The other two pictures are one of a host of similar skulls from a 2,500 year old cemetery at Ashkelon. This dog cemetery was in the back yard of a coastal dog-breeder who no doubt was sending his wares to buyers around the Mediterranean.
Ever heard of the Persian Mastiff of Sarabi?
That’s a possible progenitor of the Bullenbeisser, which itself is the progenitor of the American Pit Bull.
Was this dog even heavier in the jaw than a modern Pit Bull? Certainly. That said the skulls are similar enough that they fall within the variance we might see today within the greater “pit bull-x” community.
Are both images to a similar scale? I'm curious whether the Askelon dogs were giants like modern Mastiffs or a more typical bulldog size, like a Pit Bull.
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