Vuthy Voeun

Zooarchaeologists study animal remains like bones, teeth, or shells that are unearthed from archaeological sites. These materials may represent the food refuse or the domesticated animals of the ancient populations and then inform us on many topics including diet and nutrition, food processing, subsistence strategies, and belief systems. More generaIly, analyzing archaeofaunal remains help scholars to reconstruct the palaeofauna and the ecosystem in which ancient humans inhabited. Zooarchaeological analysis usually concentrates on individual animal bones and involves a time consuming inventory process in which the specialist identifies the age or size of the animal that each bone represents. This project explores the range of species, genera, and families present during the occupation of the archaeological site of Angkor Borei (from c. 500 B.C. - c. A.D. 500). Research goals include paleoenvironmental reconstruction and to reconstructing of the ancient diet of Angkor Borei residents. This study also focuses on traditional food collection strategies (including animal husbandry and hunting strategies), and how faunal remains reflect trade or movement of people within the region.