Chap. 29
Wild boar seasonality, hunting-strategies and techno-economic utilizations
Saisonnalité, stratégies de chasse et utilisations techno-économiques des sangliers
p. 477-492
Résumés
This chapter gathers and combines different types of archaeozoological information for documenting the strategies, techniques and practices for the acquisition and material use of wild boar –the only large mammal available to the late PPNA Klimonas villagers. A pilot study of the stable oxygen and carbon isotopes suggests late winter/early spring births and excludes open landscape and dense forest covers. Based on the male and female canine count and the mixture analyses of osteological measurements, the sex ratio appears to slightly favour females (under 24–30 months) and old males (71%). Only one very young foetal bone was found. Age-at-death profiles are homogeneous across the site, except in the Communal building (St 10). Here we notice an extra peak at 6–19 months, likely related to symbolic practices (chap. 31). All the other age profiles point to the same low selective culling strategy, with an apparently deliberate intention to spare individuals under six months. Compared with the middle A2 phase at Shillourokambos (c. 7600–7400 cal BC), where pig rearing is well attested, the wild boar acquisition strategy at Klimonas clearly refers to hunting. This activity focused on groups of animals, either family or subadult groups. Together with modern comparisons, the age-at-death profiles suggest that the hunting season lasted from the end of summer until the beginning of winter. The fact that all the body parts were brought back to the site suggests that the hunting grounds were located close to the village. Hunting appears to have been a well-mastered seasonal activity. Altogether, excepting the presence of only one ungulate species, the meat and fat procurement at Klimonas did not differ from that of all the other Late PPNA sites of Southwest Asia.
Ce chapitre rassemble et combine différents types d’informations archéozoologiques contribuant à documenter les stratégies, techniques et pratiques d’acquisition et d’utilisation matérielle du sanglier, seul grand mammifère disponible pour les villageois de Klimonas à la fin du PPNA, vers 8800 av. n. è. Il s’appuie sur l’analyse archéozoologique de près de 5 000 restes identifiés de sanglier. Malgré la mauvaise conservation de l’émail dentaire, une étude pilote des isotopes stables de l’oxygène et du carbone le long de la couronne de trois incisives inférieures suggère des naissances en fin d’hiver et au début du printemps, situation classique pour les sangliers méditerranéens modernes. Les valeurs du carbone excluent par ailleurs les paysages ouverts ainsi que les couvertures forestières denses, en total accord avec les conclusions archéobotaniques développées au chap. 23. L’estimation des sexe-ratio à l’abattage repose sur l’analyse de 86 restes de canines dont 39 mesurables, ainsi que sur l’analyse des mélanges des 7 mesures crâniennes et postcrâniennes présentant les plus nettes répartitions bimodales. Il apparaît que les sangliers mâles et femelles âgés de moins de 24-30 mois ont été tués sans grande distinction de sexe, avec toutefois un léger avantage pour les femelles. En contrepartie, les mâles représentent 71 % des sujets abattus après l’âge de 30 mois. Les os de néonataux (moins de 2-3 semaines) représentent moins de 0,1 % du NISP. Leur présence est probablement liée à des pratiques symboliques. Nous n’avons trouvé qu’un seul os de fœtus (mort 75 jours après la conception) sur 4 823 spécimens considérés. Cette rareté suggère que les femelles gestantes n’étaient pas gardées en captivité dans le village ni à proximité. Les profils d’âge d’abattage reposent sur un total de 982 dents jugales représentant un nombre minimum de 171 individus. Ils diffèrent légèrement selon qu’on prend en compte les dents supérieures ou inférieures, selon la méthode de comptage (nombre de dents versus NMI) et selon les secteurs de fouille. Tous mettent en évidence une même stratégie d’abattage peu sélective, si l’on excepte une probable volonté d’épargner les individus de moins de 6 mois, de faible rapport pondéral. Les analyses multivariées mettent en évidence que, si l’on excepte le biais méthodologique dû à l’utilisation des dents supérieures ou inférieures, la seule différence importante entre tous les profils de Klimonas concerne les séries de dents provenant des unités stratigraphiques du Bâtiment communautaire St 10. Elle résulte de pratiques symboliques analysées au chap. 31. La comparaison avec les profils d’âge d’abattage des phases ancienne A et moyenne A2 de Shillourokambos apporte une aide à l’interprétation, car le second fournit une référence locale pour un système d’élevage porcin pré-céramique. Il apparaît que les différents profils de Klimonas diffèrent beaucoup moins les uns des autres qu’ils ne s’éloignent de ceux de Shillourokambos, ces derniers correspondant tous deux à des stratégies d’exploitation très différentes. Le fort contraste entre le profil d’abattage saisonnier très structuré des porcs domestiques de la phase moyenne de Shillourokambos (deux pics à 6-9 et 18-24 mois) et le faible niveau de sélectivité observée dans le village de Klimonas, permet d’exclure sans ambiguïté toute pratique d’élevage au PPNA récent. Les données réunies à Klimonas, qui peuvent donc être considérées comme représentatives d’un système pré-céramique local d’exploitation par la chasse, permettent à leur tour de réviser l’interprétation de la phase ancienne A de Shillourokambos (8500-8100 cal BC, PPNB ancien) et de confirmer que l’élevage de porcs était déjà initié à cette époque, en plus d’une chasse au sanglier encore dominante. En tenant compte des données sur le sexe, les fœtus et les âges d’abattage, il ne fait aucun doute que la chasse était la seule stratégie d’acquisition du sanglier à Klimonas. Compte tenu des données isotopiques préliminaires sur la saison des naissances et des connaissances de la littérature sur le cycle de vie des populations modernes de sangliers, l’abattage massif des mâles et des femelles entre 6 et 24 mois peut être interprété comme la conséquence d’une stratégie de chasse dirigée vers les groupes familiaux (femelles suitées) ou de jeunes de seconde année ; la chasse aux mâles adultes qui vivent en groupes de plus petite taille ou en solitaire, était secondaire. Dans ces conditions, il est probable que la chasse se pratiquait en groupe, peut-être avec l’aide de chiens. La principale période cynégétique se situait vraisemblablement entre la fin de l’été et le début de l’hiver. Il s’agit de la saison des plus grands regroupements d’animaux et des meilleurs rendements en viande mais surtout en graisse ; c’était probablement aussi la basse saison pour les activités agricoles. Les données disponibles n’excluent ni ne plaident en faveur d’un système de contrôle, voire de « gestion » des sangliers sauvages dans les environs du village ; la proportion de 50 % d’animaux tués avant 24 mois, considérée par certains archéozoologues comme un critère en faveur d’une « gestion pré-domestique » ne peut pas être tenue pour significative dans le contexte chypriote où la démographie naturelle est inconnue, et les contraintes écologiques très différentes de celles du continent. Sur la base du grand échantillon du Secteur B (NISP = 2404, représentant au minimum 46 individus), les analyses de la représentation des unités anatomiques (MAU = NMPS) indiquent que, si l’on excepte les effets classiques de la préservation et de la collecte différentielles, toutes les parties du corps sont équitablement représentées. Les carcasses complètes étaient rapportées au village. Les lieux de mise à mort n’étaient jamais très éloignés. Quelques différences apparaissent toutefois avec les distributions de fréquence des mAU de Shillourokambos, qui confirment une attention particulière des villageois de Klimonas pour les portions antérieures de la mâchoire inférieure portant canines et incisives, non seulement dans le Bâtiment communautaire, mais aussi, dans une moindre mesure, dans les bâtiments « domestiques » du Secteur B. Par ailleurs, nous avons observé une nette sous-représentation de la boîte crânienne, peut-être liée à des pratiques symboliques. Les techniques de boucherie et de cuisine sont très peu documentées en raison du mauvais état de conservation des surfaces osseuses. Près de 5 % des NISP font référence à l’utilisation des os pour la fabrication d’outils ou de parures. Dans l’ensemble, la stratégie d’exploitation du seul grand mammifère qui vivait sur l’île durant l’occupation du village de Klimonas ne semble pas différer significativement des systèmes d’exploitation des grands ongulés durant le PPNA récent sur le proche continent. La chasse ciblée sur des groupes d’ongulés jeunes ou subadultes, probablement pratiquée en groupe, à proximité du village, préférentiellement dans les proches ripisylves, suggère une activité saisonnière bien maîtrisée.
