Barzilai Omry, Oron Maya, Porat Naomi, White Dustin, Timms Rhys, Blockley Simon, Zular André, Avni Yoav, Faershtein Galina, Weiner Steve, Boaretto Elisabetta
Archaeological Research Department, Israel Antiquities Authority, POB 586, 91004, Jerusalem, Israel.
Max Planck-Weizmann Center for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology, DANGOOR Research Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Laboratory, Weizmann Institute of Science, 7610001, Rehovot, Israel.
Sci Rep. 2022 Mar 16;12(1):4466. doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-08296-9.
Marine Isotopic Stage 5 is associated with wetter climatic conditions in the Saharo-Arabian deserts. This stage also corresponds to the establishment of Middle Paleolithic hominins and their associated material culture in two geographical provinces in southwest Asia-the Eastern Mediterranean woodland and the Arabian Peninsula desert. The lithic industry of the Eastern Mediterranean is characterized by the centripetal Levallois method, whereas the Nubian Levallois method characterizes the populations of the Arabian desert. The Negev Desert, situated between these regions is a key area to comprehend population movement in correlation to climatic zones. This investigation addresses the nature of the Middle Paleolithic settlement in the Negev Desert during MIS 5 by studying the site of Nahal Aqev. High resolution chronological results based on luminescence dating and cryptotephra show the site was occupied from MIS 5e to MIS 5d. The lithic industries at Nahal Aqev are dominated by centripetal Levallois core method. These data demonstrate that Nahal Aqev is much closer in its cultural attributes to the Eastern Mediterranean Middle Paleolithic than to the Arabian Desert entity. We conclude that Nahal Aqev represents an expansion of Middle Paleolithic groups from the Mediterranean woodland into the desert, triggered by better climatic conditions. These groups possibly interacted with hominin groups bearing the Nubian core tradition from the vast region of Arabia.
海洋同位素阶段5与撒哈拉-阿拉伯沙漠较为湿润的气候条件相关。这一阶段还对应着旧石器时代中期人类及其相关物质文化在西南亚两个地理区域的出现，即东地中海林地和阿拉伯半岛沙漠。东地中海的石器工业以向心勒瓦娄哇技术为特征，而努比亚勒瓦娄哇技术则是阿拉伯沙漠人群的特征。位于这两个区域之间的内盖夫沙漠是理解与气候带相关的人口迁移的关键地区。本研究通过对内盖夫沙漠纳哈尔·阿凯夫遗址的研究，探讨了海洋同位素阶段5期间内盖夫沙漠旧石器时代中期聚落的性质。基于发光测年和隐伏火山灰的高分辨率年代学结果表明，该遗址在海洋同位素阶段5e至5d期间有人居住。纳哈尔·阿凯夫的石器工业以向心勒瓦娄哇石核技术为主。这些数据表明，纳哈尔·阿凯夫在文化属性上与东地中海旧石器时代中期更为接近，而与阿拉伯沙漠地区不同。我们得出结论，纳哈尔·阿凯夫代表了旧石器时代中期群体从地中海林地向沙漠的扩张，这是由更好的气候条件引发的。这些群体可能与来自阿拉伯广大地区、具有努比亚石核传统的人类群体有过互动。
