Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
5069199 | Explorations in Economic History | 2008 | 20 Pages |
Abstract
Land per capita was one important determinant of height in the Malthusian world 0 to 1800 A.D. A second factor was specialization in milk cattle agriculture. It had two positive effects on human stature: first, proximity to protein production resulted in a very low local shadow price of milk, as this important foodstuff could not be transported easily. Second, this low price resulted in a low inequality of nutritional status, whereas, for example, tradable pork contributed to nutritional inequality. For this study, we used a data set of more than two million animal bones to measure specialization in cattle and its impact on stature.
Related Topics
Social Sciences and Humanities
Arts and Humanities
History
Authors
Nikola Koepke, Joerg Baten,