Funerary Zooarchaeology

Vom Totenmahl und anderen tierischen Grabbeigaben der Awaren in Bruckneudorf

by Mona Abd El Karem

Abd El Karem, M. (im Druck): Vom Totenmahl und anderen tierischen Grabbeigaben der Awaren in Bruckneudorf. In: F. Sauer: Die archäologischen Grabungen auf der Trasse der A6 - Fundstelle Bruckneudorf: Das awarische Gräberfeld.

Die Tierknochenfunde

by Mona Abd El Karem

Abd El Karem, M. (2012): Die Tierknochenfunde. In: St. Moser, G. Tiefengraber, K. Wiltschke-Schrotta (2012): Der Dürrnberg bei Hallein. Die Gräbergruppen Kammelhöhe und Sonneben. Dürrnberg-Forschungen 5: 237-238, Rahden/Westf.

A hospital with connections: 19th-century exotic animal remains at

by Natasha Powers

co-authored with James Morris and Louise Fowler 2011, Post-Medieval Archaeology, 45 (2), 367-373

Between April 2006 and June 2007, a series of excavations were carried out by Museum of London Archaeology in advance... more Between April 2006 and June 2007, a series of excavations were carried out by Museum of London Archaeology in advance of building redevelopment at the Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel, East London.1 The controlled excavation in an area formerly known as Bedstead Square revealed archaeological features relating to the use and development of the hospital in the early 19th century. As well as a substantial collection of human remains, the excavations produced a unique collection of 1,974 animal bones that offer an insight into the hospital’s practices and developments in comparative anatomy.

Horse Burial in First Millennium AD Britain: Issues of Deposition

by Pamela J. Cross

CROSS, P. J. 2011. - Horse Burial in First Millennium AD Britain: Issues of Deposition. European Journal of Archaeology 14(1-2): 190–209.

Burial of horses and horse-elements occurred throughout Europe during the first millennium AD. These burials are... more Burial of horses and horse-elements occurred throughout Europe during the first millennium AD. These burials are prevalent in northwest Europe and are perhaps more significant in Britain than previously realised. This article explores the position and value of the horse within Britain during this period, why the burials are likely to represent ritual deposition and what they may indicate about the culture. Both horse deposits and human-horse burials are linked to non-Christian burial and sacrificial practices of the Iron Age and Early Medieval period and are particularly associated with Anglo-Saxon and Viking Britain. Some of the traditions appear to reflect the culture described in the Icelandic Sagas, Beowulf and other legends and chronicles. Archaeologically, the human-horse burials are also linked with high status individuals and ‘warrior graves,’ while complete-horse and horse-element burials may represent ritual feasting and sacrificial rites probably linked with fertility, luck and the ancestors.

Three-Legged Animals in Mythology and Folklore

by Lloyd Graham

First release: ePublication on Academia.edu, 16 Feb, 2011.

Given the possibility of a tripedal protohominid in our own ancestry, it is interesting to learn that three-legged... more Given the possibility of a tripedal protohominid in our own ancestry, it is interesting to learn that three-legged creatures feature in the mythologies of many cultures. The attributes of tripedal animals encompass the sun and divine power (‘sanzuwu,’ the East Asian crow), the moon and earthly riches (‘chan chu,’ the Chinese money toad), the male sexual principle (Mycenaean bull, and perhaps Malian stallion), toys for children (Saharan terracotta figurines), and even sacrifice and death (Mycenaean bull, Danish ‘helhest’ or ghost-horse, and Malian terracottas from funeral chambers). This fully illustrated research essay constitutes an original synthesis of topics that previously have only been considered in isolation.