Plant ways in Middle Bronze Age Anatolia—an archaeological interpretation of phytoliths and other plant remains from Zincirli Höyük, Türkiye

Abstract This paper presents the results of phytolith analysis from Middle Bronze Age II (1800–1600 bce ) Zincirli Höyük, Türkiye. The study area was destroyed by a single fire event resulting in the preservation and recovery of several food processing installations (archaeological features) and restorable vessels (broken pots) in situ. The archaeological contexts were only slightly disturbed by later sedimentary and human activities. In this paper, we focus on the interpretation of the phytolith assemblages from samples collected from various archaeological features and destruction debris, including potential Phragmites (reed) matting, pottery contents and various kinds of installations. Complementary evidence from diatoms, dung spherulites and macrobotanical remains from this study and a previous one are also evaluated to add to the contextual significance of the phytolith record.