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Plan view of Mughr el-Hamamah Cave 2, modi fi ed after Richter et al. (2009) b, with the 2010 test excavation squares shown.
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Methodological developments and new paleoanthropological data remain jointly central to clarifying the timing and systemic interrelationships between the Middle-Upper Paleolithic (MP-UP) archaeological transition and the broadly contemporaneous anatomically modern human-archaic biological turnover. In the recently discovered cave site of Mughr el-H...
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... are estimated to preserve in situ Layer B deposits, but the thickness may vary from as little as 10 cm to over 70 cm (see Figs. 3 e 5). A roughly 4 m 2 area of in situ Layer B sediment is pro- tected under a slab of roof fall just north of square B2 in the Back Trench, preserving at least 110 cm of EUP deposits (see Fig. 3). We have presented an earlier report on the 2010 test excavations (Stutz et al., 2012), including: initial fi eld-lab assessment of the lithic assemblage (estimated to include ca. 20,000 fl int artifacts, including cores, debitage, debris, and formal tools); the substantial macro- faunal assemblage (preliminary NISP count 1⁄4 11,127); the microfaunal assemblage; special fi nds, including fragments of burnished bone artifacts and a possible marine shell bead, and abundant red and yellow ochre nodules; and a small number of possible human teeth (n 1⁄4 2) and one human post-cranial element (an atlas fragment). The post-cranial specimen is from unambiguous in situ Layer B context in square F3a. New detailed taxonomic data for the microfaunal sample are given in Table 1. The core reduction technology and tool typology from MHM Layer B can be assigned unambiguously to the early ...
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... C dates on charcoal from the recently discovered EUP cave site of Mughr el-Hamamah, Jordan (Caves of the Doves, hereafter MHM). Test excavations and preliminary analyses at MHM have revealed a diagnostic EUP lithic assemblage associated with a single prehistoric archaeological layer (Stutz et al., 2012). With preservation of a large archaeofaunal assemblage, abundant charred botanical remains, strati fi ed combustion features, bone tools, and a small number of in situ isolated hominin remains, the EUP archaeology of MHM has potential to shed new light on the bio- cultural and environmental factors connecting the Levantine Middle-Upper Paleolithic transition to the wider western Eurasian development of anatomically modern human-Neandertal biological turnover in the 50 e 30 ka timeframe. With cross-disciplinary analyses ongoing, the MHM radiocarbon results contextualize preliminary observations on the chipped-stone artifacts, sampled from the entirety of the Upper Pleistocene palimpsest occupation layer. Although the ongoing lithic analysis may possibly reveal variation through time within the MHM deposits, the geo- archaeological observations in the fi eld suggest the presence of a single EUP layer d lithologically de fi ned d whose associated technological features may be compared with those from other dated LMP and EUP sites across western Eurasia. Mughr el-Hamamah is located in the western portion of the Ajlun Governate, Jordan, situated roughly at 80 m above sea level (asl) (Fig. 1). It consists of fi ve caves that have formed on the right (northeastern) bank of a minor, unnamed wadi between the major Wadis Rajib (to the south) and Kufrinja (to the north) (Fig. 2). Cave 2 is the largest extant karstic cavity at the MHM site, and it is the only cave within this complex to exhibit signi fi cant sedimentary deposits. Formed in a local Cenomanian limestone member, the fi ve MHM caves are located approximately 30 e 40 m above the wadi fl oor, offering a commanding view of the Jordan Valley. During most of Marine Oxygen Isotope Stage 3 (hereafter, MIS 3, ca. 60 e 35 ka), MHM would have overlooked Lake Lisan (Lisker et al., 2009; Torfstein et al., 2013). However, during the lake's low levels within MIS 3 (ca. 48 e 45 ka and 39 e 38 ka, associated with Heinrich events 5 and 4, respectively), occupants of MHM would likely have viewed wetlands and open-vegetation terrain to the west and Lisan to the southwest (Bartov et al., 2002; Lisker et al., 2009; Torfstein et al., 2013). Within a 5 km radius mobile foragers occupying MHM would have had access to the Jordan Valley bottom, nearby major wadis with permanently fl owing streams, and ridge-top paths toward upland resources. The ecotonal location on the eastern slopes of the Jordan Valley was within the lower margins of what then included more extensive Mediterranean forest habitat (Table 1). Preliminary surveys carried out in 2009 revealed that local fl int is