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Ancient DNA reveals the chronology of walrus ivory trade from Norse Greenland.

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cam.issuedOnline2018-08-08
dc.contributor.authorStar, Bastiaan
dc.contributor.authorBarrett, James H
dc.contributor.authorGondek, Agata T
dc.contributor.authorBoessenkool, Sanne
dc.contributor.orcidStar, Bastiaan [0000-0003-0235-9810]
dc.contributor.orcidBarrett, James H [0000-0002-6683-9891]
dc.date.accessioned2018-11-08T00:31:10Z
dc.date.available2018-11-08T00:31:10Z
dc.date.issued2018-08-08
dc.description.abstractThe importance of the Atlantic walrus ivory trade for the colonization, peak, and collapse of the medieval Norse colonies on Greenland has been extensively debated. Nevertheless, no studies have directly traced medieval European ivory back to distinct Arctic populations of walrus. Analysing the entire mitogenomes of 37 archaeological specimens from Europe, Svalbard, and Greenland, we here discover that Atlantic walrus comprises two monophyletic mitochondrial (MT) clades, which diverged between 23 400 and 251 120 years ago. Our improved genomic resolution allows us to reinterpret the geographical distribution of partial MT data from 306 modern and nineteenth-century specimens, finding that one of these clades was exclusively accessible to Greenlanders. With this discovery, we ascertain the biological origin of 23 archaeological specimens from Europe (most dated between 900 and 1400 CE). These results reveal a significant shift in trade from an early, predominantly eastern source towards a near exclusive representation of Greenland ivory. Our study provides empirical evidence for how this remote Arctic resource was progressively integrated into a medieval pan-European trade network, contributing to both the resilience and vulnerability of Norse Greenland society.
dc.description.sponsorshipThis work was supported by the Nansenfondet, the Research Council of Norway projects 262777 and 230821, and the Leverhulme Trust project ‘Northern Journeys’ MRF-2013-065.
dc.format.mediumElectronic
dc.identifier.doi10.17863/CAM.32132
dc.identifier.eissn1471-2954
dc.identifier.issn0962-8452
dc.identifier.urihttps://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/284761
dc.languageeng
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherThe Royal Society
dc.publisher.urlhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2018.0978
dc.rightsAttribution 4.0 International
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subjectMiddle Ages
dc.subjectOdobenus rosmarus rosmarus
dc.subjectViking Age
dc.subjectaDNA
dc.subjecthigh-throughput sequencing
dc.subjectAnimals
dc.subjectCommerce
dc.subjectCuspid
dc.subjectDNA, Ancient
dc.subjectDNA, Mitochondrial
dc.subjectGreenland
dc.subjectHistory, Medieval
dc.subjectWalruses
dc.titleAncient DNA reveals the chronology of walrus ivory trade from Norse Greenland.
dc.typeArticle
dcterms.dateAccepted2018-07-12
prism.issueIdentifier1884
prism.publicationDate2018
prism.publicationNameProc Biol Sci
prism.volume285
pubs.funder-project-idLeverhulme Trust (MRF-2013-065)
pubs.funder-project-idResearch Council of Norway (via University of Oslo) (230821)
pubs.funder-project-idResearch Council of Norway (via University of Oslo) (262777/STBR)
rioxxterms.licenseref.startdate2018-08-08
rioxxterms.licenseref.urihttp://www.rioxx.net/licenses/all-rights-reserved
rioxxterms.typeJournal Article/Review
rioxxterms.versionVoR
rioxxterms.versionofrecord10.1098/rspb.2018.0978

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