Keywords: Levant Early Upper Palaeolithic Aurignacian Manot Cave bone and antler technology Simpl... more Keywords: Levant Early Upper Palaeolithic Aurignacian Manot Cave bone and antler technology Simple-/massive-based projectile points a b s t r a c t The Early Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant plays an important role in understanding the emergence, dispersal, and adaptations of the first Anatomically Modern Human (AMH) populations in the Levant and Europe. The technical exploitation of osseous raw materials, represented by the new concepts applied to the antler working, is recognized as one of several innovations that occur both in the Levant and in Europe during this time. Here we present preliminary results of a technological analysis conducted on the Aurignacian bone and antler industry from the Early Upper Palaeolithic layers of Manot Cave, Israel. The industry displays several similarities with its European counterpart such as the choice of bone for making " domestic " tools (recurrent morpho-types like awls) while antler was used predominantly for hunting equipment (projectile points). The complex technical exploitation of antler, almost exclusively devoted to making hunting weapons, constitutes a major feature both in the European Early Aurignacian and in the Levantine Aurignacian. Nevertheless, while simple-based antler points are common in the Levantine Aurignacian, split-based antler points, characteristic of the European Early Aurignacian are only anec-dotally documented in the Levant. Unique to the Levantine industry is the common exploitation of fallow deer antler. While some of these particularities seem to be related to the different ecological niches exploited, others, such as the different type of hunting weapons, need to be assessed in light of different cultural contexts.
In ancient DNA (aDNA) research, evolutionary and archaeological questions are often investigated ... more In ancient DNA (aDNA) research, evolutionary and archaeological questions are often investigated using the genomic sequences of organelles: mitochondrial and chloroplast DNA. Organellar genomes are found in multiple copies per living cell, increasing their chance of recovery from archaeological samples, and are inherited from one parent without genetic recombination, simplifying analyses. While mitochondrial genomes have played a key role in many mammalian aDNA projects, including research focused on prehistoric humans and extinct hominins, it is unclear how useful plant chloroplast genomes (plastomes) may be at elucidating questions related to plant evolution, crop domestication, and the prehistoric movement of botanical products through trade and migration. Such analyses are particularly challenging for plant species whose genomes have highly repetitive sequences and that undergo frequent genomic reorganization, notably species with high retrotransposon activity. To address this question, we explored the research potential of the grape (Vitis vinifera L.) plastome using targeted-enrichment methods and high-throughput DNA sequencing on a collection of archaeological grape pip and vine specimens from sites across Eurasia dating ca. 4000 BCEe1500 CE. We demonstrate that due to unprecedented numbers of sequence insertions into the nuclear and mitochondrial genomes, the grape plastome provides limited intraspecific phylogenetic resolution. Nonetheless, we were able to assign archaeological specimens in
Chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) is today one of the most widespread domesticated species and i... more Chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) is today one of the most widespread domesticated species and is a main source of protein in the human diet. However, for thousands of years exploitation of chickens was confined to symbolic and social domains such as cockfighting. The question of when and where chickens were first used for economic purposes remains unresolved. The results of our faunal analysis demonstrate that the Hellenistic (fourth–second centuries B.C.E.) site of Maresha, Israel, is the earliest site known today where economic exploitation of chickens was widely practiced. We base our claim on the exceptionally high frequency of chicken bones at that site, the majority of which belong to adult individuals, and on the observed 2:1 ratio of female to male bones. These results are supported further by an extensive survey of
faunal remains from 234 sites in the Southern Levant, spanning
more than three millennia, which shows a sharp increase in the
frequency of chicken during the Hellenistic period. We further argue that the earliest secure evidence for economic exploitation of chickens in Europe dates to the first century B.C.E. and therefore is predated by the finds in the Southern Levant by at least a century. We suggest that the gradual acclimatization of chickens in the Southern Levant and its gradual integration into the local economy, the latter fully accomplished in the Hellenistic period, was a crucial step in the adoption of this species in European husbandry some 100 y later.
