• About
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Donation
  • Contact
No Result
View All Result
Archaeology News
  • Home
  • News
    • Archaeology
    • Anthropology
    • Paleontology
  • Academics
    • Books
    • Conferences
    • Universities
  • Articles
  • VR Tours
  • Quiz & Game
  • Download
  • Encyclopedia
  • Forum
Archaeology News
No Result
View All Result
Home News Archaeology

New study reveals the first English settlers in North America ate dogs with indigenous ancestry

by Dario Radley
May 28, 2024

A recent study published in American Antiquity by researchers from the University of Iowa revealed that the first English settlers to arrive in North America resorted to eating indigenous dogs to survive an extreme period of starvation.

New study reveals the first English settlers in North America ate dogs with indigenous ancestry
A scene of a street in Jamestown, circa 1650 (Keith Rocco, artist). Credit: National Park Service

The study, conducted by a team led by Ariane E. Thomas, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Iowa, analyzed genetic material from archaeological specimens of dogs that lived in Jamestown between 1609 and 1617 CE.

The researchers uncovered surprising evidence that at least six dogs in Jamestown had unmistakable Native American ancestry and were consumed by the settlers during a period of severe starvation known as the Starving Time. These dogs shared genetic similarities with canines from the Hopewellian, Mississippian, and Late Woodland periods of eastern North America.

This discovery suggests that early European colonists heavily relied on local Indigenous groups for survival, especially during the initial settlement phase. The presence of Indigenous dogs in Jamestown reflects a more complex relationship between the British settlers and the Powhatan people than previously assumed.

New study reveals the first English settlers in North America ate dogs with indigenous ancestry
Composite map of butchery and impact marks across dog skeletons. Credit: Ariane E. Thomas et al. American Antiquity (2024)

The archaeological evidence, including bone modifications consistent with butchering and consumption, indicates that the settlers resorted to eating dogs during times of extreme hardship. This practice, while taboo in modern Western societies, was not uncommon in Europe during periods of stress.

RelatedStories

Ancient Hawaiian petroglyphs reemerge on Oahu’s shores after years of being hidden

Ancient Hawaiian petroglyphs reemerge on Oahu’s shores after years of being hidden

July 25, 2025
Medieval Hungarians continued eating horsemeat for centuries despite Christian influence, new study reveals

Medieval Hungarians continued eating horsemeat for centuries despite Christian influence, new study reveals

July 18, 2025

The Starving Time, marked by food shortages, disease, violence with Indigenous tribes, and harsh environmental conditions, took a devastating toll on the Jamestown community, with up to 90% of the settlers perishing. George Percy, one of the original colonists, documented the desperation of the time, including instances of cannibalism and the consumption of vermin and domestic animals.

Furthermore, the genetic analysis of the dogs highlights the social entanglement between colonizers and Indigenous communities. Dogs served as both a connection and a source of tension between the two cultures.

Lead researcher Ariane E. Thomas said: “The ancestry of the Jamestown dogs provides insight into European and Indigenous management of their dogs. Dogs with ancestry predominantly from Europe suggest that either British, Powhatan, or both groups kept their dogs from interacting with each other to maintain specific behaviors or observable phenotypes important to that group.

“Identifying Indigenous dogs at Jamestown suggests a more complex engagement between the British and Powhatan peoples… This second, more complex dynamic is more representative of history,” she added.

More information: Thomas AE, Hill ME, Stricker L, et al. (2024). The Dogs of Tsenacomoco: Ancient DNA Reveals the Presence of Local Dogs at Jamestown Colony in the Early Seventeenth Century. American Antiquity:1-19. doi:10.1017/aaq.2024.25
Share1Tweet1ShareShareSend

You May Also Like...

900-year-old Viking-era carved head unearthed in Orkney
Archaeology

900-year-old Viking-era carved head unearthed in Orkney

July 30, 2025
Archaeologists uncover 14th-century Genoese and Ottoman fortresses beneath Odesa's Duke monument in Ukraine. Credit: Southern Ukrainian National Pedagogical University
Archaeology

Archaeologists uncover 14th-century Genoese and Ottoman fortresses beneath Odesa’s Duke monument in Ukraine

July 29, 2025
Neanderthals ate maggots and fermented meat, not just fresh meat, challenging hypercarnivore theory
Anthropology

Neanderthals ate maggots and fermented meat, not just fresh meat, challenging hypercarnivore theory

July 29, 2025
5,500-year-old flint workshop uncovered near Kiryat Gat
Archaeology

