Peat dog

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The peat dog , also Torfspitz ( Canis palustris , Canis familiaris palustris Rütimeyer) was a prehistoric domestic dog . It was described for the first time in 1861 by the Swiss zoologist Ludwig Rütimeyer , after finds in Swiss pile-dwelling settlements from the Neolithic Age (hence the name Pfahlbautenspitz ).

Appearance

According to the first description, the dog has an appearance similar to the recent Wolfspitz . That is why it was assumed for a few decades that he was the direct ancestor of all Nordic dogs, the German Spitz and, over various levels, other dog breeds. This primal race theory goes back to the cynologist Theophil Studer and is now outdated.

At 135–150 mm, the skull length of the peat dog was already significantly smaller than that of a wolf's skull. Some finds of peat dogs whose skulls show traces of violent death suggest an early selection, as it can be assumed that not the whole litter was raised, but only individual individuals. It is believed that he (at least at the beginning) lived similarly to the pariah dogs today, i.e. on the edge of the settlements, largely self-sufficient. He probably accompanied the people on their hunts, guarded houses and settlements and perhaps also pulled their loads in the far north.

Archaeological finds

Bones of this type of dog were repeatedly found in settlements of prehistory , with a focus on the Neolithic and Bronze Age . The finds extend across Europe, as far as Asia and North Africa. The description as an independent breed or subspecies goes back to finds in pile dwellings on Lake Biel ( Schafis discovery site ). As early as 1880 finds from the Dümmer and the Watten in the Oldenburger Land were known and attributed to the Torfspitz.

In 2003, a completely preserved peat dog was recovered from the flat ceramic settlement of Zschernitz in Saxony. The animal, about two years old when he died, was buried in a pit with a dead puppy. The dog from Zschernitz had a shoulder height of about 45 cm, which is compared to the size of today's Spitz .

An almost completely preserved specimen was found in 1953 with the Burlage peat dog in a moor in Lower Saxony . It was long believed to be Bronze Age. However , according to new radiocarbon dating , this dog did not die until modern times, between 1477 and 1611.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Ludwig Rütimeyer : The fauna of the pile dwellings in Switzerland. Studies on the history of the wild and domestic mammals of central Europe. Bahnmaier, Basel 1861.
  2. ^ Otto Antonius : Basic features of a tribal history of domestic animals. Gustav Fischer, Jena 1922.
  3. ↑ Erik Zimen: The dog. Descent - Behavior - Man and Dog (= Goldmann 12397). Full paperback edition. Goldmann, Munich 1992, ISBN 3-442-12397-6 , pp. 145 f.
  4. ^ A b Darcy F. Morey: Burying key evidence: the social bond between dogs and people. In: Journal of Archaeological Science. Vol. 33, No. 2, 2006, ISSN  0305-4403 , pp. 158-175, doi : 10.1016 / j.jas.2005.07.009 .
  5. ^ Theophil Studer : About dogs from the Crannoges of Ireland. In: Communications from the Natural Research Society in Bern. 1900, ISSN  0077-6130 , pp. 132-134, doi : 10.5169 / seals-319108 .
  6. ^ Friedrich von Alten: The circular pits in the mud flats of the North Sea. In: Report on the activities of the Oldenburger Landesverein für Alterthumskunde. Booklet 3, 1881, ZDB -ID 965551-7 , p. 17. Plate I. Fig. 16.
  7. ^ A b Henriette Kroll: Dog life in the Neolithic. In: From Peißen to Wiederitzsch. Archeology on a natural gas route. MITGAS, Gröbers 2004, pp. 75–77.
  8. ^ Markus Bertling, Heather Gill-Frerking, Wilfried Rosendahl: The bog dog from Burlage . In: Alfried Wieczorek, Wilfried Rosendahl (eds.): Mummies of the world . Prestel, Munich et al. 2010, ISBN 978-3-7913-5030-1 , pp. 298-299 .