highly fractured and often has inclusions or cavities. These lithic raw materials are abundant throughout the Wadis Rajib and Kufrinja. However, high quality fl int is readily available 10 km to the north and south, with additional high quality sources located in the uplands 20 e 30 km to the east. Following survey, initial mapping, and surface collection (Lovell, 2009; Richter et al., 2009b), excavations were carried out by AJS, LNS, TA, and JLC during June and July 2010. This work included two test trenches inside Cave 2, totaling 8 m 2 (Fig. 3). An additional 1 Â 1 m test pit was excavated just outside the Cave 2 dripline. Evidence of recent erosion and in fi lling just beyond the dripline led us to focus on the excavations inside Cave 2. The June e July 2010 test excavations at MHM Cave 2 were carried out on a 1 Â 1 m grid, subdivided into 50 Â 50 cm subsquares, with 5 cm arbitrary hori- zontal levels. Sediments were dry screened with 2 mm mesh. Chipped stone and animal bone artifacts were sorted and bagged in the fi eld. We did not piece-plot artifacts in situ because the test excavations were designed to expose site stratigraphy as completely as possible. Five combustion features were particularly well preserved in squares B5 and C5 (easternmost leg of the L- shaped Back Trench; see Fig. 3), and these were excavated and screened as separate features. Units were excavated to bedrock. Sections were drawn, photographed, and described in detail prior to back fi lling. The site stratigraphy exhibits two main components. Layer A is a grayish brown sandy silt, dominated by pulverized goat dung, which dates to the twentieth century. It includes redeposited EUP artifacts mixed together with late twentieth century ...
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... C dates on charcoal from the recently discovered EUP cave site of Mughr el-Hamamah, Jordan (Caves of the Doves, hereafter MHM). Test excavations and preliminary analyses at MHM have revealed a diagnostic EUP lithic assemblage associated with a single prehistoric archaeological layer (Stutz et al., 2012). With preservation of a large archaeofaunal assemblage, abundant charred botanical remains, strati fi ed combustion features, bone tools, and a small number of in situ isolated hominin remains, the EUP archaeology of MHM has potential to shed new light on the bio- cultural and environmental factors connecting the Levantine Middle-Upper Paleolithic transition to the wider western Eurasian development of anatomically modern human-Neandertal biological turnover in the 50 e 30 ka timeframe. With cross-disciplinary analyses ongoing, the MHM radiocarbon results contextualize preliminary observations on the chipped-stone artifacts, sampled from the entirety of the Upper Pleistocene palimpsest occupation layer. Although the ongoing lithic analysis may possibly reveal variation through time within the MHM deposits, the geo- archaeological observations in the fi eld suggest the presence of a single EUP layer d lithologically de fi ned d whose associated technological features may be compared with those from other dated LMP and EUP sites across western Eurasia. Mughr el-Hamamah is located in the western portion of the Ajlun Governate, Jordan, situated roughly at 80 m above sea level (asl) (Fig. 1). It consists of fi ve caves that have formed on the right (northeastern) bank of a minor, unnamed wadi between the major Wadis Rajib (to the south) and Kufrinja (to the north) (Fig. 2). Cave 2 is the largest extant karstic cavity at the MHM site, and it is the only cave within this complex to exhibit signi fi cant sedimentary deposits. Formed in a local Cenomanian limestone member, the fi ve MHM caves are located approximately 30 e 40 m above the wadi fl oor, offering a commanding view of the Jordan Valley. During most of Marine Oxygen Isotope Stage 3 (hereafter, MIS 3, ca. 60 e 35 ka), MHM would have overlooked Lake Lisan (Lisker et al., 2009; Torfstein et al., 2013). However, during the lake's low levels within MIS 3 (ca. 48 e 45 ka and 39 e 38 ka, associated with Heinrich events 5 and 4, respectively), occupants of MHM would likely have viewed wetlands and open-vegetation terrain to the west and Lisan to the southwest (Bartov et al., 2002; Lisker et al., 2009; Torfstein et al., 2013). Within a 5 km radius mobile foragers occupying MHM would have had access to the Jordan Valley bottom, nearby major wadis with permanently fl owing streams, and ridge-top paths toward upland resources. The ecotonal location on the eastern slopes of the Jordan Valley was within the lower margins of what then included more extensive Mediterranean forest habitat (Table 1). Preliminary surveys carried out in 2009 revealed that local fl int is highly fractured and often has inclusions or cavities. These lithic raw materials are abundant throughout the Wadis