Investigation of the bird domestication process in China by using various archaeological science approaches for studying zooarchaeological remains

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 24700927
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Cultural property science
• Research Institution: Hokkaido University
• Principal Investigator: Eda Masaki 北海道大学, 総合博物館, 講師 (60452546)
• Project Period (FY): 2012-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: ニワトリ / 家畜化 / 動物考古学 / 骨髄骨

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Farming of domestic birds (including domestic chicken, goose and duck) is thought to have begun in the Neolithic Age in northern China, and domestic chicken farming is considered the oldest poultry farming practice, with its origin tracing back to approximately 10,000 BP. To investigate the domestication process of birds in China, we analyzed bird bones collected from 23 Neolithic and Bronze Age sites in central and northern China. No candidate chicken bones were found at any of the early and middle Neolithic sites, whereas a small number of them were found in the late Neolithic and Bronze Age sites. These observations suggest that chickens were not farmed in central and northern China during the early and middle Neolithic Age and that they were not popular even in the Bronze Age.

Free Research Field

動物考古学