Aus den Augen, aus dem Sinn… — Die Pflanzenreste aus dem mittelalterlichen Abwasserkanal der Grabung Am Hof 10, Wien 1

Archaeobotanical analysis of the filling of a medieval sewage drain in the 1st district in Vienna (excavation “Am Hof 10”) resulted in a large amount of plant remains, predominantly 1,172 grapevine (Vitis vinifera subsp. vinifera) pips and their fragments. Among the cultivated cereals, barley (Hordeum vulgare), emmer (Triticum dicoccum), spelt (Triticum spelta), and broomcorn millet (Panicum miliaceum) were unequivocally identified, others (einkorn, rye, free-threshing wheat, oats) with some uncertainty. In addition to grapevine, also mulberry (cf. Morus sp.) and apple (Malus domestica) were found among the cultivated fruit plants. In general, the variability of preservation (charred, uncharred, mineralised) as well as the wide ecological spectrum of wild plants seem to indicate different origins and depositional processes of the plant material: apart from human faeces, also animal dung, burnt kitchen refuse, and surface water from the surroundings are plausible sources. Several charred fir needles (Abies alba) might be interpreted as deriving from fumigants. Among the numerous ruderal and segetal plants identified in the assemblage, the finds of red horned poppy (Glaucium corniculatum) have to be emphasised, which currently represent the oldest published evidence of this plant in Austria.