Archaeological Methods and the Study of the Domestication of the Dog

8/12/2019 Archaeological Methods and the Study of the Domestication of the Dog

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The study of dog domestication involves several different areas of expertise including the

work of zooarchaeologists, paleontologists, and evolutionary geneticists (genomicists). The

domestic dog may be one of humanities greatest triumphs as they are the only large carnivore

ever domesticated and the only domestic species to have created a unique social niche in human

society, other than the house cat. Descended from grey wolves, the dog was the first animal

domesticated by human beings tens of thousands of years ago, long before humans began to

experiment with domesticating other species of animals and plants for agriculture (Fox, 1978).

The duration of this process has been in debate for some time, but recent Russian Belyaev Fox

Farm studies on domestication have shown that it can occur in just a few successive generations.

Both the date and location of the events surrounding the first domestication of dogs has also been

debated for decades, as well as the method by which this occurred. While some like Dr. C. Vila

and Dr. Robert Wayne have claimed that domestication may have occurred as far back as

135,000 years ago until recently the oldest accepted domesticated dogs dated to around 14,000

years ago (Vila et al, 1997). Domestic canines are well known in the archaeological record for

the last 14,000 years, but there are far fewer that have been discovered that date before that time

(Ovodov, 2011). However, due to new discoveries, the oldest known possible dog or dog-like

caninesremains were discovered in Horizon 4 at the Upper Paleolithic site of Goyet in Belgium

during the 19th century. In 2008 the remains were AMS radiocarbon dated to 31,700 or 36,000

BP (Ovodov, 2011). This AMS date was arrived at by direct dating of the remains themselves,

since much of the contextual data had been lost in the century since the excavations. These

skeletal remains were morphologically different from wolves, but not consistent with all the

features of modern dogs and are currently referred to as an incipient dog(Ovodov, 2011). This,

however, is not the only evidence of dogs or dog-like canines to be dated older than the accepted


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14,000 BP; skeletal remains have also been recovered in Razboinichya Cave (Altai Mountains),

Russia in 2011which date to 33,000 BP and fromPredmost in the Czech Republic (three

specimens) which could be as old as 27,000 years old (Germonpr et al, 2012). Thefootprints

made by a child and a dog, or domestic wolf, were found at Chauvet Cave, France which date to

26,000 BP, but this is still very controversial

(http://www.nbcnews.com/id/27240370/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/worlds-first-dog-

lived-years-ago-ate-big/#.U2RpuRUo7IU). These discoveries challenge the notion that

domestication occurred only by or after 14,000 BP, but the small number of these older remains

leaves open the question of when and where humans first domesticated the wolf and if this was a

centralized process beginning in a single region or multiple events that occurred over time and

space. There have been many archaeological discoveries and genetic studies concerning the

domestication of dogs, for this paper I will focus only on the most recent.

Archaeological analysis

Archaeologically the study of dog domestication has revolved around the study of the

morphological differences (osteometrics) seen in the skeletal remains of ancient dogs recovered

from human occupation sites and then compared to modern dogs and their wild ancestors, the

wolf. These morphological changes in the skeletal system include a reduction in overall size,

smaller skull size averaging 20% smaller, a shorter jaw initially with tooth crowding and, later,

the teeth themselves shrink in size, and the development of a vertical drop in front of the

forehead known as brachycephaly(http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/dogs-that-

changed-the-world/photo-essay-from-wolf-to-dog/1278/.) All these differences translated into

different average measurements which are no longer consistent with those of the grey wolf.

Measurements are taken from the recovered skeletal remains and compared to known values


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associated with the range of variation for modern and ancient dogs and wolves. These

measurements allow researchers to know which category to place the remains in. This process is

complicated by the fact that very early specimens are still difficult to distinguish from wolves

(Larson et al, 2012). In living specimens there are other morphological changes including

changes in coat coloration and markings, as well as differences in the structure of the ears from

erect ears like those of wolves to the floppy ears seen on hounds and other domestic breeds.

Many of these phenotypic changes were seen firsthand in the recent Russian Belyaev Fox Farm

studies on domestication involving silver foxes which began in 1979 and continue to this day

(Braude and Gladman, 2013). As stated above the earliest AMS radiocarbon dated dog remains

are those from Goyet cave in Belgium and the remains discovered in the Altai region of Siberia.

