Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences—Researchers uncovered a Paleolithic ritual chamber deep within a cave in the Levant*. The initial emergence of collective ritual practices among early humans in the Paleolithic period is not well-understood, partly due to the difficulty of identifying such ephemeral practices in the archaeological record. Omry Barzilai, Ofer Marder, Israel Hershkovitz, and colleagues documented an Early Upper Paleolithic ritual compound deep within Manot Cave in Israel. The ritual compound’s location in the deepest part of the cave is distinct from living areas close to the cave’s entrance, where activities such as flint knapping, animal butchering, and food consumption took place. The ritual site comprised a large gallery partitioned by speleothem cave formations. A large dolomite boulder engraved with complex, geometric patterns resembling a tortoise shell was prominently positioned at the back of the gallery. Linear microscratches within the grooves of the engraving indicated that it was carved by humans using sharp flint tools. Analysis of calcite crust on the boulder helped date the engraving to around 37,000–35,000 years ago. Wood ash particles identified in stalagmite laminae suggested that fire was used to illuminate the chamber. Acoustic analysis suggested that the ritual chamber was well-suited for conversations during communal gatherings. According to the authors, the ritual chamber represents the earliest known evidence of religious behavior in the Paleolithic Levant.
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Ritual compound at the deepest, darkest part of Manot Cave. Guy Geva
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Public ritual compound at the deepest part of Manot Cave and two rows of stalagmites leading to it. Guy Geva
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Article Source: PNAS news release.
*“Early human collective practices and symbolism in the Early Upper Paleolithic of Southwest Asia,” by Omry Barzilai et al., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 9-Dec-2024. https://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.2404632121
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