The dogs of Roman Vindolanda, Part II: Time-stratigraphic occurrence, ethnographic comparisons, and biotype reconstruction

Abstract

The Roman fort–village complex at Vindolanda in northern England has yielded extensive well-preserved remains of domestic dogs, Canis familiaris. Herein, we pose the questions—did the Romans breed for distinctive dog morphotypes, or were dogs breeding panmictically; and if dogs were bred, was it for functionality. We address these questions utilizing remains that are correlated to age and context; morphometric analysis; dental wear stage; bone pathology; pawprints impressed in tiles, and contemporary written records and artwork. All age classes of dogs are represented. There is no evidence that dogs were butchered for food; survivorship curves suggest the typical U-shaped distribution found in populations at equilibrium. Small, medium-sized, and large dogs are represented with frequency changing over time and corresponding to change in the region of origin of the resident military cohort. Husbandry is confirmed on an individual with healed wounds and with the discovery of a beehive-shaped wattle doghouse. Dogs were used extensively in hunting wild game and bred for that activity. By integrating many diverse kinds of data we are able reconstruct biotypes of Roman dogs, greatly facilitating the interpretation of their functionality. Resúmen: El complexo Romano en Vindolanda (Inglaterra norteño) ha producía muchos restos bien preservado de perro domesticado, Canis familiaris. Aquí, investigamos que los Romanos crían perros de morfologias diferentes, o sea los perros se propagan panmictamente. También preguntamos que si los Romanos criaban perros—¿era para servir en functiones particulares? Investigamos utilizando restos correlados de edad y contexto; analysis morfometrico; etapa de egotar dental; patologías de restos; las pisadas de perros procedentes de ladrillos y tejas; y arte y documentos escritos contemporaneos. Toda clase de edad de los perros estan representados en la muestra de Vindolanda. No hayevidencia que perros mataban por comida; curvas de survivando muestra una distribución de forma ‘U’, que es typical de poblaciones en equilibrio. Perros de talla pequeña, medio, y grande estan representados. La frequencia de cada grupo cambia por tiempo en coordinación con la patria de la cohort militar en residencia. Cria de perros es confirmado en un perro con heridas curadas, y con el descubrimiento de una casa de perros de zarzo en forma de colmena. Los Romanos usaban perros extensivamente para perseguir caza salvaje y criaban perros de formas diferentes con este objecto. En este papel, integramos muchos datos, que posibilita reconstruir biotypos de los perros Romanos para visualazir tanto mejor los usos.