The animal Bones from the Excavation of the Hospital of St. Mary of Ospringe

THE ANIMAL BONES FROM THE EXCAVATION OF THE HOSPITAL OF ST. MARY OF OSPRINGE* SHEILAGH M. WALL INTRODUCTION The excavations carried out by the Central Excavation Unit of the Department of the Environment on the site of the hospital of St. Mary of Ospringe, near Faversham, Kent, commonly called the Maison Dieu, 1 yielded a number of animal bones. These were studied a t the Ancient Monuments Laboratory, D.o.E., London, using a semi-automatic computerised recording method. 2 The archive report containing complete data on the animal bone is available on microfiche. 3 The bone was in a relatively good state of preservation, and a total of 11,856 bones was recovered, comprised of 11,195 mammal, 275 bird and 386 fish. 7,178 of the mammal bones could be identified to species and anatomy. The mammalian bones came from the following eleven species: cattle, sheep, goat, horse, dog, cat, red deer, fallow deer, roe deer, hare and rabbit. Twelve species of bird and ten of fish were recovered. 4 Some bone also came from the I mm. residue of bulk soil samples taken for sieving in order to recover small organic remains. Many of these were fish bones. Other bones recovered from the sieved * This paper was published with the aid of a grant from the Department of the Environment. 1 G.H. Smith, 'The Excavation of the Hospital of St. Mary of Ospringe, commonly called Maison Dieu', Arch. Cant. xcv (1979), 81-184. 2 R.T. Jones, 'Osteometric methodology', Ancient Monuments Laboratory Report Number 2333 (1979). 3 The archive is held at the Ancient Monuments Laboratory, as is a more detailed bone report (Ancient Monuments laboratory Report Number 3185). 4 See p. 8 for list of bird species and p. 10 for list of fish species. 227 SHEILAGH M. WALL samples included four amphibian bones (probably frog) and the limb bones of small mammals, which could not be definitely assigned to species. The animal bone has been studied in the simplified chronological groups established for the assessment of the finds in the excavation report. 5 These are reproduced below:- 1. Foundation: A few layers sealed by floors or in the backfill of construction trenches and dating to the time of the foundation. 2. Occupation: These are sealed contexts post-dating the foundation but pre-dating the latest occupation. 3. Dissolution: These are floor and yard levels in use during the latest occupation and the rubbish layers lying on them. 4. Demolition: Layers of rubble resulting from the sixteenthcentury demolition. 5. Post-medieval: To the east of the stream was an orchard, and a soil developed undisturbed over the demolition rubble. To the west of the stream, cultivation took place and the soil which resulted contained much residual material from the rubbish layers below in a yard. 6. Recent: Topsoil and fill of all pits and post-holes relating to standing or recently demolished buildings. For certain analyses these groups have been further combined as follows:- Foundation/Occupation (c. 123􀁵1470), Dissolution/ Demolition (147􀁶1550) and Post-medieval/Recent (c. 1550 onwards). FRAGMENTATION AND BUTCHERY The numbers of the different skeletal elements from the mammal species found at the site are shown in Tables 1 to 5 for the whole site, Foundation/Occupation, Dissolution/Demolition, Postmedieval and Recent phases respectively. The major domestic food species only are considered here. Sheep and goat are recorded together in the tables as 'ovicaprid', but the majority of these would have been sheep. For cattle and pig all the major limb bones are represented as they are for sheep, but in the latter they far exceed the proportions of other bones such as skull and mandible. All parts of the body are represented for all species although in varying quantities, which suggests that at least some of the meat consumed came from whole carcasses which were slaughtered on the site rather than separate joints brought in from a butcher's. However as $ Smith, op. cit., in note 1. 228 THE ANIMAL BONES FROM ST. MARY OF OSPRINGE TABLE I: The numbers of mammal bones from different species and different parts of the skeleton for the whole site l. , .., 􀀄 :g 􀀅 0 􀀆 j 􀀄 -􀀷 ..) ·i " 􀀇 l 􀀈 < .Y e- 􀀉 E f 􀀊 .,, • ] !::: 8 6 .l! "' 0 8 !i. ., 􀀋 a: ,:: v "' 0:: :c :c a: Skull 7) "" 1-IJ. ll<' tt\1'tkn M;.1.odiblc 7) !'I 91 ·' 5 I I 1.ll l....o()se Teeth 1.1.l 07 J(:,(I 15 J77 Scapula "" 126 • 􀀌 􀀲77 Hun1c,w..: 74 :!07 .,., 5 II .􀀜:< RodiU$ :t3 2t,t, )J .1 417 Uln11 Jl (',II i, .I J too Mct.tc.irpal "' 5S 1.a1 Fin.I Ph.nlam1 51, ::0 s􀀂 1.,., Seoond Phnt.,nx 􀀍􀀎 ,, 5h Third PhalQnx .?!Ii 5 ·'"' 􀂄Ct.)xnc ., ,􀀄1 )9 .1 ' • !14 Femur 11'1 61! .,s ' 1: " 􀀤70 Pa1clla II Tibiu ,,, 2JQ ,,:, ' II 17 .it F'ibulu ·' I Catc:incu􀁆 .17 47 ,, l:'11 Astrnp;ahts l2 I􀀸 IS 7.1 NavH!\Jlar to 7 I :o Ccnm.:iqu.irt;il 97 <,I I I IM Mcrnpodiats .11 7 117 .1 12 17:1 Ri􀂅 R:?.l ..,., 14:? U(􀀃7 Cosrnl C'artil:;a􀀤 :o )4 All:1'.\ 'ICrlChrll JI 1.1 !'-I Ax􀀎 vcncbr.i 9 􀀏􀀐 ,, CcrvM:al vcr1cbm :?.\ -IN 15 􀀁 Thor.loC'ic \•Crtchr:.1 l• JI 17 75 Lumbar vcrtdm1 61 55 ll 1:11\ Socrum I 1• Cau .: :,: V °' °' Skull 17 19 ISO 180 !Antler) Mandihk: 12 8 2􀁘 49 Loose Tcclh 33 18 '° 99 Scapulu 8 24 17 53 Humcru:c. 13 •1 2, 81 Radius 18 61 1, 96 Ulna 13 1$ JO 51 Mc1acarpal 21) 15 37 Finl Ph:\lanx 15 19 41 Scoontl Phalanx. 