ÇATALHÖYÜK 2003 ARCHIVE REPORT

ÇATALHÖYÜK ANIMAL BONE REPORT

Nerissa Russell, Kamilla Pawlowska and Louise Martin

Abstract

During the 2003 season we introduced a new ‘phase 1’ assessment procedure for the animal bone units. This will give us qualitative information about units not fully recorded, guide recording, and increase the sample of measured bones. We also report briefly on work on the animal bones from the 4040, South Summit, and BACH Areas, and present cumulative reports on the TP and West Mound animal bones. These suggest that at least some shifts in patterns of animal use may occur between earlier and later levels on the East Mound rather than between the Neolithic East Mound and the Chalcolithic West Mound.

Özet
2003 sezonunda hayvan kemikleri birimleri için yeni bir “1. evre” degerlendirme prosedürü baslattik. Bu prosedür, tam olarak kaydedilmemis birimlerle ilgili nitel bilgi veremenin yani sira, kayit islemine klavuzluk edecek ve ölçümlenen kemik örneklemelerinde artisa sebep olacak. Ayrica, 4040, Güney Zirve ve BACH bölgelerinde bulunan hayvan kemikleri üzerindeki çalisildi ve TP bölgesi ile Bati höyügünde bulunan hayvan kemikleri hakkinda kümülatif raporlar hazirlandi. Bu sonuçlara göre, hayvan kullanimi açisindan, Neolitik Dogu höyügü ile Kalkolitik Bati höyügü arasindan ziyade, Dogu Höyügün erken ve geç dönemleri arasinda en azindan bazi farkliliklar bulunmasinin olasi oldugu görüldü.

Ayrica bu yilki ve önceki kazilarda ele geçen 143 kemik buluntunun Nerissa Russell tarafindan kaydedilmesiyle, toplam kayitli sayi 1042’ye yükseldi. Islenmis hayvan kemikleri topluluklarinin ana hatlarinin önceki yillarin arsiv raporlarinda ve 1999’a kadar kaydedilen Kuzey ve Güney kemik aletlerinin de Kopal’in son raporunda ele alinmis olmasi sebebiyle (Russell, baskida), burada sadece yeni ve göze çarpan buluntu topluluklari ele alinmistir.

Introduction
After three partial study seasons, 2003 marked a return to full-scale excavations. Funding constraints led to very restricted personnel in the laboratory, however, so we were limited in what we could accomplish during the season. Nevertheless, we added to the recorded fauna, introduced a new ‘phase 1’ assessment procedure, and got a first glimpse at the Neolithic material later than Level VI. In total, we have now recorded 584,582 pieces of animal bone, 529,681 of them from the East mound.

Assessment
In past years and in the course of the analysis leading to the monograph report now in press (Russell and Martin in press), certain shortcomings of our approach to the Çatalhöyük fauna have become apparent. We have chosen to record detailed information about the animal bone, and feel that the results of the analyses that this makes possible fully vindicate this decision. However, it means that we can record only part of the animal bone recovered. For the most part, this is the bone from designated ‘priority units’ as chosen through negotiation with other project members. Four drawbacks arise from this system: 1) we have no information on the bone from many units; 2) units not designated as priorities sometimes turn out later to be of considerable significance, but we cannot contribute any information toward their interpretation; 3) some units not designated as priorities are quite important from the faunal point of view, but have often not been recorded; and 4) the choice to collect rich information from a smaller number of bones limits our sample especially of measured specimens, already small due to the high degree of fragmentation in this assemblage.

To remedy these problems, we have devised an assessment procedure for non-priority units, which we implemented and adjusted during the 2003 season. The goals are to provide qualitative information about unit assemblages comparable to that offered as feedback on priority tours, to guide decisions on what is recorded completely, and to increase the corpus of osteological measurements. A further benefit is that non-bone materials mixed with the faunal material (often substantial amounts) as well as categories of animal bone that are studied more completely (worked bone, bird bone, microfauna, etc.) can be pulled for study from a larger number of units and more promptly.

The assessment procedure consists of a rough sort of the assembled bone from the unit, followed by recording the faunal unit description (FUD; one of the tables in the faunal database). Any bones with secure identifications and good measurements are recorded. All worked bone, fish, bird, microfauna, and non-bone materials are pulled and redirected. The unit is assigned a priority level for further study on a 1-5 scale, recorded on the FUD table. This level is based on a combination of the promise of the faunal material to yield useful information, and the nature of the context and collection method.

