Here’s a breakdown of the key information from the provided text:
* Archaeological Discovery: Stella Nikolova, an archaeologist, studied dog remains from 10 Iron Age sites in Bulgaria.
* dog Size: The dogs were generally medium-sized with medium-to-large withers heights, similar in size to modern German Shepherds.
* Not Pets: Evidence suggests these dogs weren’t kept as pets. A high percentage of bones showed butchery marks.
* Purpose: They were likely used as guard dogs, protecting livestock at the sites.
* Emporion Pistiros: This Iron Age trade center yielded a large number of animal bones (80,000+), with dogs making up 2% of the total.Nearly 20% of the dog bones from this site had butchery marks made with metal tools.
* Evidence of Butchering: Some lower dog jaws had burned teeth, indicating hair/fur removal before butchering and cooking.
* Muscle Tissue Targeted: The most cuts and fragmentation were found on parts of the bones with the densest muscle tissue.
In essence, the article details archaeological evidence that Iron Age people in Bulgaria sometimes consumed dogs, likely as a food source when other options were scarce, and utilized them as working animals (guard dogs) rather than companions.
