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标题：The stuffed crocodile of “Castel Nuovo” in Naples (Italy) new insights from ancient DNA and radiocarbon
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作者：T. Fioravanti ; E. Casafredda ; A. Splendiani 等
期刊名称：The European Zoological Journal
电子版ISSN：2475-0263
出版年度：2020
卷号：87
期号：1
页码：452-458
DOI：10.1080/24750263.2020.1800840
语种：English
出版社：Taylor & Francis Group
摘要：In the present study, a stuffed crocodile displayed for centuries at the “Castel Nuovo” (New Castle) in Naples was radiocarbon dated and examined using ancient DNA analysis. The specimen was classified as Crocodylus niloticus based on its large body size and the mitochondrial DNA haplotype obtained, already described for a living population in Lake Nasser (Egypt). Radiocarbon analysis indicated an age of 585 ± 40 14C year BP, which coincides with the end of the Middle Ages. These results are commented in the light of Medieval religious symbolism and ancient legends which link the crocodile to the history of Naples during the mid-fifteenth century. The data obtained seem to confirm the explanation found in an old guidebook to Naples, according to which the stuffed crocodile was offered by a soldier returning from Egypt as an ex-voto to the image of the “Madonna del Parto” in the chapel of the castle. In addition, the radiocarbon dating shows that the individual analysed could be the oldest taxidermied vertebrate in Europe.
关键词：Ancient DNA; Crocodylus ;radiocarbon dating;species identification;taxidermy