Aurochs and skull

The aurochs were an important prey animal in the Neolithic period. During World War II, an aurochs skull was found near Auning, which is now in the museum's collection. The approximately 5,000-year-old skull was used as a model for the reconstruction of the aurochs in the museum's exhibition.

The aurochs is extinct. The last one was shot in Poland in 1627, but back in the Neolithic era, it was a sought-after prey. Hunters with dogs and armed with bows and arrows would sneak up close to the animal so that the arrows could reach the aurochs' heart or lungs. The dangerous hunt for the one-ton animal could provide food for an entire settlement for a month or more.

The reconstruction of the aurochs is perhaps the only one of its kind in the world. It was made by conservator Karsten Feldsted based on studies of Stone Age cave paintings, more recent descriptions in the literature and casts of bones found in bogs. The skull is dated to be 4-5,000 years old. There are more than 200 finds of aurochs skulls and bones in Denmark, but not many as well preserved as the skull from the Auning bull.

The aurochs were one of the large grazers that influenced the landscape and helped keep the forest more open in the Neolithic Age. Another large grazer that also became extinct in Denmark is the moose. But in Lille Vildmose in Himmerland, moose were released in 2015, helping to maintain the raised bog and the very special ecosystem that exists there.

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