Osteological and genetic analysis of the Altai remains, however, would seem to indicate that this

incipient dog, while strongly resembling the ancient Greenland dog, is not related to modern

domestic dogs and represents an early but ultimately unsuccessful attempt at domestication

(Ovodov, 2011). While this does not represent the true lineage of modern domestic canines it

does support the idea that domestication was attempted at numerous locations and at several

different times throughout prehistory (Ovodov, 2011).

However, assessing the morphological differences in the skeletal remains recovered from

archaeological sites is not the only method archaeologists have used in the study of the origins of

the domestic dog. Cultural evidence has also been used to identify some of the earliest definitive

domestic dogs. This evidence includes dog burials and more importantly joint human-dog burials

which are known in the archaeological records as far back as 14,000 BP at sites like Bonn-

Oberkassel in Germany in which a dog was interred in a human double grave

(http://archive.archaeology.org/online/interviews/morey.html).The second oldest site of joint


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human-dog burials is Ein Mallaha in Israel, where an elderly human and a 4-5 month old puppy

were buried together(http://scienceblogs.com/thoughtfulanimal/2010/04/12/monday-pets-

biological-evidenc/). This human-dog burial has been dated to sometime between 10,000 and

12,000 BP(http://scienceblogs.com/thoughtfulanimal/2010/04/12/monday-pets-biological-

evidenc/). These burials are some of the most important forms of evidence because they give us

the remains necessary for osteometric and genetic analysis.

Burials are not the only cultural evidence of early domestic dogs though. Human made

artifacts may also give insights into the early relationship of humans and dogs.The side by side

footprints of a child and an early dog/domestic wolf that were found at Chauvet Cave, France

dated to 26,000 BP (http://www.nbcnews.com/id/27240370/ns/technology_and_science-

science/t/worlds-first-dog-lived-years-ago-ate-big/#.U2RpuRUo7IU). Other examples include

cave paintings and other rock art from the Neolithic, like that found atTassili n Ajjer, Algeria,

and a range of artifacts depicting dogs made during and after this early period have been found

all over the world. These artifacts often show dogs after domestication and are less useful in

determining the date of initial domestication. However, these artifacts are useful in determining

the minimum date for the regional presence of domestic dogs and the possible antiquity of some

modern breeds.

Genetic Analysis

Over the years since the invention of various methods of DNA analysis there have been

many studies undertaken to determine when and where dog domestication first occurred. These

studies generally compare the mitochondrial genomes of archaeological specimens to modern

dog breeds and wild canids.
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MtDNA was discovered in the 1960s by Margit M. K. Nass and Sylvan Nass. MtDNA is

found in the mitochondria which are the energy-producing organelles of a cell. These are present

in large quantities in animal cells and are far more likely to survive over time than nuclear DNA

which can become degraded. MtDNA is inherited from the maternal ancestor and has a

predictable rate of mutation and as a result it is the material used in the analysis to examine the

evolutionary change in human and non-human species. These mitochondrial DNA strands are

extracted, then sequenced, and finally compared to the MtDNA sequences of others of the same

species or to related species.

The results of the early genetic studies pointed to various areas around the Old World

including Europe, China, and the Middle East. Many of the early studies were flawed however

because they focused only on the genetic material of modern dog breeds. Other early studies, like

that of Dr. Vila, returned with dates as far back as 135,000-140,000 years ago (Vila et al, 1997).

However, no archaeological evidence discovered to date exists to support such early beginning to

canine domestication. More recent studies have suggested dates for domestication that are much

more consistent with the archaeological evidence, the finding of two of the most famous studies

are as follows.

In 2013, Dr. Olaf Thalmann conducted a studied of canine MtDNA to determine the

origin of modern domestic dogs. This study looked at ten ancient wolf-like animals and eight

dog-likeanimals recovered from archaeological sites that range in age from 1,000 years old to

33,000 years old (Thalmann, 2013). The MtDNA recovered from these animals was then

compared tomodern mitochondrial genomes of 77 domestic dogs, 49 wolves, and four coyotes

(Thalmann, 2013). The conclusion of this study was that modern domestic dogs were not closely

related to the modern wolves used in the study but likely were descended from an extinct group


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of wolves from Europe and that domestication may have begun there as early as sometime

between 18,800 and 32,100 years ago(Thalmann, 2013). This study is interesting because it

refutes the idea that domestication began in the Middle East as wolves were drawn to early

human settlements during the Neolithic Revolution.

