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5,000 years of history of domestic cats in Central Europe
EurekAlert! ^ | July 13, 2020 | Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun

Posted on 07/15/2020 5:45:13 PM PDT by SunkenCiv

A loner and a hunter with highly developed territorial instincts, a cruel carnivore, a disobedient individual: the cat. These features make the species averse to domestication. Even so, we did it. Nowadays, about 500 million cats live in households all around the world; it is also difficult to estimate the amount of the homeless and the feral ones.

Although the common history of cats and people began 10,000 years ago, the origins of the relation still remain unknown... Scientists from the Institute of Archaeology at the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun have outstanding merits in this field. An article discussing significant research achievements in the area has been published in PNAS, a prestigious official journal of the National Academy of Sciences. The first author is Dr Magdalena Krajcarz who has made an attempt to find ancestors of domestic cats in Neolithic Central Europe. By analyzing cat diet, she is trying to check how close they cohabitated with people...

It does not mean, however, that cats had entered into no relations with people even earlier. The first, best-documented domesticated cat remains on the territory of Poland date back to the beginnings of our era. The animals are believed to have spread across Central Europe mainly due to the influence of the Roman Empire. Nonetheless, the earliest cat remains in the area date back to even 4,200-2,300 BC and evidence the first migrations of the Nubian cat which originally inhabited the Near East and North Africa. This particular species is considered as the ancestor of domestic cats in Central Europe.

(Excerpt) Read more at eurekalert.org ...


TOPICS: History; Science; Travel
KEYWORDS: animalhusbandry; centraleurope; godsgravesglyphs; helixmakemineadouble; neolithic; nubiancat; poland; romanempire
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To: PAR35

Cats domesticated people.


41 posted on 07/15/2020 9:07:24 PM PDT by M1903A1 ("We shed all that is good and virtuous for that which is shoddy and sleazy...and call it progress")
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To: SunkenCiv

I think dogs and cats were probably both domesticated because they had very practical uses. And also if times got real hard it’s much better for tribe morale if fido or puss goes into the communal stewpot rather than grandma or grandpa.

Freegards


42 posted on 07/15/2020 9:17:40 PM PDT by Ransomed
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To: martin_fierro

43 posted on 07/15/2020 9:53:31 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
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To: Celtic Conservative; Arcadian Empire; PAR35; Psalm 73; jimtorr; malach; Jamestown1630; ...
Dogs have owners, cats have staff.

44 posted on 07/15/2020 9:59:10 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
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Comment #45 Removed by Moderator

To: BenLurkin

That was cute


46 posted on 07/16/2020 2:48:51 AM PDT by Hot Tabasco
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To: jmacusa

Ha ha ha!


47 posted on 07/16/2020 4:55:30 AM PDT by left that other site (If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all. (Isaiah 7:9))
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To: HangnJudge

Oh I want one!


48 posted on 07/16/2020 5:05:22 AM PDT by angcat (THANK YOU LORD FOR PRESIDENT TRUMP!!!!!)
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To: malach
:^)

49 posted on 07/16/2020 7:04:19 AM PDT by SunkenCiv (Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
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To: SunkenCiv

Sure. And then the slaves rebel.

Hence only dogs savagely maul people to death.

Seriously, each species needs to be respected...for what they can be. Horse people respect horses more than pet people respect dogs. Both can kill but only one gets that respect.


50 posted on 07/16/2020 7:47:01 AM PDT by the OlLine Rebel (Common sense is an uncommon virtue./Federal-run medical care is as good as state-run DMVs.)
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To: left that other site

Psst! Ya want a couple??


51 posted on 07/16/2020 11:02:20 AM PDT by jmacusa (If we're all equal how is diversity our strength?)
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To: jmacusa

It’s OK, I have a dog, and she’s enough wildlife for me. :-)


52 posted on 07/16/2020 11:52:07 AM PDT by left that other site (If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all. (Isaiah 7:9))
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To: left that other site

I had a dog many years ago. Actually he belonged to my late father-in-law but after he passed away he became mine. A big black Lab named “Dewar’’. He was a good doggie. But he got sick and had to be put down. I miss him.


53 posted on 07/16/2020 10:09:02 PM PDT by jmacusa (If we're all equal how is diversity our strength?)
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To: jmacusa

Oh dear...we do get attached to them. I’ve had five, only one still with me. (serial mondogomy—one at a time :-)


54 posted on 07/17/2020 4:39:31 AM PDT by left that other site (If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all. (Isaiah 7:9))
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To: left that other site

Oh, I’ve a few dogs over the many years. I had an Irish setter years ago. Loved him but he got a cancer and we had it operated on but it came back and well, you know....


55 posted on 07/17/2020 5:59:19 AM PDT by jmacusa (If we're all equal how is diversity our strength?)
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To: jmacusa

At one point we had 14 cats and two dogs. yikes!


56 posted on 08/17/2020 6:43:01 AM PDT by pabianice
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