8 20 Third Phat.1nx 8 JO Os Coxac II 27 20 66 Femur 23 15 13 67 Patella 3 3 Tibi.- 11 41 19 80 Fibula Cakancus II 24 Astragillus 14 Navicular Mcta1arsal 21 16 41 M75 Fig. 1. Fragmentation of Cattle Bones. The individual fragments from each bone element are divided into size categories, expressed as a percentage of the bone which is present (see key). Pie diagrams illustrate the relative proportion of fragments from these different size categories for each bone element. (A) Medieval (8) Post-medieval and Recent. 235 75 50 25 SHEILAGH M. WALL KEY of complete bOne present >75 􀀁 75 50 Q 25 B Fig. 2. Fragmentation of Sheep Bones. The individual fragments from each bone element are divided into size categories, expressed as a percentage of the bone which is present (see key). Pie diagrams illustrate the relative proportion of fragments from these different size categories for each bone element. (A) Medieval (B) Post-medieval and Recent. 236 A 1HE ANIMAL BONES FROM ST. MARY OF OSPRINGE KEY /o • of complete bone present 75 • 75 Q 50 v 25 8 Fig. 3. Fragmentation of Pig Bones. The individual fragments from each bone element are divided into size categories, expressed as a percentage of the bone which is present (see key). Pie diagrams illustrate the relative proponion of fragments from these different size categories for each bone element. (A) Medieval (B) Post-medieval and Recent. 237 KEY C chopped K• knife cut chopped through SHEILAGH M. WALL Fig. 4 Cattle Butchery.- Diagrammatic summary of the butchery marks found on cattle bones from the Dissolution and Demolition phases. ◄ KEY C chopped H hole K knife cut • chopped through • C ,􀀂􀀃 TT/. Fig. 5. Sheep Butchery. Diagrammatic summary of the butchery marks found on sheep bones from the Dissolution and Demolition phases. 238 THE ANIMAL BONES FROM ST. MARY OF OSPRINGE Some metatarsals had knife cuts just below the proximal articulation which may be from skinning the animal. Possible skinning marks were also found on some first phalanges, suggesting that the skin was not always removed from exactly the same point on the carcass. Sheep skulls were split saggitally, as recorded from other medieval sites presumably to remove the brain, and the horn cores had been chopped off with part of the frontal bone attached: this would have avoided damaging the base of the horn sheath. As at Portchester, 7 the sheep had been butchered using choppers and knives, but not to the same extent as the cattle bones, as is to be expected with this smaller animal. In contrast to cattle no butchery marks were evident on any metapodials or phalanges. Four humeri from the Dissolution and Post-medieval phases had the middle of their shafts encircled by knife cuts. Similar specimens have been recorded from Nonsuch Palace8 and from the early Tudor levels at Baynard's Castle, London.9 These may be the result of preliminary bone working, rather than butchery, as suggested by Armitage. 10 A few tibiae had holes through the distal part of the shaft, which may be the result of butchery or some other cause. This has been recorded from other sites, e.g. Roman Brancaster11 and Magiovinium. 12 MEASUREMENTS Measurements on archaeological bones can be used to (a) examine the variations in animal size for a particular site, to aid the interpretation of stock keeping practice by, for example, indicating proportions of different sexes or 'breeds', (b) to estimate the size of the beasts by calculating the withers' height, and (c) to facilitate omparisons with other sites. (a) Histograms and scatter diagrams were constructed from the data. Measurements for cattle and sheep seem to fit a normal distribution. (b) Withers' height estimates for cattle and sheep are given in 7 A. Grant, 'The animal Bones', in B. Cunliffe, Excavations at PortchesterCastle, vol. 3: Medieval, the outer bailey and its defences, Society of Antiquaries, London, (1977), 213--239. • A. Locker, 'The animal Bones from Nonsuch Palace', (in preparation). •p_ Armitage, 'The mammalian Remains from the Tudor Site of Baynard's Castle, London: a biometrical and historical Analysis', Ph.D. Thesis, London, ( 1977). ' 0 Ibid. 11 S.M. Wall, P. Langley and R.T. Jones, 'The animal Bones from Brancaster', (in press). 12 A. Locker, 'The animal Bones from Magiovinium', (in preparation), 239 SHEILAGH M. WALL TABLE 6: Withers height estimates* calculated from measurements of the long bones of cattle and sheep. a. Cattle Phase Bone Withers Height Mean No Range Dissolution/ Demolition Metacarpal 2 113.8-130.4 122.1 Metatarsal 1 130.1 Post-medieval Metacarpal 1 124.3 Metatarsal 2 125.4-126.4 125.9 Recent Metacarpal 1 120 b. Sheep Foundation/ Occupation Calcaneus 3 52 - 54.7 53.4 Dissolution/ Demolition Radius 22 56 - 66.8 62.0 Metatarsal 3 56.8- 62.7 59.5 Calcaneus 24 45.9- 59.8 55.5 Post-medieval Radius 3 55.2- 64.4 58.5 Metacarpal 6 55 - 63.4 58.5 Tibia 1 58 58.5 Calcaneus 2 53.4- 56.6 55 Metatarsal 3 56 - 6Ul 59.4 Recent Radius 2 56.8 Calcaneus 2 51.2- 57.3 54.3 * Factors used for withers' height estimates are those of Fock for cattle and Teichart for sheep, given in van den Driesch and Boessneck (1974). See note 64. 