Texte intégral
Introduction
1This chapter brings together all the archaeozoological information on the acquisition strategies and techniques and the material use of wild boar at Klimonas. Symbolic manifestations are discussed separately in chap. 31.
2So far, none of the PPNA sites on the mainland has provided a clear argument in favour of pig domestication in the early 9th millennium BC, the period of occupation at Klimonas (ca. 8800 cal BC; chap. 10). The earliest evidence of pig domestication dates to the second half of the 9th millennium, in the Upper Euphrates Valley (Nevalı Çori; Peters et al. 2005) and the Damascus area (Helmer and Gourichon 2017). However, in a series of Late PPNA or Early PPNB sites in southeast Anatolia, convergent evidence suggests an increase in the interaction between people and the wild boar, probably boosted by the development of wild boar commensal behaviour and their attraction toward the peripheral areas of the villages due to increasing cereal cultivation refuse (see references in Arbuckle 2016 and Vigne et al. 2017b). The slow intensification of interactions between the wild boar and humans throughout the 9th millennium is well documented in the Upper Tigris Basin (e.g. Rosenberg and Redding 1998, Ervynck et al. 2001, Starkovich and Stiner 2009); it suggests different wild boar exploitation strategies, including hunting and management (e.g. Redding and Rosenberg 1998). It is therefore important to try to precise the exploitation system of the Cypriot wild boar, especially as Cyprus has provided the earliest evidence of their management (Vigne et al. 2009) and Klimonas is the only site able to document it at present.
3The main question is: what kind of hunting or management system were people developing in Cyprus c. 8800 cal BC to obtain the best profit from the only ungulate species at their disposal in this unusual and insular environment? mortality profiles are, of course, the main means to document this complex question. However, in this chapter we will also look at all the information that can be used to explore this novel issue: carcass processing, butchery and consumption, sex ratio, the presence of perinatal individuals and, where possible, the behaviour of Klimonas boar. Therefore, we shall begin this exploration with an attempt at answering the question of seasonality.
1. Exploratory pilot study of seasonality, based on stable oxygen and carbon isotope analysis
1.1. Aim of the study
4This pilot study aimed to explore the possibility of estimating the seasonality of birth and feeding, which are key parameters for understanding human-pig interactions in the PPN of Cyprus and, more broadly, southwest Asia. In this perspective, the crown enamel of lower wild boar incisors (I/1, I/2) from Klimonas was sampled sequentially via stable oxygen and carbon isotope analyses. Indeed, previous pilot studies performed on modern reference sets of pig teeth (Frémondeau et al. 2012) have established the potential of sequential sampling pig incisors to retrieve the seasonal records of stable oxygen and carbon isotope ratios in enamel. The subsequent applications of these protocols on ancient material have yielded highly informative insights into the seasonality of various pig-related activities (e.g. Frémondeau et al. 2017).
5The challenge in applying such analyses on PPNA faunal remains from Cyprus is the unfavourable preservation conditions. The main problems – typical of many prehistoric sites in Cyprus – are the carbonate crusts encasing faunal remains and the erosion of surfaces devoid of such crusts. Hence, the main aim of this pilot study was to evaluate the feasibility and potential of stable oxygen and carbon isotopes sequential analyses on suid incisors from prehistoric Cyprus.
1.2. Material and methods
6In total, four wild boar mandibular incisors were sampled. Two from a subadult female (I/1 and I/2) and two loose (I/1s) belonging to two separate individuals of unknown age, even though the incisors were fully erupted and lightly worn (i.e. of subadult or adult age). Table 29-1 presents the provenance and details of the sampled teeth.
7The sampled teeth came from two contexts. The two incisors of Pig1 (US 2007) came from a secondary filling between two PPNA earth walls. most of the bone remains came from the redeposition of PPNA sediments, despite a small number of pottery sherds dating to the Sotira period in this stratigraphic unit. The risk that this specimen is of a later date (e.g. Sotira) is minimal. Furthermore, its appearance (fig. 29-1, A) is consistent with the rest of the PPNA faunal assemblage from Klimonas, dated to c. 8800 cal BC, which was encased in the characteristic carbonate crust.
Fig. 29-1 – material used for the stable isotope study: A, mandible from which Pig1 I1 and I2 were extracted, almost fully encased in a carbonate crust; B and C, labial view of the loose I/1s from units D36 (B) and H36 (C), after removal of carbonate crust from the enamel surface.
Matériel utilisé pour l’étude des isotopes stables : A, mandibule d’où ont été extraits les spécimens Pig1 I1 et I2, presque entièrement enveloppés dans une croûte de carbonate ; B et C, vue labiale des I/1 isolées issues des unités D36 (B) et H36 (C), après élimination de la croûte de carbonate de la surface de l’émail. Clichés A. hadjikoumis, U. Sheffield.
Photos A. hadjikoumis, U. Sheffield.
8The isolated incisors of Pig2 and Pig3 came from the earthen fill of the Communal building, dating to around 8800 cal BC. These specimens were also encased in a carbonate crust, which was mechanically removed (fig. 29-1, B, C).
9After extraction of the teeth and removal of the carbonate crust, sequential enamel sampling was performed on the labial side, perpendicular to the tooth’s growth axis. The position of each sample was measured by its distance to the enamel-root junction (erj). Appendix 29-1 presents detailed chemical treatment and the technique for measuring the stable isotope ratios. A total of 39 samples were taken from all teeth (tab. 29-1), of which 5 were excluded from the analysis due to contamination, probably caused by cracks in the enamel.
Tab. 29-1 – Provenance and general characteristics of wild boar incisors from Klimonas (KL), sampled for stable isotopic analyses.
Provenance et caractéristiques générales des incisives de sanglier échantillonnées à Klimonas (KL) pour l’analyse des isotopes stables.
1.3. Results, discussion and conclusion
10As shown by the results (appendix 29-1, fig. 29-2), the sequences deriving from Pig1 (for both I/1 and I/2) are too short to be useful, as sampling had to stop due to extensive cracking of the enamel layer. Fortunately, Pig2 and Pig3 I/1s yielded longer sequences. The δ18O values measured in Pig2 and Pig3 ranged from -4.1‰ to -1.1‰, while the δ13C values ranged from -13.0‰ to -11.8‰.
