New species from the New World: early archaeobotanical and archaeozoological evidence from the Santi Quattro Coronati complex in Rome (Italy)

The European colonization of the Americas at the end of 15th century AD has brought with it a series of revolutions, including the introduction of numerous new plant and animal species, many of them of great economic value and currently at the base of European diets. Plants include Solanum lycopersicum L. (tomato), Solanum tuberosum L. (potato), Capsicum spp. (pepper and hot chili), Theobroma cacao L. (cocoa), Cucurbita spp. (gourds and pumpkins), Phaselous spp. (beans), Zea mays L. (corn), Helianthus spp. (sunflower), and the inedible, but important plant from an economic perspective, Nicotiana spp. (tobacco). Domestic animals are much fewer: Meleagris gallopavo L. (turkey), Cavia porcellus Pallas (guinea pig), and Cairina moschata L. (Muscovy duck). Their introduction occurred at different times and rates, due to numerous factors, such as the specific area of origin and the similarity to certain Old-World plants; for example, potatoes and tomatoes were initially associated to the roots and fruits of the poisonous mandrake. These phenomena can be observed through the study of iconographic evidence, ancient texts and recipes, but also rare archaeobotanical and archaeozoological findings. An interesting case study is represented by the Santi Quattro Coronati Complex, located in the center of Rome (Italy), between the Colosseum and St. John’s Basilica. For this research, two specific contexts are taken into consideration. The first one is a disposal pit excavated in 1996, which was obtained by the closure of a dismissed staircase. Such pit contained, among the others, well preserved plant and animal remains. Based on ceramic evidence, its use for discarding refuses can be framed between the end of the 15th century and the mid-16th century AD, when the Santi Quattro Coronati complex served as the residence of the cardinal. The second context was investigated during more recent excavations, carried out in 2011–2012 in a former porch located in the west side of the garden of the complex. Here, a surface made of mortar (Layer 521) dated to the beginning of the 17th century AD provided a small faunal assemblage, but no plant remains. The study of the disposal pit yielded a rich archaeobotanical assemblage in both qualitative and quantitative terms. More interestingly, it also included seeds of two New World taxa: Cucurbita maxima/moschata and Cucurbita pepo L. (Fig. 1a). From the faunal point of view, a reference to the Americas came from the mortar layer, where a Cavia porcellus pelvis (Fig. 1b) was found. Both attestations represent one of the oldest evidences of such taxa in Europe. These early introductions are an indicator of wealth of the inhabitants of the complex, which is further enhanced by the richness of the plant assemblage and the presence of prestigious plants such as Punica granatum L. (pomegranate) and spices such as Coriandrum sativum L. (coriander). The possible explanation for such early presence of New World species could be that the Cardinal’s palace, a very prestigious and wealthy landmark, was one of the first stops along the trading routes that emanated from the New World, leading to the rapid availability of exotic plant and animal species. This may also be related to the role of Cardinal Lorenzo Pucci, titular of the Santi Quattro between 1513 and 1524, as supervisor for the Church of the Indies in the Consistory.