Excavations at Knowth (3)

This is the third volume of the comprehensive account of the excavations at Knowth—part of the ancient Brugh na Bóinne complex that also includes Dowth and Newgrange. This monograph provides the first comprehensive overview of the archaeological evidence for the use of animal resources in Ireland during the Early Christian period. The study of the bone assemblage from Knowth—one of the largest assemblages of animal bone recovered from an Irish site in recent decades— provided an opportunity to review the faunal data recorded from other Early Christian sites in Ireland. The volume contains a gazetteer summarising this data from more than 30 excavations across the country. The concluding premise of the analysis is that the animal bones demonstrate a fundamental shift in Irish livestock economy from the eighth century AD onwards.

Keynotes:

• This is the third in the Excavations at Knowth series of monographs.
• It provides the first comprehensive overview of the archaeological evidence for the use of animal resources in Ireland during the Early Christian period.
•  Excavations of the Early Christian levels at Knowth produced one of the largest assemblages of animal bone recovered from an Irish site in recent decades.
• The study of the bones provided an opportunity to review the faunal data recorded  from contemporary Irish sites, and the volume contains a gazetteer summarising this evidence from more than 30 excavations across the country.
• This volume also contains chapters dealing with Irish zooarchaeology from the Mesolithic to the Iron Age and an overview of the Early Christian archaeology at Knowth. The concluding premise of the analysis is that the animal bones demonstrate a fundamental shift in the Irish livestock economy from the eighth century onwards.

The Great Mound at Knowth