Cattle traction in the Xiongnu empire: Zooarchaeological evidence from the Mongolian steppe

Cattle are essential in pastoralist steppe societies, not only for their milk and meat but also for their labor carrying material and people. The Xiongnu polity (300 BCE – 100 CE) was a confederation of pastoral nomads who assembled a powerful empire that commanded the Mongolian steppe and beyond through military prowess and statecraft. Supported by local livestock production, exchange, trade, and tribute, the Xiongnu empire moved goods, people, and livestock. Despite the potentially important role of cattle traction in everyday pastoralist herding activities and long-distance transport of goods and materials mobilized for elite consumption, little is known about the use of this technology beyond scattered images of cattle carts depicted on rock. Here, we investigate the ubiquity and intensity of traction applied to cattle through paleopathological analyses of cattle extremities interred in the graves of Xiongnu intermediate elites. A comparative morphological framework documenting the expression of strain-related pathologies in modern cattle and yaks indicates animals herded in the mountainous forest-steppe express a higher incidence of traction pathologies compared to cattle husbanded in the flatter terrains of the steppe-desert. Yak bulls also yield higher PI values despite not undertaking traction nor carrying loads, a pattern likely due to their weight and musculature. Severe pathologies identified in some Xiongnu cattle point to their regular use in traction, perhaps transporting agricultural products and trade goods, but most cattle display surprisingly little evidence for traction pointing to their primary use for pastoral production, daily low-impact traction tasks, and seasonal moves.