December 23, 2024

Ancient Toolmakers and Elephant Trails: Scientists Solve Mystery of Paleolithic Quarry Sites

These sites are defined by large nodules of flint hassle-free for crafting and are situated within walking range of the major Paleolithic websites of the Hula Valley– Gesher Benot Yaakov and Maayan Baruch.These sites boast thousands of quarrying and extraction regions where, till half a million years back, in the Lower Paleolithic duration, ancient human beings made tools and left offerings, in spite of the existence of flint in other geological developments in different locations. Since elephants were the main dietary part for these early human beings, the Tel Aviv University scientists cross-referenced the database of the websites distribution with the database of the elephants migration routes, and discovered that the flint quarrying and knapping websites were located in rock outcrops near the elephants migration paths.Strategic Placement of Quarrying Sites Near Water Sources” An elephant takes in 400 liters of water a day on average, and thats why it has actually fixed motion courses,” states Dr. Finkel. For this factor, we discover quarrying and knapping sites in the Upper Galilee located a brief distance from elephant butchering sites, which are positioned along the elephants movement courses. These consisted of both websites where the hunted animals were mammoths or elephants, as well as later websites where other animals, such as horses, hippos, and camels, were the victim.” It appears that the Paleolithic holy trinity holds real widely: Wherever there was water, there were elephants, and wherever there were elephants, people had to find ideal rock outcrops to quarry stone and make tools in order to hunt and butcher their favorite megaherbivores,” states Prof. Barkai.

These websites are defined by big blemishes of flint convenient for crafting and are situated within walking distance of the major Paleolithic sites of the Hula Valley– Gesher Benot Yaakov and Maayan Baruch.These sites boast thousands of quarrying and extraction localities where, until half a million years earlier, in the Lower Paleolithic period, ancient people fashioned tools and left offerings, regardless of the existence of flint in other geological formations in different places. Due to the fact that elephants were the main dietary part for these early humans, the Tel Aviv University scientists cross-referenced the database of the sites circulation with the database of the elephants migration paths, and discovered that the flint quarrying and knapping websites were located in rock outcrops near the elephants migration paths.Strategic Placement of Quarrying Sites Near Water Sources” An elephant takes in 400 liters of water a day on average, and thats why it has fixed motion courses,” says Dr. Finkel. For this reason, we discover quarrying and knapping sites in the Upper Galilee located a brief range from elephant butchering sites, which are placed along the elephants motion courses.