The Neolithic Lithic Industry at Tell Ain El-Kerkh

This book presents the first attempt to unveil the Neolithisation process in northwest Syria, with the techno-typological studies of the flintstone implements from Tell Ain el-Kerkh in the Rouj basin in Idlib, an important large Neolithic site occupied from the from the 9th to the 7th millennium BC.

Northwest Syria during the Neolithic period has been less well studied than the rest of the northern Levant, where Neolithisation first took place in the Near East. The Neolithic Lithic Industry at Tell Ain El-Kerkh presents the first attempt to unveil the Neolithisation process in northwest Syria, with the techno-typological studies of the flintstone implements from Tell Ain el-Kerkh in the Rouj basin in Idlib, which was an important large Neolithic site occupied from the from the 9th to the 7th millennium BC. Examination of the lithic record from Tell Ain el-Kerkh revealed techno-morphological changes in flint tools during the long Neolithic sequence from the Early Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (PPNB) to the end of the Pottery Neolithic. The author interprets such changes in stone tools in the socio-economic context of the Neolithic. Through the comparison between the data obtained from Tell Ain el-Kerkh and other Neolithic sites in the northern Levant, the regional characteristics of northwest Syria during the Neolithic period are highlighted. In the end, two important issues in the Neolithic Levant, diffusion of the PPNB culture and the PPNB collapse, are discussed based on the results of this study. This volume includes substantial original data, drawings, and analysis of lithics from Neolithic sites in Syria, which will be useful for future discussion of the changes in material culture in relation with the Neolithisation process in the Near East.

List of Figures, Tables and Plates Acknowledgements Introduction 1. The research subject 2. Organisation of the research 3. Illustrations Chapter I: The research framework 1. Neolithisation of the northern Levant 2. Neolithisation of north-western Syria Chapter II: Methodology 1. The subject of analysis 2. Methodological framework: Reconstitution of the operational sequence in lithic production 3. Analytical method Chapter III: The lithic industries of the Pre-Pottery and the Pottery Neolithic at Tell Ain el-Kerkh 1. The collections 2. Raw material for the lithic industry at Tell Ain el-Kerkh and geological surveys for flint research 3. The lithic industry of the Rouj 1a period 4. Lithic industry of layer 6 5. The lithic industry of the Rouj 1c period 6. The lithic industry from the Rouj 2a/2b period 7. The lithic industries of the later periods of the Pottery Neolithic 8. Discussion: Development of the lithic industries at Tell Ain el-Kerkh during the Neolithic Chapter IV: Comparative analysis of lithic materials from other sites in Syria 1. Tell Riz 2. Qastun 3. Slenfe 4. Tell el-Kerkh 2 5. Tell Ain Dara III 6. Dja'de el Mughara, sector SB Chapter V: Comparative study of published data from other Neolithic sites in the northern Levant 1. Sites of the Early PPNB (the 9th millennium cal. BC) 2. Sites of the Middle PPNB (first half of the 8th millennium cal. BC) 3. Sites of the Late PPNB (second half of the 8th millennium cal. BC) 4. Sites of the Beginning of the Pottery Neolithic or Final PPNB (first half of the 7th millennium BC) Chapter VI: General conclusion 1. Synthesis: Development of Neolithic lithic industries in the northern Levant 2. Reflections on the system of lithic production during the PPNB in the northern Levant in a socio-economic context 3. Emergence and diffusion of the PPNB culture 4. The end of the PPNB culture: Was the 'PPNB collapse' a general phenomenon? Appendix: Plates Bibliography, List of Figures, Tables and Plates ;

Acknowledgements ;

Introduction ;

1. The research subject ;

Chapter I: The research framework ;

1. Neolithisation of the northern Levant ;

Chapter II: Methodology ;

1. The subject of analysis ;

Chapter III: The lithic industries of the Pre-Pottery and the Pottery Neolithic at Tell Ain el-Kerkh ;

1. The collections ;

Chapter IV: Comparative analysis of lithic materials from other sites in Syria ;

1. Tell Riz ;

Chapter V: Comparative study of published data from other Neolithic sites in the northern Levant ;

1. Sites of the Early PPNB (the 9th millennium cal. BC) ;