Tell Qaramel
Encyclopedia
Tell Qaramel is a tell
, or archaeological mound, located in the north of present-day Syria
, 25 km north of Aleppo
and about 65 km south of the Taurus mountains
, adjacent to the river Quweiq.
period through to the Hellenistic period. The later phases of occupation are closely associated with the mound of the tell itself; however, the pre-pottery Neolithic phase is associated with a wider area of about 3 hectares, extending to the south and south-west of the tell. It is this area that has been the focus of detailed investigation since 1999 by a joint Polish-Syrian team led by Prof. Ryszard F. Mazurowski of Warsaw University.
Before the excavations began, it was assumed that permanent sedentary settlements would occur only in combination with the first farming of cereals, and the first domestication and keeping of animals such as sheep and goats, marking the start of the Neolithic
period, part of a transition between the proto-Neolithic and Pre-Pottery Neolithic A
cultures. However the remains of the structures uncovered at Tell Qaramel appear to be older than this, giving the first evidence of permanent stone-built settlement without signs of animal domestication or organised farming. Particularly striking are the remains of a succession of five round, stone-built towers, each over 6 metres in diameter, with stone walls over 1.5m thick. These have been carbon-dated to between the eleventh millennium and 9650 BC. This dating makes the towers roughly two thousand years older than the stone tower found at Jericho
, which was previously believed to be the oldest known tower structure in the world.
Tell
A tell or tel, is a type of archaeological mound created by human occupation and abandonment of a geographical site over many centuries. A classic tell looks like a low, truncated cone with a flat top and sloping sides.-Archaeology:A tell is a hill created by different civilizations living and...
, or archaeological mound, located in the north of present-day Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, 25 km north of Aleppo
Aleppo
Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...
and about 65 km south of the Taurus mountains
Taurus Mountains
Taurus Mountains are a mountain complex in southern Turkey, dividing the Mediterranean coastal region of southern Turkey from the central Anatolian Plateau. The system extends along a curve from Lake Eğirdir in the west to the upper reaches of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in the east...
, adjacent to the river Quweiq.
Excavations
A survey in the late 1970s found evidence of settlement at the site from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic APre-Pottery Neolithic A
Pre-Pottery Neolithic A denotes the first stage in early Levantine Neolithic culture, dating around 9500 to 8500 BC. Archaeological remains are located in the Levantine and upper Mesopotamian region of the Fertile Crescent...
period through to the Hellenistic period. The later phases of occupation are closely associated with the mound of the tell itself; however, the pre-pottery Neolithic phase is associated with a wider area of about 3 hectares, extending to the south and south-west of the tell. It is this area that has been the focus of detailed investigation since 1999 by a joint Polish-Syrian team led by Prof. Ryszard F. Mazurowski of Warsaw University.
Before the excavations began, it was assumed that permanent sedentary settlements would occur only in combination with the first farming of cereals, and the first domestication and keeping of animals such as sheep and goats, marking the start of the Neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
period, part of a transition between the proto-Neolithic and Pre-Pottery Neolithic A
Pre-Pottery Neolithic A
Pre-Pottery Neolithic A denotes the first stage in early Levantine Neolithic culture, dating around 9500 to 8500 BC. Archaeological remains are located in the Levantine and upper Mesopotamian region of the Fertile Crescent...
cultures. However the remains of the structures uncovered at Tell Qaramel appear to be older than this, giving the first evidence of permanent stone-built settlement without signs of animal domestication or organised farming. Particularly striking are the remains of a succession of five round, stone-built towers, each over 6 metres in diameter, with stone walls over 1.5m thick. These have been carbon-dated to between the eleventh millennium and 9650 BC. This dating makes the towers roughly two thousand years older than the stone tower found at Jericho
Jericho
Jericho ; is a city located near the Jordan River in the West Bank of the Palestinian territories. It is the capital of the Jericho Governorate and has a population of more than 20,000. Situated well below sea level on an east-west route north of the Dead Sea, Jericho is the lowest permanently...
, which was previously believed to be the oldest known tower structure in the world.
Further reading
- R.F. Mazurowski et al (1999–2006), Tell Qaramel: Excavations, Polish Archaeology in the Mediterranean, 11, 285–296 (1999); 12, 327–341 (2000); 13, 295–307 (2001); 14, 315–330 (2002); 15, 355–370 (2003); 16, 497–510 (2004); 17, 483–499 (2005); 18, 571–586 (2006)
- Youssef Kanjou (2009), Study of Neolithic human graves from Tell Qaramel in Northern Syria, International Journal of Modern Anthropology, 2 25–37
- R.F. Mazurowski et al (2009), Chronology of the Early Pre-Pottery Neolithic Settlement Tell Qaramel, Northern Syria, in the Light of Radiocarbon Dating, Radiocarbon, 51(2) 771–781. (Abstract)
External links
- Poster about the site
- Discussion of the radiocarbon dates, PPND - the Platform for Neolithic Radiocarbon Dates, Ex Oriente eV, Free University of BerlinFree University of BerlinFreie Universität Berlin is one of the leading and most prestigious research universities in Germany and continental Europe. It distinguishes itself through its modern and international character. It is the largest of the four universities in Berlin. Research at the university is focused on the...
.
