17th-century camel skeleton found in Austria

The complete skeleton of a camel from the Second Ottoman War has been found in Austria.

In addition to horses, the Ottoman army also used camels for transportation and as riding animals. In cases of scarcity, the soldiers also ate the animal’s flesh. But the skeleton found in Tullnwas complete. “This means that the animal was not killed and then butchered. It may have been acquired as part of an exchange,”says first author Galik. “The animal was certainly exotic for the people of Tulln. They probably didn’t know what to feed it or whether one could eat it. Perhaps it died a natural death and was then buried without being used.”

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Story: University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna | Photo: Alfred Galik/Vetmeduni Vienna