Mugalzhar Cattle Breeders: based on the materials from the Bronze Age Tarangul settlement

Abstract

The article presents the results of archaeozoological studies of animal bone remains discovered in 2021–2022 at the Bronze Age settlement of Tarangul (Kargaly district, Aktobe region). The purpose of the study is to identify cultural and economic species in the settlements of the Bronze Age of the Ural-Mugalzhar region, to understand the directions of development of animal husbandry and hunting in the region and to analyze the composition of ancient fauna. During the study, the species composition of the paleofauna was determined, the morphological features of domestic animals (age, exterior characteristics) were evaluated, the seasons of animal slaughter and pathological bone changes were revealed. A total of 6.089 bones belonging to mammals were studied, of which 2.447 (40.1%) bones were separated into specific animal species. Among the animal remains, bones of domestic animals predominated (95.6%), and bones of wild mammals were also found (4.4%). Cattle bones predominate among the remains of domestic animals (58.8%). The bones of small cattle are in second place (31.8%), horses are in third place (2.6%). Dog and pig bones are found in small quantities. It was noticed that most of the small cattle were slaughtered between the ages of 1.5 and 2.5 years. Most cattle were used for meat at the age of 2.5 years and older. The results of studies of the annual layer on the teeth of animals showed that animals were slaughtered more in autumn and winter (54.2%). The discovery of bone remains of newborns among the bones of cattle and small cattle indirectly confirms that the inhabitants wintered in the settlement.