The Initial Domestication of Goats ( Capra hircus ) in the Zagros Mountains 10,000 Years Ago
Top Cited Papers
- 24 March 2000
- journal article
- review article
- Published by American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Science
- Vol. 287 (5461) , 2254-2257
- https://doi.org/10.1126/science.287.5461.2254
Abstract
Initial goat domestication is documented in the highlands of western Iran at 10,000 calibrated calendar years ago. Metrical analyses of patterns of sexual dimorphism in modern wild goat skeletons ( Capra hircus aegagrus ) allow sex-specific age curves to be computed for archaeofaunal assemblages. A distinct shift to selective harvesting of subadult males marks initial human management and the transition from hunting to herding of the species. Direct accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon dates on skeletal elements provide a tight temporal context for the transition.Keywords
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