Cattle management during the Middle and Late Bronze Age in Mallorca (Balearic Islands). The case of the village of Els Closos in Ca'n Gaia

Identifier:  imarina:9321786

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/imarina9321786

Authors:  Valenzuela-Suau, Lua; Valen-zuela-Lamas, Silvia; Salva, Bartomeu; Fornes, Joan; Javaloyas, David; Oliver, Llorenc; Rivals, Florent; Bosch, Delphine

Abstract:
In the last decades there has been an exponential increase in analytical methods applied in zooarchaeology. This work presents the results of the zooarchaeological study carried out in the Bronze Age village (ca. 1600-850 BC) of Els Closos de Ca'n Gaia (Felanitx, Mallorca), where the faunal remains from two structures with different functionalities have been analyzed. The main objective of this study is to provide information on livestock and the exploitation of the animal resources of the naviform society. For this, a multiproxy analysis of the faunal remains has been carried out, combining the "traditional" zooarchaeological study with the study of caprine diet through dental microwear and livestock catchment areas through strontium isotopes (Sr-87/Sr-86). This multiproxy analysis suggests the existence of significant differences in the composition of the livestock herd in the two structures analyzed, where domestic consumption would be centered on the intake of young sheep and goats. On the other hand, the combination of the results of the study of the diet and the caprine catchment areas, together with other available bioarchaeological data, suggest that animals consumed were mostly of local origin, and that they probably fed on the vegetation available in nearby areas.