Fish bones from sifted sediment sample, from a dump studied by the ichthyologists.
Drying sediment after sifting, from a waste dump. Part of the preparation before it is studied by various specialists.
A sturgeon of the Danube whose osseous dermal plate will be used as a reference for the ichthyologic study of remains preserved in the archaeological sediment.
We mention here the contributions of ichthyology to our understanding of paleo-economy, as an example of interdisciplinary collaboration. From the bone contents within 130 liters of sediment taken from a domestic waste dump at the Gumelnita level of the site, it is possible to see the quantitative importants of fish in the diet :
- The discovered remains of carp, shiner, bream, roach, and angelfish allow us to estimate the presence of at least 120 individual fish at a minimal weight of approximately 20 kg.
- If the sheatfish (silure) grow to a length of over 2 meters and can weigh more than 150kg, the remains of this particular species indicate here at least 18 fish of small size to average size (between 20 cm and a meter), at a minimal weight just exceeding 50 kg.
- The remains of at least eleven pike of good size (between 30 and 80 cm) indicate a minimal weight of 15 kg.
- A dozen sandre, weighing at least 10 kg a piece.
- A small number of perch, but of good size : at an average of 3 kg.
- Although good number of sturgeon are present it is not possible to estimate their weight from the bones.
The volume of analyzed sediment represents only an approximate 5 % of this dump, and already represents the remains of more than two tons of fish.