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Sclerochronological evidence of pronounced seasonality from the late Pliocene of the southern North Sea Basin, and its wider implications
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RBINS Staff Publications 2022
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Revisiting the chondrichthyan egg capsules inventory from the Pennsylvanian (Carboniferous) of Belgium: new data and perspectives
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RBINS Staff Publications 2022
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Applying micro-CT imaging in the study of historically and newly collected specimens of Belosaepia (Sepiida, Coleoidea, Cephalopoda) from the Early Eocene (Ypresian) of Belgium
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RBINS Staff Publications 2022
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Cone Penetration Test characterization of middle and upper Miocene lithostratigraphic units near Antwerp International Airport
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RBINS Staff Publications 2022
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Using self–organizing maps and machine learning models to assess mollusc community structure in relation to physicochemical variables in a West Africa river–estuary system
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RBINS Staff Publications 2021
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Keeping cats for mummification in ancient Egypt: osteological evidence from Beni Hassan
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The present study documents a substantial assemblage of cat skulls derived from Ancient Egyptian mummies and housed at the Natural History Museum in Vienna (Austria). Examination of the museum's archival correspondence clarified the collection's provenance and acquisition history during the 1880s. Morphological and osteometric analyses were conducted on 131 well-preserved skulls of small felids from Beni Hassan (Speos Artemidos/Stabl Antar). The assemblage includes a small number of jungle cat skulls (Felis chaus), while the marked size variation among the remaining specimens suggests that, in addition to domestic cats (Felis catus), African wild cats (Felis lybica) and possibly hybrids may also be present. Age-at-death estimates based on dental evidence indicate that the collection is biased towards adult and subadult individuals relative to the age profiles reconstructed from X-ray analyses of wrapped mummies. More than half of the felids exhibit pathologies, primarily dental anomalies, along with healed fractures, puncture marks, and deformations possibly linked to infectious or metabolic disorders. Notably, all but one of the jungle cats show pathological alterations, suggesting that all the felids were housed together and subjected to similar captive conditions. Radiocarbon dating was performed on a subsample of four jungle cats and five other small felids. With the exception of one specimen dated to the Third Intermediate Period, all individuals originate from the end of the Late Period and the beginning of the Ptolemaic era. Stable isotope analysis (δ13C and δ15N) of four Felis chaus and twelve Felis cf. catus reveals dietary or environmental differences, suggesting that the jungle cats likely did not reproduce in captivity.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2026
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Have birds ever mattered? An evaluation of the contribution of avian species to the archaeozoological record of Belgium (Iron Age to recent times)
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This preliminary study aims to document general trends in the representation of bird remains in anthropogenic contexts from Belgian archaeological sites. A large dataset is analysed, consisting of 186 faunal assemblages from 79 different sites. The contexts included vary in terms of their taphonomic nature (refuse layers, latrines, pits, etc.) and date, ranging from the Iron Age to the modern period. The characteristics of the study area and the dataset as a whole are described, with a focus on identification rates, past and present avian taxonomic diversity, and relative abundance of bird remains compared with domestic mammal remains. The impact of recovery methods (sieving or hand collecting) on these various aspects is also evaluated. A taxonomic analysis describes the diversity and abundance of the different groups of species that are encountered and shows which habitats were preferentially exploited for the hunting of wild birds. The study shows that there is significant taxonomic diversity across the dataset. However, this diversity is not necessarily present in each separate archaeological context, as the number of remains identified by taxon is generally low. Some species or groups of species are ubiquitous and dominant, in particular domestic fowl. Although this analysis is broad and exploratory, it is believed that it will serve as a sound methodological basis for future, more detailed studies focusing on the role that birds played in past human societies during specific chronological periods
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RBINS Staff Publications 2017
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Exploring Biological and Ecological Components of Sheep Astragalus Size and Shape Variation Using 3D Geometric Morphometrics: Towards A Bioarchaeological Proxy
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One of the key challenges in the archaeology of sheep domestication is reconstructing the complex history of environmental and anthropogenic transformations undergone by sheep since the beginning of the domestication process of their wild ancestors. In recent years, GMM studies of sheep astragalus bones have contributed to our understanding of morphological differences between wild and domestic caprine species. However, the respective influences of biological and ecological factors on astragalus morphological variations in sheep remain poorly documented. This limitation hinders a comprehensive understanding of its biosystematic resolution and, consequently, its use as a proxy in archaeological contexts to investigate early selective breeding and the emergence of sheep breeds in Southwest Asia. This paper presents the results of a morphological study of 96 astragali using 3D geometric morphometrics, focusing primarily on modern Eurasian and African sheep breeds and landraces. The study is based on a well-documented comparative collection encompassing phenotypical traits (breed, sex, age, presence/absence of horns, coat and tail type, weight, body length); ecological characteristics (climate, geography, environment, elevation, topography); and breeding strategies (mobility). The results demonstrate that the 3D astragalus morphological pattern is a reliable marker for distinguishing one sheep breed from another. They suggest that astragalus morphology is only slightly influenced by phenotypic markers. The study further explores the effects of environmental and climatic factors on phenotypic variation and highlights the potential of the astragalus as an ecomorphological marker. Finally, the current limitations in interpreting the relationship between astragalus morphological variation and mobility strategies in archaeological contexts are discussed.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2026
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Micropalaeontological dating of the Prémontré mammal fauna (MP10, Prémontré Sands, EECO, early late Ypresian, Paris Basin)
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At their type locality the Prémontré Sands contain fairly well-diversified organic-walled microfossil assemblages attributable to the lower part of dinoflagellate cyst Zone D9 and indicating a transition from an estuarine to a lagoonal depositional regime, up-section as well as laterally. Identical assemblages have been recorded in the inner to mid-neritic Merelbeke Clay Member in Belgium, allowing the Prémontré Sands to be positioned within lower NP13 and early Chron C22r. The deposition of the MP10 Prémontré mammal fauna is estimated to postdate the onset of both NP13 and Chron C22r, which are nearly coincident, by about 200 to 300 kyr. The biostratigraphic dating refers this deposit to the early late Ypresian and to the final phase of the Early Eocene Climatic Optimum (EECO) at about 50.4 to 50.3 million years ago. The Prémontré Sands, as well as their distal equivalent the Merelbeke Clay Member, were deposited following a major sea-level rise, the highest of the late Ypresian in the southern North Sea Basin s.l. (including the Paris Basin). They are separated from the overlying “Glauconie grossière” (zone NP14; middle part of zone D9) by a hiatus of approximately 2.5 myr.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2016
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Revision of ‘Balaena’ belgica reveals a new right whale species, the possible ancestry of the northern right whale, Eubalaena glacialis, and the ages of divergence for the living right whale species
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RBINS Staff Publications 2017
