Dogs are man’s best (and oldest – see CA 352 and 401) friends, but how they came to be that way is still a bit of a mystery. Based on morphological changes and genetic estimations, they are believed to have…
Why do so many of us choose to share our lives – and our homes – with at least one animal? Pets & their People (published to accompany an exhibition of the same name – see here – and written…
REVIEW BY CH Dogs may be ‘man’s best friend’, but cats also share a long relationship with humans – a tale (tail?) that archaeologist Jerry Moore recounts in this absorbing overview, covering two million years of history and an equally…
Analysis of wild boar remains discovered at a site in the Zagros Mountains in Iran points to long-distance transport of animals for a ceremonial gathering in the Early Neolithic. The animal remains were discovered in 2016 when excavations at the…
REVIEW BY OLIVER CREIGHTON This new, ambitious, elegantly produced volume showcases how archaeology is transforming our understanding of horses in the human past. Its purpose is twofold: to provide an introduction for those, particularly students, who have a general interest…
REVIEW BY CARLY JONES If there is one thing that unites the many, incredibly varied cultures that have inhabited the world throughout human history, it is that we all need to eat. Catching, cultivating, cooking, and consuming food have been…
In the second part of an article on the symbolism attached by the ancient Egyptians to beasts with horns, Hilary looks at goats, sheep, and wild animals.
W Benson Harer Jr says we should thank the Roman legionaries for our ginger feline friends.
In the first of a two-part article on the symbolism attached by the ancient Egyptians to beasts with horns, Hilary looks at cattle.
East Africa’s earliest farming Excavations in Kenya have uncovered equatorial east Africa’s earliest evidence for plant farming. Working in Kakapel Rockshelter in the Lake Victoria Basin, archaeologists have discovered remnants of the legume crop cowpea (black-eyed pea) in a hearth,…
Archaeological work in Kenya has uncovered the earliest evidence for plant farming in equatorial east Africa. As a crossroads for various population movements throughout history, many of which included the transmission of crops, the region encompassing Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda…
Meilin Lyu explores the different aspects of the ancient Egyptian cat, its depictions in art, and its importance in religion, cults, and daily life.
REVIEW BY SG This second Oxbow Classics facsimile explores the history of domestication and the role of agriculture in the social economy, based on what was current evidence when it was first published in 1994, before presenting a comprehensive catalogue…
Mesoamerica is often considered the ‘homeland’ of chocolate due to its significance for many ancient cultures in this region, but the cocoa tree, Theobroma cacao, in fact originated in the tropical rainforests of South America. Until now, though, our understanding…
REVIEW BY ANDREW SELKIRK What fields are left for Barry Cunliffe to conquer? After the Celts and the Bretons, Europe between the oceans, the Atlantic Ocean, the Scythians, and the Steppe, he has now turned his attention to Africa, and…
An infant who died at birth during the fourth Bronze Age phase was interred with a hen’s egg over the left hand; perhaps the infant was holding it when placed in the grave. What better symbol can be found for the regeneration of life itself than an egg?
News touching on CT scans of the mummified remains of Pharaoh Seqenenre-Taa-II (c.1558-1553 BC), a mistake uncovered on 800-year-old wall paintings in a cave in China, and a new theory concerning the domestication of dogs by early humans in Eurasia.
Domesticating dogs A study published in Scientific Reports ( s41598-020-78214-4) has proposed a new theory in the complex debate surrounding the way in which dogs came to be domesticated by early humans. It suggests that the process may have centred…
Burial grounds dedicated to domestic animals offer unique opportunities to investigate how our relationships with pets have changed over time. When and how did these cemeteries develop? Recent research by Eric Tourigny holds the key to new understanding, as Current Archaeology reports.
This site of Boncuklu (8500-7500 BC) is representative of the first farming villages in the Konya Plain of central Anatolia.