Continued Excavations at Hayonim Cave, Israel

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With support from the National Science Foundation, Dr. Ofer Bar- Yosef and a large multinational group of collaborators will continue National Science Foundation supported archaeological research at the site of Hayonim Cave located in Israel. Hayonim contains deposits rich in lithics and faunal remains - as well as fragmentary human skeletal material - which span the time range of ca 160,000 - 120,000 years ago. Excavation and analysis will proceed with a series of related goals. Materials will be collected for thermoluminescence and electron spin resonance dating of the deposits. If successful this will provide absolute age estimates. Extensive exposure of layer E, the lowest level of the site will permit recording and examination of hearths and spatial distributions of artifacts and bones. Each of these classes will be analyzed. Reseachers will reconstruct the lithic operational sequences employed for tool manufacture and microwear analysis will be conducted to determine tool function. Data from a number of sources suggest that anatomically and behavioral modern humans first appeared in Africa perhaps 200,000 years ago and spread sequentially to other parts of the world. The Near East, as the gateway from Africa may provide essential information on this expansion. Work to date indicates that for a long span of time both modern humans and earlier `Neanderthal` forms either coexisted or alternated presence in the area. Just when the first modern humans arrived however is unknown and Dr. Bar Yosef's research directly examines the suspected period. Hayonim cave is worthy of concerted research because its deposits not only cover this time range but also contain well preserved faunal and lithic remains. This research is important for several reasons. It will provide data of interest to a large number of anthropologists. It will shed light on the emergence of modern humans and increase our knowledge of a little understood period of time.