The Irish Pigged Out on Pork in a 'Mammoth' Iron Age Building

[Judi Lynn]

The guests brought swine from far and wide, and left dozens of carcasses behind.
BY ISAAC SCHULTZ
DECEMBER 27, 2019



A reconstruction of the Iron Age roundhouse at Ulster, where archaeological evidence suggests massive feasts were held. D. WILKINSON

IN MANY OF THE WORLD’S most memorable holiday traditions, communities gather around a large pile of meat—whether it’s turkey and roast ham, seven kinds of seafood, or haggis to honor the Scottish poet Robert Burns. Recently, scientists analyzed dozens of bones found at the site of a historic Iron Age roundhouse in Ulster, Northern Ireland, and found that pig was the delicacy of the day. They concluded that the porkers had come from far and wide, and had likely fed the guests of an epic provincial feast.

The new research has hinted at a use for the massive circular structure at Navan Fort, which was built on a site that has been settled since the Neolithic Age. “People have suggested it’s a feasting hall,” says Richard Madgwick, an osteoarchaeologist at Cardiff University and a lead author of a new paper that describes the team’s findings in the Nature journal Scientific Reports. “For this period, it would be an absolutely mammoth building. One of the largest that’s known.”



Today, Navan Fort is a distinctive mound in the Irish landscape. Reconstructions of the roundhouse are adjacent to the site. GIUSEPPE MILO / CC BY-SA 3.0

The 1st-century BC roundhouse measures over 130 feet across, and contained the remains of some 35 animals. Madgwick studies feasting in prehistoric Britain, where mega meals offered a means of community bonding—as well as a chance to eat as much as you could, in a gastronomic marathon.

Previously, Madgwick described how ancient Brits schlepped pork to Stonehenge from far-flung parts of the Isles. But the presence of pork at that particular site was less surprising. “Stonehenge differs from this work because Stonehenge’s pigs were raised in an era where pigs were everywhere. It would’ve been way easier,” he says. “That’s not the case for the Iron Age. Pigs are a very peripheral species at the time.”

More:
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/ireland-iron-age-pig-feast-ulster