Main architectural functions of a mustatil. Kennedy et al., 2023, PLOS ONE, CC-BY 4.0
The scientists analysis consisted of the recognition of 260 fragments of animal skulls and horns, mostly from domestic cattle, in addition to from domestic goats, gazelle, and little ruminants. Nearly all of these remains were clustered around a large upright stone interpreted to be a betyl. Radiocarbon dating suggested that the betyl is among the earliest determined in the Arabian Peninsula, and the bones offer some of the earliest proof for the domestication of cattle in northern Arabia.
This study also discovered proof for a number of phases of offerings at the mustatil, as well as interment of an adult male human, recommending that the website might have been the location of duplicated trips.
Taking all the brand-new data into factor to consider, the scientists recommend that ritualistic belief and economic elements were more carefully intertwined for Neolithic individuals in northwest Arabia than previously thought which this entanglement was shared over a broad geographic location.
The authors add: “The ritual deposition of animal horns and upper cranial element within the mustatil suggests a profound crossway of belief and financial life-ways in the Late Neolithic of Northern Arabia. The incorporation of these two aspects recommends a deeply rooted ideological entanglement, one which was shared over a vast geographical range, showing an even more interconnected landscape and culture than had previously been expected for the Neolithic duration in north-west Arabia.”
Recommendation: “Cult, herding, and expedition in the Late Neolithic of north-west Arabia: Excavations at a mustatil east of AlUla” by Melissa Kennedy, Laura Strolin, Jane McMahon, Daniel Franklin, Ambika Flavel, Jacqueline Noble, Lauren Swift, Ahmed Nassr, Stewart Fallon and Hugh Thomas, 15 March 2023, PLOS ONE.DOI: 10.1371/ journal.pone.0281904.
The research study was moneyed by the Royal Commission for AlUla.
Radiocarbon dating suggested that the betyl is one of the earliest identified in the Arabian Peninsula, and the bones provide some of the earliest proof for the domestication of livestock in northern Arabia.
Spatial relationships between the secondary and primary chamber. Credit: Kennedy et al., 2023, PLOS ONE, CC-BY 4.0
Scientists perform an extensive excavation of one of the over 1600 monuments called mustatils.
A substantial study of an archaeological website in Saudi Arabia has actually uncovered brand-new info about mustatils, which are stone structures from the Late Neolithic period believed to have actually served a ceremonial function. The findings, which were published just recently in the open-access journal PLOS ONE, were the result of a cooperation in between Melissa Kennedy of the University of Western Australia, Perth, and her coworkers and The Royal Commission for AlUla.
Built approximately 7,000 years ago, mustatils are rectangular stone structures including low walls and varying in length from 20 to 600 meters. They were very first discovered by scientists in the 1970s, and to date, over 1,600 mustatils have actually been found, primarily situated in northern Saudi Arabia.
Current excavations in the city of AlUla suggest that mustatils were used for ceremonial functions including the positioning of animal offerings. Now, Kennedy and coworkers have carried out an extensive excavation at a mustatil located 55 east of AlUla. This mustatil is 140 meters long and is built from local sandstone.
Current excavations in the city of AlUla suggest that mustatils were used for ceremonial functions involving the positioning of animal offerings. Now, Kennedy and associates have actually conducted a substantial excavation at a mustatil situated 55 east of AlUla. This mustatil is 140 meters long and is built from regional sandstone.
