Horses And Dogs Were Found Buried Alongside These Iron Age People, Indicating They Might Have Been Cherished Pets

A new archaeological finding may serve as proof that people who lived more than 2,000 years ago had strong bonds with their animal companions, just as we do today.
The bones of 161 individuals dating between the first and third centuries were found in Italy, and 16 of them were buried alongside some form of animal remains.
These ancient animal lovers were located at Seminario Vescovile, an archaeological site in Verona. Some of the creatures that were buried next to them included pigs, cows, and chickens, which may have been food offerings for funerary rituals.
However, dog and horse remains were also unearthed nearby. During that time period, dogs and horses were not commonly eaten, indicating that they could have been pets that meant a great deal to their owners when they were alive.
One of the skeletons was a baby, who was laid to rest beside a complete dog skeleton. Another was a young man with some parts of a horse.
There was also a middle-aged man with a small dog and a middle-aged woman with a dog skull, a whole horse, and parts from other horses.
Researchers analyzed the genetics of the humans and animals in the graves. They did not discover any significant ties between the people, meaning that they were most likely not related to each other. They also looked into the diets and burial conditions of the remains.
The absence of a consistent pattern among the ancient people allows for various interpretations as to why they were buried alongside animals.
The possibilities range from religious symbolism to companionship with animals. Throughout history, dogs and horses have been buried next to humans, although the practice likely has different meanings across cultures.

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According to the authors of the study, dogs have appeared in human burials from at least the late Paleolithic period. The earliest documented evidence of the custom was in Born-Oberkassel, Germany, over 14,000 years ago.
“The appearance of dogs in funerary contexts, associated with human graves or not, presents a remarkable geographic distribution, with finds identified in Eurasia and the Americas and a chronological extension spanning from the Paleolithic to contemporary times,” wrote the authors in their paper.
The dogs in the Verona graves looked as though they were sacrificed for the burials, perhaps as a symbol for passing into the afterlife.
The societal status of each person buried at the site may also contribute to the reasoning behind the animal burials, as well as the funerary practices of the community.
“What we observe is only a fraction of the material aspects of the ritual. In addition to the inevitable loss of information due to the degradation of organic materials, the observed remnants provide only approximations, lacking crucial components of ritualistic performances like sensorial and gestural elements,” the authors wrote.
So, while the animals may have been pets, it’s impossible to say for sure due to the gaps in the researchers’ knowledge.
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