USF team makes discovery in pottery, rewrites history

TAMPA, Fla. — Davide Tanasi and his research team at the University of South Florida are rewriting history.

They have discovered the first evidence that communities in Sicily had horses and were consuming horse meat as early as 4,000 years ago .

Pinpointing the presence of horses to the Early Bronze Age disproves the previously held belief that horses weren’t present in Sicily until 3,000 years ago.

What You Need To Know • USF researchers found pottery at a site in Central Sicily • They tested residue from that pottery, going back 4,000 years • Tests revealed proteins and lipids that could only come from horses • The discovery proves the presence of horses in Sicily 1,000 years earlier than first thought

“We realized immediately we were on to something big,” said Tanasi, direct