Organic residue analysis using GC-MS and GC-C-IRMS of Neolithic Funnel Beaker pottery from Wanna, Germany

This study details the analysis of an assemblage of Funnel Beaker Culture pottery from the micro-region of Wanna, Cuxhaven, in Northern Germany. A total of 60 pottery fragments from three megalithic monuments and a settlement site were investigated using organic residue analysis. Lipids were extracted from the pottery using an acidified methanolic extraction (Correa-Ascencio and Evershed, 2014) to produce a total lipid extract for each vessel. These extracts were then analysed by gas chromatography, mass spectrometry and isotope ratio mass spectrometry were to quantify and identify the contents of the vessels (Evershed et al., 1990; Copley et al., 2003; Evershed, 2008). These analyses revealed new information on the function of these vessels as well as the diet and subsistence practices of the Funnel Beaker community at Wanna.