Pages: 261-266

The paper examines the discovery of a camel bone (proximal anterior phalange) at the site of the Orlovka hillfort, which is a part of the Lower Danube Limes. Though occasional camel bones dating to the classical antiquity period have been found in the North Black Sea Region before, this is the first time that the camel bones have been examined using the morphology analysis and bone measurements to identify the camel species as a Camelus Bactrianus. The finding is further interpreted in the context of the time of domestication, distribution and economic use of camel species basing on the artworks and literary sources. The finding also expands the area where Bactrian camels of the late antiquity period are found in Europe. It provides further evidence of the Bactrian camels being used in trade and transportation at the time of the Roman Empire.

Keywords: Northern Black Sea, Lower Danube, Roman times, archeozoology, camel.

Information about author:

Elena Sekerskaya (Odessa, Ukraine). Candidate of Biological Sciences. South Ukraine Pedagogical University named after K. D. Ushinsky. Staroportofrankovskaya St., 26, Odessa, 65020, Ukraine
E-mail: [email protected]