1 The lost pigs: From wild boar to domestic pigs in Norway (stable isotopes)

2 Jørgen Rosvold NTNU - Museum of Natural History and Archaeology, Section of Natural History Biologist Studied archaeology and social anthropology Interests: mammals, conservation biology, immigration history and human-nature relationship

3 PhD-project ”Climate and human driven changes in large ungulate populations during the Norwegian Holocene” -The lost pigs: an investigation investigating the prehistoric distribution and extinction of wild boar in Norway -Holocene changes in moose and red deer distribution boundaries -Genetic and phenotypic changes in Norwegian red deer during the Holocene

4 Background Wild boar is considered and exotic and unwanted species in Norway Lots of subfossil bone finds Changing attitudes What was its habitat? When and why did it disappear? What limits its northward spread?

5 Problem: How to differentiate wild boar from early domestic pigs? Norwegian wild boar were relatively small Domestic pigs were very similar to wild boar even in the Middle Ages Stable isotopes? Done successfully in East Asia: - Minagawa et al. 2005, Guan et al. 2007, Hu et al. 2009

6 Study design Me, Duncan Halley, Anne Karin Hufthammer and Reidar Andersen Laboratory of Prof. Masao Minagawa in Japan Stable isotopes of nitrogen and carbon 41 samples from wild boar/pigs 15 control samples from red deer (Cervus elaphus) 7100 – 500 cal. BP Mesolithic samples of undoubted wild boar provides the baseline

7 Sites Skipshelleren: -Western Norway -Dated BP -One of the largest and best stratified sites with bone material -7 stratigraphic layers -956 bones of boar/pigs, of red deer

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9 Sites Geitalemen: -Iron Age (one bone) -Western Norway Medieval sites: -Bergen (coastal city, western Norway) -Hamar Cathedral (inland church ruins)

10 Results Results from 32 of the samples of boar/pig and 15 of red deer

11 Results

12 Results

13 Results

14 Results

15 Discussion 4 diet profiles: 1.Wild boar diet 2.Free-range domestic pig diet 3.Coastal city pig diet 4.”Holy pig” diet (Killer pig diet)