Rajib and Kufrinja. However, high quality fl int is readily available 10 km to the north and south, with additional high quality sources located in the uplands 20 e 30 km to the east. Following survey, initial mapping, and surface collection (Lovell, 2009; Richter et al., 2009b), excavations were carried out by AJS, LNS, TA, and JLC during June and July 2010. This work included two test trenches inside Cave 2, totaling 8 m 2 (Fig. 3). An additional 1 Â 1 m test pit was excavated just outside the Cave 2 dripline. Evidence of recent erosion and in fi lling just beyond the dripline led us to focus on the excavations inside Cave 2. The June e July 2010 test excavations at MHM Cave 2 were carried out on a 1 Â 1 m grid, subdivided into 50 Â 50 cm subsquares, with 5 cm arbitrary hori- zontal levels. Sediments were dry screened with 2 mm mesh. Chipped stone and animal bone artifacts were sorted and bagged in the fi eld. We did not piece-plot artifacts in situ because the test excavations were designed to expose site stratigraphy as completely as possible. Five combustion features were particularly well preserved in squares B5 and C5 (easternmost leg of the L- shaped Back Trench; see Fig. 3), and these were excavated and screened as separate features. Units were excavated to bedrock. Sections were drawn, photographed, and described in detail prior to back fi lling. The site stratigraphy exhibits two main components. Layer A is a grayish brown sandy silt, dominated by pulverized goat dung, which dates to the twentieth century. It includes redeposited EUP artifacts mixed together with late twentieth century ...
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... survey, initial mapping, and surface collection (Lovell, 2009;Richter et al., 2009b), excavations were carried out by AJS, LNS, TA, and JLC during June and July 2010. This work included two test trenches inside Cave 2, totaling 8 m 2 (Fig. 3). An additional 1 Â 1 m test pit was excavated just outside the Cave 2 dripline. Evidence of recent erosion and infilling just beyond the dripline led us to focus on the excavations inside Cave 2. The JuneeJuly 2010 test excavations at MHM Cave 2 were carried out on a 1 Â 1 m grid, subdivided into 50 Â 50 cm subsquares, with 5 cm ...
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... Chipped stone and animal bone artifacts were sorted and bagged in the field. We did not piece-plot artifacts in situ because the test excavations were designed to expose site stratigraphy as completely as possible. Five combustion features were particularly well preserved in squares B5 and C5 (easternmost leg of the L- shaped Back Trench; see Fig. 3), and these were excavated and screened as separate features. Units were excavated to bedrock. Sections were drawn, photographed, and described in detail prior to ...
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... the back and front trenches are estimated to preserve in situ Layer B deposits, but the thickness may vary from as little as 10 cm to over 70 cm (see Figs. 3e5). A roughly 4 m 2 area of in situ Layer B sediment is pro- tected under a slab of roof fall just north of square B2 in the Back Trench, preserving at least 110 cm of EUP deposits (see Fig. ...
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... the coherency of the suite of ABOx-SC ages in Layer B, the agreement between the ABOx-SC ages and the humic acid age (MHM-10), and the fact that the ABOx-SC ages were only slightly older than the ABA-derived age (MHM-6). The 1 Â 1 m excavation grid (with each lettered and numbered square divided into 50 Â 50 cm subsquares aed) is shown in Fig. 3, with the grid origin in the northwest of the cave. (The grid was adapted to the contours of the front chamber of the cave, rotated slightly west of compass north.) Depths were measured from an arbitrary datum point fixed on the cave wall bedrock. All measurements are in centimeters, reported to the nearest ...
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The chronology of the Vlaardingen Culture is largely based upon changes in the pottery morphology and types of temper. On account of varying characteristics between the pottery from different sites as well as stratigraphic layers, several (sub)phases are recognized. For many of these sites radiocarbon dates are limited or lacking, making it difficu...
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... While the region preserves a rich record from the late Middle Paleolithic (MP), our knowledge of the earliest stages of the Upper Paleolithic (UP)-known as the Early Upper Paleolithic (EUP, ~45-30 ka)-remains sparse. With in situ deposits dating to 45-39 ka cal BP (Stutz et al., 2015), Mughr el-Hamamah (MHM, Jordan) helps to fill this gap, offering a key opportunity to expand our understanding of EUP lifeways in the southern Levant. ...