Other studies like that undertaken by Freedman in 2014 on the genome sequencing of

domestic dogs indicates that modern domestic canines developed between 11,000 and 16,000

years ago, still predating the rise of agriculture and sedentism (Freedman, 2014). This study

compared the MtDNA of grey wolves from three distinct regions believed to be centers of

domestication, two Basal dog lineages, and a golden jackal(Freedman, 2014). They also

discovered a genetic bottleneck in wolves which occurred just after the separation of dogs,

indicating that dogs were developed from a much larger pool of wolves(Freedman, 2014). This

date range is well supported by the archaeological evidence which now suggests domestication

just prior to the development of agriculture, but this does not explain the much earlier dates from

some archaeological finds such as the Goyet dog. It does, however, give an explanation as to

why the incipient dogsgenetics are so different from modern wolves.

In conclusion, recent studies utilizing modern methods have given us new insights into

the domestication of the dog. New discoveries such as the Altai and Goyet dogs may push the

date of domestication back thousands of years. However, this new information has not settled the

debate over where and when domestication occurred. It now appears that there may have been

multiple occurrences of domestication, some of which did not contribute to the genetics of

modern domestic dogs. These studies have also discovered a genetic bottleneck in wolves that

may account for the genetic differences in ancient dogs and modern wolves. This may aid


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researchers in discovering the geographic origin of the domestic dog through further genetic

testing if MtDNA can be discovered from these lost lineages.


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Works Cited

Stan Braude1 and Justin Gladman

2013 Out of Asia: An Allopatric Model for the Evolution of the Domestic Dog.ISRNZoology Volume 2013 (2013), Article ID 841734, pp. 1-7

Fox, Michael

1978The Dog; Its Domestication and BehaviorGarland STPM Press, New York and

London

Germonpra, Mietje, Martina Lznikov-Galetovb, Mikhail V. Sablinc,

2012 Palaeolithic dog skulls at the Gravettian Pedmost site, the Czech Republic

Journal of Archaeological Science Volume 39, Issue 1, January 2012, Pages 184202

Larson G, Karlsson EK, Perri A, Webster MT, Ho SY, et al.

2012 Rethinking dog domestication by integrating genetics, archeology, and

biogeography"Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 109: 88788883

Ovodov ND, Crockford SJ, Kuzmin YV, Higham TF, Hodgins GW, et al.

2011. A 33,000-year-old incipient dog from the Altai Mountains of Siberia: evidence of

the earliest domestication disrupted by the Last Glacial Maximum.Plos One Volume 6: Issue 7,

e22821. pp. 1-7.


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Thalmann O. et al.

2013. Complete Mitochondrial Genomes of Ancient Canids Suggest a European Origin

of Domestic Dogs.Science, vol. 342, no. 6160, pp. 871-874

Vila, C., Savolainen, P., Maldonado, J.E., Amorim, I.R., Rice, J.E., Honeycutt, R.L., Crandall,

K.A., Lundeberg, J., and Wayne, R.K.

1997. Multiple and Ancient Origins of the Domestic Dog. Science, 276, pp. 1687-9.

Viegas, Jennifer

2008World's first dog lived 31,700 years ago, ate big; Discovery could push back the

date for the earliest dog by 17,700 years

(http://www.nbcnews.com/id/27240370/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/worlds-first-dog-

lived-years-ago-ate-big/#.U2RpuRUo7IU)

Goldman,Jason G.

2010 Biological Evidence That Dog is Mans Best Friend

(http://scienceblogs.com/thoughtfulanimal/2010/04/12/monday-pets-biological-evidenc/)

Archaeology

2008 Burying Man's Best Friend Interview with Darcy Morey

(http://archive.archaeology.org/online/interviews/morey.html)
http://scienceblogs.com/thoughtfulanimal/2010/04/12/monday-pets-biological-evidenc/http://archive.archaeology.org/online/interviews/morey.htmlhttp://archive.archaeology.org/online/interviews/morey.htmlhttp://scienceblogs.com/thoughtfulanimal/2010/04/12/monday-pets-biological-evidenc/


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Nature; Episode Dogs That Changed the World

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/dogs-that-changed-the-world/photo-essay-

from-wolf-to-dog/1278/

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Archaeological Methods and the Study of the Domestication of the Dog