We applied this assessment procedure to 137 units during the 2003 season. Ideally all units should be assessed, unless they are already selected for full study. With the limited personnel and an emphasis on recording material from the Bach area for publication this season we did not achieve this, but did determine that the method is workable. In future seasons we plan to shift our priority from recording to assessing, so that this minimal level of information will be assured and recording can proceed so as to produce the most useful information. For some units, the qualitative assessment may be sufficient for interpretation. For example, when the assessment procedure determines that the material is redeposited, this information is in itself useful in understanding the depositional history of the unit, but taxon and body part information is of little value since the material was deposited earlier in an unknown location.

4040
A new excavation area was opened this season, named 4040 in honor of its dimensions in meters. This season the work was aimed at exposing the uppermost in situ Neolithic deposits. Thus most of the contexts excavated were topsoil with a few exposed human and animal burials from various periods, some post-Neolithic architecture, and a little upper fill from Space 100.

We assessed 86 units from the 4040 area. Interpretation of these units is limited since unit sheets were not entered in the database for many of them, hence we do not know where they are located. In any case, interpretation cannot be pushed very far given that these units are of mixed and insecure context and were hand picked. Nevertheless, we are able to identify the presence of Neolithic midden material with some admixture of later animal bone in two areas: 1) squares 1035 E/1150 N, 1030 E/1155 N, and 1035 E/ 1155 N; and 2) squares 1060 E/1140 N, 1065 E/1140 N, 1065 E/1145 N, 1065 E/1150 N, and 1065 E/1155 N. (see Fig. 4). More tentatively, given the limitations of hand picked material, we note the possible presence of a disturbed feasting or special deposit in unit (7501), the topsoil of square 1045 E/1170 N, as seen in a substantial amounts of cattle horn core fragments and meaty cattle bones, some of it burnt. The fill of a Byzantine grave (unit (7900) in square 1050 E/1170 N) nearby seems to include some of the same or similar material that the grave presumably cut through. The other grave fill units assessed ((7512), (7517), (7519), (7585), (7591), (7907), and (8738)) have faunal material that appears to be derived from unexceptional redeposited fill.

Two Neolithic (or at least prehistoric) graves contained unworked faunal materials in apparent close association with the burials. Unit (7580) produced an unmodified sheep astragalus next to the head of an adult female skeleton. The excavator felt it was associated with the skeleton. Even though it is unworked, it could still have been used (although not much) as a ‘knucklebone’ in gambling or divination. In unit (8814), two bear molars were found 6 cm apart near the chin and knee of a contracted skeleton. They were lying with several other items, including a stamp seal and some large beads, all of which may have been in a bag. The teeth are from opposite sides of the jaw with no mandible present. One of the roots was broken off prehistorically. Thus this is not a deteriorated bear jaw but two isolated teeth collected and deposited in the grave. This is only the second set of bear finds from the site. The previous find is a paw from Building 24 in the South Area.

Unit (7565), centered on 1063.8 E/1155.6 N, is the fill of a large pit of post-Neolithic date, probably Byzantine. One layer in it contains a number of articulated or partially articulated sheep and goat skeletons. There are at least 15 individuals based on the number of skulls, plus a fetus still in utero. There are indications that many of these carcasses had been gathered up after lying dead on the surface for a short time. Two skulls have mandibles still in place but with carnivore gnawing on the heels of the mandibles. Most skeletons are not complete, but large portions of them are present. The carcasses are sufficiently intact that they were clearly not eaten, however, and there are no traces of butchery. Thus people seem to have gathered up carcasses and partial carcasses and buried them. This unit has so far only been assessed and merits further study. While some kind of ritual deposit cannot be ruled out at this point, it is clear that the animals were not sacrificed and dumped directly in the pit. Therefore it seems more likely that this pit contains a deposit of animals that people did not want to eat, buried for sanitary reasons. The large number of animals suggests an epidemic. There are several pathologies: a frontal abscess, osteomyelitis in one foot, a foot with abnormally broad toes, malocclusion, and a minor spinal deformity. Most of these are unlikely to have been the cause of death, though, and an epidemic would likely kill animals too quickly to leave any traces in the skeletons.