... Within this complex, Cave 2 is the largest extant karstic cavity and is the only cave to exhibit significant sedimentary infilling. Test excavations carried out in 2010 revealed an in situ EUP layer dating to 45-39 ka cal BP (Layer B, Stutz et al., 2015). Excavations were undertaken using a 1 × 1 m grid, divided into 50 × 50 cm sub-squares ( Figure 2). ...
... However, several combustion features were uncovered and these were excavated as separate features. All sediments were dry screened using 2 mm mesh (Stutz et al., 2015). Although the total area excavated was small, with less than 5 m 2 of intact deposits, a large lithic and faunal assemblage was recovered. ...
As a corridor for population movement out of Africa, the southern Levant is a natural laboratory for research exploring the dynamics of the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition. Yet, the number of well-preserved sites dating to the initial millennia of the Early Upper Paleolithic (EUP; ~45–30 ka) remains limited, restricting the resolution at which we can study the biocultural and techno-typological changes evidenced across the transition. With EUP deposits dating to 45–39 ka cal BP, Mughr el-Hamamah, Jordan, offers a key opportunity to expand our understanding of EUP lifeways in the southern Levant. Mughr el-Hamamah is particularly noteworthy for its large faunal assemblage, representing the first such assemblage from the Jordan Valley. In this paper, we present results from taxonomic and taphonomic analyses of the EUP fauna from Mughr el-Hamamah. Given broader
debates about shifts in human subsistence across the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition, we also assess evidence for subsistence intensification, focusing especially on the exploitation of gazelle and the use of small game. Taphonomic data suggest that the fauna was primarily accumulated by human activity. Ungulates
dominate the assemblage; gazelle (Gazella sp.) is the most common taxa, followed by fallow deer (Dama mesopotamica) and goat (Capra sp.). Among the gazelle, juveniles account for roughly one-third of the sample. While the focus on gazelle and the frequency of juveniles are consistent with broader regional trends, evidence for the regular exploitation of marrow from gazelle phalanges suggests that the EUP occupants of Mughr el-Hamamah processed gazelle carcasses quite intensively. Yet, the overall degree of dietary intensification appears low—small game is rare and evidence for human capture of this game is more equivocal. As a whole, our results
support a growing body of data showing gradual shifts in animal exploitation strategies across the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition in the southern Levant.
... Moreover, in the Mediterranean zone and Jordan Valley in the southern Levant, Ahmarian technologies appear to replace directly Levallois technologies, ca. 48-45 ka, without a clear IUP horizon in between (Alex et al., 2017;Barzilai and Gubenko, 2018;Rebollo et al., 2011;Shea et al., 2019;Stutz et al., 2015). Keeping in mind these intricate spatio-temporal patterns of technological variability, the common denominator between the IUP technocomplex and the earliest Ahmarian facies consists of prismatic blade(let) and bladetool production (Bar-Yosef and Belfer-Cohen, 2019;Goder-Goldberger et al., 2023;Meignen, 2012). ...
... Keeping in mind these intricate spatio-temporal patterns of technological variability, the common denominator between the IUP technocomplex and the earliest Ahmarian facies consists of prismatic blade(let) and bladetool production (Bar-Yosef and Belfer-Cohen, 2019;Goder-Goldberger et al., 2023;Meignen, 2012). Marine shell beads and bone tools may also occur in IUP and Ahmarian-associated layers (Bar-Yosef and Belfer-Cohen, 2019;Bosch et al., 2015;Kadowaki et al., 2019;Kuhn et al., 2009Kuhn et al., , 2001Stutz et al., 2015). ...
... When compared with final Levantine Mousterian technologies, the IUP and earliest Ahmarian lithic reduction and curation strategies, alike, consisted of provisioning incamp task areas and logistical foraging parties with (1) abundant pieces with high cutting-edge:volume ratios; (2) pointed pieces; and (3) thicker blade blanks for tools such as end-scrapers. It is in this respect that the earliest millennia of the Upper Palaeolithic in the region appear to involve sustained evolutionary shifts toward investment in in-camp tasks and routine central-place and logistical foraging (Kuhn, 2013b;Kuhn et al., 2009;Stutz et al., 2015;Stutz and Nilsson Stutz, 2017). In the following sections this article zooms out, geographically and theoretically, taking some further steps toward contextualizing the codeswitching hypothesis in a multi-scalar biocultural evolutionary framework. ...
