igiy. ScHARFF — On the Irish Pig. 179 



Ireland by a domestication of the wild stock. It is the 

 latter view I had adopted many years ago and have held 

 until quite recently. Further research, however, has shaken 

 my conviction as to the correctness of this opinion that the 

 ancient Irish domesticated pig has originated in Ireland 

 from a wild stock, and I will state the reasons for my 

 present belief that the pig was originally introduced into 

 Ireland in the domesticated state. This must have taken 

 place long before the Christian Era, either during the 

 Bronze Age or in Neolithic times. 



I have already mentioned that the skull of a wild pig 

 can be readily distinguished from that of a modern domes- 

 ticated one. The alteration in the skull during the course 

 of domestication has proceeded graduall}^ being almost 

 entirely due to the method of feeding. The wild pig 

 obtains much of its food by burrowing in the soil for 

 succulent roots, fungi, and other materials. The* head 

 is thus always on the move and the muscles are exerted 

 to the utmost in the animal's endeavours to provide the 

 necessary sustenance for its body. Strong muscles imply 

 a powerful bony frame to which they are attached. By 

 comparing the skulls of wild and domesticated pigs several 

 striking differences become at once apparent. The skull 

 of the wild pig is elongated to such an extent that the 

 back part is arched over the aperture {foramen magnun) 

 at the base of the skull, the jaws are elongated, the teeth are 

 simple in construction, while the lachrymal bone is long. 

 These are, perhaps, the most manifest features of the skull of 

 the wild pig, whereas in the domesticated pig the back part 

 of the skull seems crumpled up, rising straight up above 

 the foramen magnum and not arched over it, the teeth are 

 crowded together and more complex in their composition, 

 the jaws, as well as the lachrymal bone, are shorter. 



I think it was the eminent Swiss zoologist, Professor 

 Riitimeyer, who first indicated the correct explanation of 

 these interesting osteological characters, and his view^s have 

 found general acceptance. The changes in the skull during 

 the course of domestication are largely due to mechanical 

 causes. As soon as the wild pig was no longer obliged to 

 exercise his head, in the search for food, to the same extent 



