1. Cattle management in an Iron Age/Roman settlement in the Netherlands: Archaeozoological and stable isotope analysis
- Author
-
Biehl, Peter F., Groot, Maaike, Albarella, Umberto, Eger, Jana, and Evans, Jane
- Subjects
Teeth ,Physiology ,Iron Age ,Social Sciences ,Isotopes ,Medicine and Health Sciences ,Assemblage (archaeology) ,Animal Husbandry ,Cattle management ,History, Ancient ,Animal Management ,Netherlands ,Isotope analysis ,Mammals ,Multidisciplinary ,Eukaryota ,Agriculture ,Ruminants ,Animal husbandry ,humanities ,Body Fluids ,Chemistry ,Milk ,Geography ,Archaeology ,Animals, Domestic ,Vertebrates ,Physical Sciences ,Medicine ,Livestock ,Anatomy ,Settlement (litigation) ,Research Article ,Chemical Elements ,Science ,Research and Analysis Methods ,Beverages ,Fodder ,Bovines ,Animals ,Humans ,Rural settlement ,Chemical Characterization ,Nutrition ,Isotope Analysis ,Roman Age ,Archaeozoological isotope analysis ,business.industry ,Organisms ,Biology and Life Sciences ,900 Geschichte und Geografie::930 Geschichte des Altertums (bis ca. 499), Archäologie::930 Geschichte des Altertums bis ca. 499, Archäologie ,Diet ,Oxygen ,Jaw ,Amniotes ,900 Geschichte und Geografie::930 Geschichte des Altertums (bis ca. 499), Archäologie::936 Geschichte Europas nördlich und westlich von Italien bis ca. 499 ,Cattle ,business ,Digestive System ,Head ,Zoology - Abstract
Cattle were the predominant domestic animal in the Iron Age and Roman Netherlands, yet their management is still incompletely understood. Some aspects of cattle management, such as birth season and the provision of fodder, have received little or no attention so far. This paper is the first to investigate these aspects for the Iron Age and Roman Netherlands, through a case study of the site of Houten-Castellum. The rural settlement of Houten-Castellum was inhabited from the Middle Iron Age to the Middle Roman period, allowing a comparison between the Iron Age and Roman period. Excavations at this site have yielded a large, well-preserved animal bone assemblage. This paper investigates cattle husbandry by using an integrated approach, combining a multi-isotope analysis (oxygen, carbon and strontium) with archaeozoological and archaeobotanical results from Houten-Castellum and comparing the results with archaeobotanical evidence for fodder and evidence for dairy use for the Iron Age and Roman Netherlands in general. While our data set is small and results must therefore be interpreted cautiously, there is convincing evidence for an extended birth season in the Middle Iron Age, as well as the use of fodder.
- Published
- 2021