NEOLITHIC HORSES AT BRONOCICE

Paper examines the results of zooarchaeological analysis of horse remains from the Middle and Late Neolithic occupation at Bronocice in Poland. Authors consider the following questions: 1. How important were horses in the faunal sample? 2. What were the frequencies of different skeletal parts? 3. What was the age at death of horses? 4. Whether any changes in the frequencies of the horse remains took place through time? 5. How horse bones were used for tool production? and 6. Whether the horses were wild or domesticated species? The remains of horses found in the Funnel Beaker features at Bronocice represent the wild species. It is possible that the late Funnel Beaker-Baden Culture people possessed domesticated horses. The frequencies of horses, wild or domestic, are very low at Bronocice in comparison to other animals such as cattle, sheep/goat, and pigs. This suggests that horses at least as food resource played a minor role in the subsistence strategy of the Funnel Beaker communities. What were their role in rituals and other activities is unclear.