240 TIIE ANIMAL BONES FROM ST. MARY OF OSPRINGE TABLE 7: Selected measurements of cattle bones compared with those from some other Medieval sites. a. Distal width of tibia (mm.) Site Range No Maison Dieu (Dissolution/ Demolition) 54.6-66.1 4 Maison Dieu (Post-Medieval) 62 1 Portchester 44 -64 20 A Northolt 71 1 A Petergate 72 1 A Exeter 46.8-62.7 83 A Southampton 52 1 C b. Distal width and length of metatarsal (mm.) Site Range: No Range: No Length distal width Maison Dieu (Foundation/ Occupation 47.5-50.8 2 Maison Dieu (Dissolution/ Demolition) 240 1 47.8-58.4 6 Maison Dieu (Post-medieval) 230-232 2 47.8-55.7 2 Maison Dieu (Recent) 50 -58 2 Portchester 193-224 11 44 -59 21 Northolt 203-209 3 48 -56 2A Petergate 47 -60 6A Kirkestall 209 1 45 -70 118 A Exeter 182-223 17 - B Southampton 282 1 - C A after Grant (1977) see note 7. B after Maltby (1979) see note 14. C after Noddle (1975) see note 36. 241 SHEILAGH M. WALL TABLE 8: Selected measurements of sheep bones compared with those from some other medieval sites. Distal width of tibia Site Maison Dieu (Foundation/Occupation) Maison Dieu (Dissolution/Demolition) Maison Dieu (Post-medieval) Maison Dieu (Recent) Southampton Southern England (8 sites) A after Noddle (1975) see note 36. B after Noddle (1975) see note 15. Range (mm.) 23 -26.8 21.fr.29. l 24.1-28.6 24.5-27.8 24 -28 22 -29 No 11 79 78 5 4A - B Table 6. These do not show any trend of increase in size with time. This might be due to the small sample size. (c) Some comparisons of the cattle bones from Maison Dieu with those from other medieval sites are given in Table 7. This shows that cattle from Maison Dieu are within the range for cattle in the medieval period throughout the country. Jewell 13 concluded that there had been an increase in the size of cattle from Roman to medieval times, but it now seems probable that this trend was not simple and that it occurred at different times in different parts of the country. At Exeter, 14 for example, there is little difference in size between the Roman and medieval cattle, and an improvement in stock size does not take place until the sixteenth century. During the fourteenth century there would have been little incentive for the production of good beasts, because of the single legal market-price for cattle at that time. 15 However, in south-east England, improvement was probably taking place from the midfourteenth century onwards at least on the more progressive estates of this region. 16 "P.A. Jewell, 'Changes in Size and Type of Cattle from prehistoric to medieval Times in Britain.' Zeitschrift fiir Tie,zuchtung und Suchtungsbiologie, Band 77 Heft 2, (1962), 159-167. 14 1.M. Maltby, Fauna/ Studies in urban Archaeology: the animal Bones from Exeter, 1971-1975 (1979), Sheffield University Press, Sheffield. 158.A. Noddle, 'A Comparison of the animal Bones from 8 medieval Sites in southern Britain', in Archaeozoological Studies, ed. A.T. Clason (1975), North Holland/ American Elsevier. ••r. Armitage, 'A prel.iminary Description of British Cattle from the late twelfth to the early sixteenth Century', (forthcoming, in Ark). 242 THE ANIMAL BONES FROM ST. MARY OF OSPRINGE Sheep measurements are compared with those from other medieval sites in Table 8, and fit the fairly uniform size range of that period. A summary of the major measurements taken is given in the appendix. AGEING DATA Information for the ageing of archaeological animal remains is derived from two sources: the epiphyseal fusion of the long bones and the eruption and wear of the teeth. Although modern age equivalents are used throughout, the maturation stages of ancient stock may well have taken place over a longer time period, but this need not greatly affect interpretation, as the optimum age for killing off beasts kept for different purposes will be directly affected by the age at which the animal reaches certain developmental stages. Table 9 gives the number of bones which are fused and unfused in the different age classes. Tables 10-12 give data on ages from teeth. 17 Considering first the cattle, in the later phases, Dissolution/ Demolition onwards, there is a slight peak at 3-4 years or sub-adult animals. This may correspond to the optimum slaughter age for animals kept primarily for beef production, though the older animals ( 4 +) may represent the contribution to the diet of some slaughtered animals after their typical span of working life. Leonard Mascall, writing in 1587, says that oxen should be broken to labour at 3 years and not later than 5, worked till 10 and then fattened for slaughter, and in 1770 Rye says that oxen should be worked till 5 or 6 then fattened. 18 The majority of sheep died at 2½-3½ years suggesting that the animals were primarily kept for wool or milk. Deaths in the pig population are largely of young animals, which would have been killed for meat at 1-2 years. PATHOLOGY Several bones exhibited skeletal abnormalities, the examination of which was aided by radiography. "Data used for estimating ages is that for modem stock given in I.A. Silver, 'The ageing of domestic Animals', in Science and archaeology, ed. D. Brothwell and Higgs, (1969, Thames and Hudson, London. 18G.E. Fussell, 'Four Centuries of farming Systems in Sussex, 1500-1900', Sussex Arc. Coll., xc (1951-2), 60-101. 