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Black rats ( Rattus rattus ) from medieval Mertola (Baixo Alentejo, Portugal)

1997; Wiley; Volume: 241; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1111/j.1469-7998.1997.tb05737.x

1469-7998

Arturo Morales Muñiz, Jorge Rodríguez,

Archaeology and ancient environmental studies

This paper is about the analysis and interpretation of micromammal samples from archaeological sites while reporting on a black rat assemblage from XIII th century Muslim levels in the city of Mertola. Questions concerning skeletal representation, size plus age estimations and bone fragmentation are discussed from a taphonomic standpoint. It is concluded that the tendency to interpret rodent accumulations in anthropic sites as evidence of preybird activities might be an oversimplification in need of substantial revision.