Groningen Institute of Archaeology

Interest in zooarchaeology at the Groningen Institute of Archaeology dates back to 1920 when the Institute was founded by Albert Egges van Giffen. Over the past 100 years the zooarchaeology reference collection has greatly expanded and at the moment contains over 5000 specimens stored in the "Bone Attic". These specimens include: 1829 mammal specimens, representing 125 different taxa; 2151 bird specimens, representing 428 different taxa; 732 fish specimens, representing 118 different taxa; as well as a small number of molluscs, reptiles, and amphibians. Most of these taxa are endemic to Europe and the Near East. The collection database can be accessed through the Dataverse (https://dataverse.nl/dataset.xhtml?persistentId=hdl:10411/20702). The institute also maintains a maceration unit to allow new specimens to be added to the zooarchaeology reference collection. Furthermore, the lab also contains light microscopes, an x-ray machine, and sample preparation equipment. The collection is open to Dutch and international researchers, students, and commercial users and we welcome visitors. The collection is currently maintained by Dr Canan Çakirlar and Dr Youri van den Hurk.