This article revisits the Middle-Upper Palaeolithic (MP-UP) transition in the Levant (ca. 50–40 kiloanni calibrated before present, hereafter ka), explored here as a key case of spatially and temporally multiscalar niche construction and biocultural adaptation in recent human evolution. New chronometric and palaeogenomic data provide an opportunity to reconsider what actually changed in the MP-UP transition, not only in terms of Neanderthal-anatomically modern human (AMH) population turnover and biological adaptation, but also culturally transmitted technologies and cultural institutions that mediated interrelated changes in mobility and social-network connectivity. High-resolution satellite data on environmental variability, simulation studies of hunter-gatherer demographic fluctuations, and cross-cultural data on hunter-gatherer population density and social organization are evaluated to model baseline constraints and possibilities for long-term biocultural adaptation and niche construction in the region, across the Middle and Late Pleistocene more broadly (ca. 780–12 ka). This exploration adds theoretical support to a view of the MP-UP transition as evolutionary, rather than revolutionary, offering new avenues of inquiry about how shorter-term, local behavioural responses were affected by and—in turn—had ripple effects on geographically more widespread, longer-term trends involving intergenerational demographic dynamics, centennial or millennial-scale population turnovers, and major long-term technological shifts.
... The main cave preserves an archaeological deposit with unconformably superposed layers A and B. Layer A derives from 20th century shepherd activities along with some redeposited Early Upper Palaeolithic (EUP) artefacts (Fig. 2). The underlying Layer B contains a rich EUP archaeological record with abundant zooarchaeological remains, charred seeds and charred wood, lithic artefacts, and some isolated hominin remains (Stutz et al., 2015). Macrobotanical analyses from flotation samples at MHM are currently in preparation for publication. ...
... The site has been dated with radiocarbon assays on ABOx-pretreated wood charcoal samples, indicating an occupation concentrated between 44.5 and 40.0 ky BP (Fig. 3, Table 1). MHM is notably the sole EUP cave site excavated in the Jordan Valley, since Emireh Cave was investigated in the 1920′s (Shea et al., 2019;Stutz et al., 2015;Stutz and Nilsson Stutz, 2017). ...
... Archaeological observations in the field noted the absence of bone, combined with macroscopic white and yellow nodules suspected to be phosphate concretions. This suggested post-depositional bone dissolution within square B2 (Stutz et al., 2015). The dissolution can be explained by the presence of the low-energy water sources identified by micromorphology in sample 3. ...
With a rich, well-dated Early Upper Palaeolithic layer, the Mughr el-Hamamah cave site is key for understanding the Middle-Upper Palaeolithic transition in the Levant. The archaeological deposit consists of two units. Layer A resulted from pastoral activities during the 20th century and Layer B dated between 44.5 and 40.0 ky BP. During Layer A's formation, shepherds disturbed Layer B, redepositing Early Upper Palaeolithic sediments and lithic artefacts in Layer A matrix. Activity from Layer A's formation also resulted in spatially patchy percolation and bioturbation, leaving microarchaeological traces such as dung spherulites in some areas in Layer B. In contrast, contemporaneous chemical diagenetic processes from Layer B's primary formation caused spatially uneven post-depositional dissolution of animal bone. In this article we present a multi-proxy microarchaeological approach to investigate the post-depositional processes in Layer B, focussing on possible impacts on the plant archaeological record. The identification of intrusive spherulites from shepherds' activities define the limits of disturbance in Layer B. Micromorphological analyses have identified four intact micro-facies in Layer B, representing an interplay of natural and anthropogenic factors. Micromorphological details in bedded combustion features favour the interpretation that associated phytoliths represent fuel traces. Dicot fruit phytoliths occur in the western area of the cave, where well-preserved charred wood and seeds were also found. Grass-diagnostic phytoliths correspond to C 3 and C 4 taxa, indicating an overall humid environment with dry spells. Micro-archaeological analysis identifies traces of both bedded and dispersed hearth materials, mixed with variable plant resources for food, fuel, and possibly other uses. This strengthens the interpretation of Mughr el-Hamamah Layer B as a dense, complicated palimpsest of recurring activities, formed over many millennia.
... The site of Al-Ansab 2 has a small assemblage dominated by plain platform blanks, triangular points, and unidirectional cores that together resemble Tor Sadaf Level B (Hussain, 2015;Schyle, 2015). The Jebel Humeima horizons II and III, and possibly the Mughr el-Hamamah Level B, assemblages share technological traits with Boker Tachtit Level 4, albeit el-Wad points are also present (Coinman & Henry, 1995;Kerry, 2000;Shea et al., 2019;Stutz et al., 2015). Jebel Humeima is thought to date to OIS 3, and Mughr el-Hamamah is dated to between 45 and 39 ka cal BP (Kerry, 2000;Stutz et al., 2015). ...
