On the hunt for medieval whales : zooarchaeological, historical and social perspectives on cetacean exploitation in medieval northern and western Europe / Youri van den Hurk.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hurk, Youri van den, author.

Series:

UCL Institute of Archaeology PhD series ; v. 4.

BAR international series ; 2998.

UCL Institute of Archaeology PhD series ; volume 4

BAR international series ; 2998

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Animal remains (Archaeology)--North Atlantic Region.

Animal remains (Archaeology).

Cetacea--North Atlantic Region--History--To 1500.

Cetacea.

Whaling--North Atlantic Region--History--To 1500.

Whaling.

Whaling--Social aspects--North Atlantic Region--History--To 1500.

Whaling--Economic aspects--North Atlantic Region--History--To 1500.

Middle Ages--Antiquities.

Middle Ages.

Whaling--Economic aspects.

Whaling--Social aspects.

Antiquities.

History.

North Atlantic Region.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

xxii, 230 pages : illustrations (some color), maps (some color) ; 30 cm.

Place of Publication:

Oxford : BAR Publishing, 2020.

Summary:

Medieval cetacean (whales, dolphins, and porpoises) exploitation has frequently been connected to various medieval societies, including the Basques, Norse, Normans, and Flemish. Primarily for the ninth to the twelfth centuries AD, it has been argued that the symbolic significance of cetaceans surpassed their utilitarian value and that their consumption was restricted to the social elite. The extent to which active whaling was practised remains unclear. The identification of zooarchaeological cetacean fragments to the species level is hard and as a result they are frequently merely identified as 'whale', resulting in a poor understanding of human-cetacean interaction in the past. Zooarchaeological research as part of this study has revealed that medieval cetacean exploitation was widespread and especially the harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), and the North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis) were frequently targeted. The exploitation additionally seems to have often been restricted to the social elite.

Contents:

Introduction

Materials and methods

Cetaceans and the North Atlantic Ocean. Origin and evolution of cetaceans ; The North Atlantic Ocean ; Cetacean species in the northeast Atlantic ; Cetaceans and mediveal climate variability ; Strandings ; Exploitation products ; Pre-whaling population size

Cetaceans in a medieval historical context. Methods ; Pre-medieval and medieval perception of cetaceans ; Whaling people ; Stranding events in historical sources ; Cetaceans, status, and diet ; Medieval marine resources exploitation in context ; Conclusion

Cetaceans in zooarchaeology. Taphonomy ; Identification of cetacean remains ; Active whaling vs. opportunistic scavenging ; Zooarchaeology, cetaceans, and the interpretation of socioeconomic status ; Conclusion

Zooarchaeological research on cetaceans from medieval northern and western Europe. Methods ; Results ; Conclusion

Case studies. Netherlands and Flanders: zooarchaeological analysis of medieval cetacean remains from the Netherlands and Flanders ; England: "The exploitation of sea-mammals in medieval England: bones and their social context": >20 years on ; Grey whale (Eschrichtius robustus): greys in grey literature: the demise of the North Atlantic Grey Whale (Eschrichtius robustus) ; Conclusion

Social implications of cetacean exploitation in medieval northern and western Europe. Normans ; Basques ; Anglo-Saxons and the English ; Danes ; Polish ; Portuguese ; Sami ; Norse ; Norse-Gaels ; Frisians ; Dutch ; Flemish

Conclusion

Appendix

References used in appendix.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references.

Current Copyright Fee: GBP20.00 0.

ISBN:

9781407357201

1407357204

OCLC:

1191847254