Taphonomic Analysis and Morphotypical Characterisation of the Medieval Dog from the Castle of Santa Severa (Latium, Italy)

Eugenio Cerilli and Marco Fatucci

Environmental Archaeology, 2025, vol. 30, issue 2, 219-227

Abstract: During the excavations carried out in the Castle of Santa Severa between 2003 and 2010, the remains of an early Christian church were identified. Investigations inside the church exposed the skeleton of an adult dog (Canis familiaris) buried close to the tombs of two adult men. The radiocarbon dating of one of the human skeletons indicates that the burials occurred between 1380 and 1450. The skeletal elements of the dog were analysed from an anatomical, morphological, biometric, and taphonomic point of view. The aim of the analysis was to define which of the modern dog breeds is more similar to the Santa Severa individual and why the animal was so carefully buried. This dog was an adult with fairly pronounced withers height and slender proportions. The taphonomic analysis suggests that the animal had been skinned before the burial. The multivariate analysis of the biometric parameters of the skull compared to those of numerous modern canine breeds allowed hypothesising that the dog was probably similar to a Greyhound. The analysis of several coeval artistic representations may help to explain the reasons for the particular care with which this animal was buried in the Castle of Santa Severa.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1080/14614103.2021.1942743

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