Intestinal Parasites in the Neolithic Population Who Built Stonehenge (Durrington Walls, 2500 BCE)

Durrington Walls was a large Neolithic settlement dating around 2500 BCE, located very close to Stonehenge and likely to be the campsite where its builders lived during its main stage of construction. Nineteen coprolites recovered from a midden and associated its at Durrington Walls were analysed for intestinal parasite eggs using digital light microscopy. Five (26%) contained helminth eggs, one with those of fish tapeworm (likely Dibothriocephalus dendriticus) and four with those of capillariid nematodes. Analyses of bile acid and sterol from these five coprolites show one to be of likely human origin and the other four to likely derive from dogs. The presence of fish tapeworm reveals that the Neolithic people who gathered to feast at Durrington Walls were at risk of infection from eating raw or undercooked freshwater fish. When the eggs of Capillariids are found in the faeces of humans or dogs it normally indicates that the internal organs (liver, lung or intestines) of animals with Capillariasis have been eaten, and eggs passed through the gut without causing disease. Their presence in multiple coprolites provides new evidence that internal organs of animals were consumed. These novel findings improve our understanding of both parasitic infection and dietary habits associated with this key Neolithic ceremonial site.