The units so far assessed from Space 100 ((7901), (7902), (7903), (7905), and (7908)) all contain material that appears to be derived from reworked fill. There is a fair amount of bone, though, so this is not ‘clean’ fill.

South Summit
We recorded 13 priority units from a bench and oven in Building 10. None of these were very informative from the faunal point of view. All contained small amounts of worn, redeposited bone typical of construction material. We also recorded the portion so far excavated of a special deposit in the southwest platform of this building, unit (8004). So far, this deposit includes a the base of a pot, a quartz crystal, a piece of ground stone, a long bone shaft fragment, a wolf paw, a sheep third phalanx, and several sheep/goat astragali; some of this is still in the ground. The wolf paw is a right hind foot, broken through the metapodials with the toes present (although a few of the smaller toe bones have been lost; this deposit was slightly disturbed by its proximity to the surface during the hiatus in excavation and the subsequent cleaning). Is it significant that the bear paw from Building 24 is also a right hind foot? Four sheep/goat astragali have so far been recorded, with more still in the ground. Two are from the left side and two from the right, but they are all from different animals. The three that can be identified to species are sheep; one of these is modified by abrasion to make a knucklebone gaming/divination piece, but the others are unworked. This appears to be another example of the ‘commemorative’ deposits found in platforms that seem to preserve mementos of ceremonies or events.

TP Area (Kamilla Pawlowska)
Here we report briefly on the animal bone remains excavated in the TP area during the 2002-2003 seasons. These include both Neolithic and Hellenistic/early Roman assemblages. Of the total of 13,209 pieces recorded from this area during these seasons (a total of 15,257 have been recorded including the 2001 season), the majority derive from Neolithic levels (11,814). It was possible to identify to species only 1812 of these mammal remains (Table 2), as a result of high fragmentation of most of the material. Bone fragments from the Neolithic material average 2.5 cm in length, and circa 2.3 cm in the late Hellenistic/early Roman material.

Neolithic Deposits
We have recorded animal bones associated with two Neolithic houses, Buildings 33 and 34; from areas outside these houses; from midden; and from arbitrary layers (Table 3). These deposits are thought to belong to Levels II and III. We have established the presence of sheep, goat, cattle, red deer, pig, equids and dog. The remains of small ruminants (Ovis/Capra) predominate at ca. 86%. This is a larger proportion than in Levels VI and down, and closer to that seen in the West Mound fauna. The ratio of sheep to goat bones based on diagnostic zones is 32:1. If this holds up with larger samples, it is substantially more weighted to sheep than in the earlier levels. The only other taxon with significant representation is cattle. A few human bones not associated with burials have been found along with animal bones.

A large fragment of cattle pelvis (unit (7888)) found under a child head (unit (7878)) may be a special deposit with symbolic meaning. However, it is not clear whether this was intentional or a coincidental placement on top of a bone in the underlying midden.

Building 33
Animal bones derived from sheep, goat, cattle and horse (Table 3). Sheep and goat again predominate (85%) Cattle and equid are equivalent in terms of diagnostic zones (one each), but cattle are much more frequent in the number of identified specimens (NISP).

Two pits within the building are interpreted as fire installations (units (7601/7465); (7477/7475)). The first (7601/7465) has only two fragments of bone, this low density being typical of oven construction material. The faunal material makes it clear that (7475) and (7477) are depositionally identical, distinguished only by the amount of burning, since numerous pieces with modern breaks join across the two units; these were recorded with (7477). The two units form a concentration of bones found in a small pit underneath a fire spot. It is an unusual and clearly highly selected assemblage. Sheep-size postcranial bone is limited to four small pieces that have a different color and are more worn than the rest of the bone in the unit; these probably derive from the construction material. Otherwise, there are several large pieces of cattle (maxilla, scapula, humerus, radius, femur) and medium equid (pelvis, tibia) bone. None of these is intact, but they are large pieces broken while fresh, some with carving or filleting cut marks, and look like feasting remains. Most are from the right side. Two specimens have been gnawed slightly by dogs, so they were collected after dogs had some access. All are crumbly from lying in plaster. All the main meaty bones are represented here, and feet are totally absent from this unit. In addition, there is a very large right sheep horn core, most likely wild, and the left horn core of a morphologically wild and possibly wild-size goat. It appears that the sheep horn core, at least, was probably complete in the ground. The near-total lack of domestic sheep/goat (save a few bits that seem to have a separate origin) is striking, as is the inclusion of rare (at Çatalhöyük) wild caprine horns. This appears to be another example of the special deposits commemorating ceremonies that are placed in small pits in platforms and house floors. It is interesting to know that these deposits continue into the later levels, although the association with a hearth may be new.

