Sort order:  

Status: 1 Treffer   •   Seite 1 von 1   •   10 Artikel pro Seite

2020-02-29 12:31:55   •   ID: 2154

Ein Aqef: Aurignacian from the Negev?

Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
Figure 1 and 2: These are isolated Upper Paleolithic tools from a very small Surface Scatter (about 4 qm) from Ein Aqef (Negev desert; Figure 3 / Wikimedia Creative Commons). They come from my part of the Levenstein Collection.

Until some 30 years ago Upper Paleolithic ensembles in the Levant postdating the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition and predating the Epipaleolithic were classified to various stages of an “Levantine Aurignacian” sensu lato.

These classification had been developed by Garrod for the Carmel Region, by Neuville for Judaea and by Rust for Jabrud /Syria between the 1930ies until the 1950ies. One can imagine that these early excavated ensembles, which were located in different habitats, were difficult to match.

An even earlier chronological view for the Northern Levant was established by Pater Zumoffen, who worked in the Lebanon at the begin of the 20th century. He excavated Upper Paleolithic large multilayered deposits at the Antelias cave and Ksar Akil in the Valley of Antelias, named after a small coastal town some kilometers north from Beirut.  

Initially Research (Zumoffen 1900; Garrod 1953; Neuville 1934; Rust 1950) reconstructed the Levantine Upper Paleolithic sequence as an unilinear evolution of Aurignacian variants finally evolving to the Epipaleolithic.

This paradigm was challenged since the late 1980ies by creating two independent “phyla“ of evolution: The “Leptolithic lineage” which stretches from the transitional Emiran at ca. 50 k.a. cal. BP right through to the onset of the Late Epipaleolithic Natufian. This Leptolithic lineage comprises the:

  • Emiran: The early Emiran at Boker Tachtit whiche started already at 50 through 49 k.a.Cal.BP; published in 2021


  • An as yet unnamed industry beginning in Boker Tachtit 4- the most recent phase of the site- (44.3 k.a.CalBP)


  • The Early Ahmarian c 45 and 46 k.a. BP (47-49 k.a.cal. BP at Manot and Kebara until c 30 k.a. cal. BP)


  • The Late Ahmarian (designated sometimes as Masraqan; ca. 30-25 k.a. CalBP)


  • The Pre-Natufian Epipaleolithic complex beginning around 23 k.a. CalBP.
 

The Levantine Aurignacian sensu strictu which is identified with ensembles that encompass thick and carinated scrapers, strangled blades with lateral retouches dihedral and truncated burins, Dufour bladelets (some twisted, some incurvated), and (small) el-Wad points.

Bone tools, if present, include points and awls, and split base points, which are so well known from the European Aurignacian.  

The best documented non-calibrated Radiocarbon dates for the Levantine Aurignacian sites like Manot scatter around 34-38 k.a CalBP - clearly more recent than the (Proto)-Aurignacian of Europe and the Ahmarian at Kebara.

It should be pointed out that the European Aurignacian” is rich in tools on blade and bladelet blanks as well as blade/bladelet cores, while in the Levant, the local Aurignacian is considered primarily as a flake-based industry.

Nevertheless, there are considerable numbers of blade/lets in those assemblages assigned to the Levantine Aurignacian sensu strictu which were transformed into scrapers, burins, retouched blades and bladelets.

Actually it is debated if there further technocomplexes, that should be differentiated both from the Ahmarian and Aurignacian. Concerning the small collection of artifacts (a carinated scraper, thick endscrapers and an Aurignacian retouched blade), shown here, I am not sure if I should call this ensemble “Aurignacian” in a strict sense.

An important observation was recently made by Belfer-Cohen and Goring-Morris: at Nahal Neqarot rock-shelter in the central Negev they excavated intact strata, consisting of Epipaleolithic (Ramonian) tools and "typical" Aurignacian lithics (mainly thick endscrapers, similar to those of my collection).

They could date the ensemble in toto to the Epipaleolithic. Therefore, lithic ensembles, such as the one shown here, cannot be uniquely assigned to a Levantine Aurignacian or an Epipaleolithic, which may hold true for other similar surface scatters in the Negev, reported from different researchers during the last 40 years.

Provenance: Collection Levenstein (ISR)



Resources and images in full resolution: