"Taming" Rocks and Changing Landscapes
A New Interpretation of Neolithic Cupmarks
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2220163 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Leore Grosman (0000-0002-6976-6202, Hebrew University of Jerusalem), Naama Goren-Inbar (0000-0002-6707-8676, Hebrew University of Jerusalem), Naama Goren‐inbar |
| Year | 2007 |
| Volume | 48 |
| Issue | 5 |
| Pages | 732-740 |
| Publication date | 2007-10-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Current Anthropology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0011-3204 • E-ISSN: 1537-5382 |
| Publisher | University of Chicago Press (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1086/520966 |
| OpenAlex | W1491562062 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 15 |
| References cited | 23 |
Cupmarks-artificial hemispherical depressions, often appearing in groups on bedrock surfaces-are found worldwide, often near Paleolithic sites and Holocene settlements. The term "bedrock mortars" expresses the interpretation that they were used for pounding/grinding collected plant foods. A re-examination of the cupmarks near the site of Hatula, on the margin of the Judean Shephelah west of Jerusalem, rules out the traditional functional interpretation in this instance. Instead, the evidence suggests that these cupmarks are remnants of intensive quarrying aimed at extracting flint nodules from the conglomerate beneath the surface and that the quarry was exploited not only for nodules but for limestone slabs. The cupmarks were drilled during the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A occupation of the site (ca. 9600-8000 Cal BC) and constitute a component of the Neolithic techno-cultural tradition. Future research should enlarge the data set of cupmarks and furnish a better understanding of their role in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic and beyond
Archaeology · Bedrock · Conglomerate · Geography · Interpretation (philosophy · Outcrop · Pottery · Structural basin · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Archaeology and Rock Art Studies · Geology · Paleontology · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology
Materials and Language
The ground stone components of drills in the ancient Near East
Breaking the Mold of Natufian Basalt Mortars
"When the last gunshot’s cry falls silent"
From the Epipalaeolithic into the earliest Neolithic (PPNA) in the South Levant
Down to bedrock” – General perspectives on bedrock features
Things and the Slow Neolithic
A middle paleolithic and neolithic/chalcolithic flint extraction and reduction complex at Mt. Achbara, Eastern Galilee, Israel
Tzur Natan, a Pre-Pottery Neolithic A Site in Central Israel and Observations on Regional Settlement Patterns
Huzuq Musa – A Preliminary Report on the Test Excavation at a Final Epipalaeolithic/PPNA Site in the Jordan Valley
Late Epipalaeolithic Rock-Cut Installations and Groundstone Tools in the Southern Levant. Methodology and Classification System
Extensive Paleolithic Flint Extraction and Reduction Complexes in the Nahal Dishon Central Basin, Upper Galilee, Israel
Human-Made Bedrock Holes (Mortars and Cupmarks) as a Late Natufian Social Phenomenon
Limestone Wedges
A Natufian Ritual Event
Calibration of the 14C timescale over the past 30,000 years using mass spectrometric U–Th ages from Barbados corals
Les bâtiments communautaires de Jerf el Ahmar et Mureybet Horizon PPNA (Syrie).
Charting the Emergence of Cereal and Pulse Domestication in South-west Asia
News and Short Contributions
Special Studies
The Social Origins of Cooking and Dining in Early Villages of Western Asia
Saflulim
German Oak and Pine 14 C Calibration, 7200–9439 BC
On the Mechanical Methods of the Ancient Egyptians
Beyond Boundaries
Une Occupation khiamienne et sultanienne à Hatoula (Israël)
The Sultanian Flint Assemblage from Gesher and its Implications for Recognizing Early Neolithic Entities in the Levant
Tzur Natan, a Pre-Pottery Neolithic A Site in Central Israel and Observations on Regional Settlement Patterns
The Origins and development of ground stone assemblages in Late Pleistocene Southwest Asia
Stone Cup-Holes and Querns from Gilgal I, a Pre-Pottery Neolithic A site in Israel
Experimental archaeology
Excavations and Surveys in Israel 1986
Fire-making in Australia
The Bow-drill in North America
Materials, Apparatus, and Processes of the Aboriginal Lapidary
Aboriginal Fire-making
| Unique citing works | 15 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,79 |
| Citation span | 2007 - 2026 (20) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 15 |