Introduction

Abstract

In terms of human–animal relationships, pigs are perhaps one of the most iconic but also paradoxical domestic animals. On the one hand, they are praised for their fecundity, their intelligence, and their ability to eat almost anything, but on the other hand, they are unfairly derided for their apparent slovenliness, unclean ways, and gluttonous behaviour. In complete contrast, their ancestor (the wild boar) is perceived as a noble beast of the forest whose courage and ferocity has been famed and feared throughout human history. The relationship of wild boar and pig with humans has been a long and varied one. Archaeological evidence clearly shows that wild boar were important prey animals for early hunter-gatherers across wide areas of Eurasia for millennia. During the early Holocene, however, this simple predator–prey relation evolved into something much more complex as wild boar, along with several other mammal species, became key players in one of the most dramatic episodes in human history: the shift from hunting and gathering to agriculture, involving the domestication of plants and animals. From that moment, wild boar turned into pigs and became much more than mere components of human subsistence strategies. They were key entities in the complex cultural development of some human societies around the world and played an important role in the history of human dispersal. Interestingly, the consumption of pork also became (and still remains) perhaps the most celebrated, and widespread, case of dietary proscription. In terms of their relationships with humans, pigs are victims of their own success. Even more than wolves, they are highly adaptable and generalized omnivores, which means that they have a range of possible relationships with humans that is perhaps wider and more complex than for most other animal species. In fact, the biology and behaviour of pigs present a number of special challenges to their study, in addition to offering opportunities to further understand aspects of human history. The concept of this book grew out of an international workshop, entitled ‘Pigs and Humans’, held over the weekend of 26–28 September 2003, at Walworth Castle, County Durham, UK.