Excavations at Knowth

This monograph provides the first comprehensive overview of the archaeological evidence for the use of animal resources in Ireland during the Early Christian period. The study of the bone assemblage from Knowth - one of the largest assemblages of animal bone recovered from an Irish site in recent decades - provided an opportunity to review the faunal data recorded from other Early Christian sites in Ireland. The volume contains a gazetteer summarizing this data from more than 30 excavations across the country. The concluding premise of the analysis is that the animal bones demonstrate a fundamental shift in Irish livestock economy from the 8th century AD onwards.