Sex determination of archaeological dogs using the skull: evaluation of morphological and metric traits on various modern breeds - Archive ouverte HAL Accéder directement au contenu
Article Dans Une Revue Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports Année : 2020

Sex determination of archaeological dogs using the skull: evaluation of morphological and metric traits on various modern breeds

Résumé

Sex identification is an important step in the study of canid remains from archaeological contexts because it enables to identify trends in domestic canid management from both prehistoric and historic periods. Since the presence of the baculum is rare, its absence is not sufficient proof for attribution to the female sex. Zooarchaeologists often use morphological and/or metric criteria of the cranium or the mandible of modern dogs of known breeds to assign sex. The efficiency of these criteria has never been tested when taking into account the extreme variability in morphology within the dogs. This study aims to test the effectiveness of some morphological traits and explore metric differences in an attempt to propose a method for sex identification independent of morphotype. We used the skull of a sample of 118 modern dogs, including 74 males and 44 females belonging to 37 breeds-from Dachshund to Greyhound to Boxer-and four male dogs from the archaeological site of Kerma (about 3000 BCE 14C, Sudan). The morphology of the sagittal crest and that of the basioccipital and orbital processes was observed. The form (size and shape) of both the cranium and mandible of these dogs was studied as well, using both uni-and multivariate analyses. We found that neither metric nor morphological criteria provided valid sex identification for all morphotypes. These results suggest prudence in the determination of sex based on the skull of archaeological dog remains and highlight the necessity to adapt the procedure to each population/morphotype under study.

Dates et versions

hal-03132889 , version 1 (05-02-2021)

Identifiants

Citer

Colline Brassard, Cécile Callou. Sex determination of archaeological dogs using the skull: evaluation of morphological and metric traits on various modern breeds. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2020, 31, pp.102294. ⟨10.1016/j.jasrep.2020.102294⟩. ⟨hal-03132889⟩

Collections

MNHN CNRS AASPE
142 Consultations
0 Téléchargements

Altmetric

Partager

Gmail Facebook X LinkedIn More