NDLI: The Croatian Apoxyomenos as a luxurious rodent nest: archaeobotanical and zoological analyses of organic material found inside the classical bronze statue

Content Provider	Springer Nature Link
Author	Šoštarić, Renata Kovačić, Darko Ćaleta, Marko Alegro, Antun Mitić, Božena
Copyright Year	2007
Abstract	Archaeobotanical analysis has been used to reconstruct the nest and diet of a small rodent from the Classical period (first century b.c. to second century a.d.) and most probably from Greece. The nest was found in the hollow interior of a very valuable bronze statue of a young athlete, recovered from the waters of the Northern Adriatic and named the Croatian Apoxyomenos. Apoxyomenos was probably the cargo of a Roman ship on one of highly frequented sea routes in ancient times, along which, among other things, a highly developed trade in artworks was maintained. All plant remains were non-carbonised and mineralised; encrusted with metallic salts, especially of copper, and preserved in excellent condition. The nest itself (wisps of “straw” found in the hollow interior of the left forearm of the statue) was mainly composed of stems and leaves of grasses (Poaceae), but also of laurel (Laurus nobilis) leaves and other plant remains. Along with “straw”, a further 837 individual plant remains were found and analysed and 41 different plant taxa were identified. Plant remains that presumably were part of the rodent’s diet belong to various wild and cultivated plants which indicate various anthropogenic habitats probably situated somewhere on the edge of human settlement. From zoological analysis of bite marks found on fruit stones of cherry and olive, and of the potential rodent fauna in the area the statue was assumed to be in prior to becoming submerged, it was established that the rodent was most probably one of the taxa of the Mus domesticus group.
Starting Page	289
Ending Page	295
Page Count	7
File Format	PDF
ISSN	09396314
Journal	Vegetation History and Archaeobotany
Volume Number	17
Issue Number	3
e-ISSN	16176278
Language	English
Publisher	Springer-Verlag
Publisher Date	2007-04-05
Publisher Place	Berlin, Heidelberg
Access Restriction	One Nation One Subscription (ONOS)
Subject Keyword	Classical bronze statue The Croatian Apoxyomenos Mineralised plant remains Cultivated and wild plants Rodent nest and diet Mus domesticus group Archaeology Anthropology Climate Change Biogeosciences Paleontology
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Plant Science Archeology (arts and humanities) Paleontology

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