Fig. 29-2 – Intra-tooth variation of stable carbon (δ13C, black symbols) and oxygen (δ18O, white symbols) isotope ratios of enamel bioapatite. Each sample is located using its distance from the enamel-root junction.
Variation intra-dentaire des rapports isotopiques du carbone (δ13C, symboles noirs) et de l’oxygène (δ18O, symboles blancs) de la bioapatite de l’émail. Chaque échantillon est localisé dans la couronne dentaire en utilisant sa distance par rapport à la jonction émail-racine.
11As mentioned in the results, only Pig2 and Pig3 yielded relatively long sequences, although they are based purely on I/1s. Therefore, to answer questions on seasonality, the availability and combination of sequences of I/1 and I/2 from the same individual are needed (Frémondeau et al. 2012). Nevertheless, the similarity in patterns of the δ18O values with those reported by Frémondeau et al. (2012) for Corsican feral pigs that display a trend towards higher δ18O values during tooth crown formation, raises the possibility of late winter/early spring births at Klimonas. Regarding δ13C values, given an average isotopic enrichment value (ε*) of 14.5‰ between diet and bioapatite in pigs (Warinner and Tuross 2009), the values measured in Klimonas pigs were lower than those expected for open areas (about -11‰). However, they are not suggestive of feeding in dense forest cover, thus leaving open the possibility of a vegetation cover between these two extremes. This result perfectly matches the archaeobotanical analyses (chap. 23).
12To conclude, the results of this pilot study can only be used to formulate the working hypotheses outlined above. Their testing and refinement require the recovery of larger samples of suitable specimens (i.e. mandibles containing both I/1 and I/2s) for future analyses.
2. Slaughtering strategy: selection of sex or age classes
2.1. Sex ratios
2.1.1. Canines
13Suid canines are highly dimorphic. We measured the maximal antero-posterior (DAP) and transversal (DT) diameters of 39 of the many canines found in Klimonas, isolated or easily extractible from the bone. All canines were either adult or subadult—young teeth being unmeasurable—and were unequally distributed between the upper (24) and the lower (15) canines. In both cases, the measurements listed in appendix 29-2 cluster into two distinct groups, corresponding to the two sexes (fig. 29-3).
Fig. 29-3 – Scatter diagram of the maximal diameters of the upper (A) and lower (B) canines of the Klimonas wild boar (DAP, antero-posterior diameter; DT, transversal diameter).
Diagramme bivarié des diamètres maximaux des canines supérieures (A) et inférieures (B) de Klimonas (DAP, diamètre antéro-postérieur ; DT, diamètre transverse).
14Males were more numerous for the upper and lower canines (71%). This difference is highly significant compared to a well-balanced sex ratio (z test, p = 0.0007).
15This critical difference between males and females is also visible when one considers the sexable (but unmeasurable) fragments of canines and jaw bones (Sector B: 65 males versus 21 females NISP). It may result from differential preservation, the male teeth being larger and stronger, and the selective slaughtering of males. It is worth noting that the male cluster in figure 29-3 tends to be composed of two groups, which may respectively refer to adults and subadults. Therefore, one cannot exclude that, because of the very different morphology of the male and female canines, subadult females were under-represented in our sample due to their smaller size and strength.
2.1.2. morphometric analyses on the other teeth and post-cranial bones
16Seven from over a hundred measured osteometric cranial and post-cranial variables (chap. 30) bring clarity to these questions. They show a clear and statistically well supported bimodal distribution, which can be interpreted as the consequence of sexual dimorphism. Gaussian mixture modelization enabled the proportion of males and females (appendix 29-3) to be estimated. For males, this fluctuated between 35.2% (tibia, N = 19) and 70.6% (length of the third upper molar, m3/), with an average proportion of 46.1% (N = 240; fig. 29-4).
Fig. 29-4 – Estimation of the proportion of males based on the mixture analyses of the seven osteometric measurements presenting the best supported bimodal distribution. Asterisks represent the values that significantly differ from the 50% sex ratio.
Estimation de la proportion de mâles fondée sur les analyses des mélanges des mesures des sept variables ostéométriques présentant la distribution bimodale la mieux soutenue statistiquement. Les astérisques représentent les valeurs significativement différentes du sexe-ratio de 50 %.
17This last value means that the sex ratio of the adult wild boar from Klimonas does not differ from 50% (z test; appendix 29-3). However, the proportion of males and females estimated based on the m3/ length is a significant exception. This tooth cannot be measured for specimens of less than 24–30 months because it is not yet erupted (Rowley-Conwy 1993; Horard-Herbin 1997); therefore, all our data refers to older animals. In contrast, the deciduous premolars (dp/4) represent individuals killed between 2 and 12 months of age (40–45% of males); the first or second molars concern individuals older than 6 or 12 months (40–43% of males) and the distal humerus and tibia are not measurable before epiphyseal fusion, i.e. 12 and 24 months (58 and 35% of males). These observations led us to consider separately the sex ratios of adults, estimated on the m3/ and dominated by males (at 71%), from those of young and subadults, evaluated with the other six measurements. If we exclude the m3/, the male proportion for the latter becomes 42.9% (N = 230), significantly lower than that of the females (p = 0.003).
2.1.3. Conclusion
18As we suspected for the canines, the males were only significantly dominant (c. 71%) in the older age classes above 24–30 months. Conversely, the proposition for the first- and second-year animals was slightly, but significantly, dominated by females (43%).
2.2. Foetal and perinatal bones
19The presence of foetal or perinatal bones is a good indicator of the status of suids. Females in captivity tend to roll over the weakest young and/or develop pathologies (such as leptospirosis), which provoke abortions or early mortality, as observed in the late phase of Shillourokambos (Vigne 2021b, p. 572 et seq.).
20Despite intensive sieving (chap. 24), we found only one foetal bone out of the 4823 Sus scrofa teeth and bones identified from Klimonas. The length of this left humerus shaft was 18.5 mm (KD = 2.2 mm), indicating an age-at-death ca. 75 days after conception (2.5 months), according to the formula proposed by Gjesdal and then Wenham (cited by Prummel 1989), or 40 days before birth. It was found in SU 6053, which is probably part of the primary fillings of buildings B13-14.
21Less than ten other very young bones or groups of bones of the same individual indicated an age-at-death of between 2–3 weeks and 2 months old. Together with the foetal humerus, they represent only 0.1% of the suid bones from Klimonas, 25 times less than in the late phase of Shillourokambos (2.5%) where the majority of suids were reared (Vigne 2021b). In addition, all the very young suid bones from Klimonas were part of symbolic deposits (chap. 31). However, it should be noted that most of them came from the Communal building, where preservation was poor.
22Presumably, none of the symbolic deposits included the foetal humerus. Besides, it was so young that it was probably not even visible that the female wild boar was pregnant when it was killed and butchered.
23The presence of a unique foetal bone is probably fortuitous; the small number of neonatal remains, however, is obviously connected to symbolic practices and has no connection to keeping suids in captivity.
