MAMMAL REMAINS

This tooth is a cattle (Bos spp) molar from the upper jaw. It has four crescentic cusps (polycuspid) forming a square crown, as well as four root elements. These characteristics are typical of selenodont teeth which are found in ruminant herbivores (e.g. cattle, goats, sheep, or deer). Viewed from the side, the crown of the tooth forms triangular profiles which, in combination with ridges, makes the sideways jaw motion of ruminants an effective way to break-up tough plant matter. Thus their function as crushing and grinding teeth.

The alternating layers of enamel, dentine and cementum are exposed. The surface of the neck of the tooth is white and grey, however, there is also a distinct bluish tinge to parts of the tooth that may indicate the presence of the iron phosphate mineral, vivianite. The presence of vivianite attached to bones is generally accepted as evidence of subfossil status.

Providing a relative date for this tooth is challenging as there are numerous reasons as to why it has not fully fossilised. It may be that not enough time has elapsed since the animal died, or the conditions in which the remains were deposited may not have been optimal for fossilisation. While the domestication of cattle occurred approximately 10,500 years ago in the Near East, it is generally accepted that domesticated cattle first appeared in England during the Neolithic (circa 4,000 BC) (Lynch et al. 2008).