Holmes Matilda, Hamerow Helena, Thomas Richard
School of Archaeology and Ancient History, University of Leicester, Leicester LE1 7RH, UK.
School of Archaeology, Oxford University, Oxford OX1 2JD, UK.
Animals (Basel). 2021 Apr 20;11(4):1174. doi: 10.3390/ani11041174.
Across medieval Europe, cattle commanded a major, if shifting, economic and social value, and their use for meat, milk, and traction is well established. Although the changing roles of cattle throughout this period may have influenced relationships between humans and cattle, this has been largely neglected in historical and zooarchaeological studies. Data from nearly 700 archaeological assemblages of animal remains have been used to provide an overview of the herd structures (age and sex) of cattle populations for England between AD 450 and 1400. These have been analysed alongside pathological and sub-pathological changes in over 2800 lower limb bones of cattle from seventeen archaeological sites to provide a better understanding of the use of cattle for ploughing, hauling, and carting. The findings were considered alongside historical documents and ethnographic evidence to chart changing human-cattle relationships. Results indicate that human-cattle relations varied with changing economic, agricultural, and social practices. From the mid-fifth century, cattle were a form of portable wealth, however, by the mid-ninth century, they were perceived as a commodity with monetary value. From this period, close human-cattle bonds are likely to have been widespread between plough hands and working animals. Such bonds are may have diminished with the increasing number of young beef cattle kept to supply the urban population from the mid-eleventh century.
在中世纪的欧洲，牛拥有重要的经济和社会价值，尽管这种价值有所变化，而且它们用于肉、奶和拉车的用途也早已确立。虽然在此期间牛的角色不断变化可能影响了人类与牛之间的关系，但这在历史和动物考古学研究中很大程度上被忽视了。来自近700个动物遗骸考古组合的数据被用于概述公元450年至1400年间英格兰牛群的结构（年龄和性别）。这些数据与来自17个考古遗址的2800多根牛下肢骨的病理和亚病理变化一起进行了分析，以便更好地了解牛用于犁地、拉运和推车的情况。研究结果与历史文献和民族志证据一起被考虑，以描绘不断变化的人类与牛的关系。结果表明，人类与牛的关系随着经济、农业和社会习俗的变化而变化。从5世纪中叶开始，牛是一种可携带的财富形式，然而，到9世纪中叶，它们被视为具有货币价值的商品。从这个时期开始，在犁地工人和役用动物之间可能广泛存在着密切的人类与牛的联系。随着11世纪中叶为供应城市人口而饲养的年轻肉牛数量的增加，这种联系可能已经减少。
