CAJ | 학술논문

Strontium isotopic analyses of incrementally developed dental and bone tissues can be used to reveal patterns of activities and lives of animals and human beings. This paper presents a pilot study designed to test the use of strontium isotopes for investigating aspects of activities and lives of the animals in the Neolithic Age of central China, using the Wadian Site as a case study. Tooth enamel samples from seven animal individuals and bone samples from four mice were analyzed for strontium iso- tope ratio by the thermal ionization mass spectrometry. As the results show, different species occupy different regions with varying home ranges, sheep, cattle and two pigs from the Wadian Site fell well outside the local strontium isotopes ratio range and were considered to be non-local. The results of the strontium isotope ratio analysis, zooarchaeological researches and the stable carbon isotope analysis are consistent. Three independent research results which form a chain of evidence can reflect the status of the animals＇ living statuses.