Animal remains enclosed in oval clay objects from the "Burnt Village" of Tell Sabi Abyad, northern Syria

Remains of ovicaprid and bovid bones enclosed in large aval clay abjects were recovered from one of the houses in the so called "Burnt Village" of Tell Sabi Abyad, in northern Syria. The village corresponds to the level 6 settlement and is dated to 5300-5200 bc. This settlement was destroyed by a violent fire conflagration. This circumstance led to the exceptional preservation of the clay abjects. The remains are described and the identification criteria are analysed. Comparison with other sites and possible explanations for these finds are discussed. The remains seem to be related to some sort of ritual activity, most probably related to the cult of the dead.