Zooarchaeological analysis of the Lower Palace Area at Karkemish (Gaziantep, Turkey): Area C from the Late Bronze II to the Iron IV Period

Faunal remains from the Lower Palace Area (Area C) at Karkemish (Gaziantep, Turkey) were found in different levels spanning the Late Bronze II (14th-13th centuries BC) to the Iron IV / Achaemenid period (5th-4th centuries BC). The zooarchaeological analysis involved a sample of 11,849 skeletal remains recovered from production areas, domestic or residential buildings, as well as dumps. Almost one third of the animal bones were determined to species level, showing a clear predominance of domestic mammals. Sheep and goats represent the great majority of the sample, followed by oxen. Wild mammals are always extremely rare in our record, but they acquire some importance during the end of the Iron Age. The overall observation of the quantitative data, presence/absence ratios, and kill-off patterns of the different species highlight significant variations in meat consumption strategies and the production/transformation of secondary products, including the use of animals as beasts of burden. All such variations in the animal exploitation in the Lower Palace Area can be related to specific socio-economic and political changes that occurred at Karkemish over time.