2.3. Dental mortality profiles
2.3.1. material and methods
24The dental datasets of the three excavation sectors (Central, B and F) were processed separately. Dental ages-at-death have been double-blind estimated by two of the authors (T. C., J.-D. V.) using the criteria of Rowley-Conwy (1993) for the eruption and Horard-Herbin (1997) for the wear pattern. Both the upper and lower teeth were processed. We estimated the frequencies of each age class by counting the number of teeth (Vigne 1988) and the minimal number of individuals, considering age differences. The frequencies were corrected for the differential duration of each age class before cal culating the relative frequencies (according to Brochier 2013). We followed Vigne (2011c) for the representation mode of the profiles.
25The total number of specimens taken into consideration was 673, comprising a total of 982 cheek teeth, either isolated or, most often, included in the jaws (tab. 29-2). They represent a total minimum number of 77 individuals (frequency mNI) which rises to 171 individuals when considering age criteria.
Tab. 29-2 – Numbers of specimens, cheek teeth and individuals used for the elaboration of mortality age profiles of wild boar in the different sectors of Klimonas.
Effectifs des pièces, dents jugales et individus utilisés pour l’élaboration des profils d’âge de mortalité des sangliers des différents secteurs de Klimonas.
2.3.2. Central Sector
26Appendices 29-4, 29-5, 29-6 and 29-7 present the raw data. The final counts and all the profiles are in appendix 29-8. All the profiles are very well supported (426 teeth, 70 individuals).
27There is a significant difference in frequency distribution in the age classes between the upper and lower teeth (Chi² = 27.3, df =10, pMC = 0.002). The lower teeth better represent the very young and very old age classes. In contrast, estimates on the upper teeth favour age classes between 6 and 24 months, making the profile’s appearance more compact (appendix 29-8). This inconsistency likely results from methodological biases related to using the Rowley-Conwy and Horard-Herbin methods on the upper teeth when they were only designed for the lower teeth.
28However, the general shape of the two profiles is generally similar. Regarding the number of teeth or the mNI, the total profile of the Central Sector (fig. 29-5, A) reflects low selectivity, with 50% of suids killed between 6 and 24 months. Only the youngest (piglets or “squeakers” as the hunters cal l them; less than 6 months) were spared, even though differential preservation probably accentuated their low frequency (7%).
Fig. 29-5 – Dental mortality profiles of wild boar in the Klimonas Central Sector as cumulated number of upper and lower teeth: A, entire Central Sector; B, levels within the St 10 (Communal building); C, levels outside St 10. D, age ranges of identified individuals.
Profils d’abattage dentaires des sangliers du Secteur central de Klimonas en nombre de dents supérieures et inférieures cumulées : A, pour la totalité des Secteur central ; B, pour les seuls niveaux compris dans l’emprise du Bâtiment communautaire St 10 ; C, pour les niveaux situés hors de cette emprise. D, intervalles d’âge des individus identifiés.
29When the profiles of the stratigraphic units of St 10 (fig. 29-5, B) are compared with those of the other stratigraphic units in the Central Sector (fig. 29-5, C), there is a clear, but not statistically significant, disparity (Chi² = 16.4, df = 10, pMC = 0.08) concerning a greater abundance of the 6-9 months class in St 10 (50% of the Chi² contributions). It seems, therefore, that the deposits in St 10 are distinguished from those in the surrounding areas by a high proportion of what modern hunters cal l “juveniles” (bêtes rousses, in French).
2.3.3. Sector B
30Appendices 29-9 and 29-10 present the raw data. The final counts and all the profiles are in appendix 29-11. Although the sample is half of that of the Central Sector (226 teeth, 46 individuals), the mortality profiles are well supported.
31As for the Central Sector, the profiles obtained from the number of teeth significantly differ between the maxilla and the mandible (Chi² = 36.1, df = 10, pMC = 0.0001, appendix 29-11). The frequency peaks are in opposition: 3–6 months, 9–12 months and 18–24 months for the upper teeth; 6–9 months and 12–18 months for the lower teeth (appendix 29-11). This inconsistency is again the result of a methodological bias, but the two profiles are nevertheless similar in shape.
32Whether expressed in the number of teeth or mNI, the cumulated profiles indicate a low selectivity (fig. 29-6). The age classes between 6 and 24 months are dominant, with 43 and 39%, respectively. Here again, there were more piglets under 6 months old than in the Central Sector: 9.4 and 17%, depending on the method. This result probably stems from the better state of bone preservation in Sector B than in the Central Sector, as demonstrated in chap. 24. The more fragile remains of the young are better preserved here than the older and therefore stronger ones, which makes the profile less selective and argues again for a relative random culling strategy.
Fig. 29-6 – Dental mortality profiles of the wild boar in Klimonas Sector B as cumulated number of upper and lower teeth: A, number of teeth; B, number of individuals. C, age ranges of identified individuals.
Profils d’abattage dentaires des sangliers du Secteur B de Klimonas en nombre de dents supérieures et inférieures cumulées : A, exprimé en nombre de dents ; B, exprimé en nombre d’individus d’âge. C, intervalles d’âge des individus identifiés.
33The number of teeth per age class, for all lower and upper teeth, does not differ significantly from the Central Sector (Chi² = 16.4, df = 10, pMC = 0.08). However, there was a weak but significant difference with the series from the St 10 Communal building (Chi² = 18.9, df = 10, pMC = 0.04), due to the abundance of the 6–9 months old class (75% of the Chi² contribution). Unsurprisingly, there was no significant difference between the areas of the Central Sector outside St 10 and Sector B (Chi² = 12.4, df = 10, pMC = 0.25).
2.3.4. Sector F
34Seventeen teeth from Sector F provided age data, indicating the presence of at least five individuals (appendix 29-12). The youngest (2–4 months) was included in a symbolic deposit (see chap. 31). Two individuals died between 6 and 9 months, the age class most represented in the St 10 profile. Two others were killed at the end of their second year or at the beginning of the fourth year (a large adults).
35Unfortunately, the Sector F sample is too small to be compared with the other two. The spectrum is, however, compatible with those of the Central and B Sectors.
2.3.5. Variability of the age-at-death profiles
36To analyse more precisely the different variability factors between the different profiles and to try to hierarchise them, we undertook multivariate correspondence analyses (CA) of the Chi² distances between them (appendix 29-13).
37The CA confirms that using either upper or lower teeth is the first factor of variability. Indeed, for each sector, the projection on the two first axes (66.7% of the inertia; fig. 29-7, A) contrasts the profiles established on the lower teeth (right) with the profiles of the upper teeth (left); the cumulative profiles appear between the two. Here is an indication that the variability resulting from methodological biases surpasses the one from possible taphonomic differences or culling strategies, and that the latter are relatively homogeneous across all sectors.
Fig. 29-7 – F1 x F2 (A) and F2 x F3 (B) correspondence analysis (CA) projections for the raw numbers of age-at-death groups (black dots) estimated according to different methods (number of upper, lower teeth, dental NMIs) for Klimonas Sector B and Central Sector, as well as for the Communal building St 10 and the spaces adjacent to it. The size of the dots for the age classes is proportional to their respective contribution to the two considered factors.
Projections F1 x F2 (A) et F2 x F3 (B) de l’analyse factorielle des correspondances des effectifs bruts des classes d’âges (points noirs) estimés selon différentes méthodes (nombre de dents supérieures, inférieures, NMI dentaires) pour le Secteur B et le Secteur central de Klimonas, ainsi que pour le Bâtiment communautaire St 10 et les espaces qui le jouxtent. La taille des points représentant les classes d’âge est proportionnelle à leur contribution respective aux deux facteurs concernés.
