Available Meat from Faunal Remains: A Consideration of Techniques

Abstract

A common practice in faunal analysis is the estimation of diet. Review of the various techniques used reveals fallacies in each and a basic misconception about what was actually consumed. Explicit definitions of consumed meat and available meat and means of employing these concepts are presented. Use of the concepts in an example suggests that commonly used concepts provide estimates that are not realistic reflections of consumed meat amounts.