"To Helena, foster child, soul without comparison, and deserving of praise."
Malta, c 200 AD
It is considered by many to be a modern phenomenon (and sometimes even a toxic one) that humans treat their dogs as a member of the family - often even likening them to humans. The truth however is that dogs have been with us as a species for at least 21000 years and the deep love between us is anything but new.
One piece of evidence of the closeness of the relationship is the final resting place of these precious companions. From stone age dogs "buried like humans" to heart wrenching epitaphs left by ancient Greeks and Romans we will explore just how long domesticated dogs have been part of the family.
The Bonn–Oberkassel Dog
In 1914 in Oberkassel, Bonn, Germany quarry workers discovered an ancient burial site containing the remains of two humans and a dog. Dating suggests that they lived approximately 14000 years ago.
What is truly remarkable about the remains of the dog is that there are signs of serious health issues, including canine distemper as a puppy and osteoarthritis, that imply that sufficient care was provided to allow the dog to live to adulthood. Unassisted survival of distemper would have been impossible at the time. Furthermore the arthritis was severe enough to prevent the dog from being able to serve in a working capacity.
This was a companion dog that received medical care in the stone age and was buried alongside their humans. Amazing!
The Sölvesborg Dogs
In 2015 near Sölvesborg, Sweden, the site of a neolithic settlement was uncovered that included the burial sites of multiple dogs. The most significant one (pictured above) was a complete skeleton that had been carefully buried alongside grave objects thought to have been toys.
These dogs lived more than 8000 years ago.
Other dogs buried in the settlement were wearing necklaces or buried with household objects. The evidence suggests that not only were the dogs being buried in the same way that they buried their human deceased but that there may have even been beliefs (or hopes) that their canine companions would experience an afterlife.
In Ancient Greece and Rome
"Behold the tomb of Aeolis, the cheerful little dog, whose loss to fleeting fate pained me beyond measure."
In ancient Greece and Rome dogs were not only often considered part of the family it was common for those with means to provide them with tombs carved with thoughtful, sometimes heart-breaking, epitaphs.
There were even common motifs such as comparing their first day with their dog to their last and describing traits the justify the need for a monument.
Here are some notable examples of these touching epitaphs.
They range from the simple but sweet...
"Myia never barked without reason, but now he is silent."
"I am in tears, while carrying you to your last resting place as much as I rejoiced when bringing you home in my own hands fifteen years ago."
"This is the tomb of the dog, Stephanos, who perished, whom Rhodope shed tears for and buried like a human. I am the dog Stephanos, and Rhodope set up a tomb for me."
to the anguished and poetic...
"My eyes were wet with tears, our puppy, when I bore thee to the grave. Patricus, never again shall thou give me a thousand kisses. Never canst thou be contentedly in my lap. In sadness have I buried thee, and thou deservist. In a resting place of marble, I have put thee for all time by the side of my shade. In thy qualities, sagacious thou were like a human being. Ah, me! What a loved companion have we lost!"
"Thou who passest on this path, If haply thou dost mark this monument, laugh not, I pray thee, though it is a dog's grave. Tears fell for me, and the dust was heaped above me by a master's hand."
"Here the stone says it holds the white dog from Melite, the most faithful guardian of Eumelus; Bull they called him while he was yet alive; but now his voice is imprisoned in the silent pathways of night."
Always Been Family
We have had domesticated dogs with us for more than twice as long as we have had agriculture.
When our species first realized that we could stay in one place and grow crops to sustain ourselves dogs had already been a beloved part of our lives for more than 10000 years.
Burial evidence clearly lays out that dogs have been looked at as part of the family for thousands of years. Every human since the stone age who has taken on the guardianship of a dog has shared one of the most painful experiences that a person can have: the loss of a dog.
Dogs helped us survive as a species, spread to every corner of the world, and warmed our hearts since the stone age and our grief over their passing ties us together in our most wounded moments.
Robin Wong is a certified dog trainer, a graduate of the prestigious Victoria Stilwell Academy, and a Certified Behavior Adjustment Training Instructor (Knowledge Assessed). He founded Holy Sit Dog Training to provide trauma-informed behavior work and positive dog training in London Ontario.
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