38The projection on the second and third axes allowed the analysis of the other variability factors (fig. 29-7, B). On the F3 axis (17.7%), we again found the upper/lower tooth effect, though much reduced compared to F1. However, for the F2 axis (28.5%), the strong discrimination between the St 10 Communal building’s profiles and those of the residential sectors, whether in Sector B or the areas adjacent to St 10 in the Central Sector, appears to be the main reason for variability. This fact confirms that we must consider the age-at-death profiles of the Communal building separately from those of the other areas. For F2, the profiles of the Communal building appear to be correlated with the 6–9 months age class, confirming that the relative abundance of this age class is the main difference from the other village sectors.
2.3.6. Characterisation of the Klimonas profiles in comparison with Shillourokambos
39The age-at-death profiles from Shillourokambos provide a good comparative reference for refining the interpretation of the Klimonas profiles because not only were they elaborated with the same technique, but also they represent the different stages between hunting and pig rearing (Vigne 2011c, 2021b): incipient rearing alongside dominant hunting for early phase A (8500–8000 cal BC); increase of rearing during early phases B-C (8000–7700 cal BC); dominant pig breeding during middle phase A (7700–7300 cal BC; especially middle phase A2); pig breeding together with more wild boar hunting during the middle B and late phases (7300–7100 cal BC).
40It is therefore of particular interest to compare the three main profiles from Klimonas (St 10, Central Sector without St 10; and Sector B) with the two extreme profiles of Shillourokambos, i.e. early and middle phase A. This comparison initially points out a high degree of homogeneity for the three Klimonas profiles (Chi² = 31.6, df = 20, p = 0.04) against a strong heterogeneity for all five profiles (Chi² = 242, df = 40, p < 0.0001). The first CA factor of the five profiles (fig. 29-8, A; appendix 29-14) from Shillourokambos middle phase A2 against all the Klimonas profiles, is concentrated in the north-east quadrant, including the St 10 profile. The second factor isolates, at a much smaller distance, the profile of Shillourokambos early phase A.
Fig. 29-8 – A, F1xF2 CA projection of the raw numbers for age-at-death classes (black dots), estimated using the jugal teeth from the three main Klimonas assemblages and from the early A and middle A2 phases from Shillourokambos. B-E, comparison of the age-at-death profiles (tooth number) from Klimonas (B-C) and Shillourokambos (D-E).
A, Projection F1 x F2 de l’analyse factorielle des correspondances des effectifs bruts des classes d’âge (points noirs) estimés sur le total des dents jugales des trois principaux ensembles de Klimonas et des phases ancienne A et moyenne A2 de Shillourokambos. B-E, comparaison des profils d’âge d’abattage (en nombre de dents) de Klimonas (B-C) et de Shillourokambos (D-E).
41These observations led us to three main conclusions:
- The differences we have highlighted between the Communal building and the other areas of Klimonas are moderate in comparison to the differences between Klimonas and Shillourokambos.
- These profiles appear to be very different from those corresponding to pig rearing during the middle phase A2 at Shillourokambos, as the latter is correlated with the high frequency of age classes 6–9 months and 18–24 months in the scatter diagram; in other words, the main difference lies in the opposition between the low selectivity at Klimonas (fig. 29-8, C) and the high selectivity of the middle phase A2 at Shillourokambos, focused on two age classes, 6–9 and 18–24 months (fig. 29-8, E).
- The profile from Shillourokambos early phase A appears to reflect a very different culling strategy to both the Klimonas and the middle phase A profiles, with a high representation of very old age classes (more than 60 months; fig. 29-8, D).
2.4. Discussion and conclusions about the wild boar acquisition strategy at Klimonas
2.4.1. Characterization of the Klimonas wild boar procurement strategy: hunting
42Despite some discrepancy between the information provided by the upper and lower teeth, and except for the Communal building, all the age-at-death profiles from Klimonas describe the same low-selective culling strategy. All the age classes mirror the respective proportions in a usual wild boar population submitted to predation, where first and second-year individuals massively predominate the older age classes (Mauget et al. 1984, Bouldoire and Vassant 1989). Indeed, the low proportion of animals older than two years matches their low proportions in the natural demographic profile of wild boar populations and, therefore, should not be considered a mark of selectivity. Only a marked deficit of piglets (less than six months), probably accentuated by differential preservation, stronger in the Central Sector than in Sector B, may result from a deliberate desire to spare the youngest individuals. One explanation might be that a three-month-old piglet weighs less than 10kg and that the meat, and moreover the fat yield, only becomes interesting after the age of six months (Pépin et al. 1987).
43Considering the age-at-death and sex ratio information (fig. 29-8, C), we can conclude that the Klimonas villagers killed wild boar without any visible selectivity: males and females between 6 and 24 months, and occasionally old males. This strategy appears to be very different from that of early pig rearing at Shillourokambos during the A2 middle phase, which was strongly focused on the 6-9 and 18-24-months age classes.
44We can therefore conclude without any doubt, that the strategy of meat and fat acquisition of the Klimonas villagers relied exclusively on hunting. Such a conclusion is in complete agreement with all the observations made on the Near Eastern mainland for the Late PPNA, where hunting was the rule and husbandry had not yet started (Arbuckle 2016, Vigne et al. 2017b).
45Based on the abundance of both sexes between 6 and 18 months, we can suggest that hunters massively targeted “family groups”, comprising several mothers with their first and second-year offspring (“redheads” or “pigs of the sounder” in hunter terminology). According to Frädrich (1974) and mauget et al. (1984), the young stay with their mother from their weaning (3 months) until the next parturition and often for several more months, especially if the females are young. The high rate of culling between 18 and 24 months also suggests that hunters targeted small groups of gregarious and inexperienced young males before they began breeding. In both cases, it appears that hunting focused on animal groups, a strategy which provides an optimal yield of food per hunting session (Bouldoire and Vassant 1989). Hunters of the Epipaleolithic, mesolithic and PPNA throughout Europe and the Near East practised the same strategy (e.g. Peters et al. 2005, Gourichon and Helmer 2008).
2.4.2. Was the hunting seasonal?
46Although they should be viewed with caution due to the small sample size, the stable isotope analyses presented at the beginning of this chapter suggest a rather open vegetation landscape (see also chapter 23). This provided favourable conditions for large family groups in all modern and ancient ungulate populations (Mauget et al. 1984, mithen 1987) and is consistent with the hunting strategy previously outlined.
47The isotopic analyses also suggest the possibility of late winter/early spring births for the Klimonas wild boars. According to the life cycle of modern wild boars such a tempo would generate the most important assemblage of family groups and subadults during summer, autumn, and early winter (Frädrich 1974, mauget et al. 1984). Such a hypothesis would fit with two opportunities: summer and the first half of autumn are currently dry seasons in Cyprus, as they were during the occupation of our site (Hadjikoumis et al. 2018). These are the best seasons for hunting as family groups concentrate around the rivers, in the riparian vegetation of the nearby Athiaki Valley (chap. 3). Autumn and early winter remain favourable, however, as this is when the wild boars accumulate fat to withstand the cold, dry winter season; fat being, of course, as important as meat to prehistoric humans. Apart from the seasonal biological cycle of wild boar, a second opportunity may have favoured hunting between summer and early winter. The life cycle of cereals and other annual herbaceous plants, either cropped or cultivated, ends in spring in Cyprus, with the harvesting and most of the cultivating activities stopping until the following spring. Hence, more time, potentially, could have been devoted to hunting during this part of the year.
