ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS AND THE FOSSIL FAUNAS OF THE NATUFIAN AND MICROLITHIC INDUSTRIES AT HAYONIM CAVE (WESTERN GALILEE, ISRAEL)

ABSTRACT

Description is given of two prehistoric cultures and the fossil faunas, excavated from a new prehistoric site, known as Hayonim cave, located in the northern part of Israel (western Galilee). In the first part the work deals with the lithic assemblages found up till now; the Natufian and the Microlithic industries. Older lithic industries are to be found in deeper layers. The rich fossil documentation is demonstrated in the second part. Both the fauna and the archaeological finds substantiate the hypothesis that the Natufians were long-term inhabitants of the area, as opposed to the earlier (Microlithic industry) population of hunters and food gatherers. No proof has yet been found for food production, so that it must be assumed that the Natufians here, as in the rest of the country, were specialized hunters, fishers and food gatherers. From the animal remains interpretations are drawn about the different biotopes that coexisted in the surroundings of the cave at that time. The types of biotopes have changed only relatively since Natufian times, owing to the increasing dryness and steady northward shift of the desert boundary, and the thinning out of the Mediterranean wood in the central and northern regions of the country, especially during the period corresponding to the post-Glacial.