Abstract
Determining the origins of sedentism is integral in understanding the origins of complex societies. There is great interest in Early-Middle Epipalaeolithic mobility patterns in the Near East to understand why permanent settlement occurred in the Natufian. Current theories relating to the Early-Middle Epipalaeolithic 'Mega Sites' of Kharaneh IV and Wadi Jilat 6 suggest that these sites may have been occupied for prolonged periods of time. A sample of gazelle teeth from Kharaneh IV and Wadi Jilat 6 were studied using cementum analysis to determine the season of death of the animals providing an insight into when these sites were occupied. Cementum analysis could be successfully applied in the region, and initial results demonstrated that gazelle were culled in two different seasons. Future work sampling mandibles from discrete temporal deposits and increasing the sample size, supplemented by using additional seasonality indicators would be beneficial in exploring further seasonality and mobility in the Azraq Basin.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 195-201 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | Quaternary International |
Volume | 252 |
Early online date | 9 Sept 2011 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 27 Feb 2012 |
Bibliographical note
AcknowledgementsThis research was undertaken using facilities at the Institute of Archaeology, UCL. The author would like to express great thanks to Louise Martin and Sandra Bond without whom this research would not have been possible. Particular thanks go to Lisa Maher, Tobias Richter and Jay Stock for their help with sourcing the Kharaneh IV material, and providing site/contextual information, and to Andrew Garrard for providing the Wadi Jilat 6 samples. Thanks go to Sabine Gaudzinski-Windheuser and Lutz Kindler and to the anonymous reviewers of this paper for their constructive comments and suggestions, they were much appreciated. The author would like to express special thanks to Edith and Tudor Jones for all of the emotional and financial support