... The Jebel Humeima horizons II and III, and possibly the Mughr el-Hamamah Level B, assemblages share technological traits with Boker Tachtit Level 4, albeit el-Wad points are also present (Coinman & Henry, 1995;Kerry, 2000;Shea et al., 2019;Stutz et al., 2015). Jebel Humeima is thought to date to OIS 3, and Mughr el-Hamamah is dated to between 45 and 39 ka cal BP (Kerry, 2000;Stutz et al., 2015). At Tor Fawaz (J403) the age range for the IUP is between 45 and 36 ka based on OSL dating (Kadowaki et al., 2022). ...
... The innovative technological traits seen at Boker Tachtit Level 4 are found within a range of sites in the Levant (Coinman, 2004;Fox, 2003;Fox & Coinman, 2004;Hussain, 2015;Kadowaki et al., 2019aKadowaki et al., ,b, 2022Kerry, 1997Kerry, , 2000Kuhn et al., 2009;Ohnuma, 1988;Shea et al., 2019;Stutz et al., 2015). These traits include the selection of tabular flint nodules, knapping of a series of blades and points from single platform cores, the use of core tablets for platform shaping and rejuvenation and the selection of blade blanks for tools. ...
Following renewed excavations at Boker Tachtit (2013–2015), a revised study of the lithic assemblage techno-typological characteristics was conducted placing it within a regional context. The growing number of archaeological sites in the Levantine desert regions assigned to the Initial Upper Paleolithic calls for an updated perspective regarding technological affinities and social interaction. Combining the techno-typological data from the new and old excavations at Boker Tachtit with previously published material suggest a transitional continuum within the sequence. The techno-typological shift seen within the Boker Tachtit sequence and its comparison to other assemblages from penecontemporaneous sites in the region indicates that the Initial Upper Paleolithic technological practices evolved through incremental processes resulting in novel technological traits and innovative technological systems.
... E) is also a rock-shelter site with shallow deposits up to 1m in maximum that were divided into Layers A, B1, B2, C1, C2, and D from the top. The lithic assemblages show unique techno-typological characteristics that do not fit a conventional scheme of UP traditions, i.e., the Levantine Aurignacian or the Early Ahmarian (Coinman and Henry, 1995;Kerry and Henry, 2003), and several researchers have suggested a correlation to the IUP (Belfer-Cohen and Goring-Morris, 2003; Goring-Morris and Belfer-Cohen, 2018; Stutz et al., 2015). The IUP affiliation was confirmed by recent studies of radiometric dating and lithic assemblages obtained from the renewed excavation at Units 6-10 ( . ...
This study conducted petrographic and geochemical analyses of chert artifacts from the Late Middle Paleolithic, the Initial Upper Paleolithic, the Early Upper Paleolithic, and the Epi‐Paleolithic assemblages in the Jebel Qalkha area, southern Jordan, to examine their correlations with the visual attributes and diachronic variability. The results revealed two different aspects of the petrographic and geochemical signatures. The first aspect showed some correlations with the visual chert types that were characterized by the abundance/preservation of fossils, the enrichment of several elements (i.e., Ca, Sr, and Ba), and the quartz crystallite size.
The second aspect of geochemical signatures, such as Fe, Mn, Ni, Cr, and Co, showed no correlation with the visual types but was correlated with the chrono‐cultural groups. Given the chert occurrences and variability in and around the study area, the first aspect of the chert variability likely represents the variations of different chert outcrops as well as the internal variations within the same sources. Whether the second aspect represents chrono‐cultural changes in the use of chert sources needs to be clarified in future by our ongoing examination of geological chert samples in the study area.
