Archaeologist Amanda Henry traces ancient diets and human adaptability with a Vici grant
Dr Amanda Henry has secured a prestigious Vici grant for her groundbreaking research project, Hominin FoodWays: Changing Diet and Food Processing Across Climate Frontiers. This five-year study, set to begin in September, aims to unravel the dietary adaptations of Eurasian hominins between 1.8 and 0.9 million years ago, shedding light on how early humans adapted to diverse environments and food sources.
Unpacking the first hominin migrations
Dr Henry has long been fascinated by the first migration of hominins out of Africa, particularly the factors that enabled Homo erectus to thrive in new territories. ‘Many of my colleagues have wondered what enabled Homo erectus to expand beyond Africa,’ she explains. ‘Some have pointed to technological advancements, diet, or even social interactions, but I think we also need to look closely at the habitats they lived in and the food that was available.’
Before Homo erectus, hominin habitats were more restricted. Henry’s research aims to identify the types of landscapes early humans favored, how these environments influenced their diet, and what distinguished them from habitats that were not utilised. A key focus will be on sessile foods—those that remain fixed in place, such as plants, honey, and mushrooms—which could have played a crucial role in dietary stability. ‘These foods are predictable,’ she says. ‘They grow or occur in the same places year after year, which means hominins could have relied on them in new and changing environments.’
A holistic approach to ancient diets
Henry emphasizes that understanding early hominin diets requires more than just reconstructing habitats or listing available food items. Instead, she aims to assess the actual nutritional value of these foods. Collaborating with Wageningen University, her team will collect plant samples from targeted modern environments that resemble ancient landscapes. ‘It’s not just about knowing what was out there,’ Henry clarifies. ‘We want to know how valuable these foods were. How much energy did they provide? Were they easy to digest? These are crucial questions for understanding early human survival.’
Moreover, the study will explore food processing techniques. Given that there is little evidence for fire use by Homo erectus in Western Asia, Henry’s team will investigate alternative food preparation methods. They will conduct experiments on the effort and energy required to make various plant foods edible, combining this data with nutritional analysis to determine how valuable different landscapes were for survival. ‘If they didn’t have fire, how did they make tough plant foods digestible? Did they rely more on meat? We need to test these ideas.’
Predictive models and experimental archaeology
A major component of the project is predictive modeling. By integrating archaeological records with nutritional data, the team will test different dietary scenarios. ‘If Homo erectus primarily relied on certain plant foods, does that pattern match the archaeological record? Or do we need a different model, one that includes more meat consumption?’ Henry asks. These models will help refine our understanding of early human subsistence strategies.
Alongside computer modeling, Henry’s team will engage in experimental archaeology, using techniques such as starch analysis from dental calculus and chemical residue analysis from stone tools to uncover direct evidence of plant consumption, honey, and possibly fermented foods. ‘One of the most exciting parts of this project is the potential to find evidence of food processing we hadn’t considered before,’ she says. ‘Things like fermented foods, or the consumption of honey and wax, could have played a much larger role than we’ve assumed.’ Advanced methodologies will also be applied to detect traces of food exposed to fire, even in the absence of traditional hearths.
Foraging in times of stress
The adaptability of the human diet is one of the defining traits of our species. Unlike our closest relatives, the great apes—who require specific foods from specific habitats—humans thrive on an incredibly diverse range of diets. ‘We are fabulously good at doing well in a wide variety of habitats,’ Henry notes. ‘Our ability to combine all kinds of foods—with different ratios of macro- and micro-nutrients, and different proportions of plants, and animals—makes us unique. But when did that shift occur? What led to this incredible dietary flexibility?’
Beyond the historical insights, Henry hopes her research will have contemporary relevance. The study of European wild plants, for example, could reveal underutilized food sources, particularly in times of crisis. She points to recent examples, such as increased foraging during the COVID-19 lockdowns and the Balkan wars, as evidence of the resilience of traditional food knowledge. ‘People turn to foraging in times of stress,’ she says. ‘There is so much potential in wild plants that we don’t explore enough.’
Additionally, she aims to collaborate with modern-day foragers and integrate these findings into secondary school curricula, fostering awareness of the nutritional and ecological value of wild plants. ‘A lot of people suffer from “plant blindness”—they don’t really see the plants around them,’ Henry says. ‘By working with students, we hope to bring more attention to the value of these resources, helping them develop a greater sense of ownership and responsibility for their environment.’
An ambitious scope
As Hominin FoodWays moves forward, Henry is assembling a team that includes two PhD researchers and a postdoctoral research / project manager. With an ambitious scope spanning archaeology, nutrition science, and ecological modeling, this project promises to redefine our understanding of early human diets and migration.
By bridging past and present, Henry’s research not only deepens our knowledge of ancient human life but also offers practical insights for modern food security and sustainability. As we face global environmental changes, learning from our ancestors’ adaptability may prove more valuable than ever. ‘The past can teach us a lot about resilience,’ Henry concludes. ‘We just need to listen.’