243 TABLE 9: Ageing data from epiphyseal fusion of limb cases Foundation/Occupation Dissolution/Demolition Post-medieval Recent Age (years) No. fused No. unfused No. fused No. unfused No. fused No. unfused No. fused No. unfused A/ Cattle I -1½ 2 1 51 4 18 I 6 I 2 -3 4 3 39 28 13 12 7 2 3 -3½ 1 9 32 4 9 4 3 (/} 3½ -4 2 4 24 51 7 13 2 3 r B/ Sheep ► N Q .i,. 10 months 4 I 223 2 26 4 19 1½ -2 13 0 98 10 33 2 7 4 􀀁 2½ -3 10 3 96 39 12 JO 12 2 􀀂 3 -3½ 2 8 31 25 10 4 4 4 r r C/ Pig 1 2 30 8 9 22 5 2 2 -2½ 0 12 12 70 5 29 0 14 3 -3½ 0 7 1 41 0 67 1 s N .i,. Vl DP2 Phase ABC EM/MM LM/D PM R Key 0 A 4 7 1 1 2 1 - - - not erupted not worn TABLE IO: Ageing data from tooth eruption in mandibles of cattle Wear stages of individual teeth DP3 ABC - 8 7 - 1 2 - - - DP4 ABC 1 5 11 - l 2 - - - PMl OABC 1 1 1 2 1 - - - - PM2 OABC - - - - 1 1 1 - - 1 - 1 1 - - - PM3 ABC 1 1 - 1 - 2 PM4 OABC - - - - 4 3 1 1 - 2 Ml OABC 2 5 2 - - - - B enamel only worn C in wear M2 ABC 1 2 - 4 4 - - - M3 ABC 2 - - - >-l 􀀅 ttl Cl) 03:: 􀀆 0 0 Cl) .,, ; Cl m Phase Foundation Occupation Demolition Dissolution Post-medieval Recent Key 0 not erupted A not worn TABLE 11: Ageing data from tooth eruption in mandibles of sheep Wear stages of individual teeth DP2 DP3 DP4 PMl PM2 PM3 PM4 Ml M2 M3 ABC ABC ABC ABC ABC ABC ABC OABC ABC ABC ___ ______ ___ --1 --2 --2 ---3 --3 --3 m F0► - 1 - - 1 3 - -7 --- 1 -3 1 1 5 1 1 6 4 1 1 12 -1 13 1 -12 ::t 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 3 --- -- 1 1 --- - - 1 1 1 ---- --- --- B enamel only worn C in wear TABLE 12: Ageing data from tooth eruption in mandibles of pig Wear stages of individual teeth DP2 DP3 DP4 PMl PM2 PM3 PM4 Phase OABC OABC ABC ABC ABC ABC ABC Foundation ---1 - --1 - - 1 -1 1 Occupation Ml OABC -·--3 M2 OABC ---2 M3 OABC - - - - Dissolution -- -1--11 112 --- 21.2 -33 -54 -----2496352 Demolition Postmedieval Recent Key 2 - - 0 not erupted A not worn B enamel only worn C in wear 2- - - 2- - 1112 -14 4-2-24 1 1 2 --- --- --- -21 -113 1-212 1 SHEILAGH M. WALL Considering first examples of trauma and injury, two bones had healed fractures. A sheep-sized rib had healed neatly, with a small amount of callus formation. This broken rib would probably not have seriously affected the animal. A fowl tarsometatarsus, probably a female as no spur was present, had been fractured in the mid-shaft region, and this had subsequently healed at an angle of about 18 degrees. This injury would have caused lameness in the affected leg. A cattle horn core had a small bony growth at its base which may have been the result of an earlier injury. The most common manifestations of disease were conditions comparable to arthritis. These were found on the proximal joint surfaces of a cattle second phalanx, a sheep metacarpal, two sheep metatarsals, a dog metatarsal and a fowl coracoid. These were not severe, except in the case of the sheep metatarsals where the animals would probably have been lame in the hind legs affected. Two fowl tarsometatarsi, both from male birds, had ossified tendons which had become attached to the bone with a considerable amount of exostosis in the affected area (Plates IA and IB). This condition has previously been recorded in archaeological specimens, e.g. Artillery Lane, London, 19 Nonsuch Palace, 20 and Bristol Castle, where Noddle suggests that 'these massive osteophytic outgrowths may possibly have been caused by a chronic trauma to the back of the leg which might occur if the animal had been semi-paralysed for a long time, shuffling around on its hocks'. 21 All examples of this kind so far recorded are from males, which might suggest either that it is related to a condition with a sex-linked genetic factor, or that it is perhaps an age-related condition only appearing in males because they are kept to a greater age than the females. 22 Other diseased specimens included a 'cattle-sized' vertebra (Plate IIA) in which there were a number of smooth pits and indentations in the caudal joint surface of the centrum, similar to present-day symptoms of tuberculosis. 23 A sheep tibia (Plate IIB) had abnormally thick walls to its shaft, where the cortical bone had increased inwards to almost obliterate the marrow cavity, although there was also slight thickening of the outer surface. The cause of this is not known, but modern parallels suggest that it might be connected with 19 A. Locker, pers. comm. 20Locker, op. cit., in note 8. 21 B.A. Noddle, 'The animal Bones from Bristol Castle', (in press). She suggests (pers. comm) that the bone reaction was due to being tethered by the leg, followed up by infection. 22 See p. 9 and note 41. 2JP.R. Greenough, F.J. MacCullum and A.D. Weaver, Lameness in Cattle, Oliver and Boyd, Edinburgh. 248 THE ANIMAL BONES FROM ST. MARY OF OSPRINGE PLATE IA 1111111111111 J LU 11 J JI I I I I I I l l I I l I Ill l I I I l I I I l I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 11 Maison Dieu. Ospringe. A fowl tarsometatarsus (male) with ossified tendons and exostosis along the shaft. The tip of the spur has been sawn off. PLATE 18 Maison Dieu, Ospringe. A fowl 1arsome1a1arsus (male) with ossified tendons and exostosis along the shaft. The spur has been pared down probably with a knife. This might have been prior to fitting a metal spur for cock-fighting. 