Origins of Variability in Island Systems. Unraveling livestock diet and mobility across the Bronze-Iron Age transition

Between 1200-800 BCE, the socio-economic and political system that characterised the Bronze Age “collapsed” on a large scale. The island communities in the Western Mediterranean experienced nearly parallel social transformations during this time period, such as increased social hierarchisation and architectural shifts aimed to controlling natural resources. The OVIS project will focus on study animal diet and mobility with the aim to reconstruct the historical role of such economic and landscapes practices in the Bronze-Iron Age transition. Crucially, the project will also provide essential data on climate events and their influence on this transformative period. To achieve these objectives, OVIS will employ cutting-edge zooarchaeological techniques, including carbon and oxygen isotopes and dental microwear analysis on sheep teeth, across a macro-regional scale (Sardinia, Mallorca and Menorca) and diachronically over 1,600 years. This will constitute the largest zooarchaeological study using high-resolution methods in these contexts. The project’s extensive geographical and temporal perspectives will help resolve existing uncertainities about the causes and consequences of the rapid transition from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age, both locally and across the Mediterranean. Finally, OVIS will generate long-term scientific benefits by delivering paleoclimatic data and examining how island populations adapted to potential water shortages and climatic change. This work will offer vital insights into the challenges of the near future.