European Journal of Archaeology Special Issue 'Animal husbandry in the western Roman Empire: a zooarchaeological perspective' 20(3): 535-556.

European communities experienced many agricultural and economic changes during the Iron Age and after the Roman conquest. Variations in livestock size and shape are direct evidence of such transformations. Based on 56,283 cattle bone measurements from 112 archaeological sites, this study aims to better define husbandry change mechanisms and diversity in Britain. Results reveal very different regional patterns, due to environmental and cultural characteristics, breeding preferences, and external contacts. Cattle size seems to reflect the uneven impact of the Iron Age economic organization on British populations, the Roman influence over production strategies, and the establishment of trade networks within Britain and with the mainland Europe. This detailed analysis of the pastoral landscape of the well-de- fined territory of Britain can help our understanding of processes of economic change in the broader area of Iron Age and Roman Europe.

The determination of exploitation patterns of animals by past cultures is one of the unequivocal functions of zooarchaeology (Zimmerman Holt 1996). The domestication of Bos primigenius is certainly one of the most significant animal exploitations to have occurred in human history, and can be considered one of the defining moments in prehistoric man’s taming of nature (Davis & Dent 1966: 65-66); this statement is made without the intention of detracting from other advances in agricultural development or animal husbandry. However, it would be a mistake not to recognise the significance of cattle domestication as being of paramount importance to the establishment of a sustained meat supply for early human societies and throughout history.

This special issue of the European Journal of Archaeology discusses aspects of animal husbandry in a number of provinces of the Western Roman Empire. In this introduction, we describe the general characteristics of animal husbandry in pre-Roman and Roman times to assess any changes that may have occurred after the Roman conquest. The results suggest that the territoriality typifying the first millennium BC had a significant impact on production, resulting in a decrease in cattle size and frequencies across Europe. Nevertheless, not all the regions reacted in the same way, and regional communities that focused their animal production on pigs implemented more sustainable husbandry practices over time. By bringing together studies carried out across Europe, this journal issue highlights the existence of cases of both change and continuity across the Empire, and the (uneven) impact of the market economy on animal husbandry and dietary practices in climatically different regions.

This paper presents a meta-analysis of biometrical data of cattle (Bos taurus), sheep (Ovis aries), and pig (Sus domesticus), with a diachronic, long-term approach (first–twelfth centuries AD) and at a large regional scale (Switzerland and adjacent areas of France), with the aim of looking at changes in animal husbandry during the transition between Roman times and the Early Middle Ages. With this in mind, a comprehensive biometrical analysis is carried out, on the basis of the log-ratio technique (or logarithmic size index — LSI). The results show an increase of the size of domesticates during the Late Roman period, as well as a long period of size decrease in the subsequent centuries. The possible reasons behind this size decrease are discussed, focusing on three factors: a genetic change, less direct control over feeding and breeding, and changing patterns of herd sex ratios. We argue that these changes should be seen as an efficient adaptation of animal husbandry strategies to b...

On May 15, 2024, the world learned of an assassination attempt directed at Slovakia's prime minister, Robert Fico, who was serving his fourth term in office. Fico was attacked after a government meeting in the central Slovak town of Handlová, and suffered four gunshot wounds, one serious. He remains in stable condition. The 59-year-old populist had returned to power last year, but in recent months his controversial policies have led to widespread protests..