Technological Change and Economy in the Epipalaeolithic: Assessing the Shift from Early to Middle Epipalaeolithic at Kharaneh IV

ABSTRACT

Epipalaeolithic hunter-gatherer communities in the Southern Levant exhibit numerous complex trends that suggest that the transition to the Neolithic was patchy and protracted. This paper explores the changing nature of occupation at the Epipalaeolithic site Kharaneh IV, Jordan, through an in-depth analysis of the lithic and faunal assemblages. Focusing on the analysis of a single deep sounding (unit AS42), we address how Kharaneh IV occupations link to the local landscape and environmental changes. As an aggregation site, Kharaneh IV represents an interesting locale to explore the changing nature of aggregation and social cohesion prior to the origins of agriculture, as well as changes in technology and subsistence between the Early and Middle Epipalaeolithic. We explore the tempo and nature of transition from one archaeological culture to the next through changes in technology and how this reflects the people making and using tools, to understand how foragers adapted to a changing landscape.

KEYWORDS:

• Epipalaeolithic
• lithic analysis
• faunal analysis
• hunter-gatherer aggregation
• cultural change

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the Department of Antiquities in Jordan for their continued support of our research at Kharaneh IV, as well as the Department of Antiquities representatives who have worked with us over the years. Excavations of AS42 from 2008–2010 were supported with an AHRC grant awarded to Lisa Maher. Danielle Macdonald would like to thank The University of Tulsa Faculty Summer Development Grant for support in writing the manuscript. Adam Allentuck would like to thank Louise Martin and the UCL Institute of Archaeology for financial support during the 2015 field season. We would also like to thank the Kharaneh IV field crews from 2008-2016, especially Theresa Barket, Abdalkareem Al-hebashan, Ahmad Thaher, Karam Jad, Felicia De Pena, Josh Varkel, Joe Roe, Olivia Mavrinac, and Trine Brok-Jorgensen, as well as our Jordanian colleagues and friends, who helped excavate and sort this material.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes on Contributors

Danielle A. Macdonald (Ph.D. 2013, University of Toronto) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Tulsa. Her research interests include lithic analysis, microwear analysis, and Near Eastern Prehistory.

Adam Allentuck (Ph.D. 2013, University of Toronto) is a Research Associate at The Archaeology Centre, University of Toronto. His research interests include zooarchaeology, human-animal relations, and Near Eastern prehistory.

Lisa Maher (Ph.D. 2005, University of Toronto) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of California, Berkeley. Her research interests include geoarchaeology, human-landscape interactions, and Near Eastern prehistory.

ORCID

Danielle A. Macdonald http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0061-9343

Lisa A. Maher http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9473-4229