An Unexpected Discovery in Medieval Bruges (Flanders, Belgium): Seeds of the Caper (Capparis spinosa L.)

Brigitte Cooremans

Environmental Archaeology, 1999, vol. 4, issue 1, 97-101

Abstract: In this short paper attention is drawn to an extraordinary find in medieval Bruges (Flanders, Belgium). Among the macrobotanical remains recovered from one ditch and two pits, seeds of the caper-bush, Capparis spinosa, dating between AD 1200 and AD 1495, were found. Their presence means that either the plant was grown locally or whole fruits were imported from the Mediterranean region. Given the circumstances, time period and the role of medieval Bruges as an important trade centre, the latter seems to be most likely. Apart from two rather doubtful finds in Roman Tongeren and Tienen (both in Flanders, Belgium), this is the first time Capparis spinosa has been identified in our regions in an archaeological context.

Date: 1999
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DOI: 10.1179/env.1999.4.1.97

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