Extensive Paleolithic Flint Extraction and Reduction Complexes in the Nahal Dishon Central Basin, Upper Galilee, Israel

Finkel, Meir; Gopher, Avi; Barkai, Ran

doi:10.1007/s10963-016-9097-9

Cited by 21 publications

(23 citation statements)

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“…Recently, identified extensive open‐air flint extraction and reduction (henceforth E&R) complexes (the term complex is used here to denote the entire area in which E&R activities took place; subareas are termed E&R localities ) in the central Dishon Basin, the Eastern Galilee (Finkel, Gopher, & Barkai, ), and Mt. Achbara (Finkel, Gopher, Ben‐Yosef, & Barkai, ) combined with data from the Sede Ilan E&R complex (Barkai & Gopher, ; Barkai, Gopher, & LaPorta, ; Figure ) provide fresh insights on the origins of prehistoric Eocene flint in northern Israel.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Achbara (Finkel, Gopher, Ben‐Yosef, & Barkai, ) combined with data from the Sede Ilan E&R complex (Barkai & Gopher, ; Barkai, Gopher, & LaPorta, ; Figure ) provide fresh insights on the origins of prehistoric Eocene flint in northern Israel. Lithic assemblages from tailing piles documented in field surveys of the Dishon complex (the largest and richest) indicate late Lower Palaeolithic and Middle Palaeolithic procurement (Finkel et al, ), and in a specific site (Mt. Reihan) a large Neolithic/Chalcolithic bifacial workshop has been found (Finkel, Gopher, Ben‐Yosef, & Barkai, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Embedded in either limestone or chalk, chert nodules of various dimensions (up to 40 cm long) can be easily extracted. These rocks are not always suitable for flintknapping.” Delage’s reservations on the quality of Eocene flint in the Dishon area have been refuted by Finkel et al (, ) who demonstrate its strong suitability for tool production. Another area of relatively broad exposure in this formation not surveyed by Delage is located around Mt.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A detailed description of the geography and ecology of each of the E&R complexes along the Eastern Galilee Eocene “strip” is provided in previous publications (Finkel et al, , ). General observations of the entire “strip” show that all areas form part of what botanists have termed the “Desert of the Galilee/The Arid Galilee” with relatively low vegetation coverage (Rabinovitch‐Vin, , p. 166).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The “Flint Depot” of prehistoric northern Israel: Comprehensive geochemical analyses of flint extraction and reduction complexes and implications for provenance studies

et al. 2019

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Recent research has demonstrated that the Eocene Timrat formation in northeasternIsrael, which appears as an extensive land "strip" west of and parallel to the Rift Valley, was a major source of prehistoric flint. This supposition is supported by three large-scale extraction and reduction (E&R) complexes identified within this region, which offer direct evidence of intense Lower and Middle Palaeolithic exploitation and limited Neolithic/ Chalcolithic activities. Here, we present a first comprehensive overview of this "industrial strip" and of its E&R complexes (Nahal Dishon, Mt. Achbara, and Sede Ilan), demonstrating that these production areas were used mainly for the manufacture of large-volume items such as Lower Palaeolithic hand axes, Middle Palaeolithic Levallois cores, and Neolithic/Chalcolithic axes/adzes. Furthermore, we integrate information from recently published field studies and lithic analyses with new intercomplex and intracomplex inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (inductively coupled plasma (ICP)-MS) analyses of flint debitage. The relatively large number of analysed samples (n = 69) constitutes the first robust reference database for provenance studies of this E&R "strip." The potential contribution for provenance studies is demonstrated by a detailed ICP-MS comparison drawn between specific extraction and reduction localities within the Dishon complex and flint tools found in six occupation sites located up to 20 km from the sources. The detailed geochemical study also yielded methodological insights regarding challenges associated with flint heterogeneity and patination effects. K E Y W O R D S flint extraction and reduction, Galilee, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, Palaeolithic, provenance studies

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The “Flint Depot” of prehistoric northern Israel: Comprehensive geochemical analyses of flint extraction and reduction complexes and implications for provenance studies

et al. 2019

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“…In the Levant the best understood localities are occupations in caves and rockshelters, in contrast to open-air procurement and early stage reduction sites. The chronology of the latter is currently problematic, but the presence of handaxes and Levallois technologies suggests that they date to the Acheulean and Middle Palaeolithic, as well as being used more recently (Finkel et al, 2016). In the case of Mt.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Middle Palaeolithic raw material procurement and early stage reduction at Jubbah, Saudi Arabia

Groucutt

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Amor

et al. 2017

Archaeological Research in Asia

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Several hundred Middle Palaeolithic (MP) archaeological sites have now been identified in the Arabian Peninsula. However, the study of lithic raw material properties and related procurement behaviours is still in its infancy. Here we describe raw material procurement and early stage lithic reduction at MP sites in the Jubbah palaeolake basin, in the Nefud Desert, northern Saudi Arabia. We describe the sites identified during our surveys, and we use petrographic studies to demonstrate that MP assemblages were mostly produced from differing forms of ferruginous quartzite. These raw materials do not substantially vary in composition, although they are not identical in terms of factors such as grain size and the proportion of iron oxide. We then describe the lithic technology at these sites, with a particular focus on the largest assemblage identified, Jebel Katefeh-12 (JKF-12), which provides detailed information on lithic reduction at a quartzite source. Analyses from this site are then considered together with data from other MP sites in the Jubbah basin, where similar raw material was used. The results indicate that factors such as initial clast size/shape and reduction intensity play important roles in influencing aspects of morphological and technological variability. Our results suggest that incursions of MP populations into northern Arabia were probably temporally limited, as might be expected in a marginal and generally arid region. MP raw material procurement sites provide a highly visible signal of these ephemeral incursions, providing information on the ways that human populations adapted to the challenging conditions of the Saharo-Arabian arid belt.

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Evidence for sophisticated raw material procurement strategies during the Lower Paleolithic—Hula Valley case study

et al. 2023

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The Hula Valley has two key Acheulian sites: Gesher Benot Ya'aqov (GBY), a large flake Acheulian site with hundreds of basalt bifaces and a significant number of flint handaxes, and Ma'ayan Barukh (MB), where more than 3500 flint handaxes were collected. Over the last one million years, the valley was filled by alluvium and basalt flows, devoid of flint sources suitable for handaxe production. We conducted archaeological and geological surveys combined with an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry geochemical study to determine the source(s) of flint, comparing elemental compositions of handaxes from GBY and MB with those of different flint sources using a novel statistical method. The results demonstrate that Hula Valley Acheulian flint handaxes were derived from Eocene flint. For GBY, the nearest Geoarchaeology.

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Extensive Paleolithic Flint Extraction and Reduction Complexes in the Nahal Dishon Central Basin, Upper Galilee, Israel

Cited by 21 publications

References 58 publications

The “Flint Depot” of prehistoric northern Israel: Comprehensive geochemical analyses of flint extraction and reduction complexes and implications for provenance studies

The “Flint Depot” of prehistoric northern Israel: Comprehensive geochemical analyses of flint extraction and reduction complexes and implications for provenance studies

Middle Palaeolithic raw material procurement and early stage reduction at Jubbah, Saudi Arabia

Evidence for sophisticated raw material procurement strategies during the Lower Paleolithic—Hula Valley case study

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