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18-491: 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, S.J., and J.F. Ewing, S.J. , 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 m (77 ft) with one of

36-512: A hybrid. Radiocarbon dating and Bayesian modelling supports an age range of 42.4–41.7 ka BP for Ethelruda. Godefroy Zumoffen Godefroy Zumoffen , SJ (1848 in France – 1928) was a French Jesuit archaeologist and geologist notable for his work on prehistory in Lebanon . He is known particularly for pioneering Lebanese archaeology, and for discovering several sites including

54-657: A wider coastal strip, covered by dense forests and swamps . The material remains from the upper strata of the cave are of the Mousterian culture (about 200,000 - 45,000 years ago). Small flint tools made of thin flakes predominate these levels, many produced using the Levallois technique . Tools typical of the Mousterian culture feature elongated points, and include flakes of various shapes used as scrapers, end scrapers and other denticulate tools used for cutting and sawing. Arthur Jelinek's 1967 to 1972 excavations of

72-841: Is stratigraphically deeper than Egbert. The layer that Ksar Akil 2 was found in is the start of the Initial Upper Paleolithic in the Levant. An Emireh point was also found in this level. Ethelruda was thought to be lost for many years, but was relocated in storage at the National Museum of Beirut . The maxilla was originally described as a "Neanderthaloid" adult female on the basis of its similarity to fossils from Tabun I, Skhul IV and V, Gibraltar and La Chapelle-aux-Saints 1 . Some have since questioned these similarities. For instance, due to its small size and tooth sockets, Ksar Akil 2 has been described as similar to

90-532: 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 its talus buried under tons of soil. Aside from 10 teeth from Üçağızlı Cave in southern Turkey, Ksar Akil

108-540: Is the only site with hominin remains from the Early Upper Paleolithic and Initial Upper Paleolithic in the Levant discovered so far. A complete skeleton of a juvenile Homo sapiens , referred to as Ksar Akil 1, or more commonly known as Egbert , was discovered in level XVII at 11.6 m (38 ft) cemented into breccia . At the time of death, Egbert is estimated to have been 7 to 9 years old, and due to its small size, may have been female. Egbert

126-555: The Antelias cave . He produced the first geological map of Lebanon and authored a book about its prehistory, La Phénicie avant les phéniciens: l'âge de la pierre . Tabun Cave The Tabun Cave is an excavated site located at Nahal Me'arot Nature Reserve , Israel and is one of the Human Evolution sites at Mount Carmel , which were proclaimed as having universal value by UNESCO in 2012. Together with

144-568: The Coastal Plain) and for digging out plant roots. As tools improved slowly over time, the hand axes became smaller and better shaped, and scrapers made of thick flakes chipped off flint cores were probably used for scraping meat off bones and for processing animal skins. The upper levels in the Tabun cave consist mainly of clay and silt , indicating that a colder, more humid climate prevailed as glaciers formed once more; this change yielded

162-485: The National Museum of Beirut, and it's unknown what he did with the rest of the skeleton, but both parts became subsequently lost. Radiocarbon dating and Bayesian modelling supports an age range of 40,800 to 39,200 years BP for Egbert. In 1947 a fragment of a maxilla , designated Ksar Akil 2, and referred to as Ethelruda, was discovered in material from level XXVI or XXV, at around 15 m (49 ft), which

180-585: The cave contain large amounts of sea sand. This, and pollen traces found, suggests a relatively warm climate at the time. The melting glaciers which covered large parts of the globe caused the sea level to rise and the Mediterranean coastline to recede. The Coastal Plain was then narrower than it is today, and was covered with savannah vegetation. The cave dwellers of that time used handaxes of flint or limestone for killing animals ( gazelle , hippopotamus , rhinoceros and wild cattle which roamed

198-474: The cave yielded over 1,900 complete and partial bifaces . The bulk of the biface assemblage can be attributed to the Late Acheulian and Yabrudian industries. The large number of fallow deer bones found in the upper layers of the Tabun cave may be due to the chimney-like opening in the back of the cave which functioned as a natural trap. The animals may have been herded towards it, and fell into

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216-550: The cave. Excavations suggest that it features one of the longest sequences of human occupation in the Levant . Dorothy Garrod led excavations in 1929 over 22 months that established the sequence of occupation of this and other sites in the area. It was during these excavations that a woman, Yusra , recruited from a local village, was credited with the discovery of the Tabun 1 Neanderthal skull. The earliest and lowest deposits in

234-404: The hominin mandible Ksar Akil 2. Studies by Hooijer showed Capra and Dama were dominant in the fauna along with Stephanorhinus in later Levalloiso-Mousterian levels. It is assumed to be one of the earliest known sites containing Upper Paleolithic technologies including Ahmarian cultural objects. Artifacts recovered from the site include Ksar Akil flakes , the main type of tool found at

252-584: The longest sequences of Paleolithic flint industries ever found in the Middle East . The first level of 8 m (26 ft) contained Upper Levallois - Mousterian remains with long and triangular Lithic flakes . 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 m (50 ft) below datum, in association with

270-409: The maxilla Skhul V, which was originally thought to be a Neanderthal, but is now considered to be an archaic Homo sapiens . On the other hand, the nasal floor is depressed, and the specimen lacks a canine fossa, both of which are features of Neanderthals . The original illustrations of this material have proved insufficient to prove for certain whether Ethelruda is Homo sapiens or Neanderthal or

288-515: The nearby sites of El Wad cave , Jamal cave , and Skhul cave , Tabun is part of the Nahal Me'arot Nature Reserve , a national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site . The cave was occupied intermittently during the Lower and Middle Paleolithic (500,000 to around 40,000 years ago). In the course of this period, deposits of sand , silt and clay of up to 25 m (82 ft) accumulated in

306-471: The site, along with pierced shells and chipped edge modifications that suggest these have been used as pendants or beads. This indicates 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

324-481: Was covered by a pile of cobbles, which may indicate deliberate burial. A second maxilla and some rib fragments were discovered nearby the burial, which indicates a second individual may also have been buried in the same place. Egbert is known only from descriptions, photographs, and reconstructed casts of the skull, now in the National Museum of Beirut , after being studied in America . Ewing gave Egbert's skull to

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