Stone Age hut in Israel yields world's oldest evidence of bedding

Dani Nadel, Ehud Weiss, Orit Simchoni, Alexander Tsatskin, Avinoam Danin, Mordechai Kislev

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

20 Scopus citations

Abstract

The earliest archaeological remains of dwelling huts built by Homo sapiens were found in various European Upper Paleolithic open-air camps. Although floors of huts were found in a small number of cases, modern organization of the home space that includes defined resting areas and bedding remains was not discovered. We report here the earliest in situ bedding exposed on a brush hut floor. It has recently been found at the previously submerged, excellently preserved 23,000-year-old fisher-hunter-gatherers' camp of Ohalo II, situated in Israel on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. The grass bedding consists of bunches of partially charred Puccinellia confer convoluta stems and leaves, covered by a thin compact layer of clay. It is arranged in a repeated pattern, on the floor, around a central hearth. This study describes the bedding in its original context on a well preserved intentionally constructed floor. It also reconstructs on the basis of direct evidence (combined with ethnographic analogies) the Upper Paleolithic hut as a house with three major components: a hearth, specific working locales, and a comfortable sleeping area near the walls.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)6821-6826
Number of pages6
JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Volume101
Issue number17
DOIs
StatePublished - 27 Apr 2004

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