A new study using 3D analyses of 643 skulls — including ancient samples up to ~50,000 years old — finds recognisably domestic dog skull shapes by about 11,000 years ago, near the end of the last Ice Age. Early dogs across Eurasia were already proportionally shorter and wider than wolves and accounted for roughly half of the cranial diversity seen in modern dogs. The research shows major skull diversification began in prehistory, while modern breed extremes developed much later.
Ancient Dogs Were Already Diverse: Skull Shapes Varied by ≥11,000 Years Ago, Study Finds
A new study using 3D analyses of 643 skulls — including ancient samples up to ~50,000 years old — finds recognisably domestic dog skull shapes by about 11,000 years ago, near the end of the last Ice Age. Early dogs across Eurasia were already proportionally shorter and wider than wolves and accounted for roughly half of the cranial diversity seen in modern dogs. The research shows major skull diversification began in prehistory, while modern breed extremes developed much later.
02:45 PM, 11/14/2025Science
Ancient dogs showed wide variation in skull size and shape long before modern breeds
New research indicates that the dramatic variety of dog skull shapes and sizes seen today began at least 11,000 years ago — long before the formal creation of modern breeds. The study, published in Science, used three-dimensional analyses of hundreds of skulls to track morphological change from ancient wolves into early domestic dogs and on to modern populations.
What the researchers examined
The team analysed 643 skulls spanning roughly 50,000 years: 158 modern dogs, 86 modern wolves, 281 ancient dogs and 118 ancient wolves. Their 3D geometric comparisons reveal recognisably domestic dog morphologies by about 11,000 years ago, including three skulls from the Veretye archaeological site in Russia.
Key findings
Compared with wolves, early domestic dog skulls were already proportionally shorter and wider. While the researchers did not find the extreme cranial shapes of some contemporary pedigree dogs (for example bulldogs or pugs), Mesolithic and Neolithic dogs account for roughly half of the cranial diversity present in modern dogs. This suggests substantial morphological diversification was already well underway during prehistory, near the end of the last Ice Age.
"Substantial cranial diversification was already well established during prehistory," said bioarchaeologist Allowen Evin of the University of Montpellier and CNRS, co-lead author of the study.
Context and caveats
The authors emphasise that the term "breed" is a modern concept that does not apply to archaeological specimens. Because the analysis focused on skull morphology, it cannot identify coat color, specific body proportions, temperament or modern breed identity. The study does, however, show that early dogs across Eurasia were already regionally diversified, likely shaped by varied ecological and cultural roles — hunting, guarding, herding, sledging and companionship.
Dogs were the first animals domesticated by humans, predating livestock such as goats, sheep and cattle; their long-term, multifunctional partnership with people is visible throughout the archaeological record.
Long-term processes
Over thousands of years humans selected dogs for different functional roles, producing substantial morphological diversity. In more recent centuries, aesthetic preferences, social status and the rise of kennel clubs canalized and formalised many of those differences into the distinct breeds we recognise today.
Limitations
The study provides strong evidence for early cranial diversification but does not settle the precise geographic origin(s) or the complete timing of initial domestication events — topics that remain under active debate and require integration of genetic, archaeological and morphological data.