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Social Complexification and Pig (Sus scrofa) Husbandry in Ancient China: A Combined Geometric Morphometric and Isotopic Approach
- Source :
- PLoS ONE, PLoS ONE, Public Library of Science, 2016, 11 (8), pp.e0162134. ⟨10.1371/journal.pone.0158523⟩, PLoS ONE, Vol 11, Iss 7, p e0158523 (2016)
- Publication Year :
- 2016
- Publisher :
- Public Library of Science (PLoS), 2016.
-
Abstract
- International audience; Pigs have played a major role in the economic, social and symbolic systems of China since the Early Neolithic more than 8,000 years ago. However, the interaction between the history of pig domestication and transformations in Chinese society since then, have not been fully explored. In this paper, we investigated the co-evolution from the earliest farming communities through to the new political and economic models of state-like societies, up to the Chi-nese Empire, using 5,000 years of archaeological records from the Xiawanggang (XWG) and Xinzhai (XZ) sites (Henan Province). To trace the changes of pig populations against husbandry practices, we combined the geometric morphometric analysis of dental traits with a study of the stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios from bone collagen. The domestication process intensified during the Neolithic Yangshao, prompted by greater selective pressure and/or better herd control against wild introgression. After that, pig farming , in XWG, relied on local livestock and a gradual change of husbandry practices overtime. This was characterized by a gentle increase in millet foddering and animal protein intake, until a complete change over to household management during the Han dynasty. The only rupture in this steady trend of husbandry occurred during the Longshan period, with the appearance of small sized and idiosyncratic pigs with specific feeding practices (relying on millet and household scraps). From three exploratory hypothesis, we explored the possibility of anti-elite pig production in XWG during the Longshan period, as a means to resist incorporation into a new economic model promoting intensified domestic production. This exploratory hypothesis is the most suitable to our dataset; however, numerous areas need to be explored further in order to adequately document the role of pigs in the rise of China's complex societies.
- Subjects :
- Swine
Social Sciences
Stone Age
lcsh:Medicine
[SDV.BID.SPT]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Biodiversity/Systematics, Phylogenetics and taxonomy
Geographical Locations
Domestication
Medicine and Health Sciences
Pig farming
0601 history and archaeology
Animal Husbandry
lcsh:Science
Socioeconomics
Zooarchaeology
Animal Management
Mammals
2. Zero hunger
Multidisciplinary
Ecology
060102 archaeology
Agriculture
Geology
06 humanities and the arts
Animal husbandry
Trophic Interactions
Geography
Archaeology
Community Ecology
Neolithic Period
Vertebrates
Livestock
Research Article
China
Asia
[SHS.ARCHEO]Humanities and Social Sciences/Archaeology and Prehistory
Animal Types
Animals
Domestic Animals
Nutrition
060101 anthropology
business.industry
History of China
Ecology and Environmental Sciences
lcsh:R
Organisms
Biology and Life Sciences
Geologic Time
15. Life on land
Diet
Amniotes
People and Places
Earth Sciences
lcsh:Q
business
Zoology
Neolithic China
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 19326203
- Volume :
- 11
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- PLOS ONE
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....d50a756fdf9fa89ddc2bb72e8d635ab8