Horses in the suburbs of a medieval city – a case study from Brno (Czech Republic)
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2024 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Anthropozoologica |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| web | Odkaz na článek |
| Doi | http://dx.doi.org/10.5252/anthropozoologica2024v59a11 |
| Keywords | Horses - Biometry - Pathology - Mobility - Brno |
| Description | The article presents a set of horse skeletons (11 individuals) found at three excavation sites south of the city of Brno (Czech Republic), dated to the Late Medieval and Early Modern periods. The skeletons were deliberately deposited within agricultural estates and the assemblage consisted of complete or near-complete skeletons. The osteological assemblage was therefore suitable for further analysis. Firstly, the withers height and robusticity of individual equines were determined. The majority of them were slightly taller and more slender-legged than those of earlier periods and smaller than contemporary riding and draft horses. With one exception, they were determined to be males and majority died at around 7-14 years of age. Pathological findings observed on the skull and second premolars can be most likely related to the working history of those individuals. Changes to the spinal column are in most cases rather mild or absent suggesting that the horses studied were probably not used for extensive heavy work. The relatively high incidence of other pathological changes indicates poor health care, with two individuals showing signs of a possible bacterial infection. The origin and mobility of the individuals were reconstructed by strontium analyses. With one exception, all individuals were most likely born and died in the same region. |
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