Alone in a cave: Examination of a 5200 BCE skeleton from the Judean Desert, Israel

Trials upon heated air in France

ASIA, WEST | Southern Levant, Bronze Age Metal Production and Utilization

A small ground stone tool assemblage was among the finds unearthed during the 1960–1962 excavations at the Cave of the Treasure in Naḥal Mishmar, ascribed by the cave's excavator, Pesach Bar-Adon, to the Chalcolithic period. Although the ground stone components were partially presented in the final publication, a comprehensive account of the finds was never completed. Here, we offer a detailed presentation of the ground stone assemblage, including items not published previously. This assemblage is then discussed in light of the importance of the cave and the phenomenon of using hard-to-access cliff caves in the Judaean Desert.

Lice are among the oldest parasites of humans representing an excellent marker of the evolution and migration of our species over time. Here, we analyzed by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) developed in this study the mitochondrial DNA of seven ancient head louse eggs found on hair remains recovered from two sites in Israel: 1) five nits dating from Chalcolithic period (4,000 bc) were found in the Cave of the Treasure located at Nahal Mishmar, in the Judean Desert and 2) two nits dating from Early Islamic Period (ad 650-810) were found in Nahal Omer in the Arava Valley (between Dead Sea and Red Sea). Our results suggest that these eggs belonged to people originating from west Africa based on identification of the louse mitochondrial sub-clade specific to that region.

Godin VI Painted Pottery in the Eastern Central Zagros

The Late Chalcolithic period in the southern Levant saw notable changes in almost every aspect of daily life. Some of the most significant shifts during this time seem to have been anchored in the subsistence economy and involved food and its cooking, processing, storage, serving, and handling with vessels and tools. The paper offers a comprehensive overview and analysis of one utensil that is likely to have been caught up in these developments—the Late Chalcolithic spoon. While spoons first appeared in the region during the Pottery Neolithic period, the Chalcolithic period witnessed a rise in their frequency and distribution. Nonetheless, they were few in number. While their functions remain unclear, we have presupposed their association with food and kitchenware and have explored them in this vein. This paper delves into their morphological characteristics and distribution and ponders their significance in light of other changes that occurred during the Late Chalcolithic period in the southern Levant.

Tepe Gheshlagh is located in the center of Talvar Valley in Bijar County, Kurdistan province of Iran, on the east bank of Talvar River. It is rested on a Natural terrace, less than 30 meters above the current bed of the river. The mound is about one hectare in area, oval in shape, and rises more than 14 meters above the surrounding fields. Three seasons of salvage excavation carried out in the site which has revealed significant information on Early, Middle and Late Chalcolithic period (5500-3850 BC) in this region. Unfortunately no accurate Archeological research has been undertaken to gain a better understanding of Chalcolithic period, especially the Early this issue highlights current excavation. In fact, Exploration of cultural traces and, in particular, the important settlement of Tepe Gheshlagh as well as recognition of the subsistence economy of its residents can increase our knowledge of cultural traditions in this region.

Tepe Gheshlagh is located in the center of Talvar Valley in Bijar County, Kurdistan province of Iran, on the east bank of Talvar River. It is rested on a Natural terrace, less than 30 meters above the current bed of the river. The mound is about one hectare in area, oval in shape, and rises more than 14 meters above the surrounding fields. Three seasons of salvage excavation carried out in the site which has revealed significant information on Early, Middle and Late Chalcolithic period (5500-3850 BC) in this region. Unfortunately no accurate Archeological research has been undertaken to gain a better understanding of Chalcolithic period, especially the Early this issue highlights current excavation. In fact, Exploration of cultural traces and, in particular, the important settlement of Tepe Gheshlagh as well as recognition of the subsistence economy of its residents can increase our knowledge of cultural traditions in this region.

The Late Chalcolithic (Ghassulian) is the only period in the 6th–4th millennia chronological sequence that has been discussed in relation to the Judean Desert caves since the discovery of proto-historic remains there some 60 years ago. The notion that everything that is proto-historic in the Judean Desert is Chalcolithic was influenced by the major discoveries of the Ein Gedi Shrine and the Cave of the Treasure in Nahal Mishmar, both having become key sites in the scholarly literature on the Ghassulian culture. Nevertheless, many of the excavated caves contain evidence for a late Early Bronze (EB) I presence within their ceramic assemblages, clearly separated from the Late Chalcolithic phase. This presence has not been recognized in most cases; in some it has been discerned but has not generated meaningful discussion of the artefactual assemblages and their chronological and regional significance. This article reviews the evidence for the occupation of caves in the Judean Desert in the EB IB, and suggests that its date lies within the Erani C cultural horizon. The article argues that this presence accounts for an episode of temporary refuge in the precipitous caves of the Judean Desert, joining the Late Chalcolithic and Early Roman episodes in the same region.

