2,000-year-old remains of infant and pet dog uncovered in France

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French archaeologists have hailed the “exceptional” discovery of the 2,000-year-old remains of a child buried with animal offerings and what appears to have been a pet dog.

The child, believed to have been around a year old, was interred at the beginning of the first century, during Roman rule, in a wooden coffin 80cm long made with nails and marked with a decorative iron tag.

Archaeologists said they also found an ornamental copper pin used to attach a shroud, and a 30cm iron ring attached to a bent metal rod, believed to be a toy. The young animal was wearing a collar with bronze decorations and fitted with a small bell.

Those at the dig said they were particularly moved to find a milk tooth belonging to an older child, who may have been a sibling of the infant, placed on a fragment of broken shell.

It is reported to be the oldest and most important find of a child’s burial tomb in France. An older grave, believed to date from the Roman conquest of Gaul several decades earlier, contained a number of weapons, suggesting its occupant was a soldier.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/15/2000-year-old-remains-of-infant-and-pet-dog-uncovered-in-france

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Mans best friend since time began