Investigating animal exploitation in Late Byzantine Greece: a zooarchaeological study from Ismenion, Thebes

• An organized system of mutton production might have functioned during this time. • Meat was processed in a standardized way at the household level. • Habits of Western ethnic groups did not affect local animal husbandry and diet. • Fishing predominantly took place in near-shore marine environments and consisted of local species. This study investigates animal husbandry, fishing techniques, diet and their socio-economic implications within the changing political landscape of Late Byzantine Thebes (13 th -15 th centuries CE) through an integrated zooarchaeological approach. It draws evidence from faunal assemblages from 9 refuse pits ( bothroi ) on the Ismenion Hill, an area with some habitation in southeastern Thebes. Results indicate a reliance on caprines—especially sheep—as the dominant livestock, suggesting an organized system of mutton production. Pigs and cattle likely played a supplementary role in inhabitants’ diet and economic activities, at least in the examined households. A portion of the herds were likely in-house stalled while deadstock was processed in a standardized way. Fish remains indicate a marked reliance on aquatic resources from near-shore, coastal marine environments, with a notable abundance of the gilthead seabream ( Sparus aurata ). Furthermore, while Thebes experienced successive foreign rule from the 13 th century onward, continuity in animal exploitation during these times suggests resilience in local foodways. Ismenion Hill residents matched the general trends in animal exploitation and meat consumption seen in other regions of the Greek peninsula since the first centuries of the Byzantine Period. These findings contribute significantly to the underexplored field of Byzantine zooarchaeology and shed light on subsistence strategies in medieval Greece.