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Were Our Ancestors Beef-Lovers? New Study Reveals People of Indus Civilisation Survived On a Meat-Heavy Diet of Pork, Beef & Buffalo

The researchers arrived at these results after analysing fat residues in ancient ceramic vessels from settlements of the Indus Civilisation in present-day Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

Written by: Trending Desk Edited by: Ritu Singh
Updated: December 10, 2020, 9:57 AM IST
Were Our Ancestors Beef-Lovers? New Study Reveals People of Indus Civilisation Survived On a Meat-Heavy Diet of Pork, Beef & Buffalo
Image Source: Akshyeta Suryanarayan

A new study which has shed light on the food choices of people of Indus Valley civilisation, has revealed that Harappan people survived on a meat-heavy diet, including extensive eating of beef. The study published on Wednesday in the ‘Journal of Archaeological Science’, suggests that the prehistoric people of the time consumed meat of animals like cattle, buffalo, sheep, goat, and pigs as well as dairy products.

The researchers arrived at these results after analysing fat residues in ancient ceramic vessels from settlements of the Indus Civilisation in present-day Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. Notably, molecules called lipids, which make up fats and oils, are hardy and traces can survive for millions of year, whereas proteins degrade with time. Since, lipid residues were heavily found in pots, researchers have confidently ascertained that consumption of beef, goat, sheep and pig was widespread among Harappan people.

Read more: No More Killing Animals? Singapore Becomes First Country to Approve Sale of Lab-Grown Meat

“Out of domestic animals, cattle/buffalo are the most abundant, averaging between 50% and 60% of the animal bones found, with sheep/goat accounting for 10% animal remains. The high proportions of cattle bones may suggest a cultural preference for beef consumption across Indus populations, supplemented by consumption of mutton/lamb,’’ says the study.

“Wild animal species like deer, antelope, gazelle, hares, birds, and riverine/marine resources are also found in small proportions in the faunal assemblages of both rural and urban Indus sites suggesting that these diverse resources had a place in the Indus diet. The pattern is similar at the sites in northwest India, where domestic and wild mammals, and smaller proportions of birds, reptiles, riverine fish, and molluscs were consumed,” the study further noted.

Soo, after the news broke, people on social media took a dig at the current situation, given the fact that the trade and consumption of beef has become a very contentious issue ever since the BJP came into power in 2014. Here are some reactions:

This research is being dubbed as a landmark study because this is the first multi-site analysis of fats and oils on pottery from the Indus Valley civilization. The research team was led by Dr. Akshyeta Suryanarayan, former PhD student at the Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge and current postdoctoral researcher at CEPAM, UMR7264-CNRS, France.

“These results demonstrate that the use of lipid residues, combined with other techniques in bioarchaeology, have the potential to open exciting new avenues for understanding the relationship between the environment, foodstuffs, material culture, and ancient society in protohistoric South Asia,” Suryanarayan concluded.

Notably, the Indus society spanned from 5,300 to 3,300 years ago, when the civilisation entered a period of decline and went extinct shortly afterwards.

(With PTI inputs)

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