Ksar Akil
Encyclopedia
Ksar Akil is an archeological site 10 km northeast of Beirut
in Lebanon
. It is located about 800 metres (2,624.7 ft) west of Antelias spring on the north bank of the northern tributary of the Wadi Antelias. It is a large rock shelter below a steep limestone
cliff.
It was first noticed by Godefroy Zumoffen
in 1900 and first studied by A. E. Day in 1926 then first systematically excavated by J.G. Doherty and F. Ewing in 1937-1938 and again in 1947-1948, then later by Jacques Tixier
in 1969-1975 before research was interrupted by the Lebanese Civil War
.
Excavations showed occupational deposits reaching down to a depth of 23.6 metres (77.4 ft) with one of the longest sequences of Paleolithic
flint
industries
ever found in the Middle East
. The first level of 8 metres (26.2 ft) contained Upper Levalloiso-Mousterian remains with long and triangular Lithic flake
s. The level above this showed industries accounting for all six stages of the Upper Paleolithic
. An Emireh point
was found at the first stage of this level (XXIV), at around 15.2 metres (49.9 ft) below datum with a complete skeleton
of an eight year old Homo Sapiens (called Egbert
, now in the National Museum of Beirut
after being studied in America
) was discovered at 11.6 metres (38.1 ft), cemented into breccia
. A fragment of a Neanderthal
maxilla
was also discovered in material from level XXVI or XXV, at around 15 metres (49.2 ft). Studies by Hooijer showed Capra
and Dama
were dominant in the fauna
along with Stephanorhinus in later Levalloiso-Mousterian levels.
It is believed to be one of the earliest known sites containing Upper Paleolithic
technologies including Aurignacian
. Artifacts recovered from the site include Ksar Akil flake
s, the type tool of the site, along with shells with holes and chipped edge modifications that are suggested to have been used as pendants or beads. These indicate that the inhabitants were among the first in Western Eurasia to use personal ornaments. Results from radiocarbon dating indicate that the early humans may have lived at the site approximately 45,000 years ago or earlier. The presence of personal ornaments at Ksar Akil is suggestive of modern human behavior. The findings of ornaments at the site are contemporaneous with ornaments found at Late Stone Age
sites such as Enkapune ya muto
.
The site was rescued from burial under the sludge
of gravel
-making machines in 1964 by the Department of Antiquities, although is mostly unrecognizable due to quarrying operations with it's talus buried under tons of soil.
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
in Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
. It is located about 800 metres (2,624.7 ft) west of Antelias spring on the north bank of the northern tributary of the Wadi Antelias. It is a large rock shelter below a steep limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
cliff.
It was first noticed by Godefroy Zumoffen
Godefroy Zumoffen
Reverend Father Godefroy Zumoffen, born 1848 in France and died in 1928 was a French Jesuit archaeologist and geologist notable for his work on prehistory in Lebanon....
in 1900 and first studied by A. E. Day in 1926 then first systematically excavated by J.G. Doherty and F. Ewing in 1937-1938 and again in 1947-1948, then later by Jacques Tixier
Jacques Tixier
right|250px|thumb|Jacques TixierJacques Tixier was a French archaeologist and Prehistorian notable for his work on prehistory in Qatar and Lebanon. He led the first French archaeological mission to Qatar in 1976.-External Links:*...
in 1969-1975 before research was interrupted by the Lebanese Civil War
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in Lebanon. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 150,000 to 230,000 civilian fatalities. Another one million people were wounded, and today approximately 350,000 people remain displaced. There was also a mass exodus of...
.
Excavations showed occupational deposits reaching down to a depth of 23.6 metres (77.4 ft) with one of the longest sequences of Paleolithic
Paleolithic
The Paleolithic Age, Era or Period, is a prehistoric period of human history distinguished by the development of the most primitive stone tools discovered , and covers roughly 99% of human technological prehistory...
flint
Flint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
industries
Archaeological industry
An archaeological industry, normally just "industry", is the name given in the study of prehistory to a consistent range of assemblages connected with a single product, such as the Langdale axe industry...
ever found in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. The first level of 8 metres (26.2 ft) contained Upper Levalloiso-Mousterian remains with long and triangular Lithic flake
Lithic flake
In archaeology, a lithic flake is a "portion of rock removed from an objective piece by percussion or pressure," and may also be referred to as a chip or spall, or collectively as debitage. The objective piece, or the rock being reduced by the removal of flakes, is known as a core. Once the proper...
s. The level above this showed industries accounting for all six stages of the Upper Paleolithic
Upper Paleolithic
The Upper Paleolithic is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. Very broadly it dates to between 40,000 and 10,000 years ago, roughly coinciding with the appearance of behavioral modernity and before the advent of...
