Archaeologists discover medieval floor made of bones

Hundreds of years ago, someone in the Netherlands concluded that the best way to fill gaps in the floor was not with tiles, but with bones.

Municipal archaeologists working in the historic center of the Dutch city of Alkmaar have discovered a historic floor partially lined with animal bones. This rare feature, announced in a municipal statement on December 13 statementIt has only been documented in the province of North Holland, usually in soils from the 15th century.

“We were very happy to have the opportunity to see this bone floor with our own eyes. It is always a privilege to discover something from a bygone era and add new information to the history of Alkmaar,” Nancy de Jong, municipal archaeologist of Alkmaar, said in the statement.

The bones are parts of the metacarpals and metatarsals (foot bones) of cattle and were all cut to the same size. Despite how worn the ground is, archaeologists were able to detect some sort of pattern in the arrangement of the bones. Specifically, the bones were placed vertically, with the fluted end or the cut end facing up.

Archaeologists have seen this sort of thing before, having previously discovered similar bone features in floors from Hoorn, Enkhuizen and Edam, and the Hoorn floor shows a particularly similar pattern. Experts are now wondering if this could have been a common flooring solution or design in the 15th century Netherlands.

Archaeologists have not yet dated the recently unearthed bone floor. The corresponding house was built in the early 17th century, but that does not necessarily mean that the floor itself is from the same century. In fact, according to archaeologists, it was not uncommon for new houses to be built on older foundations, meaning it is possible that the floor could still date to the 15th century, like most other examples of bone floors.

Possibly even more interesting than the date is the question of because someone would choose to fill the holes in their floor with bones. Archaeologists explained that tiles were not expensive at the time, so there was no obvious economic advantage in using bones. Perhaps, then, they were intended simply as a filler and not as tiles. The team also hypothesized that the feature might have made sense in the context of the type of crafts produced there.

“A lot of hidden stories are still preserved, waiting for our team of archaeologists to come and find them,” said Anjo van de Ven, Alkmaar’s municipal heritage representative. “I am always excited when they call me to inform me about a discovery. What interesting thing have you discovered now? – Believe.”

Ultimately, the mystery of the bone floor persists, but hopefully not for long as archaeologists continue to investigate the find. Meanwhile, the rest of the world has clearly discovered a new solution for durable flooring.