2.4.3. Is there any suspicion of wild boar management?
48Age-at-death profiles also indicate that about half of the hunted individuals were killed before 24 months. At hallan Çemi, Rosenberg and Redding (1998) and Redding (2005) interpreted the ratio shift of suids exceeding two years old from 83 to 50% between the early and late occupation phases. The interpretation suggested this was a consequence of the transition from hunting to some type of management based on captive females, similar to the one traditionally undertaken by the people of Papua New Guinea (Redding and Rosenberg 1998). On the other hand, Ervynck et al. (2001) evidenced a slow domestication process between the PPNA and the middle PPNB at Çayönü, with intermediate stages where some wild boars shifted to a commensal way of life, propitious to a kind of management. Again, as in hallan Çemi and Klimonas, the proportion of animals killed before 24 months is about 50%.
49These observations raise the question of the possible management of at least some of the suids consumed at Klimonas. However, this relatively high proportion of young animals in the age-at-death profile could result from high hunting pressure or a hunting strategy focusing on family groups rather than on groups of young second-year adults. In addition, insularity may have modified the natural demographic profile of the Cypriot wild boar. Unfortunately, we lack additional isotopic or hypoplasia information to determine whether the Klimonas villagers were indeed practising a particular form of hunting that might have evolved into some sort of management. According to information from the continent and the fact that the economy of the Klimonas villagers focused highly on the wild boar, this is something that we cannot exclude.
2.4.4. Social or symbolic practices in the Communal building
50The Communal building at Klimonas provides an age-at-death profile clearly distinct from all the other areas of the site, characterised by a peak in the 6–9 months age class. It does not fit the pig-rearing profile of the middle phases of Shillourokambos, neither is it very different from the profiles of the other sites (except for the additional 6–9 months class), and it is restricted to a very special area of the site. For all these reasons, it is unlikely to refer to pig-rearing in any form. We propose to interpret it as the result of the mixing of suid bones common across the whole site due to their inclusion in the earth material used for constructing the embankments, floors, benches, and walls of the successive buildings (see chap. 11), together with a small number of teeth and jaws resulting from special activities. This proposal is further discussed in chap. 31.
2.4.5. Revisiting Shillourokambos’ early phase A?
51The age-at-death profile of Shillourokambos’ early phase A (8500–8100 cal B; Vigne 2011c, p. 924-925) comprises a wide age range, from 6 months to old age (fig. 29-8, D). Despite the small sample size (43 teeth and 11 individuals), this is a rather well-structured profile. We distinguished three sets of animals making a low but clear visible peak: 25% of very old subjects (over 5 years old) that we interpreted as the consequence of a special demographic trait of the local population due to low predation pressure; 27% of breeding adults between 18 and 40 months, and 50% of juveniles and young adults between 6 and 18 months. In our interpretation, this profile suggested acquisition by hunting, but we could not determine the origin of the younger animals killed, either hunted in family groups or reared. Without any local reference to hunting practices, it was impossible to conclude (Vigne et al. 2011c, Vigne 2021b).
52We can now revisit the Shillourokambos profile in the light of evidence from Klimonas, with our analyses demonstrating that the two profiles are very different (fig. 29-8, A). The reason is not the presence of very old animals, which seem to be the mark of low local hunting pressures in the first Shillourokambos settlement. Its location was far from flint sources, while Klimonas was very close to them (Briois et al. 2005), in an area that was probably frequented by wild boar hunters for several decades or centuries. The difference between Shillourokambos’ earliest profile and that of Klimonas, four to five centuries earlier, lies in two peaks that are absent from the latter: 6–9 months and 18–24 months (compare fig. 29-8, C and D). These are precisely the peaks that characterise the pig breeding culling strategy of middle phase A at Shillourokambos (compare fig. 29-8, D and E), which we interpreted as the result of the classical mediterranean seasonal slaughtering of first- and second-year animals in the late autumn or early winter (Albarella et al. 2007, Vigne 2011c, 2021).
53The hypothesis we cautiously put forward earlier (Vigne 2011c, Vigne et al. 2011c) is thereby reinforced: the co-occurrence of wild boar hunting (probably dominant) and pig rearing during Shillourokambos early phase A.
3. Slaughtering, butchering, and consuming the wild boar
3.1. Representation of the anatomical units
54The main trends of the skeletal part frequency distributions are in chap. 24. Sector B appears to provide the most reliable information, those from the Central and F Sectors being biased respectively by symbolic deposits (large number of labial teeth due to symbolic practices) and a high degree of degradation and differential preservation.
55Based on the 2404 specimens from Sector B, we observed a relatively well-balanced representation (appendix 29-15, fig. 29-9, A). The mandibles (N = 29) produced the highest minimum number of anatomical units (MAU = NMPS), which is also the frequency mNI (Poplin 1976), compared to the mNI based on the age classes (N = 46). Tarsal bones are the second best-represented bones (MAU = 18 for the cal caneus), shortly before maxillae (17), scapula, radius, distal humerus and third metacarpal (MAU = 14–13). Atlas, proximal radius, pelvis, first phalanges, heads and distal tibia, which represent the largest areas of the body, range between 9 and 12. As is usual in detritic faunal assemblages, the most fragile (proximal humerus and tibia, distal femur and radius, thoracic vertebrae, ribs, epistropheus) and the smallest bones (abaxial first phalanges, second and third phalanges, either axial or abaxial) are under-represented (MAU = 3–5) due to differential preservation or recovery. While considering this taphonomic bias, the profile suggests that all the skeletal and body parts are more or less equally represented and that complete carcasses were brought back to the site. Confrontation of the mAUs with the Standardised Food Utility Indices (SFUI, after Rowley-Conwy et al. 2002) shows no correlation between the abundance of anatomical units and their food yield (fig. 29-10). The Klimonas hunters brought back all the body parts without eliminating those with the lowest food yield, indicating that the kill sites were never very far from the village and maybe even very close.
Fig. 29-9 – Profiles of the minimum number of anatomical parts (MAU) for Sector B of Klimonas (A) and the middle A2 (B, St 23-C0-0b) and late (C, SU 1000) phases of Shillourokambos. The grey rectangles represent the mAU of the main body regions (head, rachis and thoracic cavity, proximal segments of the anterior and posterior limbs, limb extremities). D, Chi² residues for comparison of A and B.
Profils des nombres minimaux des parties du squelette (MAU= NMPS) pour le Secteur B de Klimonas (A) et les phases moyenne A2 (B, St 23-C0-0b) et tardive (C, SU 1000) de Shillourokambos. Les rectangles gris représentent les mAU des principales régions du corps (tête, rachis et cavité thoracique, segments proximaux des membres antérieurs et postérieurs, extrémités des membres). D, résidus du Chi² de comparaison entre A et B.
Fig. 29-10 – Scatter diagram of anatomical unit frequency in Sector B at Klimonas (MAU) against their respective Standardised Food Utility Index (SFUI after Rowley-Conwy et al. 2002; Pearson r = 0.2, p = 0.36).
