VOLATILE COMPOUNDS IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL PLANT REMAINS AND THE MAILLARD REACTION DURING DECAY OF ORGANIC-MATTER

Archaeological plant remains from excavations at Qasr Ibrim, Egypt, pr eserve volatile decay products trapped within internal networks of str uctural and storage macromolecules, These volatile components can be l inked to specific degradative reactions occurring during the long-term burial of organic matter, Abundant alkyl pyrazines are characteristic by-products of the Maillard (or browning) reaction of proteins and ca rbohydrates and provide evidence for the reaction occurring in buried organic matter.