Building 34
The proportions of taxa are generally similar to those in Building 33 (Table 3). The faunal material from most of these units ((7390), (7430), (7603), (7604)) looks like redeposited material from mixed origins as is typical of fill units. Unit (7613) seems less redeposited and suggests a small amount of midden material.

Outside buildings
Most of these units are the fills of pits or postholes ((7405), (7422), (7424), (7426), (7446), (7447)). They seem to be catching the remains of daily meals, quite processed and overwhelmingly (99%) sheep and goat. Most seem to have been dumped fairly directly into the pits, as seen in the articulated sheep foot (probably butchery waste, showing that not all the bone comes from meals) and in the generally good surface condition. Unit (7447) differs in that the bone seems to have been exposed substantially to dogs before burial.

Midden
The midden deposits (units (7653), (7810), (7814), (7815)) have the greatest variety of taxa. Sheep/goat predominates but to a slightly lesser extent than in other deposits (82%). Other taxa are cattle (10%), pig (4%) and equid (3%). While in some ways these are similar to midden deposits from earlier levels (large amounts of bone, variety of taxa), there are also some differences. The bone seems to derive almost entirely from daily post-consumption discard, as opposed to the wider range of activities manifest in many middens. In this way, they resemble the midden dumps in Space 181. We also note some apparent changes in butchery practices. Vertebrae, which earlier rarely are brought on site, are somewhat more common. Cut marks also seem more frequent; in general cut marks are remarkably rare at Çatalhöyük.

Other contexts
This category includes an arbitrary layer from the southwest corner of the TP area (7423) and a bricky fill unit separating midden layers (7813). Most of the material is from (7813). The material is abundant, and in the balance of taxa resembles that in the midden units. This unit has more burning, more variable surface condition, and more fragmentation than the midden units, however. This suggests reworking and more mixed origins.

Late Hellenistic/Early Roman
Bone remains derived from infill and arbitrary layers (Table 4). Taxa include sheep/goat, cattle and birds, with sheep/goat predominating in the number of pieces. However, by diagnostic zones sheep/goat and cattle are equal in number (based on a very small sample). There are a few human bones in the infill as well as the arbitrary layers.

An interesting discovery was a complete skeleton of a neonatal calf (unit (7325)), not included in the tabulations above. It was recorded as 1295 bone specimens. This was possibly a two-headed cow, because there are two heads and two atlases. Thoracic vertebrae are pathologically altered (numerous spinal deformities). Several vertebral bodies were fused together and the upper articular areas were deformed and asymmetrical. The squamous occipitals were slightly asymmetrical in opposite directions.

BACH Area
During the 2003 season we completed recording of animal bone from the Bach area in preparation for the publication of this area. We will defer presentation of those data for the upcoming published report. Meanwhile we note that we have recorded a large proportion of the bone excavated from Building 3 and the Bach area. This amounts to 303 fully recorded units, and a total of 141,205 pieces and 969 diagnostic zones. With substantial material recorded from all context types, we expect to be able to provide the best analysis yet of animal bone in relation to the use of space in a single building at Çatalhöyük.

Discussion
While this was a small-scale season in the faunal laboratory, it has provided us with some intriguing glimpses of later periods at the site, both the later Neolithic levels in the TP and South Summit areas and the Chalcolithic material from the West Mound, where we now have an opportunity to examine deposits other than reworked fill. Samples are still small for the later Neolithic levels and no real conclusions can yet be drawn. However, there are tentative indications that some faunal patterns, along with some changes in the artifacts, may change already in the later East Mound levels to resemble West Mound assemblages.

Table 2: Relative Proportions of Mammalian Taxa from the TP Area by Number of Identified Specimens (NISP) and Diagnostic Zones (DZ)

*Does not include 1295 specimens from neonatal calf skeleton (unit 7325)

Table 3: Relative Proportions of Mammalian Taxa from the Neolithic Deposits in the TP Area According to Context

Table 4: Relative Proportions of Mammalian Taxa from the Hellenistic/Early Roman Deposits in the TP Area According to Context

*Does not include 1295 specimens from neonatal calf skeleton (unit 7325)