New fieldwork at Shuqba Cave and in Wadi en-Natuf, Western Judea.

New fieldwork at Shuqba Cave and in Wadi en-Natuf, Western Judea. `As it will be convenient to have a name for this culture, Ipropose to call it Natufian, after the Wady wa��dy?n.Variant of wadi. en-Natuf at Shukba, where wefirst found it in place' GARROD 1929:222 The Levant has long been the focus for study of the `Neolithictransition'. Recent years have seen important excavations at newsites such as Kfar HaHoresh (Israel) and Jerf el-Ahmar (Syria), as wellas at previously excavated sites including el-Wad, Mount Carmel andMallaha/Eynan, Upper Jordan Valley. Compared to elsewhere in the region,the Later Epipalaeolithic and Pre-pottery Neolithic landscapes of theWest Bank are relatively unknown. Given the geographical proximity ofthe Natufian `core' (Carmel and Galilee), and of well-researchedareas in, and to the east of, the Jordan Valley, there is much potentialto transform our understanding of the occupation of the southern Levantat this crucial juncture in human history. As a contribution to thisendeavour, we have initiated a new landscape archaeology project in theimmediate area of the Natufian `type site' at Shuqba Cave in theWadi en-Natuf, an area unexplored archaeologically since 1928. The town of Shuqba lies in the western Judean Hills, 28 kmnorthwest of Jerusalem. A kilometre south, running west towards theMediterranean coastal plain, is the Wadi en-Natuf. Shuqba Cave, on thewadi's northern bank, was briefly investigated in 1924 by FatherAlexis Mallon (Mallon 1925), who suggested that the British School ofArchaeology in Jerusalem take responsibility for excavating the cave.During the course of one season Dorothy Garrod, with a team of localworkers, placed a trench in the central chamber (I) and a small soundingin Chamber III. Garrod (1928) identified an archaeological sequencewhich included a Late `Levallois-Mousterian' layer and, for thefirst time in a stratified stratified/strat��i��fied/ (strat��i-fid) formed or arranged in layers. strat��i��fiedadj.Arranged in the form of layers or strata. deposit, the Mesolithic of Palestine whichshe subsequently termed `Natufian'. This layer contained charcoaltraces and a previously unknown microlithic mi��cro��lith?n. ArchaeologyA very small blade made of flaked stone and used as a tool, especially in the European Mesolithic Period.mi flint tool industrycharacterized by crescent-shaped lunates. Worked bone objects were alsocollected, and the fauna was dominated by gazelle, with the notablepresence of domestic dog. The remains of 45 human skeletons, mostlyfragmentary, allowed insights into a range of distinctive mortuarypractices (Garrod & Bate 1942). Garrod never returned to Shuqba, with work at the Mount CarmelCaves diverting her attention for several years (Garrod & Bate1937). It is evident, however, that she fully intended to carry out atleast one more season at Shuqba, reporting that `the greater part of thecave ... still remains to be excavated' (Garrod 1928: 185). Our July 2000 preliminary season therefore involved: (a)identification of the limits of Garrod's 1928 trench; (b)assessment of the archaeological potential of the remaining deposits;(c) survey of the terrace; (d) brief reconnaissance of the Wadi en-Natufin the immediate vicinity of the cave. The cave The area of Garrod's Chamber I trench is clearly visible, withthe section on the southwest cave wall remaining reasonably intact. Amassive limestone block, which overlay burial H.8, remains in thenortheast side of the trench. A breached limestone mortar, not mentionedby Garrod, lies on the surface just inside the cave mouth. Chamber IIwas not excavated and therefore holds much potential. SinceGarrod's day, however, two large depressions have appeared in thechamber floor. These are probably sinkholes caused by subterraneanfluvial flu��vi��al?adj.1. Of, relating to, or inhabiting a river or stream.2. Produced by the action of a river or stream.