The Zooarcheology and Osteology Academy is a two-day Texas Archeological Society (TAS) Academy that offers an introduction to the identification, analysis and interpretation of archeological animal and human skeletal remains. Classroom and hands-on laboratory sessions will be held in the Archaeology Laboratory of Rice University on February 10-11, 2024.

Zooarcheology, the study of archeological animal remains, offers a window into past human subsistence strategies and environments, and can offer insights on many aspects of human-animal interactions including hunting, fishing, and animal husbandry, as well as animal impacts upon humans (e.g., zoonotic diseases) and vice versa (e.g., animal extinctions). This introductory course will teach basic principles of taxonomy and vertebrate anatomy, and will focus on the practical identification of fragmentary bones from animals common to Texas. Participants will learn how archeologists record and analyze faunal data, and will discuss interpretation of faunal data.

Archeologists must also know how to differentiate animal and human remains, and this academy will additionally teach basic human osteology and differentiation of human and faunal bones, and will include discussion of ethics standards specific to studying human remains. Finally, an emphasis will also be placed on taphonomy, the study of all the processes impacting bone from the death of an animal until its recovery by archeologists: for example, participants will learn to identify marks left by butchery and other human activities; carnivore, rodent, and insect damage; and the effects of subaerial weathering and other post-depositional processes.

The lead instructor is Prof. Mary Prendergast, assisted by Prof. Manuel Domínguez-Rodrigo and Ms. Sylvia Wemanya. This team includes experts in zooarcheology and taphonomy with experience at sites spanning the Pliocene to the historic period. Currently, Prof. Prendergast supervises zooarcheological projects at multiple Texas historic sites. The Houston Archeological Society will be supporting this academy as the Local Arrangements Committee.

All registrants will receive an instruction manual for this academy. Registration also covers lunch and refreshments (including coffee) for both Saturday and Sunday. A certificate of participation will be awarded to attendees that includes 12 hours of continuing professional education (CPE) credits for teachers that are approved by the Texas State Board of Education Certification (SBEC). No previous archeological experience is needed to enjoy this academy.

Scholarship opportunities are available! https://www.txarch.org/TAS-Scholarships-Overview