Man and Bird in the Palaeolithic of Western Europe considers the
nature of the interaction between birds and hunter-gatherers. It
examines aspects of avian behaviour and the qualities that could be (and
were) targeted at different periods by hunter-gatherers, who recognised
the utility of the diversity of avian groups in various applications of
daily life and thought. It is clear from the records of excavated sites
in western Europe that during the evolution of both the Neanderthal
period and the subsequent occupations of Homo sapiens, avian
demographics fluctuated with the climate along with other aspects of
both flora and fauna. Each was required to adapt to these changes. The
present study considers these changes through the interactions of man
and bird as evidenced in the remains attached to Middle and Upper
Palaeolithic occupation sites in western Europe and touches on a variety
of prey/predator relationships across other groups of plant and animal
species. The book describes a range of procurement strategies that are
known from the literature and artistic record of later cultures to have
been used in the trapping, enticement and hunting of birds for
consumption and the manufacture of weapons, domestic items, clothing,
ceremony and cultural activities. It also explores how bird images and
depictions engraved or painted on the walls of caves or on the objects
of daily use during the Upper Palaeolithic may be perceived as
communications of a more profound significance for the temporal,
seasonal or social life of the members of the group than the simple
concept of animal. Certain bird species have at different times held a
special significance in the everyday consciousness of particular peoples
and a group of Late Glacial, Magdalenian settlements in Aquitaine,
France, appear to be an example of such specialised culling. A case
study of the treatment of snowy owl at Arancou in the Atlantic Pyrenees
seems to illustrate such a specialisation. Discussion of the problems of
reconciling dating and research methods, of the last two hundred years
of Palaeolithic research, and of possible directions for future research
offer an open conclusion to the work.
