engleski

Subsistence and seasonality of the prehistoric herders in Istria

At the northern end of Adriatic Sea, in the region known as Caput Adriae, lies the Istrian peninsula. Abundance of archaeological sites with faunal remains provides a solid ground for detailed archaeozoological study focused on subsistance strategies and food production during prehistory. Domestic animals were introduced to littoral area of the southern Istria during Early Neolithic but it took longer for herding to spread deeper into hinterland. Since then animal husbandry was an integral part of subsistence and economy in prehistoric Istria, but the intensity and nature of food production changed over time. This paper presents several recent archaeozoological case studies of the faunal assemblages from multi- strata sites in southern and north-eastern parts of Istria covering time span from Early Neolithic to Bronze Age, thus providing an interesting insight into temporal changes in the economy of prehistoric herders. The results of archaeozoological analysis supported by both geomorphological and archaeological evidence indicate seasonal use of caves in the mountainous area as pens for keeping herds of small livestock since the beginning of Neolithic, while in the coastal area smaller settlements were oriented towards mixed economy which included both herding and fishing.

Istria; Neolithic; Copper Age; Bronze Age; subsistence; seasonality

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