Stone Age Britons ate raw elephant

[Trithemius]

The 400,000-year-old remains of a massive elephant discovered near London provide the first evidence that Stone Age humans in Britain hunted and ate the ancient animals, scientists say.

The early humans butchered the elephant at the kill site and ate the meat raw, the archaeologists add.

The male straight-tusked elephant—a member of the extinct species Palaeoloxodon antiquus—weighed about 9 tons (9.1 metric tons), twice as large as elephants living today.

Link to article (http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/07/060707-elephants.html)

[Jolixte]

:eyebrow: Ew.

[Avalonia]

Well, I suppose they had to eat something...

[Agaliha]

Ate elephants eh :mad:
Well at least then it was for survival and not poaching.
Raw though? Why-- no fire? Seems weird.

ETA: Duh. Okay they were H. heidelbergensis. That explains the lack of fire. :lol:
Man, no matter how much I tried to remember dates with which human was around I always forget. Cost me dearly on my Physical Anthro test too.

[_Banbha_]

What a great find. You just don't hear much about H. heidelbergensis, at least compared to Neanderthal or Erectus. I've read they were big averaging 6' tall with heavier muscle mass than modern humans.

Here's some more info and a picture of a Heidelergensis. (http://www.archaeologyinfo.com/homoheidelbergensis.htm)

[Agaliha]

Awesome site, WyldeDryad :)

In my Physical Anthro 202 class we learned about them along with other human species and primates.
Very interesting stuff (I just hated the teacher!).

You're right, we don't hear about them as much as other species.

[_Banbha_]

I guess I shouldn't neglect our Straight Tusk Elephants. (http://www.oxfordarch.co.uk/html_pages/ctrlele_feature.htm) :)
And Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Straight-tusked_Elephant)


I'm in love with elephants too. I think it's their intelligence and complex emotional lives are so compelling and ultimately heart breaking (as ther time living in the wild is so short :( ). These ancient species are fascinating as well.

[Little Billy]

:eyebrow: Ew.

Grub's grub, in the stone age.

[Sage WindMoon]

Grub's grub, in the stone age.

Indeed. And anyway, odds are it tastes like chicken.

[Little Billy]

Indeed. And anyway, odds are it tastes like chicken.


Incorrect. It's the other way around. Chicken tastes like elephant.

[banondraig]

MY money is on elephant tasting like beef.

[proxieme]

My money's on the elephant tasking like human.

(Human tastes like chicken which tastes like elephant, no?)

Cool site :D
Neat info.

[Hellenic_Witch]

Stone Age Britons ate raw elephant?

That's a little tough to digest.

[proxieme]

Stone Age Britons ate raw elephant?

That's a little tough to digest.
Da-da-ching.

[Hellenic_Witch]

Da-da-ching.
Thank you. I'll be here all week.