Sheep and goats mortality profiles in the Southern Levantine Bronze and Iron Age revisited

Most scholars argue that caprine (sheep and goats) products, primary and secondary, were traded or exchanged for cultivated products. This notion implies that Southern Levantine households in the Bronze and Iron Ages practiced a specialized economy with an emphasis on one or more caprine products. Caprine mortality profiles from over 50 Bronze and Iron Age sites and strata were studied. Two models were tested: a market economy and a survival subsistence strategy. A market economy should be reflected in mortality profiles that indicate a specialized production of meat, milk or wool. A survival subsistence strategy should be reflected in mortality profiles that indicate caprine exploitation to producing a wide range of products. This study shows that 83% of the examined mortality profiles indicate a utilization of caprines for a wide range of products. The results of this study, coupled with studies on body-part representation, sheep/goat ratio and butchery practices coincide with the survival subsistence strategy model. This presentation also demonstrates that mortality profiles should be examined in light of herd management mechanisms rather than specialized production.