McGrath, K. and van der Hurk, Y. (2021). Whaling in Iron Age to post-medieval Scotland: a zooarchaeological and biomolecular study of cetacean remains from selected sites in Caithness, the Orkney Islands and the Shetland Islands. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 150. Vol 150, Edinburgh: Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. pp. 451-474.

Title The title of the publication or report Title:	Whaling in Iron Age to post-medieval Scotland: a zooarchaeological and biomolecular study of cetacean remains from selected sites in Caithness, the Orkney Islands and the Shetland Islands
Issue The name of the volume or issue Issue:	Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 150
Series The series the publication or report is included in Series:	Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
Volume Volume number and part Volume:	150
Page Start/End The start and end page numbers. Page Start/End:	451 - 474
Downloads Any files associated with the publication or report that can be downloaded from the ADS Downloads:	20_PSAS_150_Whaling_p451-474_OA.pdf (6 MB) : Download
Licence Type ADS, CC-BY 4.0 or CC-BY 4.0 NC. Licence Type:	ADS Terms of Use and Access
Publication Type The type of publication - report, monograph, journal article or chapter from a book Publication Type:	Journal
Abstract The abstract describing the content of the publication or report Abstract:	Cetacean remains have been recovered from archaeological sites all over Europe, but are especially abundant in Scotland. These remains originate from all periods and have often been worked into artefacts or tools, including chopping blocks, plaques, combs, pegs, snecks and perforated vertebral epiphyseal discs. It still remains unclear which species were exploited and to what extent active whaling was undertaken in the region. To address these questions Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry (ZooMS) was undertaken on 35 cetacean specimens from five sites in Scotland (Jarlshof, Brough of Birsay, Quoygrew, Deerness and Freswick Links), dating from the Iron Age to the post-medieval period. Furthermore, morphological analysis was performed on the material in order to optimise the ZooMS identifications. A large variety of species were identified, including high numbers of Balaenidae sp and Globicephalinae sp. Comparison with other ZooMS studies in north-western Europe revealed equally high specimen numbers for these species, but also fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus), sperm whale (Phy-seter macrocephalus) and humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae). Moreover, one grey whale (Eschrichtius robustus) was identified in the Scottish specimens, adding to an increasing number of specimens indicating that the grey whale was once abundant in European waters. Furthermore, only one specimen of the common minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) was identified, despite modern stranding data which suggests this is the most common large whale species in Scottish waters. The large variety of species identified suggests that opportunistic scavenging was likely the primary method of acquiring cetaceans, though historical and ethnographic sources suggest that two distinct forms of active whaling may have occasionally been undertaken. The high number of Globicephalinae specimens from Jarlshof raise the possibility that drive-hunting might have already been undertaken at the site during the Iron Age.
Author The authors of this publication or report Author:	Krista McGrath Youri van der Hurk
Publisher The publisher of the publication or report Publisher:	Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
Year of Publication The year the book, article or report was published Year of Publication:	2021
Locations Any locations covered by the publication or report. This is not the place the book or report was published. Subjects / Periods:	Iron Age Late medieval Early Medieval Scotland Quoygrew ZooMS Whale Broch of Birsay Whaling Zooarchaeology Deerness Cetacean Dolphin UK Jarlshof Freswick Links
Source Where the record has come from or which dataset it was orginally included in. Source:	ADS Archive (ADS Archive)
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Created Date The date the record of the pubication was first entered Created Date:	02 Feb 2022