Stone Age Pigs

Scientists have used DNA samples from pig fossils to accurately determine the arrival of farmers into Europe during the latter part of the Stone Age.

A study published last week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has revealed that these early farmers, who migrated to Europe from the Middle East, brought domesticated pigs with them.

"By harvesting ancient DNA from modern and pig specimens of Middle Eastern ancestry, we can demonstrate that domestic pigs from this region were definitely introduced into Europe 11,000 years ago, reaching Paris by at least the early 4th Century BC," said Alan Cooper of the University of Adelaide.

The findings put to rest a longstanding argument over whether the start of farming in Europe involved the migration of animals and plants, or whether the migrants just introduced the idea of domesticating animal populations.

"Many archaeologists believe that farming spread through the diffusion of ideas and cultural exchange, not with the direct migration of people," explained researcher Keith Dobney of Durham University. "However, the discovery and analysis of ancient Middle Eastern pig remains across Europe reveals that although cultural exchange did happen, Europe was definitely colonized by Middle Eastern farmers."

—LiveScience Staff

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Credit: University of Adelaide