Exploring meat processing in the past: Insights from the Nunamiut people

• Published in: PLOS ONE
• Main Author: Soulier, Marie-Cécile
• Other Authors: Biehl, Peter F., Académie françase, CNRS Momentum project
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2021
• Subjects: Rangifer tarandus; Alaska
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0245213; https://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0245213

Improving our knowledge of subsistence strategies and food processing techniques of past societies is of prime interest for better understanding human cultures as well as multiple aspects of human evolution. Beyond the simple matter of food itself, a substantial portion of socio-economic behavior is expressed in what, how, when, and with whom we eat. Over the last few decades, diverse methodologies for the analysis and interpretation of cut marks have progressively provided new insights for past butchery practices. For example, a recent study of the production of antelope biltong in South Africa concluded that the drying of meat generates high frequencies of longitudinal cut marks. This paper presents a cut mark analysis of faunal remains recovered by Lewis Binford from 8 campsites occupied by Nunamiut groups from the end of 19 th to middle of the 20 th century in the area around Anaktuvuk Pass, Alaska. The preparation of meat—primarily from caribou ( Rangifer tarandus )–varied at these sites according to the season of occupation and was, depending on the site, either immediately consumed, processed after being stored in ice-cellars, or dried and stored. These faunal assemblages therefore provide a unique opportunity to explore the material traces of different meat preparation and preservation techniques in order to identify whether specific patterns can be identified and subsequently used to explore subsistence practices in the past. Binford’s Nunamiut faunal assemblages, which were produced by individuals using traditional techniques and methods, were analyzed in order to 1) further test the hypothesis that meat drying produces high frequencies of longitudinal cut marks, 2) explore the common assumption that skilled butchers leave smaller numbers of cut marks on bones compared to less experienced individuals, and 3) test whether cut mark patterns vary as a function of the processing techniques employed. The introduction of a %cutL index represents a quicker alternative to geo-referencing cut marks on bones ...