We report here the results of our renewed, and continuing, excavations of the Natufian horizon on... more We report here the results of our renewed, and continuing, excavations of the Natufian horizon on el-Wad Terrace. The original excavation conducted by Garrod was restricted to the cave and terrace in front of the cave's entrance and our project was initiated further to the NE in order to develop a more comprehensive view of the Natufian settlement and we have been able to document that Natufian remains extended along most of the slope in front of the cave. The interdisciplinary research presented deals with the Late Natufian remains
We report here the results of our renewed, and continuing, excavations of the Natufian horizon on... more We report here the results of our renewed, and continuing, excavations of the Natufian horizon on el-Wad Terrace. The original excavation conducted by Garrod was restricted to the cave and terrace in front of the cave's entrance and our project was initiated further to the NE in order to develop a more comprehensive view of the Natufian settlement and we have been able to document that Natufian remains extended along most of the slope in front of the cave. The interdisciplinary research presented deals with the Late Natufian remains
CITATIONS 7 READS 58 6 authors, including: Some of the authors of this publication are also worki... more CITATIONS 7 READS 58 6 authors, including: Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: Fish exploitation and fish trade in the Negev Byzantine. View project Connectivity of open space network as infrastructure for wildlife movement View project The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file. All in-text references underlined in blue are added to the original document and are linked to publications on ResearchGate, letting you access and read them immediately.
The invention and development of next or second generation sequencing methods has resulted in a d... more The invention and development of next or second generation sequencing methods has resulted in a dramatic transformation of ancient DNA research and allowed shotgun sequencing of entire genomes from fossil specimens. However, although there are exceptions, most fossil specimens contain only low (~ 1% or less) percentages of endogenous DNA. The only skeletal element for which a systematically higher endogenous DNA content compared to other skeletal elements has been shown is the petrous part of the temporal bone. In this study we investigate whether (a) different parts of the petrous bone of archaeological human specimens give different percentages of endogenous DNA yields, (b) there are significant differences in average DNA read lengths, damage patterns and total DNA concentration, and (c) it is possible to obtain endogenous ancient DNA from petrous bones from hot environments. We carried out intra-petrous comparisons for ten petrous bones from specimens from Holocene archaeological...
We present a zooarchaeological analysis of the faunal remains at Tel Beth-Shemesh, a site located... more We present a zooarchaeological analysis of the faunal remains at Tel Beth-Shemesh, a site located in the Shephelah region of Israel, which has been dated to the Late Bronze Age and Iron Age I. The site, identified as the biblical city of Beth-Shemesh, was a Canaanite border town between Philistine and Israelite settlements and of great importance in our attempts to understand the social and cultural transformations that occurred in the southern Levant during those periods. This study contributes to a more accurate understanding of the cultural identity of the site's inhabitants by exploring the cultural differences between populations as reflected in their different dietary preferences. We analysed the subsistence economy at the site, the general exploitation patterns, herd management strategies and consumption practices, all of which are based mostly on domestic livestock. We determined the cultural identity at the site mainly by comparing the representation of pig remains with that found at other sites in the region, and offer various explanations for the differences. The comparisons revealed clear differences between Tel Beth-Shemesh and other known nearby Philistine sites. This site appears to have possessed a self-contained production and consumption economy with similarities in the general pattern of animal exploitation between the two periods. These similarities constitute evidence for the continuation of the local population and of its culture at the site during the period of turmoil that swept the region during the transition to the Iron Age.
The Natufian culture of the Levant represents a sedentary, terminal Pleistocene hunter-gatherer s... more The Natufian culture of the Levant represents a sedentary, terminal Pleistocene hunter-gatherer society. Excavations of Natufian hamlets yield rich faunal assemblages in which a significant rise in small carnivore frequencies is noted (mainly red fox, Vulpes vulpes). Fox frequencies remain high in the succeeding Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA). We use Late Natufian fox remains from the site of el-Wad Terrace (Mount Carmel, Israel) as a case-study to discern the depositional history and exploitation of foxes in the Natufian. Our analysis shows that it is likely that foxes were consumed for food and thus should be considered in analyses of Natufian diets. Moreover, it seems that foxes were not captured by the same methods nor using similar foraging opportunities as other fast small game species (eg, hares). We hypothesise that foxes were captured close to the sites which they approached for food. Thus, the constant rise in fox abundance from the early Epipalaeolithic to the PPNA could potentially reflect a parallel rise in site occupation intensity.
Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 2014
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, a... more JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].
