Paris (AFP)
How were prehistoric babies fed when it was not breast? Scientists have discovered bottle-like pottery in old children's graves and proved, for the first time, that they contained ruminant milk.
Small ceramic vessels with a pouring spout that can hold in the hand of a baby appeared for the first time in Europe in the Neolithic (around -5.000 BC), and became widespread in the Bronze Age, then iron. Archaeologists assumed that the dishes were used to make babies drink, but without proof - these potteries could have been used to feed the sick or infirm.
To be clear, a team of researchers analyzed three specimens found in Bavaria (Germany), one in a necropolis of the Bronze Age, between 800 and 450 BC, the other two in a cemetery Iron Age (between 800 and 450 BC). All had been buried next to children, aged 0 to 6 years old.
The chemical analyzes of the lipid residues contained in these containers revealed the presence of fatty acids of animal origin, including ruminant milk (cattle, sheep or domesticated goats), confirming that babies drank animal milk during weaning, or in addition to breast milk, details the study published Wednesday in the journal Nature.
"This is the first direct evidence of what babies drank during Prehistory in Europe" during weaning, welcomes AFP Julie Dunne, researcher in biomolecular archeology at the University of Bristol (United Kingdom).
Finding these + + baby bottles inside child graves, coupled with chemical analysis, confirms that these dishes have been well used to feed them with animal milk, "says this researcher, lead author of the 'study.
"Some of these + + baby bottles are almost toys, they had to make children laugh," adds Julie Dunne.
"This discovery provides us with a deeper insight into how prehistoric families were managing infant feeding at weaning, a risky time for the child," she says.
Animal milk, which was unpasteurized, carried more risk of contamination than breast milk.
But its use, which has become possible with the emergence of agriculture and livestock, is still part of an overall improvement in the diet, which has led to an increase in the birth rate, peak the study.
© 2019 AFP