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MAMMAL REMAINS
Unique ID: MAS-100017
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Published 
This cattle mandible, or lower jaw, is comprised of two incomplete sections; cattle mandibles are rarely encountered in the archaeological record as conjoined pairs (Zhang et al. 2013). The smaller piece is an incomplete section featuring both pre-molars and molars. The larger piece is fairly complete, with the exception of teeth, extending all the way to the part in which the incisors and canines would be located. This front section is separated from the molar and pre-molar root holes by the diastema.
Providing a relative date for this cattle mandible is challenging without further examination.
Notes:
Cattle are arguably the most important species of livestock - providing products such as meat, milk and leather; and strength for agricultural tasks (e.g. ploughing) (Zhang et al. 2013). The domestication of cattle (Bos spp) is generally accepted to have occurred around 10,500 years ago in the Near East (Zhang et al. 2013). Cattle dentition is an important archaeological signature of ancient cattle husbandry, as dentition varies between individual cattle due to genetics, diet and the geographical location in which they were raised. The age of an animal at death can also be determined by the stage of dental development and the wear of the mandibular teeth (McGrory et al. 2012: 3224).
Class:
Ecofacts
Sub class: Vertebrate remains
Subsequent actions
Current location of find: In situ
Subsequent action after recording: Submitted as wreck to the Receiver of Wreck
Chronology
Broad period: UNKNOWN
Period from: MEDIEVAL
Period to: MODERN
Dimensions and weight
Quantity: 2
Discovery dates
Date(s) of discovery: Monday 17th October 2016
Personal details
Found by: This information is restricted for your login.
Recorded by: M F
Identified by: A BB
Secondary identifier: L H
Materials and construction
Primary material: Animal skeletal material
Completeness: Incomplete
Spatial coordinates
4 Figure: TQ8182
Four figure Latitude: 51.50793861
Four figure longitude: 0.60677648
1:25K map: TQ8182
1:10K map: TQ88SW
Display four figure position on What3Words
Unmasked grid reference accurate to a 1 metre square.
References cited
- McGrory, S, Svensson, E, Götherström, A, Mulville, J, Powell, A, Collins, M and O’Connor, T, 2012. A novel method for integrated age and sex determination from archaeological cattle mandibles. Amsterdam : Journal of Archaeological Science, ,
- Zhang, H, Paijmans, J, Chang, F, Wu, X, Chen, G, Lei, C, Yang, X, Wei, Z, Bradley, D, Orlando, L, O’Connor, T and Hofreiter, M, 2013. Morphological and genetic evidence for early Holocene cattle management in northeastern China. London : Nature Communications, ,
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