Keywords: Levant Early Upper Palaeolithic Aurignacian Manot Cave bone and antler technology Simpl... more Keywords: Levant Early Upper Palaeolithic Aurignacian Manot Cave bone and antler technology Simple-/massive-based projectile points a b s t r a c t The Early Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant plays an important role in understanding the emergence, dispersal, and adaptations of the first Anatomically Modern Human (AMH) populations in the Levant and Europe. The technical exploitation of osseous raw materials, represented by the new concepts applied to the antler working, is recognized as one of several innovations that occur both in the Levant and in Europe during this time. Here we present preliminary results of a technological analysis conducted on the Aurignacian bone and antler industry from the Early Upper Palaeolithic layers of Manot Cave, Israel. The industry displays several similarities with its European counterpart such as the choice of bone for making " domestic " tools (recurrent morpho-types like awls) while antler was used predominantly for hunting equipment (projectile points). The complex technical exploitation of antler, almost exclusively devoted to making hunting weapons, constitutes a major feature both in the European Early Aurignacian and in the Levantine Aurignacian. Nevertheless, while simple-based antler points are common in the Levantine Aurignacian, split-based antler points, characteristic of the European Early Aurignacian are only anec-dotally documented in the Levant. Unique to the Levantine industry is the common exploitation of fallow deer antler. While some of these particularities seem to be related to the different ecological niches exploited, others, such as the different type of hunting weapons, need to be assessed in light of different cultural contexts.
In ancient DNA (aDNA) research, evolutionary and archaeological questions are often investigated ... more In ancient DNA (aDNA) research, evolutionary and archaeological questions are often investigated using the genomic sequences of organelles: mitochondrial and chloroplast DNA. Organellar genomes are found in multiple copies per living cell, increasing their chance of recovery from archaeological samples, and are inherited from one parent without genetic recombination, simplifying analyses. While mitochondrial genomes have played a key role in many mammalian aDNA projects, including research focused on prehistoric humans and extinct hominins, it is unclear how useful plant chloroplast genomes (plastomes) may be at elucidating questions related to plant evolution, crop domestication, and the prehistoric movement of botanical products through trade and migration. Such analyses are particularly challenging for plant species whose genomes have highly repetitive sequences and that undergo frequent genomic reorganization, notably species with high retrotransposon activity. To address this question, we explored the research potential of the grape (Vitis vinifera L.) plastome using targeted-enrichment methods and high-throughput DNA sequencing on a collection of archaeological grape pip and vine specimens from sites across Eurasia dating ca. 4000 BCEe1500 CE. We demonstrate that due to unprecedented numbers of sequence insertions into the nuclear and mitochondrial genomes, the grape plastome provides limited intraspecific phylogenetic resolution. Nonetheless, we were able to assign archaeological specimens in
Chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) is today one of the most widespread domesticated species and i... more Chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) is today one of the most widespread domesticated species and is a main source of protein in the human diet. However, for thousands of years exploitation of chickens was confined to symbolic and social domains such as cockfighting. The question of when and where chickens were first used for economic purposes remains unresolved. The results of our faunal analysis demonstrate that the Hellenistic (fourth–second centuries B.C.E.) site of Maresha, Israel, is the earliest site known today where economic exploitation of chickens was widely practiced. We base our claim on the exceptionally high frequency of chicken bones at that site, the majority of which belong to adult individuals, and on the observed 2:1 ratio of female to male bones. These results are supported further by an extensive survey of
faunal remains from 234 sites in the Southern Levant, spanning
more than three millennia, which shows a sharp increase in the
frequency of chicken during the Hellenistic period. We further argue that the earliest secure evidence for economic exploitation of chickens in Europe dates to the first century B.C.E. and therefore is predated by the finds in the Southern Levant by at least a century. We suggest that the gradual acclimatization of chickens in the Southern Levant and its gradual integration into the local economy, the latter fully accomplished in the Hellenistic period, was a crucial step in the adoption of this species in European husbandry some 100 y later.
We report here the results of our renewed, and continuing, excavations of the Natufian horizon on... more We report here the results of our renewed, and continuing, excavations of the Natufian horizon on el-Wad Terrace. The original excavation conducted by Garrod was restricted to the cave and terrace in front of the cave's entrance and our project was initiated further to the NE in order to develop a more comprehensive view of the Natufian settlement and we have been able to document that Natufian remains extended along most of the slope in front of the cave. The interdisciplinary research presented deals with the Late Natufian remains
We report here the results of our renewed, and continuing, excavations of the Natufian horizon on... more We report here the results of our renewed, and continuing, excavations of the Natufian horizon on el-Wad Terrace. The original excavation conducted by Garrod was restricted to the cave and terrace in front of the cave's entrance and our project was initiated further to the NE in order to develop a more comprehensive view of the Natufian settlement and we have been able to document that Natufian remains extended along most of the slope in front of the cave. The interdisciplinary research presented deals with the Late Natufian remains
CITATIONS 7 READS 58 6 authors, including: Some of the authors of this publication are also worki... more CITATIONS 7 READS 58 6 authors, including: Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: Fish exploitation and fish trade in the Negev Byzantine. View project Connectivity of open space network as infrastructure for wildlife movement View project The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file. All in-text references underlined in blue are added to the original document and are linked to publications on ResearchGate, letting you access and read them immediately.
