A TAMED BROWN BEAR (URSUS-ARCTOS L.) OF THE LATE MESOLITHIC FROM LA GRANDE-RIVOIRE (ISERE, FRANCE)

A pair of mandibular rami from a brown bear (Ursus arctos L.) was foun d at the rock shelter of the Grande-Rivoire in the Castelnovian level. Both exhibit a peculiar deformation affecting the bone between the fi t and second molars and the roots of these teeth. The perfect symmetry of this deformation, the absence of pathological features, and the mi splacement of the teeth suggest that a thong had been placed around th e mandible while the animal was young; the mandible then grew around t he thong. The interest of this find is that it both demonstrates the t aming of a bear and the complexity of,the relationships between humans and animals during the late Mesolithic. (C) 1997 Academic Press Limit ed.