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Animals
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New Trends on Prehistoric and Historical Zooarchaeology
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New Trends on Prehistoric and Historical Zooarchaeology

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2022) | Viewed by 18342

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Joan Viciano

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Independent Researcher (Osteoarchaeologist), Via Fiume 4, 65122 Pescara, Italy
Interests: biological anthropology; skeletal biology; bone and dental remains; osteoarchaeology; human-animal interaction; health and lifestyle of past populations
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Zooarchaeology, as an interdisciplinary subfield of archaeology, is focused on the interpretation of human and environment interactions based primarily on the systematic analysis of animal remains recovered from archaeological sites. Thus, the field of zooarchaeology transcends the traditional academic boundaries between zoology, anatomy, anthropology, palaeontology and social sciences.

Traditionally, zooarchaeologists have focused on the evolution of the environment and human actions’ impact on animals. However, because modern archaeologists pursue anthropological interests, zooarchaeologists research a great range of topics that include animals or parts of animals, such as dietary reconstruction, economic resources and trade, animal exploitation, environmental adaptations, human–animal interactions, animal husbandry practices, butchering practices, urban supply networks, seasonality, and use of animals in tools, ornaments and rituals, etc.

This Special Issue aims to present the most recent advances in the knowledge of the long-standing and complex relationships between past peoples and animals, based upon the study of physical remains, including osseous and dental structures, preserved soft tissues, shells, scales, feathers and subfossils at a range of methodological levels, from direct observation to molecular, chemical, histological and radiographic analyses.

Papers related to palaeopathological conditions and taphonomic processes affecting zooarchaeological assemblages are also welcome.

Dr. Joan Viciano Badal
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Zooarchaeology
  • Animal evolution
  • palaeopathological conditions

