Cooked and raw. Fruits and seeds in the Iberian Palaeolithic

Fruits, seeds, leaves and underground storage organs were all consumed by human groups during the Palaeolithic. These plant foodstuffs provided humans with minerals, vitamins and nutrients essential for optimal health. In this sense, fire control was a crucial human achievement since cooking allowed the physical and chemical modification of these elements by eliminating toxins, enhancing the digestion of foodstuffs and increasing their energy value. The use of fire during plant processing increases the potential preservation of archaeobotanical remains, as well. Based on the preserved plant elements and their characteristics, the chaîne opératoire of plant consumption can be reconstructed. In this chapter we focus on the gathering and processing of fruits and seeds of three plant species during the Palaeolithic in the Iberian Peninsula. We stress the role of fire as a processing tool and as a preservation agent. The plants in question are Pinus pinea L. (stone pine), Corispermum gallicum Iljin (bugseed), and Corema album (L.) D. Don ex Steudel (Portuguese crowberry). The archaeobotanical remains preserved in the three sites discussed here, namely Figueira Brava (Setúbal, Portugal), Cueva de Nerja (Málaga, Spain) and Cova de les Cendres (Alicante, Spain) prove that Neanderthals and modern humans had similar skills regarding the control of fire during all stages of the combustion process, and demonstrate the implementation of multi-step processing, especially at the end of the Upper Palaeolithic. By avoiding cutting down the species that provided food, these Palaeolithic groups carried out sustainable vegetation management, as well.