Skull of a brachycephalic dog unearthed in the ancient city of Tralleis, Türkiye

• Published in: Journal of archaeological science, reports Vol. 49; p. 103969
• Main Authors: ONAR, Vedat, ÖZTÜRK, Nurettin, CHRÓSZCZ, Aleksander, PORADOWSKI, Dominik, MUTLU, Zihni
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.06.2023
• Subjects: Brachycephalic; Dog; Skull; The Roman Empire; Tralleis; Skull; Dog; The Roman Empire; Brachycephalic; Tralleis
• ISSN: 2352-409X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2023.103969

•In this study, the Roman period dog skull obtained in the ancient city of Tralleis in western Turkey was examined.•The dog skull was unearthed from 2007excavation at the ancient city of Tralleis.•Radiocarbon results showed that the dog skull belonged to the Roman period.•It was observed that the skull typology in a dog was brachycephalic type.•The brachycephalic dog skull is a rare example of a practice that began in the Roman period and later entered daily life. This study examined a skull of a dog from the Roman period. The skull, obtained during the 2007 excavations, could only be examined in 2021. The skull was visually of a brachycephalic type. Its craniometric measurements were compared with data from modern brachycephalic breeds of Boxer, French Bulldog, and Pekingese. The comparison revealed that the Tralleis dog craniometric measurements fell between those of the French Bulldog and Pekingese dogs. As a result, the skull in question is currently the only example of such as Roman dog in Asia Minor in the west.