Isotopic Evidence for Early Trade in Animals between Old Kingdom Egypt and Canaan

Elizabeth R Arnold; Gideon Hartman; Haskel J Greenfield; Itzhaq Shai; Lindsay E Babcock; Aren M Maeir

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0157650

Isotopic Evidence for Early Trade in Animals between Old Kingdom Egypt and Canaan

PLoS One. 2016 Jun 20;11(6):e0157650. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0157650. eCollection 2016.

Authors

Elizabeth R Arnold¹, Gideon Hartman², Haskel J Greenfield³, Itzhaq Shai⁴, Lindsay E Babcock¹, Aren M Maeir⁵

Affiliations

¹ Grand Valley State University, Department of Anthropology, Allendale, Michigan, United States of America.
² University of Connecticut, Department of Anthropology, Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Storrs, Connecticut, United States of America.
³ Department of Anthropology and St. Paul's College, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
⁴ Ariel University, Israel Heritage Department and the Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology, Ariel, Israel.
⁵ Bar-Ilan University, Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology, Ramat Gan, Israel.

Abstract

Isotope data from a sacrificial ass and several ovicaprines (sheep/goat) from Early Bronze Age household deposits at Tell es-Safi/Gath, Israel provide direct evidence for the movement of domestic draught/draft and husbandry animals between Old Kingdom Egypt (during the time of the Pyramids) and Early Bronze Age III Canaan (ca. 2900-2500 BCE). Vacillating, bi-directional connections between Egypt and Canaan are known throughout the Early Bronze Age, but here we provide the first concrete evidence of early trade in animals from Egypt to Canaan.

MeSH terms

Animals
Archaeology
Carbon Isotopes
Commerce*
Egypt
Geography
Isotope Labeling / methods*
Mandible / anatomy & histology
Oxygen Isotopes
Strontium Isotopes
Tooth / anatomy & histology

Substances

Carbon Isotopes
Oxygen Isotopes
Strontium Isotopes

Grants and funding

This work was supported by Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (www.sshrc.ca) Partnership Grant (895-2011-1005) awarded in 2012 to HG and AM as coPIs. EA, GH and IS are all collaborators on the project. This work was also supported by Grand Valley State University - Student Summer Scholars Program to EA and LB. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.