Taphonomic Implications of the Use of Bone as Fuel

Abstract

This paper explores the effects of the use of bone as fuel on archaeological skeletal part representation. Faunal data from the Paleolithic site of Saint-Césaire show that this activity may present an archaeological signature similar to that of differential preservation. The bones most frequently burned at Saint-Césaire are also those that are the least dense and that contain the most grease. The analysis of faunal remains from Saint-Césaire also suggests that spongy bone fragments from small-bodied and large-bodied taxa are subject to differential identification.