230 



THE WILTSHIRE ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND NATURAL HISTORY MAGAZINE 



Table 8: Tooth wear stages of the cattle after Grant 

 (1982) and Halstead (1985) 



SUGGESTED 



AGE 



14-21 months 



21-27 months 



27 - 36 months 



Adult 



old adult 



STAGE 



D 

 E 

 F 

 G 

 H 



3RD- 

 1STBC 





 

 

 2 

 



SAXON 







1 

 



1 

 1 



Only a few pig bones were identified from the 

 assemblage, the majority of which were from Iron 

 Age deposits. Both bones from the Saxon deposits 

 were from immature animals. It is possible that the 

 pig bones may have been under represented since 

 the less mature bones are fragile and less likely to 

 survive. Other domestic species included a small 

 number of horse bones (mostly teeth), a dog tooth, 

 and part of a cat mandible from a Saxon deposit. 



Only a few wild species were found amongst 

 the bones, all of which was from the sieved material. 

 One small rodent incisor and four fragments of frog 



Table 9: Epiphyseal fusion of cattle bones after Silver 

 (1969) 



AGE 



10 mo. 





ELEMENT 

 Scapula D 



3RD 

 F 



2 



ISTBC 

 UF 







18 mo. 





Humerus D 

 Radius P 



1 



2 





 



2-2.5 



yrs 



Metacarpal D 

 Tibia D 

 Metatarsal D 



1 

 1 









 

 



3.5 yrs 





Calcaneum P 

 Femur P 





 1 







1 



3.5-4 



yrs 



Humerus P 

 Radius D 

 UlnaP 

 Femur D 

 Tibia P 







1 





 

 





 

 

 

 



bone were found in Iron Age pits in Area 1 . It is 

 probable that these are non-anthropogenic, and 

 likely to represent natural fatalities. 



Pathology 



A horse metatarsal from an Iron Age pit on Area 1 

 had signs of eburnation on its proximal articulation. 

 The bone also had a cut mark on the shaft, 



Table 11: Epiphyseal fusion of sheep bones 



AGE 

 10 mo. 



1.5 - 16 mo. 



2.5 - 3 yrs. 

 3 - 3.5 yrs. 



ELEMENT 



Humerus D 

 Radius P 

 Scapula D 



Tibia D 

 Metacarpal D 

 Metatarsal D 



Calcaneum 

 Radius D 

 Femur P 



Humerus P 

 Femur D 

 Tibia P 



3RD 



F 

 1 



2 

 





 

 





 

 





 

 1 



ISTBC 

 UF 



2 

 

 



1 





 





 2 

 1 





 



1 



indicating that the horse may have been butchered 

 for human consumption. A cattle femur, from the 

 same pit, had signs of eburnation around the head 

 of the bone. 



Discussion 



The majority of the animal bones come from the 

 Iron Age deposits, reflecting the fact that the main 

 period of activity on the site was during this period. 

 There were no particularly dense deposits of bone, 

 although Iron Age gully 220 contained six sheep 

 mandibles and a high number of loose teeth. 



The majority of the cattle from the Iron Age 

 deposits were mature animals and it is probable 



Table 10: Tooth wear stages of the sheep according to period after Grant (1982) and Payne (1973). 

 SUGGESTED AGE STAGE 3RD- ISTBC ROMAN SAXON POST MEDIEVAL 



6-12 months 

 1 - 2 years 

 2-3 years 



C 

 D 

 E 



4 















4 



1 



















1 



1 





