Ancient Skeleton of Ottoman War Camel Discovered in Europe

First Posted: Apr 06, 2015 09:04 AM EDT
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Archaeologists have uncovered a complete camel skeleton that dates back to the Second Ottoman War. Discovered in Austria, the skeleton is of an animal that was a male hybrid of a dromedary in the maternal line and a Bactrian camel in the paternal line.

"The partly excavated skeleton was at first suspected to be a large horse or cattle," said Alfred Galik, one of the researchers, in a news release. "But one look at the cervical vertebrae, the lower jaw and the metacarpal bones immediately revealed that this was a camel."

Camel bones have been found in Europe dating back to the Roman period. Isolated bones or partly preserved skeletons have been fund from Mauerbach and Serbia. However, a whole skeleton is unique for Central Europe.

In addition to horses, the Ottoman army used camels for transportation. In cases of scarcity, soldiers also ate the animals; however, the skeleton in Tulln was complete.

"This means that the animal was not killed and then butchered," said Galik. "It may have been acquired as part of an exchange. The animal was certainly exotic for the people of Tulln. They probably didn't know what to feed it or whether one could eat it. Perhaps it died a natural death and was then buried without being used."

The animal was also a hybrid. Crossbreeding wasn't unusual at the time since hybrids were easier to handle, more enduring and larger than their parents.

The findings reveal a bit more about the history of the place.

The findings are published in the journal PLOS One.

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