249 SHEILAGH M. WALL PLATE IIA 0 50 Maison Dieu, Ospringe. The caudal joint surface of a cattle-sized vertebra showing a number of pits and indentations which resemble symptoms of tuberculosis. PLATE 118 0 50mm Maison Dieu, Ospringe. A sheep tibia in which the cortical bone of the shaft is abnormally thickened. almost completely obliterating the marrow cavity. 250 THE ANIMAL BONES FROM ST. MARY OF OSPRINGE PLATE Ill m.m. •-· t Maison Dieu. Ospringe. A sheep humerus with a slight amount of cxostosis on the medial edge of the distal joint surface. 251 SHEILAGH M. WALL a mineral or vitamin deficiency. Similar symptoms have been recorded in dogs deficient in vitamin A. 24 A cattle metatarsal had a splayed distal end, a condition found quite frequently in archaeological specimens and thought to be caused by excess pressure on the joint, from using the beast as a draught animal. A sheep humerus had a bony outgrowth on the medial side of the distal articulation (Plate III). Similar examples have been recorded from other archaeological sites, e.g. medieval Bristol25 and Saxon Ipswich, 26 and a comparable condition in modern sheep is thought to be caused by undue pressure on the front limbs, perhaps resulting indirectly from a large rib cage. 27 Finally, two sheep horn cores had surface depressions which may be due to the effects of malnutrition on the especially thin walls, which seem to be an attribute of the castrated animal. 28 BIRDS 275 bird bones (2.4 per cent of the total animal bone) were recovered from the site. Twelve species were represented, three of which were domesticated. These were: domestic fowl (Gallus sp.), domestic goose (Anser sp.), domestic duck/mallard (Anas sp./Anas platyrhynchos), grey heron (Ardea cinerea), teal (Anas crecca), woodcock ( Scolopax rusticola), snipe ( Gallinago gallinago), stock dove (Columba oenas), rock dove/feral pigeon (Columba livia), tawny owl (Strix aluco), magpie (Pica pica) and rook (Corvus fr ugilegus). 224 or 81.5 per cent of the bird bones were identifiable to species and anatomy and of these 204 (74 per cent) were from domestic species. Table 13 shows the number of bones from the different parts of the skeleton from each species for the different archaeological phases. 24 N.A. Barnicot and S.P. Datta, 'Vitamin A and Bone', in The Biochemistry and Physiology of Bone. Vol. 2: Physiology and Pathology. Ed. G.H. Bourne, (1972), Academic Press, new York and London, 197-229. 25'8.M. Wall, 'Analysis of animal Bones from a medieval Site in Bristol', Undergraduate dissertation, University of Bristol, (1977). 26 R.T. Jones, 'The animal Bones from Ipswich', (in preparation). "M.H. Lamont, pers. comm. 'A study of an abattoir survey in Edinburgh revealed that a significant proportion of the sheep killed showed some degree of cubitalosteoarthritis. The aeteology of this arthritis remains uncertain, but probably arises following an acquired malformation of the lower limb: perhaps severe outgrowth of one of the claws of the hoof.' 2• T. Hatting, 'The Influence of Castration on Sheep Homs', Archaeozoologica/ Studies', ed. A.T. Clason, (1975), North Holland/American Elsevier. 252 THE ANIMAL BONES FROM ST. MARY OF OSPRINGE TABLE 13: The bird species and anatomies from the different phases at the site f 0 0 u f 􀀃 􀀙 i • f 􀀚 -􀀛 .¥ t 8 􀀂 L 0 0 "' St L ll·􀀃 ! 0 8 ,., ig 0 " •j ·n lf 8 􀀃-0 ! ,l • 􀀜 ,! -􀀄 f "g f. ]] l 􀀝 sJ 􀀅] , & 0 0: & :,: 􀀞 :J Ji 􀀟 ::. 0: ,;; .: 0 􀀃 􀀄l Skull I - Mandible - I - Coraroid - - I 9 I - Furtula - - - - - I - Scapula 4 - f-{wt'ICnJS 6 I I - - I - 26 - - I I I l I I Radius • 4 I - I Uln3 3 - I - 8 I - I - I I .< Ctirpomc1ac:1.1p:d I l I S1crnum I Os Co􀀐c Femur 4 17 I - I I libiotarsus .l - 16 4 - - I . - ·' j I I T3rsomcta01l'$:1I I I - I l I - Syn.s..'k:fum Ribs 4 Jndc1crm,na1c 'Fragmenh - 13 - 24 TOT Al 2'I I I I .l 14 101 I􀀔 I l l I I l I l .,o l.l II I ' .i i 􀀠 " ·I .g l 1 I/ 􀀡 t. 0 cf °' 253 .J < ... g 23 ' "' ,., ,, ll 7 lo 3,1 J(, 44 21􀀄 I, SHEILAGH M. WALL The most numerous bird was domestic fowl followed by goose. Other species were represented by single bones or a few bones at most. Considering first the poultry: though fowl has been found to be the most popular species of poultry on Roman sites in Britain, 1• by medieval times it may have been rivalled in importance by the goose. Noddle's 30 comparison of several medieval sites showed that goose invariably contributed a higher percentage (by number of fragments) to the diet than did fowl. This is not, however, the case at Maison Dieu and also at some other medieval sites, e.g. ExeterH and Portchester. 3 2 Maltby33 suggests that these variations may be due to the development of regional variations in poultry keeping at this time. Throughout the occupation of the site the overall contribution of fowl to the bird bone is 66.7 per cent and that of goose is 16.7 per cent, and these did not vary much between the different phases. The percentage of immature fowl bones was 13.5 for the whole site which is somewhere between the values for Roman and medieval phases at Exeter. 34 Where measurements could be taken these showed that there was a large size range among the domestic fowl which might indicate that selective breeding had taken or was taking place, as was the case at Exeter. 