ABSTRACT

Archaeological evidence for penned animals is increasingly used to indicate managed livestock. Advances in techniques allowing the identification of dung and urine-derived components in sediments have enabled the expansion of this line of enquiry. Corralling animals into settlements protected them from predators at night and provided more control over their breeding. Deposits associated with livestock management at Neolithic settlements across Southwest Asia sometimes contain bones of perinatal animals. Reviewing the literature, it is evident that these faunal remains are not systematically reported or preserved in all burial environments. However, their distribution may reflect different patterns of livestock integration into human settlements. The presence of perinatal remains at sites where early livestock herding took place has important implications. Not only are they compelling evidence for herd management, particularly if there is also evidence for penning deposits, but also death of livestock during the perinatal phase of life informs us about the health of animals in early herds. This in turn, provides information about the skills needed by early pastoralists as they developed animal management strategies and the possible effect of transmissible diseases as animals were kept together in closer proximity.

摘要

圈养动物的考古证据越来越多地被用来表明有管理的牲畜。允许识别沉积物中粪便和尿液衍生成分的技术进步使这一调查范围得以扩大。将动物圈养到定居点可以保护它们在夜间免受捕食者的侵害，并更好地控制它们的繁殖。在整个西南亚的新石器时代定居点，与牲畜管理相关的沉积物有时含有围产期动物的骨头。回顾文献，很明显，这些动物遗骸并未在所有墓葬环境中得到系统的报告或保存。然而，它们的分布可能反映了牲畜融入人类住区的不同模式。早期牲畜放牧地点的围产期遗迹具有重要意义。它们不仅是畜群管理的有力证据，特别是如果还有围栏沉积物的证据，而且围产期牲畜的死亡告诉我们早期畜群中动物的健康状况。这反过来又提供了有关早期牧民在制定动物管理策略时所需技能的信息，以及当动物被饲养在一起时传染性疾病可能产生的影响的信息。