This work is dedicated to the discussion of results of the study of archeozoological collection from the settlement of Zvyagino-4 (18th–17th centuries BC) of the Alakul Culture in the forest-steppe part of the Southern Trans-Urals. The paper presents the results of a basic archaeozoological study and provides the characteristics of the herd of domestic animals. A contextual analysis of animal bones from different layers of the site has been carried out. The complex of bones identifiable to the species is represented almost entirely by domestic ungulates. Cattle bones constitute 49 % of the assemblage, small cattle bones — 41 %, horse bones are in third place in terms of number — 6.7 %. The analysis of bone age markers reveals the presence of all age groups of livestock within the settlement — from embryos/newborns to very old individuals. This may indicate both a full cycle of livestock breeding and comprehensive livestock management. For cattle, the main peak of slaughter was recorded approximately within the age of 2.5–3 years, and for small cattle — within 1–2 years, which, of course, can be interpreted as a reflection of intensive meat exploitation of livestock, regardless of the sex of the animals. The quantitative ratio of animal species from different strata of the settlement did not provide significant variations, which indicates a common origin of the bones, and is associated with the kitchen waste of the Alakul population. At the same time, the comparative analysis of bones from different contexts revealed a significant difference in modification changes and bone fragmentation: a high degree of fragmentation of the material and the largest number of bones with thermal treatment have been recorded within the ashpit contents. The contextual analysis of the osteological collection of the Zvyagino-4 settlement suggests that the bone material from the ashpit layer underwent a special selection associated with grinding and overburning procedure.

Keywords: osteology, animal bones, ash heap, Alakul Culture, cattle breeding, Bronze Age, Southern Trans-Urals.

 

Funding. The work was supported by a grant from the Russian Science Foundation, project No. 23-28-10222 “Interaction of cultures in the Late Bronze Age of the Southern Urals”.

 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Accepted: 15.11.2024

Article is published: 15.06.2025