Diagramme de dispersion de la fréquence des unités anatomiques du Secteur B de Klimonas (MAU) par rapport à leur indice d’utilité alimentaire standardisé respectif (SFUI d’après Rowley-Conwy et al. 2002 ; Pearson r = 0,2, p = 0,36).
56There are, however, significant differences between the Klimonas mAU profile and that of the Late PPNB profile of middle phase A2 at Shillourokambos (C0-C0b, fig. 29-9, B; Chi² = 55.9, df = 31, p = 0.003), which corresponds to full pig rearing (Vigne 2011c, 2021b). As shown by the Chi² residues (fig. 29-9, D), the main difference lies in the abundance of mandibles at Klimonas (if one removed them from the Chi², it would not be significant anymore). On the contrary, there is no significant difference between Klimonas and the late phase of Shillourokambos (fig. 29-9, C), which corresponds to a mixture of wild boar hunting and pig rearing (Vigne 2021b; see also chap 30). The greater proximity of the Klimonas and the late phase mAU profiles is also visible when one compares the mAU of the main body parts (tab. 29-3), again due to an over-representation of the head at Klimonas.
Tab. 29-3 – Results of the MAU pairwise Chi² comparison test of the largest body regions (grey in fig. 29-9) for Sector B at Klimonas and the middle A2 (St 23-C0-0b) and late (SU 1000) phases at Shillourokambos (df = 4). The global Chi² is significant (21.7, df = 8, pMC = 0.006).
Résultats du test de comparaison deux-à-deux des MAU des grandes régions du corps (en gris sur la fig. 29-9) pour le Secteur B de Klimonas et les phases moyenne A2 (St 23-C0‑0b) et récente (SU 1000) de Shillourokambos (ddl = 4). Le Chi² global est significatif (21,7, ddl = 8, pMC = 0,006).
57In more detail, we observed that the incisors, especially the lower ones, were relatively over-represented at Klimonas (MAU = 18, appendix 29-15), particularly when compared with the cheek teeth, the mAU of which is also 18 when one includes both isolated teeth and jaws. Although it is difficult to compare with other sites, including Shillourokambos, because -archaeozoologists do not routinely provide information on incisors, such a ratio seems uncommon for detritic archaeological sites, where incisors are prone to taphonomic attacks. This suggests that the anterior parts of the jaws, especially the mandibles (MAU = 13 and 8 for the lower and upper canines, respectively), were an object of particular attention in Sector B, like what we observed in the Communal building but to a lesser extent. It is probably a consequence of the special symbolic value of the anterior part of the mandibles, which were noted in several symbolic deposits (see chap. 31).
58The distribution of the different head parts also displayed some strange anomalies, especially when compared with Shillourokambos (fig. 29-11). This comparison points to an under-representation of the cranial box concerning the jaws, especially the mandible. The abundance of phalanges and other small bones, and fragile flat bones (fragments of pelvis and ribs), make it unlikely that this difference resulted purely from the activity of dogs, which were present in the Klimonas village but absent from the middle and late phases of Shillourokambos. Were the skulls abandoned at the site of the slaughter and dismemberment of the carcasses in a mysterious ritual? Or, conversely, were they specially treated in the village itself for some enigmatic purpose that led to their rapid destruction, such as exposure, similar to that suggested for cattle skulls during the early phases of Shillourokambos (Vigne 2011d)? These questions remain open.
Fig. 29-11 – Comparison of the representation of the different regions of the head skeleton (MAU) between Klimonas (A) and the middle phase A2 of Shillourokambos (B). The difference is statistically significant (Chi² = 29.2, df = 7, p = 0.0001). C, Chi² residues.
Comparaison de la représentation des différentes régions du squelette de la tête (MAU) entre Klimonas (A) et la phase moyenne A2 de Shillourokambos (B). La différence est statistiquement significative (Chi² = 29,2, ddl = 7, p = 0,0001). C, résidus du Chi².
3.2. Butchering, cooking, bone industry
59Butchery and cooking marks were only recorded systematically for the 2404 Suidae and large mammal specimens (GM) in Area B. The surfaces of only 602 specimens were sufficiently well preserved to allow the recording of marks.
60We found 13 percussion marks (2.2%), 11 on an unidentified long bone diaphysis splinter, one on a mandible and one on a fragment of radius diaphysis. All were made to access the bone marrow and relate to the high degree of pre-depositional fragmentation pointed out in chap. 24.
61Seven cut marks were recorded (1.2%), most of them very light. Three were on the external side of a rib diaphysis, the rest on a scapula, humerus and metacarpal. None suggest disarticulation but all resulted from filleting. This rare evidence precludes access to any information about butchering techniques, except that the bone marrow was intensively exploited. Traceological analyses of the flint industry (chap. 15) evidenced filleting (10 marks out of 145) rather than activities involving direct contact with the bones (4 marks). Butchering equipment is globally poor in the Klimonas toolkit. Conversely, skin and leather work is attested by flint tools, including handstones (chap. 16), suggesting the possible use of oak galls (chap. 23).
62Burn marks from cooking were not significantly more numerous (N = 10). Seven are located on the tip of labial or cheek teeth, indicating that (portions of) heads and throats were grilled or roasted. The ribcage might also have been grilled (one specimen).
63Only 25 (4.1%) of the 602 specimens taken into consideration in Sector B are (fragments of) bone tools or the bone matrix, from which tools were extracted. In a context where all the ruminants that provided most of the material for the bone or wood industry were totally lacking, the use of suid bones for tool making may have become important, even though suid skeletal elements are much less suitable than ruminant antlers or metapodials for this industry. However, the Klimonas villagers clearly adapted their chaînes opératoires to this unusual raw material (see chap. 18).
4. Conclusion
64In this chapter, we tried to gather and combine different types of (sometimes tenuous) information to document the strategies, techniques and practices of the acquisition and material use of the wild boar, the only large ungulate available to the late PPNA Klimonas villagers c. 8800 cal BC.
65First, despite the bad preservation of tooth enamel, the pilot study of the stable oxygen and carbon isotopes along the crown of three lower incisors increases the possibility of late winter/early spring births, a classical situation for modern mediterranean wild boars. In addition, the carbon values exclude landscapes and dense forest cover, in line with the archaeobotanical findings developed in chap. 23.
66Concerning the choice of sex of the culled individuals, we analysed 86 canine specimens, including 39 complete or sub-complete ones. We used an osteometric approach for sexual dimorphism based on the mixture analyses of the seven most reliable cranial and post-cranial measurements. We found that male and female boars under 24-30 months of age were killed without substantial distinction of sex, although there was a slightly higher proportion of females. Conversely, males represented 71% of the subjects culled after 30 months.
67The bones of a neonatal piglet (less than 2–3 weeks) represented less than 0.1% of the NISP. Their presence is likely to relate to symbolic practices. We found only one fortuitous foetus bone (75 days after conception) out of 4823 identified specimens, suggesting that pregnant females were not kept in captivity or close to the village.
68Age-at-death profiles are very well documented, based on a total of 982 cheek teeth representing a minimum number of 171 individuals, if we take their respective age into consideration. We found slightly different types of profiles depending on the upper or lower teeth, the counting method (number of teeth versus mNI), and the excavation sectors. They all indicate the same unselective culling strategy, with an apparently deliberate intention to spare the youngest individuals (less than six months old). The multivariate analyses clearly show that, apart from the methodological bias due to the use of upper or lower teeth, the only significant difference between all the profiles concerns the series of teeth from the communal building layers (St 10).
