Forensic reconstruction of a woolly dog (IMAGE)
Caption
Full-body forensic reconstruction of a woolly dog based on a 160-year-old pelt in the Smithsonian’s collection as well as archaeological remains.
The reconstructed woolly dog stands against a stylized background of a Coast Salish weaving motif from a historic dog-wool blanket. The portrayal of the weaving motif was designed under advisement of the study’s Coast Salish advisory group.
Researchers from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History led a new analysis that sheds light on the ancestry and genetics of woolly dogs, a now extinct breed of dog that was a fixture of Indigenous Coast Salish communities in the Pacific Northwest for millennia. The study’s findings, published today, Dec. 14, in the journal Science, include interviews contributed by several Coast Salish co-authors, including Elders, Knowledge Keepers and Master Weavers, who provided crucial context about the role woolly dogs played in Coast Salish society.
Credit
Karen Carr
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News media use of the photos in relation to the study is permitted with attribution.
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