35 At Southampton;16 however, the fowl were of the small size common to the Roman period in Britain. The geese at Maison Dieu were large, comparable in size to modern birds, as were those from Southampton37 and Exeter,-18 but this was not invariably the case on medieval sites as those from Portchester Castle.1• were rather small and nearer in size to the wild bean goose than to the grey-lag from which the domestic goose has been derived. Butchery marks were infrequent on bird bones, probably because the carcass of a bird does not require much butchery because of its small size. Knife cuts were found on a fowl tibiotarsus. It is quite 29 R.W. Davies, 'The Roman military Diet', (1971) Britannia, ii, 122-142. 30 Noddle, op. cit., in note 15. 3 ' Maltby, op. cit., in note 14. ,, A. Eastham, 'Bird Bone', in B. Cunliffe, Excavations at Porchester Castle, vol. 3: Medieval, the outer Bailey and its Defences, Society of Antiquaries, London, (1977), 233-239. )J Maltby, op. cit., in note 14. ,. Ibid., "Ibid., ·"'D. Bramwell, 'The Bird Bones', in C. Platt, Excavations in medieval Southampton 1953-69, vol. l: The Excavation report, (1975), 340-1, Leicester University Press. "Ibid., n Maltby, op. cit., in note 14. 30 Eastham, op. cit., in note 32. 254 THE ANIMAL BONES FROM ST. MARY OF OSPRJNGE common for the distal end of the tibiotarsus to have knife cuts as this is the position of removal of the lower meatless part of the leg from the rest of the carcass. Two male tarsometatarsi had the tips of the spur cut off. The reason for this is not clear, but it is unlikely that it is butchery, as there is no meat on this bone. Bramwell"'0 has suggested that this is caused by the attachment of metal spurs in fighting cocks. If this were the case one might expect some signs of healing and, as none are present, it seems more likely that these marks were made after the death of the animal. It is interesting that these two bones showed pathological symptoms, and there may be some connection."'1 The single duck bone found was similar in size to a mallard. Pigeon and stock dove may have been domestic or semi-wild. There was a dovecote on the site and so these birds were presumably kept as food and for their eggs. Of the remaining species teal, woodcock, snipe and heron were probably caught to eat. Teal frequents fresh water and woodcock and snipe are primarily inland birds of moist woodland marsh and river bank. Grey herons are common near any area of open water either fresh or salt and may have been caught on fishing trips: fish-ponds were a common amenity on medieval lay and monastic estates and fish was a much more important item of food in the Middle Ages and later than it is today. In the Journal of Prior William More"'2 an entry for a fishing catch for Lady Day 1522 includes 13 herons among the list of fish. Herons and the other waterfowl might also have been caught with hawks. "'·1 The remaining birds, tawny owl, rook and magpie are unlikely to have been eaten, but are often found near human habitation. FISH The fish bones from the excavation contained representatives of ten species which are listed in Table 14 under their respective habitats. They were recovered by two methods: handpicked, and from the 1 mm. residue of sieved bulk soil samples. In Table 14, the number recovered by each method is shown. It can be seen that evidence for '0 D. Bramwell, 'The Bird Bones from Baynard's Castle', The London Naturalisr, 54 (1975), 15-20. 41 Although other records occur of the pared spurs and pathological condition of the fowl tarsometatarsus, this seems to be the only case where these are present on the same specimen, which suggests that the disease may be connected with injuries sustained in cock-fighting. 42 C.F. Hickling, 'Prior More's Fishponds', Med. Arch., xv-xvi ( 1971-2). 118. "G.E. Freeman and F.H. Salvin, Falconry. Its Claims, History, and Practice, ( 1859), Reprinted 1972, Mine!, chicheley. 255 TABLE 14: The species of fish from the different phases of the site Phase FOU occ DIS DEM PM R Total Species HP s HP s HP s HP s HP s HP s HP s TOTAL Fresh warert Esn,arine Eel ;: J 5 5 Salmonid I Grey Mullet /ndetenniru11e Plaice/Flounder 3 3 4 􀀂 4 7 9 In 􀀃 ,\1arine tT1 Roker l l N Herring 6 49 53 53 C) Vt Conger Eel 3 4 4 Cod 10 14 7 6 38 38 3:: Haddock 1 2 􀀄 Turbot 4 5 5 lndetenninate species - 54 .I() 44 16 103 !05 159 260 􀀅 TOTAL 0 72 51 65 19 12 159 7 0 0 158 228 386 Key: HP - hand-picked S - sieved FOU - Foundation ace - Occupation DIS - Dissolution DEM • Demolition PM - Post-medieval R - Recent THE ANIMAL BONES FROM ST. MARY OF OSPRINGE four of the species (roker, eel, herring, and mullet) came entirely from sieving, and a fifth (plaice/flounder) was represented equally by both methods. The table also shows the excavation phase from which the bones came. The total number of fish bones was 386, of which 126 (32 per cent) were indifiable to species. However, most of the indeterminate fragments were fin-rays, which have no species - specific features. If one excludes fin-rays from the total, 74 per cent of the bones are identifiable. Considering hand-picked and sieved bones separately, the percentages of identified bones are 86 per cent and 66 per cent respectively. Cod bones are the most frequent from the hand-picked sample, and herring from the sieved sample. The species recorded are listed below. Brief notes on their present distribution and economic importance are given44 as