[Middle English, from Latin activity, although local awareness of the archaeologicalsignificance of the cave means that we cannot rule out the possibilityof opportunistic excavation work having taken place at some stage overthe last 70 years. The next stage is to clarify Garrod's stratigraphic sequence,partly through exploration of her Chamber I trench. We are primarilyconcerned with the Late Natufian Layer B, although the precise nature ofthe Late Levallois-Mousterian (Layer D) must also be afforded detailedconsideration, given the extensive Middle and Upper Palaeolithicevidence from neighbouring areas. Beyond issues of stratification, thereis also the exciting possibility of obtaining material for [sup.14]Cdating. The Late Natufian is notoriously problematic in this respect,with non-preservation of suitable material presenting a major difficultyat many sites. Given Garrod's description of Layer B, the prospectsof finding charcoal samples at Shuqba seem hopeful. The terrace Our surface collection on the terrace suggests that this materialderives from the cave and from the 1928 spoil, the bulk of which hasbeen washed down the slope. The constructed terrace visible today is theresult of modern agricultural practices. The landscape The re-exploration of Shuqba Cave forms only one part of a widerinvestigation of the later prehistoric landscape of the Wadi en-Natuf.Our brief (1-km) survey along the wadi's north bank found that themajority of surface lithic lith��ic?1?adj.Consisting of or relating to stone or rock.Adj. 1. lithic - of or containing lithium2. lithic - relating to or composed of stone; "lithic sandstone" material is concentrated around the cave andin the original area of Garrod's spoil. An exception is a smallnatural terrace 200 m south of the cave, where we noted the presence ofa number of items of debitage The term debitage refers to the totality of waste material produced during lithic reduction and the production of chipped stone tools. This assemblage includes, but is not limited to, different kinds of lithic flakes, shatter, and production errors and rejects. . Next year we will begin geomorphologicaland archaeological survey of the wadi to place Shuqba Cave within itslandscape context. [Figures 1-2 ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Acknowledgements. Our thanks must go to Joanne Clarke (Council forBritish Research in the Levant The Council for British Research in the Levant (CBRL) was formed in 1998 with the amalgamation of the British Institute at Amman for Archaeology and History and the British School of Archaeology in Jerusalem. ), John Crane (British School ofArchaeology in Jerusalem) and to the kind and generous friends andfamily of Mahmoud Shalash in Shuqba, Shabtin and Qibya. References GARROD, D.A.E. 1928. Excavation of a Palaeolithic cave in westernJudaea, Quarterly Statement of the Palestine Exploration Fund The Palestine Exploration Fund is a British society, it is often simply known as the PEF. HistoryFounded in 1865 by a group of Biblical archaeologists and clergymen, the most notable of these were the Dean of Westminster Abbey, Arthur P. 60: 182-5. 1929. Excavations in the Mugharet el-Wad, near Athlit, April-June1929, Quarterly Statement of the Palestine Exploration Fund 61: 220-22. GARROD, D.A.E. & D.M.A. BATE. 1937. The stone age of MountCarmel 1. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 1942. Excavations at the cave of Shukbah, Palestine, 1928,Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 8: 1-20. MALLON, A. 1925. Quelques stations prehistoriques de Palestine,Melanges de l'Universite de Saint-Joseph 19: 191-2. BRIAN BOYD & ZOE Zoe(born c. 978, Constantinople—died 1050, Constantinople) Byzantine empress. The daughter of Constantine VIII, she married Romanus III Argyrus in 1028. He died in 1034, perhaps poisoned by her, and she married her lover and chamberlain, who became Michael IV. CROSSLAND, Boyd, Department of Archaeology,University of Wales, Lampeter HistoryWhen Thomas Burgess was appointed Bishop of St David's in 1803 he almost immediately identified the need to establish a College in which Welsh ordinands could receive a higher education. SA48 7ED, Wales. Crossland, Museum ofAnthropology, University of Michigan (body, education) University of Michigan - A large cosmopolitan university in the Midwest USA. Over 50000 students are enrolled at the University of Michigan's three campuses. The students come from 50 states and over 100 foreign countries. , Ruthven Museums, Ann Arbor MI48109-1079, USA. zoecro@umich.edu