14C analysis without damaging ceramics. This constitutes a feasible methodological alternative to those currently in use. The dates obtained on plant remains extracted from potsherds corroborate the currently proposed chrono-cultural seriation for the Impresso-Cardial Complex of the Ligurian-Provençal region.