From Roman suburbium to medieval city

Zooarchaeological approach to Sotstinent Navarro faunal assemblages (Barcelona, Spain). Caprines and equids as a case study

Bibliographic Data

ID21244288
AuthorsMarina Fernández (0000-0002-4974-855X, Instituto de Historia, corresponding author), Marta Moreno-García (0000-0002-6735-9355, Centro de Ciencias Humanas y Sociales), Jordi Nadal-Lorenzo (Instituto de Historia), Jordi Ramoz-Ruiz (Generalitat de Catalunya), Samantha Greeves (Generalitat de Catalunya), Matthew Von Tersch (0000-0001-5112-030X), Jessica Hendy (0000-0002-3718-1058, University of York), M M Alexander (0000-0001-8000-3639, University of York), Michelle Alexander (University of York), Santiago Riera-Mora (Instituto de Historia)
Year2026
Volume74
Pages105809
Publication date2026-10-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Archaeological Science Reports (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2352-409X • E-ISSN: 2352-4103
PublisherElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.jasrep.2026.105809
OpenAlexW7166456680
LanguageEN
References cited59

This work examines the interaction between humans and animals in urban environments in north-eastern Iberia from the Roman period to the end of the Middle Ages. We present a zooarchaeological study of the faunal remains found in Sotstinent Navarro, Barcelona, an archaeological site excavated as part of a rescue project. The zooarchaeological evidence presented and analysed here provides insight into the diet and provisioning of the city over time, focussing on three time periods: Late Roman and Late Antiquity (3rd-7th c.), the High Middle Ages (8th-12th c.), and the Late Middle Ages (13th-15th c.). Zooarchaeological data are complemented by biomolecular analyses, both Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry (ZooMS) and stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses, focussing on caprines and equids. While equid results are inconclusive, the analysis of caprines provides new insights into sheep and goat livestock management. Caprines, especially sheep, became the predominant taxon, with a specialisation in their management as a meat resource detected, particularly evident in the Late Middle Ages

Fauna · Faunal assemblage · Middle Ages · Period (music) · Taphonomy · Zooarchaeology · Animal Diversity and Health Studies · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Archaeology and Historical Studies

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