Archaeological excavations of historical fishing sites across the North Atlantic have unearthed high quantities of Atlantic cod bones [31, 32] and the species composition of bone assemblages suggests an early specialization on Atlantic cod fisheries [33–35]. The quantity and often good preservation of the zoo-archaeological material at these sites offer unparalleled opportunities of retrospective examinations of Atlantic cod biology, including estimation of historical growth trajectories. Previous research on Atlantic cod bones from archaeological excavations have suggested ecological changes before industrial fisheries, for example, a disruption in growth of north-east Arctic cod  and loss of genetic diversity in Icelandic cod in the 16th century .