Levantine Corridor Research Articles

Age of the Middle Palaeolithic Site of Rosh Ein Mor, Central Negev, Israel: Implications for the Age Range of the Early Levantine Mousterian of the Levantine Corridor

A small portion of the Early Levantine Mousterian site of Rosh Ein Mor site was re-excavated in 1996, in order to recover ostrich eggshell for uranium series dating analyses. Flint that appeared to have been heated was recovered from the archive at Southern Methodist University, and tested for its feasibility for thermoluminescence dating. Flint and eggshell were dated and found to give significantly different results. The eggshell yielded a mass spectrometric 230Th/ 234U burial age of 200·9+9·5/−8·7 ka, while the flint showed a range of last heating ages between 14 and 48 ka. These ages are compared with other age estimates for sites containing similar lithic industries in the region. We conclude that the eggshell age is most likely the minimum age of the time of occupation in which the Early Levantine Mousterian industry was produced, and that the flint heating ages represent either later ephemeral occupations with anthropogenic heating of the flints, or natural fires in which tree roots heated the flints. The results, taken together with other age estimates for the Early Levantine Mousterian in this area, suggest that while in the central Levant we find its earliest appearance between 225 and 300 ka, in southern Israel we find no correspondingly early ages.

When did hominids first leave Africa?: New high-resolution magnetostratigraphy from the Erk-el-Ahmar Formation, Israel

Research Article| October 01, 2001 When did hominids first leave Africa?: New high-resolution magnetostratigraphy from the Erk-el-Ahmar Formation, Israel Hagai Ron; Hagai Ron 1Geophysical Institute of Israel, Lod 71100, Israel Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Shaul Levi Shaul Levi 2College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Hagai Ron 1Geophysical Institute of Israel, Lod 71100, Israel Shaul Levi 2College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, USA Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 27 Dec 2000 Revision Received: 16 May 2001 Accepted: 04 Jun 2001 First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 Geological Society of America Geology (2001) 29 (10): 887–890. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2001)029<0887:WDHFLA>2.0.CO;2 Article history Received: 27 Dec 2000 Revision Received: 16 May 2001 Accepted: 04 Jun 2001 First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Hagai Ron, Shaul Levi; When did hominids first leave Africa?: New high-resolution magnetostratigraphy from the Erk-el-Ahmar Formation, Israel. Geology 2001;; 29 (10): 887–890. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2001)029<0887:WDHFLA>2.0.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract New paleomagnetic results from the Erk-el-Ahmar Formation, Israel, resolve age ambiguities of one of the oldest hominid sites outside Africa, where ancient Oldowan tools and artifacts were excavated. We identified in the section the upper and lower boundaries of the Olduvai subchron, and we conclude that these sediments were deposited between ca. 1.7 and 2.0 Ma. This result is consistent with the hypothesis that earliest hominid migrations from Africa to Eurasia during the early Paleolithic traversed the Levantine corridor. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.

Neolithic Dispersals from the Levantine Corridor: a Mediterranean Perspective

The earliest agro-pastoralists of the Near East are generally held to have emerged in a narrow Levantine Corridor. Agricultural life initially spread from this discrete core zone in the Early Pre-Pottery Neolithic B to adjacent inland regions, only reaching the Mediterranean coast of Syria by the Late Pre-Pottery Neolithic B. Recent discoveries on Cyprus, far to the west of the core zone, prompt re-configuration of several elements of this model. They also provide evidence for characteristics of a regional variant of the PPNB and, in a broader context, fresh data for an understanding of the triggers and mechanics of precocious neolithic dispersals.

The environmental contexts of early human occupation of Georgia (Transcaucasia)

The hominid mandible and a third metatarsal found in Dmanisi (Republic of Georgia) are accompanied by a rich faunal assemblage and a core-chopper stone tool industry. The mandible represents a somewhat isolated morphological type ofHomo erectus that appears, given the combination of its primitive and advanced traits and specific dental morphology, to be a forerunner of both late H. erectus and early archaic H. sapiens. The faunal assemblage mostly consists of Villafranchian mammals, with the majority of the species assigned to an early phase of the Upper Villafranchian (Late Villanian and Early Biharian). Faunal and paleobotanical evidence as well as the depositional nature of the site indicate that hominid occupation took place in a mosaic environment of open steppe and gallery forests. Both the concentration of resources and the warm climatic conditions in the Dmanisi region at the beginning of the early Pleistocene were favorable for hominid occupation. It is possible that hominids reached the Caucasus through the Levantine corridor, and that the environment of this region allowed them to establish a stronghold and later colonize adjacent areas.

The articulation of cultural processes and Late Quaternary environmental changes in Cisjordan.

The dynamics of Epipalaeolithic and Early Neolithic adaptations in the southern Levant from areas west of the Rift Valley are briefly described and evaluated against the backdrop of climatic changes. Taking account of recent advances in environmental studies and important revisions in the chronological framework of pollen diagrams from the Hula, a high degree of correlation between environmental and cultural developments is apparent. The variable nature of environmental changes and the mosaic of ecological zonation on human adaptive systems are stressed, with differentiation between : long-term incremental trends; sudden climatic changes; and predictable annual fluctuations about a mean. The nature and flexibility of the responses by communities to such external changes depended upon specific combinations of technological, social and ideological, psychological as well as idiosyncratic factors. Favourable niches alternately expanded or contracted. At times human adaptation systems in Cisjordan can be divided into two provinces, Mediterranean and Steppe/Desert ; at other times they included adjacent areas, such as Transjordan and the northern part of the Levantine corridor. A number of crises or "bottle-neck" situations, most resulting from environmental changes, are described which caused radical re-alignments in social and subsistence systems. It is against this backdrop, together with generally conservative social systems, that the transformation from foraging to plant and animal husbandry should be viewed.

The Paleolithic Prehistory of the Zagros-Taurus

Situated between Europe, Asia, and the Levantine corridor to Africa, the Zagros-Taurus region has enormous potential for the study of human adaptation and population movement during the Pleistocene. While archaeological work was done in this area 40 years ago, much of it remains unpublished. The political situation restricts research by archaeologists. This volume includes new data and major syntheses of the Paleolithic prehistory of the region, with reports of key sites and industries. By filling a major gap in our understanding of this area, it represents an essential reference for Near Eastern and Paleolithic specialists. University Museum Symposium Series V

Pleistocene connexions between Africa and Southwest Asia: an archaeological perspective

This paper investigates the archaeological evidence for direct prehistoric connexions between Southwest Asia and Africa during the Palaeolithic period. The importance of the ‘Levantine Corridor’ bridging the two continents is stressed in describing the dispersal ofHomo erectus. The continental bridge could have been through the Nile Valley during the Late Acheulian and the emergence of earlyHomo sapiens. Upper Palaeolithic and especially Epi-Palaeolithic dispersal during the terminal Pleistocene are discussed. The role of Egyptian-Levantine connexions in the context of the complex situation which led to sedentism is stressed.