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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20 pages, 3763 KiB  
Article
Horses in the Early Medieval (10th–13th c.) Religious Rituals of Slavs in Polish Areas—An Archaeozoological, Archaeological and Historical Overview
by Daniel Makowiecki, Wojciech Chudziak, Paweł Szczepanik, Maciej Janeczek and Edyta Pasicka
Animals 2022, 12(17), 2282; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12172282 - 03 Sep 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2769
Abstract
Knowledge about horses from early medieval (10th–13th c.) Poland has been largely based on historical and archaeological data. Archaeozoological information has only been used to a limited extent. Therefore, this article aims to present the current state of knowledge on this subject, drawing [...] Read more.
Knowledge about horses from early medieval (10th–13th c.) Poland has been largely based on historical and archaeological data. Archaeozoological information has only been used to a limited extent. Therefore, this article aims to present the current state of knowledge on this subject, drawing on archaeozoological data from studies of horse bones. Apart from confirming earlier reflections regarding the sacred significance of the horse, additional information was obtained about specific individuals who were the subject of magical treatments. It turned out that sites with horse skeletons and skulls are few compared to the familiar presence of horse remains among kitchen waste. This contrasts with the neighbouring regions, where horses were buried more frequently among the Germans, Scandinavians and Prussians. Some new data have been obtained thanks to taphonomic analyses, which demonstrated that horse skulls of apotropaic status were not only exposed to public viewing but were also deposited under stronghold ramparts. Horses suffering from infectious diseases could also be buried under such ramparts. Considerations in the article lead to conclusions that horses were used in religious rituals as sacrificial animals, apotropaic deposits, as fortune-telling animals and cosmological figures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Trends on Prehistoric and Historical Zooarchaeology)
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24 pages, 18724 KiB  
Article
What Happened in That Pit? An Archaeozoological and GIS Approach to Study an Accumulation of Animal Carcasses at the Roman Villa of Vilauba (Catalonia)
by Lídia Colominas, Pere Castanyer, Joan Frigola and Joaquim Tremoleda
Animals 2021, 11(8), 2214; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11082214 - 26 Jul 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3672
Abstract
Some of the deposits of animal remains documented throughout prehistory and history are clearly something other than ordinary waste from meat consumption. For the Roman period and based on their characteristics, these assemblages have been classified as butchery deposits, raw material deposits, deposits [...] Read more.
Some of the deposits of animal remains documented throughout prehistory and history are clearly something other than ordinary waste from meat consumption. For the Roman period and based on their characteristics, these assemblages have been classified as butchery deposits, raw material deposits, deposits created for the hygienic management and disposal of animal carcasses, or ritual deposits. However, some are difficult to classify, and the parameters that define each of them are not clear. Here, we present a unique deposit from the Roman villa of Vilauba (Catalonia). A total of 783 cattle remains were found in an irregular-shaped 187 m2 pit originally dug to extract the clay used in the construction of the villa walls around the third quarter of the 1st century AD. The application of a contextual taphonomy approach, with the integration of archaeozoological variables, stratigraphy and context, and a GIS analysis, allowed us to document the nature and formation of this singular assemblage. It consisted of the carcasses of 14 cattle individuals from which the meat had been removed to take advantage of it by preserving it. Therefore, the parameters that characterise the refuse of this activity are presented here as a baseline for other studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Trends on Prehistoric and Historical Zooarchaeology)
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18 pages, 3063 KiB  
Article
Close Companions? A Zooarchaeological Study of the Human–Cattle Relationship in Medieval England
by Matilda Holmes, Helena Hamerow and Richard Thomas
Animals 2021, 11(4), 1174; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11041174 - 20 Apr 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3875
Abstract
Across medieval Europe, cattle commanded a major, if shifting, economic and social value, and their use for meat, milk, and traction is well established. Although the changing roles of cattle throughout this period may have influenced relationships between humans and cattle, this has [...] Read more.
Across medieval Europe, cattle commanded a major, if shifting, economic and social value, and their use for meat, milk, and traction is well established. Although the changing roles of cattle throughout this period may have influenced relationships between humans and cattle, this has been largely neglected in historical and zooarchaeological studies. Data from nearly 700 archaeological assemblages of animal remains have been used to provide an overview of the herd structures (age and sex) of cattle populations for England between AD 450 and 1400. These have been analysed alongside pathological and sub-pathological changes in over 2800 lower limb bones of cattle from seventeen archaeological sites to provide a better understanding of the use of cattle for ploughing, hauling, and carting. The findings were considered alongside historical documents and ethnographic evidence to chart changing human–cattle relationships. Results indicate that human–cattle relations varied with changing economic, agricultural, and social practices. From the mid-fifth century, cattle were a form of portable wealth, however, by the mid-ninth century, they were perceived as a commodity with monetary value. From this period, close human–cattle bonds are likely to have been widespread between plough hands and working animals. Such bonds are may have diminished with the increasing number of young beef cattle kept to supply the urban population from the mid-eleventh century. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Trends on Prehistoric and Historical Zooarchaeology)
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Review

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37 pages, 6752 KiB  
Review
Transmission of Zoonotic Diseases in the Daily Life of Ancient Pompeii and Herculaneum (79 CE, Italy): A Review of Animal–Human–Environment Interactions through Biological, Historical and Archaeological Sources
by Carmen Tanga, Marta Remigio and Joan Viciano
Animals 2022, 12(2), 213; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12020213 - 17 Jan 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 5241
Abstract
There is no doubt that the cultural and urban environments contributed to the animal–human interaction in the daily life of the ancient Roman world. The singularity of the circumstances of the burial of Pompeii and Herculaneum, together with literary sources and the [...] Read more.
There is no doubt that the cultural and urban environments contributed to the animal–human interaction in the daily life of the ancient Roman world. The singularity of the circumstances of the burial of Pompeii and Herculaneum, together with literary sources and the extraordinary state of preservation of the archaeological and biological material found, has provided researchers with an opportunity, unique in its kind, to reconstruct the life and ways of living of its inhabitants. This study illustrates the main drivers and mechanisms for the distribution and transmission of zoonotic diseases in these ancient Roman populations, such as (i) the large number and role that different animal species played in the ancient Roman world; (ii) the environmental conditions for the survival of parasites, pathogens and vectors; (iii) the great variety and intensity of commercial activities and occupations that presented certain risks of infections; (iv) the absence of adequate safety controls during processing, distribution and preservation of foodstuffs in unsuitable environments and some culinary habits; (v) the inadequate mechanisms of the disposal of human waste and the biotic contamination of watercourses and reservoirs; and finally (vi) the use of animals related to religious and cultural practices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Trends on Prehistoric and Historical Zooarchaeology)
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