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Communication Dans Un Congrès Année : 2023

Differentiated technical behavior in the late Acheulean site of Jaljulia, area D (Israel)

Sol Sanchez-Dehesa Galan
Maayan Shemer
Ran Barkai

Résumé

The archaeological record of the Levant reveals important changes in the techno- economic organization of late Acheulean groups. Well-dated and large-scale excavations are though rare. In this paper, we present the results of a global technological analysis of both debitage and shaping chaînes opératoires from the area D of Jaljulia, dated to ca. 500 ka. The site, located in the central coastal plain, has yielded several areas rich in lithic material excavated in 2016- 2017 by the IAA and Tel-Aviv University. Area D, the oldest one, yielded 24,146 flint artifacts including many bifaces and a rich flake production. The study of the bifacial pieces shows a priority focused on the distal part of the pieces that indicates a higher technical investment that decreases as it reaches the bottom. This result in higher morphological variability of the pieces that do not reflect lower technical skill of the knappers, but is related to the goals of the knapping activity. A limited range of morphologies of the distal part and the use of blanks of different sizes indicate the search for specific goals in the production and illustrate the diversity of tools produced. On the other hand, the flaking chaines opératoires are diverse, including Levallois (Lato sensu), Discoid, S.S.D.A. and Cores-on-Flakes. While hierarchized systems (mainly referred to as part of “Prepared Core Technologies”) are present in small proportions in the late Acheulean Levant, in area D of Jaljulia they represent around 30% of the global flake production. Flint types used are exclusively local, however, specific blanks and flint types were selected for different production goals. Shaping was preferentially made on brecciated Mishash flint, when more fine-grained varieties were used for flaking, together with Turonian flint. Even within flake production, the hierarchized concepts are applied to higher quality cobbles/pebbles. Finally, double-patinated items, recycled pieces (including bifaces with preferential removals) and ambiguous pieces indicate a possible continuum between the production systems. In the broader context of the Levantine Acheulean, Jaljulia offers an original combination of technical choices that reflect important behavioral changes.
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Dates et versions

hal-04163550 , version 1 (17-07-2023)

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  • HAL Id : hal-04163550 , version 1

Citer

Cyrielle Mathias, Sol Sanchez-Dehesa Galan, Maayan Shemer, Ran Barkai. Differentiated technical behavior in the late Acheulean site of Jaljulia, area D (Israel). XXI INQUA Congress "Time For Change", Jul 2023, Rome, Italy. ⟨hal-04163550⟩
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