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Human and non‐human taphonomic effects on faunal remains from the Late Upper Paleolithic: A case study from the Stránská skála IV site, Czech Republic
Author(s) -
Boriová Soňa,
Sázelová Sandra,
Novák Martin,
Štelcl Jindřich,
Svoboda Jiří
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
international journal of osteoarchaeology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.738
H-Index - 60
eISSN - 1099-1212
pISSN - 1047-482X
DOI - 10.1002/oa.2843
Subject(s) - taphonomy , osteology , interpretation (philosophy) , archaeology , pleistocene , geography , upper paleolithic , philosophy , linguistics
This paper focuses on two accumulations of horse bones at the Stránská skála IV site, dated from around the Last Glacial Maximum (Epigravettian). Osteological material was subjected to taxonomical and taphonomical analyses. The results confirmed the prevalence of horses, and quantitative analyses indicated a minimum of 10 individuals, which is the approximate size of a herd. The taphonomical analyses did not confirm any traces of human activities, but on the basis of skeletal part representation in combination with other site features, we interpret this site as a human opportunistic killing/hunting site. This interpretation was supplemented by approximate nutritional yield analysis, and the outcome was nearly 1,160 kg of meat. The absence of traces of human activity may be explained by the extensive activity of other taphonomic agents described. Their identification plays a key role in the interpretation process.