Spatio-temporal trends in complex caves use in the later prehistory of the southern Levant

IF 0.9 2区历史学 0 ARCHAEOLOGY

Archaeological Research in Asia Pub Date : 2024-09-24 DOI:10.1016/j.ara.2024.100558

Micka Ullman , Amos Frumkin , Boaz Langford , Uri Davidovich

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Morphologically composite caves constitute a unique spatial sphere for social activity, remote and different from everyday landscapes. As in numerous regions with carbonate rocks worldwide, the southern Levant houses a plethora of complex caves, reaching hundreds and thousands of meters in total length. Yet, despite occasional archaeological discoveries, comparative analysis of complex cave use patterns over the longue durée has not been attempted for this region. This article presents a comprehensive investigation of temporal and spatial trends in the use of composite underground systems in the southern Levant during the late prehistoric sequence, between the seventh and third millennia BCE. Based on the observable regional and chronological shifts, as well as the material-cultural remains deposited in the caves, it is suggested that the frequency and distribution of complex cave use may be employed as a sensitive recorder of cultural dynamics. Since the activity in the deep underground is commonly associated with symbolic behavior, the cultural preference to operate in or avoid the use of complex caves should be viewed as socially structured, reflecting deep social identity and ideology.

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南黎凡特史前晚期复杂洞穴使用的时空趋势

形态复杂的洞穴构成了一个独特的社会活动空间，既遥远又有别于日常景观。与世界上许多碳酸盐岩地区一样，南黎凡特地区也有大量复杂的洞穴，总长度可达数百乃至数千米。然而，尽管偶尔会有考古发现，但对该地区复杂洞穴长期使用模式的比较分析却从未尝试过。本文对史前晚期（公元前七千年至公元前三千年）南黎凡特地区使用复合地下系统的时间和空间趋势进行了全面调查。根据可观察到的区域和年代变化，以及沉积在洞穴中的物质文化遗存，文章认为复合洞穴使用的频率和分布可以作为文化动态的敏感记录器。由于地下深处的活动通常与象征性行为有关，在复杂洞穴中活动或避免使用复杂洞穴的文化偏好应被视为社会结构，反映了深层的社会认同和意识形态。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Archaeological Research in Asia ARCHAEOLOGY-

CiteScore

2.50

自引率

13.30%

发文量

期刊介绍： Archaeological Research in Asia presents high quality scholarly research conducted in between the Bosporus and the Pacific on a broad range of archaeological subjects of importance to audiences across Asia and around the world. The journal covers the traditional components of archaeology: placing events and patterns in time and space; analysis of past lifeways; and explanations for cultural processes and change. To this end, the publication will highlight theoretical and methodological advances in studying the past, present new data, and detail patterns that reshape our understanding of it. Archaeological Research in Asia publishes work on the full temporal range of archaeological inquiry from the earliest human presence in Asia with a special emphasis on time periods under-represented in other venues. Journal contributions are of three kinds: articles, case reports and short communications. Full length articles should present synthetic treatments, novel analyses, or theoretical approaches to unresolved issues. Case reports present basic data on subjects that are of broad interest because they represent key sites, sequences, and subjects that figure prominently, or should figure prominently, in how scholars both inside and outside Asia understand the archaeology of cultural and biological change through time. Short communications present new findings (e.g., radiocarbon dates) that are important to the extent that they reaffirm or change the way scholars in Asia and around the world think about Asian cultural or biological history.