Hi all,

We are pleased to announce that the next meeting of the ICAZ Animal Palaeopathology Working Group will be held at the Osteoarchaeological Research Laboratory, Department of Archaeology and Classical Studies, University of Stockholm, Sweden, between Friday 31st May and Sunday 2nd June 2013.

The theme of the conference is “Patterns of skeletal pathology in wild and domestic animals in the past and present”, and the abstract is detailed below:

“Past human societies had a profound impact on the health of domestic animals. Livestock herds in many places and times were both symbolically and economically valued and if one or more animals became sick or lame adequate intervention was required. Zooarchaeological research has become increasingly focussed upon identifying and classifying skeletal lesions, particularly those indicative of activity patterns (e.g. traction use). This focus has driven the development of recording methods to systematically capture data that facilitate the quantitative analysis of lesion frequency across space and through time. It has also encouraged the analysis of lesion presence and frequency in wild animals and known history populations of domestic animals to shed further light upon the aetiology and pathogenesis of lesions observed in archaeological remains. The primary aim of this meeting is to build upon this theme by focussing attention on the identification of skeletal lesions in the archaeological record and their connections to specific behaviours and biological parameters. We also encourage archaeologists and veterinary pathologists to present studies of skeletal changes in known history populations of wild and domestic animals that will further strengthen the possibility of identifying and understanding pathologies connected to the handling and care of animals.”

If you are interested in attending and contributing a paper or a poster on this theme, or any other topic within animal palaeopathology, should contact Ylva Telldahl ([log in to unmask]) and/or myself. Further details will be available on the APWG website (http://www.apwg.supanet.com) in due course.

With best wishes

Richard