... Dates were taken from Adler et al., 2008;Alex et al., 2017;Bar-Yosef & Phillips, 1977;Bar-Yosef & Belfer-Cohen, 2004;Baykara et al., 2015;Bazgir et al., 2017;Becerra-Valdivia et al., 2017;Belfer-Cohen & Bar-Yosef, 2015;Boaretto et al., 2021;Boëda et al., 2015;Bosch et al., 2015;Cullen et al., 2021;Douka, 2013;Douka et al., 2013;Egeland et al., 2016;Ekshtain et al., 2019;Friesem et al., 2019;Gilead & Bar-Yosef, 1993;Glauberman et al., 2020aGlauberman et al., , 2020bGoder-Goldberger and Bar-Matthews, 2019;Goder-Goldberger et al., 2020;Griggo, 2004;Hauck, 2011;Henry, 2003: Table 3.3; Heydari-Guran et al., 2021a;2021b;Heydari-Guran & Ghasidian, 2017;Kadowaki, 2018;Kadowaki et al., 2019aKadowaki et al., , 2019bKandel et al., 2017;Kuhn et al., 2009;Malinsky-Buller et al. In prep;Marks, 1983a;Mercier et al., 1995;Moncel et al., 2013;Phillips, 1988;Pomeroy et al., 2020;Oron & Goren-Inbar, 2014;Otte et al., 2011;Rebollo et al., 2011;Reynolds et al., 2018;Richter et al., 2001Richter et al., , 2021Rink et al., 2001;Schwarcz & Ring, 1998;Sherriff et al., 2019;Stutz et al., 2015;Valladas et al., 1999;van der Plicht et al., 1989;and Ziaei et al., 1990 archeological assemblages are found in caves and rockshelter sites among which are Manot, Area C Units 6-7, Kebara III-IV, Qafzeh E, Üçağizli I B-C, and Ksar Akil XVI-XX (Abulafia et al., 2021;Bar-Yosef & Belfer-Cohen, 2004;Bar-Yosef & Belfer-Cohen, 2019;Bergman, 1987Bergman, , 2003Kuhn et al., 2003Kuhn et al., , 2009Ohnuma & Bergman, 1990). In the arid and semi-arid regions, the Ahmarian is found in rockshelters and open-air sites, near springs or seasonal water sources (Gladfelter, 1997;Henry, 1995;Schuldenrein & Clark, 1994). ...
... At several stratified sites, IUP assemblages appear above the MP and/or below early UP levels, e.g., Üçağizli I H-F, Umm el Tlel, Ksar Akil XXV-XX, Abu Halka IV, Antelias Cave, Boker D, and Tor Sadaf A-B (Boëda et al., 2015;Copeland, 1975;Fox & Coinman, 2004;Jones et al., 1983;Kuhn, 2004Kuhn, , 2013Kuhn et al., 1999;Ohnuma, 1988). Assemblages from unstratified sites, assigned to the IUP on technotypological grounds, include Sde Zin 7, Tor Fawaz (J403), Wadi Aghar (J433), Al Ansab 2, and Mughr el-Hamamah (Coinman & Henry, 1995;Goring-Morris & Rosen, 1989;Hussain, 2015;Kadowaki, 2017;Kadowaki et al., 2019a, b;Marks, 1983a;Stutz et al., 2015). The sites of Boker Tachtit and Tor Sadaf display a change within a well-stratified IUP sequence. ...
... The bipolar technique appears alongside prismatic blade cores for blade production and Levallois cores. End scrapers are found together with retouched Levallois points (i.e., Umm el Tlel point), el-Wad points, and chamfered pieces (Shea et al., 2019;Stutz et al., 2015). ...
Classification of the Paleolithic into Lower, Middle, and Upper has both chronological and cultural meanings serving as a framework for reconstructing cultural evolution and interpreting behavioral processes. Traditionally, the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition in Eurasia is regarded as a bio-cultural turning point, in which local Neanderthals were replaced by incoming Homo sapiens populations, carrying with them a novel technological repertoire. As such, the basic classification of archeological data into broad spatially and temporally coherent blocks is not neutral and disconnected from the paradigmatic view of a “transition” as a developmental event. Initially, the Initial Upper Paleolithic (IUP) was introduced to describe the first cultural stage within the Upper Paleolithic and was later modified to define the cultural transition from the Middle to the Upper Paleolithic. In the last 20 years, the IUP has increasingly been used as a chronological-biological taxonomic unit to describe modern human dispersals into Eurasia, overriding its use within a cultural taxonomic system. In this paper, we evaluate the applicability of the term as a taxonomic unit. The construction of a chronicle and histories, based on well-documented and published data from the late Middle Paleolithic through to the earliest Upper Paleolithic sites across southwest Asia, are used to evaluate the applicability of the term Initial Upper Paleolithic as a taxonomic unit. Within this perspective, the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition is viewed as a social and demographic process that is manifested differently in each of the sub-regions of southwest Asia: the Levant, Southern Caucasus, Armenian Highlands, and the Zagros.