The invention and development of next or second generation sequencing methods has resulted in a d... more The invention and development of next or second generation sequencing methods has resulted in a dramatic transformation of ancient DNA research and allowed shotgun sequencing of entire genomes from fossil specimens. However, although there are exceptions, most fossil specimens contain only low (~ 1% or less) percentages of endogenous DNA. The only skeletal element for which a systematically higher endogenous DNA content compared to other skeletal elements has been shown is the petrous part of the temporal bone. In this study we investigate whether (a) different parts of the petrous bone of archaeological human specimens give different percentages of endogenous DNA yields, (b) there are significant differences in average DNA read lengths, damage patterns and total DNA concentration, and (c) it is possible to obtain endogenous ancient DNA from petrous bones from hot environments. We carried out intra-petrous comparisons for ten petrous bones from specimens from Holocene archaeological...
We present a zooarchaeological analysis of the faunal remains at Tel Beth-Shemesh, a site located... more We present a zooarchaeological analysis of the faunal remains at Tel Beth-Shemesh, a site located in the Shephelah region of Israel, which has been dated to the Late Bronze Age and Iron Age I. The site, identified as the biblical city of Beth-Shemesh, was a Canaanite border town between Philistine and Israelite settlements and of great importance in our attempts to understand the social and cultural transformations that occurred in the southern Levant during those periods. This study contributes to a more accurate understanding of the cultural identity of the site's inhabitants by exploring the cultural differences between populations as reflected in their different dietary preferences. We analysed the subsistence economy at the site, the general exploitation patterns, herd management strategies and consumption practices, all of which are based mostly on domestic livestock. We determined the cultural identity at the site mainly by comparing the representation of pig remains with that found at other sites in the region, and offer various explanations for the differences. The comparisons revealed clear differences between Tel Beth-Shemesh and other known nearby Philistine sites. This site appears to have possessed a self-contained production and consumption economy with similarities in the general pattern of animal exploitation between the two periods. These similarities constitute evidence for the continuation of the local population and of its culture at the site during the period of turmoil that swept the region during the transition to the Iron Age.
The Natufian culture of the Levant represents a sedentary, terminal Pleistocene hunter-gatherer s... more The Natufian culture of the Levant represents a sedentary, terminal Pleistocene hunter-gatherer society. Excavations of Natufian hamlets yield rich faunal assemblages in which a significant rise in small carnivore frequencies is noted (mainly red fox, Vulpes vulpes). Fox frequencies remain high in the succeeding Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA). We use Late Natufian fox remains from the site of el-Wad Terrace (Mount Carmel, Israel) as a case-study to discern the depositional history and exploitation of foxes in the Natufian. Our analysis shows that it is likely that foxes were consumed for food and thus should be considered in analyses of Natufian diets. Moreover, it seems that foxes were not captured by the same methods nor using similar foraging opportunities as other fast small game species (eg, hares). We hypothesise that foxes were captured close to the sites which they approached for food. Thus, the constant rise in fox abundance from the early Epipalaeolithic to the PPNA could potentially reflect a parallel rise in site occupation intensity.
Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 2014
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, a... more JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].
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Papers by Guy Bar-Oz
faunal remains from 234 sites in the Southern Levant, spanning
more than three millennia, which shows a sharp increase in the
frequency of chicken during the Hellenistic period. We further argue that the earliest secure evidence for economic exploitation of chickens in Europe dates to the first century B.C.E. and therefore is predated by the finds in the Southern Levant by at least a century. We suggest that the gradual acclimatization of chickens in the Southern Levant and its gradual integration into the local economy, the latter fully accomplished in the Hellenistic period, was a crucial step in the adoption of this species in European husbandry some 100 y later.
faunal remains from 234 sites in the Southern Levant, spanning
more than three millennia, which shows a sharp increase in the
frequency of chicken during the Hellenistic period. We further argue that the earliest secure evidence for economic exploitation of chickens in Europe dates to the first century B.C.E. and therefore is predated by the finds in the Southern Levant by at least a century. We suggest that the gradual acclimatization of chickens in the Southern Levant and its gradual integration into the local economy, the latter fully accomplished in the Hellenistic period, was a crucial step in the adoption of this species in European husbandry some 100 y later.