5,500-year-old flint workshop uncovered near Kiryat Gat

July 28, 2025
250-year-old shipwreck in Orkney identified as Earl of Chatham, a former Royal Navy and whaling vessel
Archaeology

250-year-old shipwreck in Orkney identified as Earl of Chatham, a former Royal Navy and whaling vessel

July 28, 2025
AI tool helps scholars restore and decode ancient Roman inscriptions with missing words
Archaeology

AI tool helps scholars restore and decode ancient Roman inscriptions with missing words

July 27, 2025

Follow us


Instagram
246K

Facebook
112K

Threads
43K

LinkedIn
13K

Twitter
6K

YouTube
1K
  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
Shipwreck Salvage. Credit: rawpixel.com / Public Domain

2,000-year-old shipwreck discovered off Turkish coast with remarkably preserved stacked ceramics

July 2, 2025
Viking age DNA reveals 9,000-year-old HIV-resistant gene originating near the Black Sea

Viking age DNA reveals 9,000-year-old HIV-resistant gene originating near the Black Sea

May 18, 2025
Mad emperor Caligula had surprising medical knowledge, new research reveals from ancient Roman texts

Mad emperor Caligula had surprising medical knowledge, new research reveals from ancient Roman texts

July 13, 2025
600-year-old amethyst jewel found in Polish castle moat reveals secrets of medieval nobility

600-year-old amethyst jewel found in Polish castle moat reveals secrets of medieval nobility

July 21, 2025
Neanderthals operated prehistoric “fat factory” 125,000 years ago on German lakeshore, study finds

Neanderthals operated prehistoric “fat factory” 125,000 years ago on German lakeshore

July 3, 2025
$1 million prize offered to decipher 5,300-year-old Indus Valley script

$1 million prize offered to decipher 5,300-year-old Indus Valley script

Oldest ever genetic data from a human relative found in 2-million-year-old fossilized teeth

Oldest ever genetic data from a human relative found in 2-million-year-old fossilized teeth

Exceptionally large Roman shoes discovered at Magna fort near Hadrian’s Wall

Exceptionally large Roman shoes discovered at Magna fort near Hadrian’s Wall

A 21-year-old student successfully deciphered the first word from the Herculaneum scrolls, charred during Mount Vesuvius' eruption

A 21-year-old student successfully deciphered the first word from the Herculaneum scrolls, charred during Mount Vesuvius’ eruption

New evidence reveals the source of mercury in the mausoleum of the first Qin emperor

New evidence reveals the source of mercury in the mausoleum of the first Qin emperor

900-year-old Viking-era carved head unearthed in Orkney

900-year-old Viking-era carved head unearthed in Orkney

July 30, 2025
Archaeologists uncover 14th-century Genoese and Ottoman fortresses beneath Odesa's Duke monument in Ukraine. Credit: Southern Ukrainian National Pedagogical University

Archaeologists uncover 14th-century Genoese and Ottoman fortresses beneath Odesa’s Duke monument in Ukraine

July 29, 2025
Neanderthals ate maggots and fermented meat, not just fresh meat, challenging hypercarnivore theory

Neanderthals ate maggots and fermented meat, not just fresh meat, challenging hypercarnivore theory

July 29, 2025
5,500-year-old flint workshop uncovered near Kiryat Gat

5,500-year-old flint workshop uncovered near Kiryat Gat

July 28, 2025
250-year-old shipwreck in Orkney identified as Earl of Chatham, a former Royal Navy and whaling vessel

250-year-old shipwreck in Orkney identified as Earl of Chatham, a former Royal Navy and whaling vessel

July 28, 2025

Archaeology News online magazine

Archaeology News is an international online magazine that covers all aspects of archaeology.











Categories

  • Academics
    • Books
    • Conferences
    • Universities
  • Articles
  • Download
  • Game
  • News
    • Anthropology
    • Archaeology
    • Paleontology
  • Quiz
  • Tours

Subscribe to our newsletter

© 2024 - Archaeology News Online Magazine. All Rights Reserved.

  • About
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Donation
  • Contact

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

Manage Consent
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
View preferences
{title} {title} {title}
  • Home
  • News
    • Archaeology
    • Anthropology
    • Paleontology
  • Academics
    • Books
    • Conferences
    • Universities
  • Articles
  • VR Tours
  • Quiz & Game
  • Download
  • Encyclopedia
  • Forum

About  .  Contact  .  Donation

© 2024 - Archaeology News Online Magazine. All Rights Reserved