69Comparing these age-at-death profiles with those from the early A and middle A2 phases of Shillourokambos was very informative because the latter provides a local reference for an unquestionable PPN early pig rearing system. The different profiles from Klimonas are clearly much more alike than those from Shillourokambos. Both appear to represent two very different culling strategies. Based on the strong contrast between the very selective breeding profile of the middle phase of Shillourokambos (two peaks at 6–9 and 18–24 months) and the low level of Klimonas selectivity, we can exclude any breeding practice in the latter. By comparison, we can also revisit the interpretation of the early phase A at Shillourokambos (8500–8100 cal BC, Early PPNB) and confirm that pig rearing was already initiated at that time even though wild boar hunting was still dominant.
70Considering sex, foetal, and age data, there is no doubt that hunting was the only wild boar acquisition strategy at Klimonas. With the preliminary data on the birthing season and the well-known life cycle of modern wild boar populations, we can also interpret the massive killing of males and females between 6 and 24 months of age as the consequence of a hunting strategy focused on groups of wild boars, either family groups (females with their young) or groups of inexperienced second-year young; the hunting of adult males living in smaller groups being secondary. We can also suggest that the main hunting season was between the end of summer and the beginning of winter. This is the optimal season for large groups of animals, meat, and fat yield; it was probably also the off-season for cultivation and cropping activities. We cannot exclude the practice of wild boar management in the village surroundings. However, we found no clear evidence for this: in our opinion, the 50% of animals killed before 24 months, which several archaeozoologists suggest as a criterion in favour of “pre-domestic” management, cannot be transferred without other strong arguments about the special environments and populations of wild boar in Cyprus.
71Based on the large sample of Sector B (NISP = 2404 representing a minimum of 46 individuals), analyses of the anatomical units representations (MAU = NMPS) indicate that, apart from classical differential preservation and recovery effects, all skeletal and body parts are more or less equally represented. Complete carcasses were brought back to the site, and kill sites were never very far from the village. Some differences appear, however, with the frequency distributions of the Shillourokambos mAU. They confirm that the villagers of Klimonas paid -particular attention to the anterior parts of the lower jaw (canines and incisors), not only in the Communal building but also, to a lesser extent, in the residential buildings of Sector B. In addition, we observed a clear under-representation of the cranial box, perhaps connected with symbolic practices. Butchery and cooking practices are poorly documented because of the poor state of preservation of the bone surfaces. Nearly 5% of the NISP refer to using bones to make tools or ornaments.
72On the whole, the exploitation strategy of the only large mammal which lived on the island during the occupation of the Klimonas village does not appear to significantly differ from the exploitation systems of the large ungulates during the Late PPNA on the continent (e.g. Peters et al. 2005, Gourichon and Helmer 2008, Starkovitz and Steiner 2009). Hunting groups of young or sub-adult ungulates, probably collectively and maybe with the help of dogs, in the near vicinity of the village, was a well-mastered and optimised activity, whatever the diversity or absence of diversity of the faunal components. For Klimonas, it is conceivable that hunters concentrated on the nearby riparian forests, perhaps even on the middle reaches of the small Athiaki stream, where the geomorphology provides evidence of a small plain probably also used for cultivation (chap. 3). The slight loss of mobility of the Cypriot boar (see chap. 30) may have made hunting easier in Klimonas than in any other area of the Southwest Asian PPN.
73Only slight peculiarities appear concerning certain symbolic practices, especially in the Communal building. These probably existed at the same time on the mainland, where animal symbolism was highly developed (Helmer et al. 2004) but may have gone undetected or appeared slightly different due to cultural variations. They will be detailed and discussed in chap. 31.
Annexe
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A01, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.c53d82kz
Chemical treatment, technique for measuring stable isotopes ratios and rough results of the biogeochemistry analyses of three wild boar incisors from Klimonas • Traitement chimique, technique de mesure des rapports d’isotopes stables et résultats bruts des analyses biogéochimiques de trois incisives de sanglier de Klimonas
Angelos haDJIKOUMIS (Cyprus Institute), marie BALASSE (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A02, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.85b7cw8p
Measurements of the canines of the Klimonas wild boars • mesures des canines des sangliers de Klimonas
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A03, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.21b4k0oz
Estimation of the Klimonas wild boar sex ratio, based on morphometric analyses • Estimation du sex-ratio des sangliers de Klimonas, sur la base d’analyses morphométriques
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A04, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.6824u923
Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Central Sector. Raw data of the dental age-at-death. mandible (1/2) • Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Secteur central. Données brutes des âges dentaires d’abattage. mandibule (1/2)
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS), Thomas CUCCHI (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A05, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.11bcma69
Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Central Sector. Raw data of the dental age-at-death. mandible (2/2) • Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Secteur central. Données brutes des âges dentaires d’abattage. mandibule (2/2)
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS), Thomas CUCCHI (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A06, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.d38f73ug
Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Central Sector. Raw data of the dental age-at-death. maxillar (1/2) • Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Secteur central. Données brutes des âges dentaires d’abattage. maxillaire (1/2)
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS), Thomas CUCCHI (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A07, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.3d70t527
Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Central Sector. Raw data of the dental age-at-death. maxillar (2/2) • Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Secteur central. Données brutes des âges dentaires d’abattage. maxillaire (2/2)
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS), Thomas CUCCHI (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A08, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.17f9zr52
Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Central Sector. Counts and profiles of the dental age-at-death • Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Secteur central. Décomptes et profils des âges d’abattage dentaires
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A09, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.d79dn28l
Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Sector B. Raw data of the dental age-at-death (1/2) • Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Secteur B. Données brutes des âges dentaires d’abattage (1/2)
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS), Thomas CUCCHI (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A10, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.068741hn
Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Sector B. Raw data of the dental age-at-death (2/2) • Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Secteur B. Données brutes des âges dentaires d’abattage (2/2)
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS), Thomas CUCCHI (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A11, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.f3b7pmp0
I ssp., Klimonas, Sector B. Counts and profiles of the dental age-at-death • I ssp., Klimonas, Secteur B. Décomptes et profils des âges d’abattage dentaires
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A12, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.dbd148v3
Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Sector F. Raw data of the dental age-at-death • Sus scrofa ssp., Klimonas, Secteur F. Données brutes des âges dentaires d’abattage
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS), Thomas CUCCHI (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A13, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.a1f87eop
Correspondence analysis of the different dental age-at-death profiles of Klimonas • Analyse des correspondances des différents profils dentaires d’âge d’abattage de Klimonas
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A14, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.621d4yux
Correspondence analysis of the dental age-at-death profiles of Klimonas and Shillourokambos • Analyse des correspondances des profils dentaires d’âge d’abattage de Klimonas et de Shillourokambos
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS)
KLIMONAS-Ch29-A15, https://doi.org/10.34847/nkl.74dd5hio
Minimum number of the anatomic units of the wild boars’ skeleton at Klimonas, Sector B • Nombre minimum d’unités anatomiques du squelette des sangliers à Klimonas, Secteur B
Jean-Denis VIGNE (CNRS)
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