ABSTRACT
The identification of macroscopic remains of plants from archaeological sites can often supply critical information relating to ancient environments, diets and economies. This has been a particularly successful technique for archaeology in Europe and the Near East where agrarian economy is based on small seeds, particularly cereal and legume grains. Criteria for the identification of such remains have long been developed. In many regions of the world, however, agrarian or non-agrarian economies are not based on small seeds, but rather on roots and tubers. This is particularly true of the tropics and subtropics of the Americas, Africa and the Indo-Pacific region (Harris 1972). Criteria for the identification of the remains of food plants from such regions have rarely been examined and the past economies of such regions seldom investigated.
