Jewelry from the Iron Age II Levant

Jewelry has always had an irresistible allure yet in the past also had a significance and function within society that went far beyond ornamentation. Jewelry is an important, if often forgotten facet of material culture. Its study is inter-disciplinary, involving archaeology, anthropology, art history, historical/textual studies, and research of materials and manufacturing techniques. While the renowned jewelry from regions such as Egypt and Mesopotamia has been studied, that of the southern Levant has received only limited attention, yet research of its archaeological/contextual, technological and socio-cultural perspectives is illuminating. The book is a final publication of the author‘s doctoral dissertation made available to the archaeological and academic community at large. It is geared to be a working tool for archaeologists dealing in this period and region and to scholars who study its arts and crafts. The book provides a handy typological structure for jewelry classification as well as a comprehensive andf useful catalogue for research in this and related fields. In addition, it illustrates the significance, meaning and functions of jewelry and the development of the jeweler‘s craft in the southern Levant during the first and second millennia BCE

Jewelry from the Iron Age II Levant

Jewelry has always had an irresistible allure yet in the past also had a significance and function within society that went far beyond ornamentation. Jewelry is an important, if often forgotten facet of material culture. Its study is inter-disciplinary, involving archaeology, anthropology, art history, historical/textual studies, and research of materials and manufacturing techniques. While the renowned jewelry from regions such as Egypt and Mesopotamia has been studied, that of the southern Levant has received only limited attention, yet research of its archaeological/contextual, technological and socio-cultural perspectives is illuminating. The book is a final publication of the author‘s doctoral dissertation made available to the archaeological and academic community at large. It is geared to be a working tool for archaeologists dealing in this period and region and to scholars who study its arts and crafts. The book provides a handy typological structure for jewelry classification as well as a comprehensive andf useful catalogue for research in this and related fields. In addition, it illustrates the significance, meaning and functions of jewelry and the development of the jeweler‘s craft in the southern Levant during the first and second millennia BCE

The Transition from the Late Chalcolithic to the Early Bronze I in Southwestern Canaan – Ashqelon as a Case for Continuity

Cultural and chronological constructs have divided the material culture of the Chalcolithic and the EB I in the Southern Levant into two distinct periods. However, while each possesses its own distinctive characteristics, excavations at Ashqelon, located in the region of southwestern Canaan, have revealed a cultural overlap between the two which is seen in the ceramic repertoire and potting techniques, the flint and ground-stone industry, the metallurgical industry and the burial practices. Over the last decades of archaeological research, this continuity has slowly been recognized, calling into question the supposed cultural break between the Chalcolithic and the EB I in this region. Recent radiocarbon dates from numerous excavations in the Ashqelon region have indicated an intensive settlement at this site from the beginning of the 4th millennium BCE to the beginning of the 3rd. While this occupation is associated by the whole of its material culture fi nds and radiocarbon dating to the EB I period, its material culture also includes holdovers from the Chalcolithic period (Ghassulian phase), though no clear and unequivocal Chalcolithic settlement per se has yet been identifi ed in this region. These dates now challenge the accepted chronological framework for the end of the Chalcolithic and the beginning of the EB I in southwestern Canaan and suggest a new chronological and cultural interpretation of the data from this region. With the dissipation of the Chalcolithic culture in the northern Negev at the end of the 5th millennium, populations did not simply disappear yet probably moved elsewhere. It is thus not surprising that during the first half of the 4th millennium BCE, Ashqelon, found in a region adjacent and to the north of the northern Negev, exhibits cultural attributes of the Chalcolithic period alongside those of the EB I as the local population retained many earlier Chalcolithic traditions in the transition to the EB I.La culture matérielle du Chalcolithique et du Bronze ancien I du Sud Levant a été divisée en deux périodes distinctes. Néanmoins, même si chaque période possède ses propres caractéristiques, les fouilles à Ashqelon, dans la région sud-ouest de Canaan, ont révélé qu’elles se chevauchaient ; ceci est visible dans la poterie (répertoire typologique et techniques de fabrication), l’industrie lithique, le matériel de broyage, la production métallurgique et les pratiques funéraires. Au cours des recherches archéologiques menées ces dernières décennies, cette continuité a été progressivement reconnue, remettant ainsi en question la rupture culturelle supposée entre le Chalcolithique et le Bronze ancien I dans cette région. Les datations radiocarbones récentes, issues de nombreuses fouilles dans la région d’Ashqelon, ont montré une occupation intensive de la zone depuis le début du IVe jusqu’à celui du IIIe millénaires. Cette occupation est associée dans l’ensemble au Bronze ancien I, par les datations radiocarbones et la culture matérielle ; cette dernière atteste également une survivance du Chalcolithique (Ghassoulien), bien qu’aucun site de cette période n’ait été clairement identifié à ce jour dans la région. Ces datations remettent dorénavant en question le cadre chronologique établi pour la fi n du Chalcolithique et le début du Bronze ancien I dans la région sud-ouest de Canaan, ouvrant la possibilité d’avancer de nouvelles interprétations chronologiques et culturelles. Lors de la disparition de la culture chalcolithique dans le nord du Néguev à la fi n du Ve millénaire, les populations n’ont certes pas disparu, elles se sont probablement déplacées vers une autre région. Il n’est donc pas surprenant que pendant la première moitié du IVe millénaire, sur l’établissement d’Ashqelon, découvert dans une région limitrophe, au nord du Néguev septentrional, des traits culturels de la période chalcolithique côtoient ceux du Bronze ancien I, étant donné que la population locale a maintenu de nombreuses traditions antérieures, lors de la transition avec le Bronze ancien I.Golani Amir. The Transition from the Late Chalcolithic to the Early Bronze I in Southwestern Canaan – Ashqelon as a Case for Continuity. In: Paléorient, 2013, vol. 39, n°1. The Transition Late Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age in the Southern Levant. pp. 95-110

Additional file 1 of An assessment of public experiences and expectations with physicians: a cross sectional study from Karachi, Pakistan

Supplementary Material 1: Study Questionnair

Drought response and genetic diversity in Pisum fulvum, a wild relative of domesticated pea

BAPGEAPSISUPDATINRAProductivity of grain crops in semi-arid environments is often affected by drought, which is likely to increase due to predicted climate changes. Wild pea (Pisum fulvum, Pf) accessions sampled across its ecological amplitude in Israel (350-850 mm annual precipitation) were used to assess the genetic diversity for drought responses. We hypothesized that native species evolving under east Mediterranean climate carry adaptive traits to cope with drought stress. Accessions were classified according to SNP variation pattern and habitat ecogeographic parameters. Significant differences were found between the accession groups, but grouping in both systems did not match. Subsequently, 52 Pf accessions and three domesticated pea (Pisum sativum) genotypes were evaluated under well-watered (600mm) and water-limited (300mm) treatments. Total dry matter, grain yield, harvest index and average grain weight were higher in domesticated pea than wild Pf, however several Pf accessions exhibited lower drought susceptibility indices (i.e. greater stability across environments) than domesticated genotypes. Of special interest are a number of Pf genotypes in which low susceptibility to water stress was coupled with relatively high productivity. The sampling habitats of those low susceptibility - high productivity accessions are characterized by mild (400-530mm) annual precipitation. Further sampling and evaluation of Pf from such locations may improve our understanding of pea drought adaptation and yield physiology