this helps the interpretation of the archaeological sample. Roker or Thornback ray (Raja clavata). The only distinctive parts of this cartilaginous fish, which are calcified and therefore normally survive on archaeological sites, are the 'bucklers', well-developed dermal denticles with button-like bases. One was recovered from a sieved sample of the Dissolution phase. This is the commonest ray in shallow water, usually found between depths of 10 and 60 m. It is the principal constituent of the 'skate' landed by inshore fishing vessels, the great majority taken in bottom trawls, but some on lines. Eel (Anguilla anguilla). Vertebrae from this species were recovered from the Occupation and Demolition phases. The eel lives both in the sea and in fresh water and could have been caught in an estuary or in the shallows of the sea. It is a valuable food fish throughout Europe. It is particularly vulnerable to riverine traps and is also caught on lines. Co􀁷ger eel ( Conger conger). Head bones were recovered from the Occupation and Demolition phases. This large marine eel is common on rocks and offshore. Today, it is not much esteemed as a food fish. Knife cuts were noted on a quadrate. Herring (Clupea harengus). Numerous vertebrae were recovered by sieving from the Occupation and Demolition phases. Though it has declined in numbers since the beginning of this century, the herring is still one of the most important food fishes of northern Europe, and has been since the twelfth century, when most herrings were landed through the Baltic ports. 45 •• A. Wheeler, Key to the Fishes of nothem Europe, ( 1978), Frederick Warne, London. •15 J .T. Jenkins, The Herring and the Herring Fisheries, (1927), King and Son, London. 257 SHEILAGH M. WALL Salmonid (Salmo sp.). A single vertebra was recovered from the Dissolution phase. Members of the salmon family are fresh-water fish which migrate to the sea. The fish could have been caught on a line in a river or the sea, or if migrating, in a riverine or estuarine trap. Cod ( Gadus morhua. Head bones and were recovered from all phases of the site. A temporal bone from the Dissolution phase possessed knife cuts - probably incurred in cutting off the head. It was possible to measure on premaxilla from the Post-medieval phase, and from this to estimate the length, weight and age of the fish from a graph: Premaxilla measurement46 = 17.5 mm. Estimated length = 110 cm. Estimated gutted weight = 12.5 kg. Estimated age = 10 yrs. This size is near the average for cod caught today (average weight 11.3 kg. and length 120 cm.). 47 Haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus). This species lives close to the sea-bed in depths of 40-300 m. and is today an important commercial fish throughout the north Atlantic fishing grounds. Two cleithra were recovered from the Dissolution phase. These were both swollen; a condition that has been described as probably a case of hyperosteosis, which could be taken as the norm, as it appears so frequently in large haddock ( over 45 cm.). 48 Thick-lipped grey mullet (Che/on labrosus). This fish inhabits coastal and estuarine waters and is a food fish. One vertebra was recovered from the Dissolution phase. Turbot (Scopthalmus maximus). This large flatfish inhabits shallow inshore waters, from just below the shore line to a depth of about 80 m. It is caught in trawls, seines and by lines. Bones were recovered from the Occupation and Dissolution phases. Plaice/Flounder (Pleuronectes platessa/Platichthys ftesus). It is difficult to distinguish the archaeological remains of these two similarly sized and closely related flatfish. The plaice is a bottom living fish, which can be caught in trawls and seines, but can also be captured on lines. The flounder is estuarine. Bones from either or 46Measurement Pon the premaxilla is specified in A. Wheeler and A. Jones, 'Fish Bone', in A. Rogerson, Excavations at Fuller's Hill, Great Yarmouth, (1976), East Anglian Arch. Report, 2, Norfolk Arch. Unit. 47 Wheeler, op. cit., in note 44. •8 A. Wheeler, 'Fish Bones', in H. Clarke and A. Carter, 'Excavations in King's Lynn, 1963-1970. monograph Servies No. 7, Society for Medieval Archaeology. 258 THE ANIMAL BONES FROM ST. MARY OF OSPRINGE both these fish were retrieved from the Occupation, and Dissolution and Demolition phases. The fish fauna represented comprises two main elements, marine species and euryhaline species which could be captured in the sea, in estuarine water, or in rivers. Of the marine species the herring were most probably captured by floating nets similar to the traditional East Anglian drift net although shore seines could have been used in their capture. Conger eel, cod, haddock, and turbot, however, were most probably captured by hook-and-line fishing, which was possibly the earliest fishing method employed. The presence of these three species suggests that they may have been captured some distance offshore, for the haddock is today rarely found close inshore and the cod comes inshore only during winter in the south of England. Roker are also caught on lines but could also be taken in permanent shore-line traps (kiddies). The presence of grey mullet, flounder/plaice, and to a lesser extent eel and salmonid strongly indicates the use of a kiddie net, which is constructed of wood, extends between tidemarks and catches fishes which exploit the food resources of the tidal flats (flatfishes and grey mullet) or migrate along the coast (grey mullet, eel, salmonids, and possibly turbot and roker). These kiddies are of great antiquity and widely used in the Thames mouth, for example, where vertical tidal movement is considerable. 