Sheffield Zooarchaeology Lab

27/05/2026

For Alive & Kicking n.58, we showcase our work on the seasonality of pig slaughter, which was part of the 'Feeding Stonehenge' project, and gave us the opportunity to propose a new method to record wear on pig teeth that can be applied to both lower and upper teeth. The work was spearheaded by Lizzie EW during her Masters' dissertation. Lizzie went on to do PhD and postdoc in Sheffield, postdocs in Basel and York, and has now been appointed as lecturer in zooarchaeology at the University of Cambridge. Good luck in your new job, Lizzie! Sheffield Zooarchaeology Twinning Save Sheffield Archaeology Zooarchaeology Network MSc Osteoarchaeology Sheffield Zooarchaeology Short Course
Have a look at the paper here, and ask us for a copy:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0305440314003446?via%3Dihub

18/05/2026

For Alive & Kicking n.57, we would like to remind you of this important book edited by Deborah Ruscillo Cosmopoulos as part of the International Council for Archaeozoology - ICAZ 2002 series. Though more than 20 years old, it still represents the most important summary of ageing and sexing methods since the famous 1982 volume edited by Wilson et al.
https://www.oxbowbooks.com/9781785700422/recent-advances-in-ageing-and-sexing-animal-bones/ Sheffield Zooarchaeology Twinning Zooarchaeology Network D Ru Cos

16/05/2026

We're delighted to see this paper published: FEEDING THE MINERS: ZOOARCHAEOLOGICAL INSIGHTS INTO ANIMAL HUSBANDRY AND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AT ROCCA SAN SILVESTRO (13TH-14TH C. AD, SOUTHERN TUSCANY, ITALY). It's a joint effort by Andrea Tommolini & our former Masters' and PhD student, and for ever ⭐️Veronica Aniceti! Well done, Andrea & Veronica! Zooarchaeology Network Sheffield Zooarchaeology Twinning Save Sheffield Archaeology MSc Osteoarchaeology Sheffield Zooarchaeology Short Course
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352409X26002154?dgcid=author

15/05/2026

On the 5th May, during one of our RICHeS open days, we had the pleasure of welcoming three outstanding visitors to work with our Zooarchaeology collection. Emeritus Professor Paul Halstead (University of Sheffield) and Dr. Valasia Isaakidou (University of Oxford) visited to identify some challenging animal bone fragments from a site in Greece which they have been studying.

We also welcomed Dr. Olga Zagorodnia, a Ukrainian researcher currently based in the Department of Scientific Research at the British Museum as a Researcher-at-Risk. Olga’s work focuses on the microwear analysis of worked bone from the Bronze Age Great Orme mines in Wales.

These visits highlight the breadth of research projects that our wonderful reference collection can support, and we look forward to welcoming them again in the future. Save Sheffield ArchaeologyMSc OsteoarchaeologyMSc OsteoarchaeologySheffield Zooarchaeology Twinning

15/05/2026

Alive & Kicking n.56 is late this week due to strike action. It features THE RURAL WORLD IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY, published by Brepols, and edited by Idoia Grau Sologestoa and Umberto Albarella. It includes contributions by the editors as well as Tamsyn Springer, who was our PhD student here in Sheffield. Tamsyn has now moved on to school teaching, while Idoia is still very much active in archaeology and currently based in Basel (Switzerland), with her wonderful family.
Details of the book, here:
https://www.brepolsonline.net/content/books/10.1484/M.HDL-EB.5.126374
Sheffield Zooarchaeology Twinning Zooarchaeology Network Save Sheffield Archaeology MSc Osteoarchaeology Sheffield Zooarchaeology Short Course

07/05/2026

The third meeting of the International Council for Archaeozoology (ICAZ) Medieval period Working Group will be hosted at the Institute of Natural Sciences, located in the centre of Brussels.

05/05/2026

Stories Written in Bone 🦴

A quick update on our buzzard, now pristine and ready to join our reference collection.

As it dried and came fully into view, we had one of those real “wow” moments. Just look at that humerus: a transverse break, with traces of healing where new bone had started to form. Amazing attempt by the vet to repair the fracture but, unfortunatelly, the bird died before the wing was fully healed.

It’s remarkable how much story can be held within a single bone. Save Sheffield ArchaeologyMSc OsteoarchaeologySheffield Zooarchaeology Short CourseSheffield Zooarchaeology Twinning

04/05/2026

For Alive & Kicking n.55 we would like to showcase Selena Vitezović's work on worked bone and its use as fishing tools . You can find the paper "FISHING AND HUNTING GEAR FROM OSSEOUS RAW MATERIALS IN THE EARLY NEOLITHIC FROM SERBIA" at this link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2018.01.021 Zooarchaeology Network Sheffield Zooarchaeology Twinning Save Sheffield Archaeology MSc Osteoarchaeology Sheffield Zooarchaeology Short Course

30/04/2026

🌟 Meet our fantastic volunteers – part two!

This week we were joined by the brilliant Louise and Molly, who rolled up their sleeves to help us sort through our bird reference collection 🐦📚

After our recent move, we really needed a careful check of what we have (and where everything ended up!), and these two first-year Zoology students did an amazing job bringing order back to the collection.

Huge thank you to you both—we’re already looking forward to having you back in the lab! Zooarchaeology Short CourseSave Sheffield ArchaeologyMSc OsteoarchaeologySheffield Zooarchaeology Twinning

27/04/2026

Alive & Kicking n.54 is dedicated to the earliest piece of research that Lenny Salvagno carried out in Sheffield, focusing on a fascinating assemblage of cattle horncores. As is well known, Lenny has been one of the key contributors to our team for the past 15 years, constantly stimulating us with her boundless energy and dedication. We will highlight her research further in due time. Sheffield Zooarchaeology Twinning Save Sheffield Archaeology Zooarchaeology Network MSc Osteoarchaeology Sheffield Zooarchaeology Short Course Umberto Albarella

SUMMARY: The assemblage from Greenwich High Road has interesting implications for our understanding of 18th- and early 19th-century tanneries and also of the use of bones as building material. The ...