. An Emireh point
Emireh point
An Emireh point is a microlith made out of a triangular flake of flint. The bulbs are eliminated or reduced via a process of retouching from both surfaces. The Emireh point is the type tool of stage one of the Upper Paleolithic, first identified in the Emirian culture....
was found at the first stage of this level (XXIV), at around 15.2 metres (49.9 ft) below datum with a complete skeleton
Skeleton
The skeleton is the body part that forms the supporting structure of an organism. There are two different skeletal types: the exoskeleton, which is the stable outer shell of an organism, and the endoskeleton, which forms the support structure inside the body.In a figurative sense, skeleton can...
of an eight year old Homo Sapiens (called Egbert
Egbert
Several Anglo-Saxon persons were named Ecgberht . The name itself means "Bright Edge," such as that of a blade.*Ecgberht of Kent *Saint Egbert , hermit and missionary...
, now in the National Museum of Beirut
National Museum of Beirut
The National Museum of Beirut is the principal museum of archaeology in Lebanon. The collection was begun after World War I, and the museum was officially opened in 1942. The museum has collections totalling about 100,000 objects, most of which are antiquities and medieval finds from excavations...
after being studied in America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) was discovered at 11.6 metres (38.1 ft), cemented into breccia
Breccia
Breccia is a rock composed of broken fragments of minerals or rock cemented together by a fine-grained matrix, that can be either similar to or different from the composition of the fragments....
. A fragment of a Neanderthal
Neanderthal
The Neanderthal is an extinct member of the Homo genus known from Pleistocene specimens found in Europe and parts of western and central Asia...
maxilla
Maxilla
The maxilla is a fusion of two bones along the palatal fissure that form the upper jaw. This is similar to the mandible , which is also a fusion of two halves at the mental symphysis. Sometimes The maxilla (plural: maxillae) is a fusion of two bones along the palatal fissure that form the upper...
was also discovered in material from level XXVI or XXV, at around 15 metres (49.2 ft). Studies by Hooijer showed Capra
Capra
Capra may refer to:* Capra , comprising the goats* Capra , American music group* Capra , a titular see in the Catholic Church* Capra , a Romanian custom-People:* Frank Capra , American film director...
and Dama
Dama
Dama is a village in southern Syria, in As Suwaydā' Governorate. It is located in the heart of the Lejah lava plateau, 29 km north west of the city of As Suwayda....
were dominant in the fauna
Fauna
Fauna or faunæ is all of the animal life of any particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora.Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g. the "Sonoran Desert fauna" or the "Burgess shale fauna"...
along with Stephanorhinus in later Levalloiso-Mousterian levels.
It is believed to be one of the earliest known sites containing Upper Paleolithic
Upper Paleolithic
The Upper Paleolithic is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. Very broadly it dates to between 40,000 and 10,000 years ago, roughly coinciding with the appearance of behavioral modernity and before the advent of...
technologies including Aurignacian
Aurignacian
The Aurignacian culture is an archaeological culture of the Upper Palaeolithic, located in Europe and southwest Asia. It lasted broadly within the period from ca. 45,000 to 35,000 years ago in terms of conventional radiocarbon dating, or between ca. 47,000 and 41,000 years ago in terms of the most...
. Artifacts recovered from the site include Ksar Akil flake
Ksar Akil flake
Ksar Akil Flake is an oval type of Lithic flake with fine, regular teeth at frequent intervals. The flint tool is named after the archaeological site of Ksar Akil in Lebanon, where several examples were found and suggested to date to the late Upper Paleolithic.Two Ksar Akil Flakes are held by the...
s, the type tool of the site, along with shells with holes and chipped edge modifications that are suggested to have been used as pendants or beads. These indicate that the inhabitants were among the first in Western Eurasia to use personal ornaments. Results from radiocarbon dating indicate that the early humans may have lived at the site approximately 45,000 years ago or earlier. The presence of personal ornaments at Ksar Akil is suggestive of modern human behavior. The findings of ornaments at the site are contemporaneous with ornaments found at Late Stone Age
Late Stone Age
The Later Stone Age refers to a period in African prehistory. Its beginnings are roughly contemporaneous with the European Upper Paleolithic...
sites such as Enkapune ya muto
Enkapune Ya Muto
Enkapune Ya Muto, also known as Twilight Cave, is a Late Stone Age site on the Mau Escarpment of Kenya. Beads made of perforated ostrich egg shells found at the site have been dated to 40,000 years ago. The beads found at the site represent some of the earliest known personal ornaments.-External...