49 On the Kent coast the antiquity of the use of kiddies and other fishing-techniques is corroborated by various allusions to fishing methods practised, for example, in an early (1461) plaint of debt at New Romney by John Wardeyne against John Mome, the latter was distrained by 7 herring nets, 2 sport nets, 1 shrimp net and 2 kiddie nets. so The salmonids and the eels could have been captured in streams locally. Ospringe is near the coast, on the Swale, and there are streams close by. Six of the species found at Maison Dieu (eel, salmon, herring, conger, 'codling' and haddock) are included in a list of the various kinds caught on the Kentish coast in the fourteenth century recorded in the Journal of Daniel Rowe, a fishmonger and Common Clerk of New Romney. The list also includes sprats, porpoise, lampreys, whiting, tench and 'stikes of pimpernelle', which are eels strung 25 to a stick. s, 49 A. Wheeler, The Tidal Thames, (1979), Routledge and Kegan Paul, London, 80-81. ><>v.C.H. Kent, (1932), iii, 428. "V.C.H. Kent, (1932), iii, 427. 259 SHEILAGH M. WALL DISCUSSION Probably the earliest account of the area in which the Maison Dieu was built, is that of the Domesday Survey52 which describes the holding of Ospringe in the Hundred of Faversham as having land for 20 ploughs, a mill, a fishery, a salt pan, a meadow of 13 acres and woodland to render 80 swine. The hospital was founded around 1232 and was used as such until 1516 when it was dissolved as an institution. During its later years it suffered poor fortune and management and its buildings probably fell into considerable neglect. Most of the animal bones came from the Dissolution period of the last declining years of the hospital from c. 1483-1516 and from 1516 onwards until c. 1550 during which time the buildings were rented off privately and so changed in function. 53 Occasional references to purchases of gifts have survived, for example in 1235 'the king also caused fifty hogs to be sent to the hospital from his park at Havering or elsewhere if more convenient', 54 perhaps for the establishment of a herd. Records of the yearly purchase of large quantities of herrings have survived, 55 and in 1485 the hospital was bequeathed 60 ewes by Stephen Randolph. 56 The Maison Dieu served the dual purpose of providing accommodation for pilgrims and for the king himself while travelling or on business in the area, and of housing the infirm. The king during his visits would have been fed in a suitable style, and the staff of the hospital as well as the royal corrodians would have been fed quite sumptuously, while the diet of the permanent almspeople would have been less grand. In the survey of 1571 the lands of the Maison Dieu in the possession of St. John's College amounted to 64 acres of which 36.3 were arable and 27.7 pasture. These lands were then valued at £8 16s. 8d.; in c. 1510, however, the hospital land had been valued at £70 13s. 4d. Assuming that both refer to rental value and that value per acre had not changed and that proportion of arable to pasture was similar (their rental value may have been different) this suggests an acreage in 1510 of c. 512 acres. However, the original total would have been considerably higher as they had included the manor of Headcorn; also, during the fifteenth century "V.C.H. Kent, ( 1932), iii, 235. "Smith, op. cit., in note I. s•:c.H. Drake, 'The Hospital of St. Mary of Ospringe, commonly called Maison Dieu', Arch. Cant., xxx (1914), 35-78. 55jSee p. 18. 56iC.H. Drake, 'The Hospital of St. Mary of Ospringe, commonly called Maison Dieu', Arch. Cam., xxxviii (1926), 113-121. 260 11-lE ANIMAL BONES FROM ST. MARY OF OSPRINGE royal enquiries showed that various lands had been unlawfully sold or disposed of to pay off or in lieu of debts incurred by misuse of funds and bad management. 57 It is possible that these lands enabled the hospital to be at least partly self-sufficient for much of its existence, feeding its inhabitants on meat raised on the hospital grounds and perhaps making some profit from the sale of wool. It also received considerable gifts of land and money and in addition received rents in kind, particularly as barley. Throughout most of its history they were exempt from the usual taxes, being under the king's protection. There was a Maison Dieu at Dover of a contemporary foundation date, for which an inventory has survived from the time of its dissolution, which itemises the livestock kept. 58 This lists totals of 1600 sheep, 119 cattle and 29 horses. Details from this are referred to below, where the individual species are discussed, as it is assumed that the Maison Dieu at Ospringe would have had not dissimilar stock. TABLE 15: Comparison of percentage species composition for the different phases within the site. "O 65.2-18 (2) PM n-81.7 (2) 36.HS (2) McwcarpaJ FoolOc< 67.7 (I) lS (I) O1\YDe:m IM6-21J. 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