University of Leicester - Slowly but surely

Researchers have uncovered the earliest UK evidence of a tortoise kept as a family pet. Richard Thomas, an archaeologist at the University of Leicester, discovered a bone belonging to a late-19th-century tortoise at Stafford Castle among the skeletons of cats and dogs. He believes it was kept as a pet by the castle's caretakers. "Although we have archaeological evidence for terrapins and turtles from the 17th century, this is the first we have for land tortoises in Britain," he said.