.
The site was rescued from burial under the sludge
Sludge
Sludge refers to the residual, semi-solid material left from industrial wastewater, or sewage treatment processes. It can also refer to the settled suspension obtained from conventional drinking water treatment, and numerous other industrial processes...
of gravel
Gravel
Gravel is composed of unconsolidated rock fragments that have a general particle size range and include size classes from granule- to boulder-sized fragments. Gravel can be sub-categorized into granule and cobble...
-making machines in 1964 by the Department of Antiquities, although is mostly unrecognizable due to quarrying operations with it's talus buried under tons of soil.
Further reading
- Braidwood, R., Wright, H. E., and Ewing, J.F., Ksar Akil, its Archaeological Sequence and Geological Setting., Journal of Near-Eastern Studies, Volume 10, 1951.
- Ewing, J., Preliminary Note on the Excavations at the Paleolithic Site of Ksar Akil, Republic of Lebanon, Antiquity, vol. 21, p. 186, 1947.
- Ewing, J., Human types and Prehistoric Cultures at Ksar Akil, Lebanon, Selected papers, 5th C.I.S.A.E., Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania Press, 1956.
- Ewing, J., A Probably Neanderthaloid from Ksar Akil, Lebanon. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, Volume 21, Number 2, 1963.
- Howell, F., Upper Pleistocene Stratigraphy and Early Man in the Levant, Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, Volume 103, 1959.
- Garrod, D., A Transitional Industry from the Base of the Upper Paleolithic in Palestine and Syria. Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, Volume 81, 1952.
- Garrod, D., The Relations between Southwest Asia and Europe in the Later Paleolithic Age, Journal of World History, Volume 1, 1953.
- Wright, H.E., Late Pleistocene Geology of Coastal Lebanon, 3rd Symposium, Wenner-Grenn Foundation for Anthropological Research on "Early man and Pleistocene Stratigraphy in Circum-Mediterranean Regions", 1960.
- Wright, H.E., Late Pleistocene Geology of Coastal Lebanon, Quaternaria, Volume 6, 1962.
- Hooijer, D. A., The Fossil Vertebrates of Ksar Akil, a Paleolithic Rock-Shelter in the Lebanon, Zoloögische Verhandelgingen, 49, 1, 1961.
- Field, H., Ancient and Modern Man in Southwestern Asia, Volume I, University of Miami Press, 1956.
Monographs
- Bergman, C.A. 1987. Ksar Akil, Lebanon: A Technological and Typological Analysis of the Later Palaeolithic Levels. Volume II. BAR International Series 329.
- Bergman, C.A. and L. Copeland (eds.) 1986. I. Azoury Ksar Akil, Lebanon: A Technological and Typological Analysis of the Transitional and Early Upper Palaeolithic Levels of Ksar Akil and Abu Halka. Volume I. BAR International Series 289 (i and ii).
Articles
- Bergman, C.A. 2004. Twisted Debitage and the Levantine Aurignacian Problem. in A. Belfer-Cohen and A.N. Goring-Morris (eds.) More than Meets the Eye: Studies on Upper Palaeolithic Diversity in the Near East. Oxbow Press, Oxford: 185-195.
- Ohnuma, K. and C.A. Bergman 1990. A technological study of the Upper Palaeolithic levels XXV-VI from Ksar Akil, Lebanon. in P. Mellars and C. Stringer (eds.) The Origins and Dispersal of Modern Man. Cambridge University Press: 91-138.
- Bergman, C.A. and C.B. Stringer 1989. Fifty years after: Egbert, an Upper Palaeolithic Juvenile from Ksar Akil, Lebanon. Paléorient 15/2: 99-111.
- Bergman, C.A. 1988. Ksar Akil and the Upper Palaeolithic of the Levant. "Préhistoire du Levant 2" Paléorient 14/2: 201-210.
- Bergman, C.A. and N. Goring-Morris 1987. Conference: The Levantine Aurignacian with special reference to Ksar Akil, Lebanon. Paléorient 13/1: 142-145.
- Bergman, C.A. 1987. Hafting and use of bone and antler points from Ksar Akil, Lebanon. in D. Stordeur (ed.) La Main et l'Outil. Travaux de la Maison de l’Orient Méditerranéen, Lyon 15: 117-126.
- Bergman, C.A. and K. Ohnuma 1987. The Upper Palaeolithic Sequence of Ksar Akil, Lebanon. Berytus XXV: 13-40.