Choice beef for the worshippers – the cattle record from the sanctuary of Jupiter Heliopolitanus at Carnuntum (Austria)  

Presented here are three large animal bone assemblages recovered from three pits from the area of the sanctuary of Jupiter Heliopolitanus at Carnuntum. Two of them (G7 and G11) are from inside the precinct and are possibly linked to a reconstruction phase of the sanctuary at around the end of the 2nd /beginning of the 3rd century AD. They are believed to represent leftovers from communal meals of large groups of people. A third large pit (M/37) was situated immediately outside of the sanctuary and may represent a normal garbage pit, although its taphonomic history is less clear. This object is included mainly for comparative purposes. Summary data (NISP, bone weight) of the faunal remains are presented for the first time. After special reports were dedicated to bone artefacts, the bird remains and the butchery record from G11, this paper is devoted to the cattle remains in general, which form the core part of all three assemblages. Skeletal part representation and osteometry are important tools in recognising special features and similarities of the three assemblages. The skeletal part representations of the cattle remains from pit G7 and G11 indicate both butchery and consumption. Bone measurements suggest the presence of a uniform cattle population during certain phases of the sanctuary.