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This paper examines archaeological bird bones from Viljandi – one of the strongest centres in prehistoric and medieval Estonia – and covers material from the Late Iron Age to Early Modern Period, c. 950–1700. Over 5000 bird bones were analysed in this study. Our main aim was to explore the role of birds in people's diet and its relevance to social status, but also to explore the birds' habitats and environmental background, including commensalism and seasonal occurrence. This study highlighted differences between the four areas of Viljandi – the prehistoric rural settlement, historic castle, town, and suburb. We discuss diachronic trends in the utilisation of birds in these areas, largely determined by the 13th century Baltic Crusades and the transition from the Prehistoric to the Middle Ages, but also by population expansion and the social divergence that followed. In Prehistory, we witnessed more chicken exploitation, while wild birds seem to have played a smaller role. In the Historic Period, on the contrary, the utilised species are more diverse – probably to manifest social status. The main use of birds was for meat, eggs, and other products. Some species might have been used for hawking.

Šiame straipsnyje yra analizuojamos Klaipėdos pilyje rastos paukščių liekanos. Pilis čia pastatyta 1252 m. ir viduramžiais buvo šiauriausia Prūsijoje įsikūrusio Vokiečių ordino tvirtovė. Nors pilis ir aplink ją augantis miestas ne vieną šimtmetį kentėjo nuo karų ir kitų negandų, joje aptikti radiniai atskleidžia aukštą pilies gyventojų socialinį statusą. Tirti ir šioje publikacijoje pristatomi paukščių kaulai yra datuojami XIII a. pabaiga–XIV a. pradžia. Nors straipsnyje aptariamos visų pilyje rastų paukščių liekanos, daugiausia dėmesio skiriama dviem erelių rūšims – jūriniam (Haliaeetus albicilla) ir kilniajam (Aquila chrysaetos). Šiame straipsnyje pabandėme atsakyti į klausimus, kaip ereliai siejasi su socialiniu statusu, kaip ir kam jie naudoti, ar pilyje šie paukščiai galėjo būti valgomi. Atlikti tyrimai atskleidė, kad Klaipėdoje ereliai greičiausiai buvo laikomi dėl nagų ir plunksnų, o ne kaip medžiokliniai paukščiai ar maistui. Gali būti, kad jie sumedžioti tiesiog kaip kenkiantys plėšrūnai. Kitų Klaipėdos pilyje aptiktų paukščių – vištos (Gallus gallus domesticus), kurapkos (Perdix perdix), tikrųjų žąsų genties (Anser sp.) ir antinių šeimos (Anatinae) paukščių bei didžiojo kormorano (Phalacrocorax carbo) – liekanas galima interpretuoti kaip maisto atliekas. Šis straipsnis yra pirmoji Klaipėdoje rastiems paukščiams skirta publikacija ir vienas iš pirmųjų svarstymų apie erelių reikšmę Baltijos regione. In this paper, we examine archaeological bird remains from Klaipėda Castle (Ger. Memel), western Lithuania. The castle was built in 1252, and during the Middle Ages, it was the northernmost castle of the Teutonic Order in Prussia. The castle together with its adjacent town were subjected to wars and changing political situations over the centuries, but nevertheless represented a socially higher status. The studied bird remains were found during the excavations in 2016 and have been dated by context to the Middle Ages – from the end of the 13th to the beginning of the 14th century. Our aim is to introduce and discuss the bird remains with an emphasis on two species – the white-tailed sea-eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) and golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos). Most of all, we are interested in their role in expressing people’s social status, use in material culture, and significance as a food source. Our analysis showed that in Klaipėda, the eagles were probably used for raw material and possibly for feathers, but not for hawking and food. Alternatively, they could have been killed for scavenging. Other species identified in the assemblage such as chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus), grey partridge (Perdix perdix), geese (Anser sp.), ducks (Anatinae), and great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) were mainly interpreted as food waste. This article presents the first concentrated study on bird remains from Klaipėda and is one of the first discussions about the meaning of eagles in the Baltic region.

To better comprehend the dietary practices of past populations in the Eastern Baltic region we have created temporally and geographically restricted baselines for the time period of 200–1800 CE. In this multi-isotopic analysis, we report new δ13C, δ15N and δ34S values for 251 faunal bone collagen samples from various archaeological contexts in Estonia representing the most comprehensive set of Iron Age, Medieval and Early Modern Period faunal stable isotope values to date. The results map out the local carbon and nitrogen baselines and define isotopic ranges of local terrestrial, avian and aquatic fauna. We also demonstrate the potential application of sulfur stable isotope analysis in archaeological research. The results demonstrate a clear distinction between δ13C and δ34S values of marine and terrestrial species, however, freshwater fish display notable overlaps with both marine and terrestrial ranges for both δ13C and δ34S values. Herbivores show variation in δ34S values when grouped by region, explained by differences in the local biotopes. This study is the first attempt to connect the Eastern Baltic isotopic baselines and provides more detailed temporal and geographical references to study the local ecologies and interpret the human data.