... ka cal BP (68.2% prob.) (Stutz et al., 2015), whereas at Manot Cave, the Early Ahmarian of unit 6 is dated at 45.9-41.5 ka cal BP (68.2% prob.) (Alex et al., 2017). ...
Homo sapiens evolved in Africa during the late Middle Pleistocene, dispersed to South-East and East Asia at c. 100 ka BP, and only at c. 50 ka BP crossed the gates of Europe. Thus far, the European archaeological data suggest consecutive waves of migrations of H. sapiens from the Levant and both along the Danube River and the Mediterranean coast. The earliest dispersal reached Bulgaria and Moravia as well as southern Europe at ~ 47–44 ka BP, whereas another wave diffused rapidly between ~ 44 and 42 ka BP to Central Europe and the Western Mediterranean. In concomitance of these migrations, new cultural behaviours emerged in the European territories and, at ~ 41–39 ka BP, Neanderthals, the autochthonous European population, demised. The foremost consequence of these displacements in different territories and environments is that H. sapiens lasted as the only human species on Earth.
... Interestingly, neither Kebara nor Manot has yielded IUP assemblages to date, and the assemblages at both sites belong to the northern Ahmarian variant (Abulafia et al., (in press); Kadowaki et al., 2015). In addition, a lithic assemblage from Mughr el-Hamamah (MHM) Layer B, dated to 45-39 ka cal BP (Stutz et al., 2015), has been designated as a variant of the Ahmarian (Shea et al., 2019). Accepting these dates means the contemporaneity of the Ahmarian at Kebara/Manot/MHM and the IUP in other areas in the Levant such as southern Jordan and the Negev. ...
The Initial Upper Paleolithic (IUP) is a key chrono-cultural concept in our understanding of the cultural and population dynamics at the transition from the Middle Paleolithic to Upper Paleolithic period. This paper presents technological and chronological analyses of lithic assemblages from a rockshelter site at Tor Fawaz in the Jebel Qalkha area, southern Jordan, to provide accurate dating and detailed recognition of the IUP variability in the Levant. We present integrated micromorphological, phytolith, and dung spherulite analyses to evaluate formation and postdepositional processes of archaeological remains through high-resolution micro-contextual studies. As a result, the Tor Fawaz assemblages show general similarity to those of Boker Tachtit Level 4, Tor Sadaf A–B, and Wadi Aghar C–D1 that represent the late phase of the IUP in the southern Levant. Based on the detailed recognition of site-formation processes, we suggest ca. 45–36 ka as the age of IUP occupations at Tor Fawaz. More specifically, the IUP occupations at Tor Fawaz and Wadi Aghar, a nearby IUP site in the same area, may represent slightly different phases that show a lithic technological trend paralleling the IUP sequence at Tor Sadaf in southern Jordan, and possibly post-date Boker Tachtit Level 4. We also discuss the issue of partial chronological overlap between the late IUP and the Ahmarian and also argue for the geographically different trends in cultural changes from the late IUP to the Ahmarian.
... Our knowledge of the Levantine UP thus suffers from a dearth of data, hindering our understanding of the cultural sequence and its diversity, subsistence patterns, hunting strategies, and human population dynamics. In the last two decades, numerous field projects conducted in northern and southern Levant are filling parts of this lacuna and generating more 'heat and light' (e.g., Coinman, 2000;Nadel, 2003;Kuhn et al., 2009;Kadowaki et al., 2015;Schyle and Richter, 2015;Stutz et al., 2015;Barzilai et al., 2016Barzilai et al., , 2020Alex et al., 2017;Kadowaki and Henry, 2019). ...
... More recent MP to UP chronological studies based on radiocarbon dating of charred material and marine shells from new and old excavations at other sites have initiated a debate about the chronology of the transition, and the age of Boker Tachtit was suggested to be too old compared with northern Levantine sites (25,27,29,30,36). The problems lie in the disparities in the documented timing of the transition. ...
Significance
The Initial Upper Paleolithic (IUP) marks a distinct cultural change possibly related to Homo sapiens dispersals into Eurasia. New radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence dates from the recent excavations at Boker Tachtit, Negev, Israel, show that the IUP starts as early as around 50,000 y ago, and the later IUP phase dates to 48,000 y ago. Thus, the Late Middle Paleolithic (MP) and early IUP populations both inhabited the Negev 50,000 y ago. The Negev later IUP phase and the Early UP of the Eastern Mediterranean woodland are contemporaneous. These results also show that the MP to UP transition was a fast-evolving process.