Recent archaeological research in northern Iraq has led to a renewed interest in two important Late Chalcolithic period (fifth-fourth millennium bce) developments: the emergence of urban communities across Mesopotamia in the first half of the Late Chalcolithic (LC) period, and the expansion of southern Mesopotamian Uruk cultural influence upon surrounding societies in the second half of the LC period. This contribution considers how and why these two phases of development are interconnected. Supporting this is a discussion of the challenges faced in explaining the dynamics of urbanism and cultural interaction in LC period Mesopotamia. It draws on insights from previous and recent research in Mesopotamia with an emphasis on the Zagros foothills, and the results of the DAEI’s six seasons of work on the Rania Plain, northern Iraq. This project is investigating early urbanism and the dynamics of cultural encounters in the Zagros foothills. As loci for settlement concentration, political authority, and regional economic systems, the plains of the Zagros foothills appear to have acted as hubs of interaction and urban development. DAEI’s research suggests that urban formation in Mesopotamia during the LC period was dramatic and consisted of rapid societal transformations. This urban process was complex and there were diverse regional expressions of urban form, with settlements shaped by localized social and economic forces. Many of the forms do not fit easily into traditional models of urban trajectories. Nevertheless, the urban process was comparable in nature and developed simultaneously. DAEI proposes that the explanation for the coincidence in urban formation visible across Mesopotamia is connected to the extensive cross-regional interaction network that was at play during the LC period. This interaction network is fundamental in the discourse concerning the manner in which urbanism unfolded in Mesopotamia during the LC period. It not only facilitated the exchange of goods and knowledge, but also stimulated regional integration and comparative developments.

Nature and physicochemical features of the incrusted white decoration on pottery from two sites in Bulgaria, dated to the chalcolithic period (IV mill BC)

This article focuses on the Chalcolithic finds uncovered at the Elmacıktepe Mound, examined during the archaeological surface surveys conducted in the Bafra Plain between 2017 and 2019. With its diameter and elevation, Elmacıktepe is one of the largest mounds in the Black Sea Region. The surface survey employed a restricted area method, which revealed that Chalcolithic ceramics and small finds were concentrated on the western slope of the mound. The ceramic assemblage is dominated by local characteristics, primarily consisting of dark-faced burnished and unburnished wares. These are followed by vessels with light/dark brown and red surface colors. Vessel forms range from bowls and dishes to jars, some featuring lug handles, short necks, or no necks at all. Decorations executed in white paint on dark backgrounds, as well as incised and excised relief motifs, represent the most conspicuous indicators of interaction with Central and Western Anatolia during the Chalcolithic period. This also suggests that the settlement may have participated in cultural exchanges or shared production traditions. Small finds include stone weights, stone adzes, a marble bracelet fragment and blade, grinding stones, a chipped stone assemblage, and terra-cotta biconical sling bullets, all recovered from the western slope. However, the site’s location and the presence of stone tools suggest that a period of conflict may have occurred in the region. Together, these findings reflecting diversity in production, subsistence strategies, and cultural interaction demonstrate that Elmacıktepe was a significant settlement in the Middle and Late Chalcolithic periods. Given its potential for Black Sea and Chalcolithic studies, including Elmacıktepe among the targets of systematic excavation would be of strategic importance.

The rivers, including Aras, in the Mughan region played an important role in the formation of the prehistoric sites. The Mughan Plain has not received particular attention in terms of the archaeological investigations, as the extensive scientific activities concentrated on the Lake Urmia basin. Yataq-Tepesi is a prehistoric site in the city of Germi (Mughan Region) that became the subject of the scientific research. The main aim of this paper is to discuss the pottery traditions at the site and to determine the chronological sequence of the studied region. In view of further detailed studies on the cultural relations of Mughan population with other territories, and to establish its chronological sequence, two main questions are posed: how do we date Yataq-Tepesi on the basis of cultural information, including pottery traditions? The main hypothesis suggested here is that the site development took place during the Middle Chalcolithic and Late Chalcolithic periods, somewhere between 4500 and 3700 / 3600 BC. The second question relates to the geographical regions that Yataq-Tepesi was in contact with through cultural relations and trade with other regions of northwestern Iran, especially with the region of Qaradagh and the Lake Urmia basin, as well as with the Southern Caucasus.

There is a great variety of symbol-laden objects in the late Chalcolithic period (ca. 4300-3900 BC). In the past, they have been interpreted mostly as designators of social status and evidence of social hierarchy. The present paper discusses this heterogeneity and the use of symbol-laden objects through the concept of inalienable possessions defined by Annette Weiner. The symbolism of these objects makes them socially valuable. It dictates their use as a means of communication, which is frequently ritual or ceremonial (or both), while restricting them from being exchanged for economic gain. In the case of the Chalcolithic period, the heterogeneity of such objects, on the one hand in terms of their materiality, production, and design, and on the other as related to the context from which they have been retrieved, points to their prominent use in household ritual practices best described as magical.

Maceheads have long been acknowledged as a characteristic feature of groundstone assemblages of the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age periods of the southern Levant, and as indicators of warfare and ritual activity, and symbols of rule. The data presented here suggest that maceheads made their first appearance within the social and economic context of the later parts of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic and early phases of the Pottery Neolithic (Yarmukian culture, ca. 6400–5800 CAL B.C.) of the southern Levant; from there they found their way into sites of the Pottery Neolithic Jericho IX/Lodian (ca. 5900–5600 CAL B.C.) and Wadi Rabah (ca. 5700–5200 CAL B.C.) cultures, and subsequently into Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age settlements.