From texts to teeth: A multi-isotope study of sheep and goat herding practices in the Late Bronze Age (‘Mycenaean’) polity of Knossos, Crete

Abstract Linear Badministrative documents of the late second millennium BC from urban Knossos, Crete, reveal that spatially extensive and centrally monitored sheep flocks and wool production played a fundamental role in Mycenaean palatial economy. Here we employ multi-isotope (δ 13 C, δ 18 O, 87 Sr/ 86 Sr) analysis of sequentially sampled sheep and goat tooth enamelbioapatite to explore life historiesof animalsconsumed at Knossos. Interpretation of isotopic results incorporates new baseline data on 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios of bioavailable Sr from modern Cretan plants collected in relevant zones. Results reveal a variety of herdingregimes, including seasonal (‘wet/winter’ to ‘dry/summer’) vertical movement of sheep from lowland to highland locations, more restricted mobility for goats in lowland to mid-altitude territories, possible input of fodder to goat diet, and exploitation of a range of plant ecosystems. Results broadly match documentary evidenceand ethnographic/ecological expectations for sheep and goat herdingat varying scales and underline the role of Knossos in mobilising resources from a range of herdingsystems and territories.