Levantine Aurignacian

Levantine Aurignacian culture
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Levantine Aurignacian and contemporary cultures c. 40,000-30,000 BP
Geographical rangeLevant
PeriodUpper Paleolithic
Datesc. 35,000 – c. 29,000 BP (calibrated)
Preceded byEmiran, Ahmarian
Followed byKebaran (Epipaleolithic)
Carving of a horse with traces of ocher painting; 40,000-18,500 BP; from the Hayonim Cave, Aurignacian. Israel Museum (Jerusalem)[1][2][3][4] This may be one of the earliest known manifestations of human art, together with the ocher pieces of Blombos Cave, before the outpouring of parietal art in Europe.[5]
Map of Aurignacian sites, including Levantine Aurignacian.

The Levantine Aurignacian (35,000-29,000 BP, calibrated, 32,000-26,000 BP, non-calibrated)[6] is an Upper Paleolithic culture of the Near-Eastern Levant that evolved from the Emiran culture.[6] It was named so because of the similarity of stone tools with the Aurignacian culture in Europe.[6] The Levantine Aurignacian used to be called Lower and Upper Antelian in old sources, from the site of Wadi Antelias in Lebanon.[6] The most important innovation in this period is the incorporation of some typical elements of Aurignacian, like some types of burins and narrow blade points that resemble the European type of Font-Yves.

  1. ^ Yiśraʼel (Jerusalem), Muzeʼon; Museum (Jerusalem), Israel (1986). Treasures of the Holy Land: Ancient Art from the Israel Museum. Metropolitan Museum of Art. p. 29. ISBN 9780870994708.
  2. ^ "Horse from Hayonim Cave, Israel, 30,000 years" in Israel Museum Studies in Archaeology. Samuel Bronfman Biblical and Archaeological Museum of the Israel Museum. 2002. p. 10.
  3. ^ "Hayonim horse". museums.gov.il.
  4. ^ Bar-Yosef, Ofer; Belfer-Cohen, Anna (1981). The Aurignacian at Hayonim Cave. pp. 35–36.
  5. ^ Sale, Kirkpatrick (2006). After Eden: The Evolution of Human Domination. Duke University Press. p. 57. ISBN 9780822339380.
  6. ^ a b c d Shea, John J. (2013). Stone Tools in the Paleolithic and Neolithic Near East: A Guide. Cambridge University Press. pp. 154–155. ISBN 9781107006980.