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The Chalcolithization Process: Dynamics of Shiqmim Site-cluster (Northern Negev, Israel)

Received: 19 June 2019     Accepted: 27 July 2019     Published: 24 September 2019
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Abstract

The Northern Negev Chalcolithic Period is supposed to have lasted for approximately 1000 years, from ca. 4500 to 3500 BCE. Its beginning and end, as well as internal evolution are hotly debated topics. Archaeological evidence features the accelerated diversification of Late Neolithic mixed-farming societies and expansion into new territories. Some of these groups, through a “chalcolithization” process, adopted copper metallurgy, polychrome pottery and V-shape bowls. There is a punctuated shift with an initial differential adoption of new cultural practices that rippled afterward across the whole Levant through population admixtures. The internal dynamics of the Southern Levantine Chalcolithic societies is generally addressed through an inadequate time-frame and field methodology, ie stretched inferences derived from a single-site in an undifferentiated Chalcolithic time block. The Shiqmim hamlets project carried out in 1993, -with its own limitations-, allows to discuss the formation and evolution of a tight chalcolithic site-cluster. As featured in this paper, the analysis of the internal dynamics of chalcolithic societies requires a regional framework, a fine-grained rendering of sites occupation histories, and a high-resolution chronology.

Published in International Journal of Archaeology (Volume 7, Issue 2)
DOI 10.11648/j.ija.20190702.12
Page(s) 30-46
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2019. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Chalcolithization, Site-cluster, Settlement Patterns, Evolutionary Modelling, Population Admixture, Shiqmim, Northern Negev, Israel

References
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  • APA Style

    Augustin Ferdinand Charles Holl. (2019). The Chalcolithization Process: Dynamics of Shiqmim Site-cluster (Northern Negev, Israel). International Journal of Archaeology, 7(2), 30-46. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ija.20190702.12

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    ACS Style

    Augustin Ferdinand Charles Holl. The Chalcolithization Process: Dynamics of Shiqmim Site-cluster (Northern Negev, Israel). Int. J. Archaeol. 2019, 7(2), 30-46. doi: 10.11648/j.ija.20190702.12

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    AMA Style

    Augustin Ferdinand Charles Holl. The Chalcolithization Process: Dynamics of Shiqmim Site-cluster (Northern Negev, Israel). Int J Archaeol. 2019;7(2):30-46. doi: 10.11648/j.ija.20190702.12

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ija.20190702.12,
      author = {Augustin Ferdinand Charles Holl},
      title = {The Chalcolithization Process: Dynamics of Shiqmim  Site-cluster (Northern Negev, Israel)},
      journal = {International Journal of Archaeology},
      volume = {7},
      number = {2},
      pages = {30-46},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ija.20190702.12},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ija.20190702.12},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ija.20190702.12},
      abstract = {The Northern Negev Chalcolithic Period is supposed to have lasted for approximately 1000 years, from ca. 4500 to 3500 BCE. Its beginning and end, as well as internal evolution are hotly debated topics. Archaeological evidence features the accelerated diversification of Late Neolithic mixed-farming societies and expansion into new territories. Some of these groups, through a “chalcolithization” process, adopted copper metallurgy, polychrome pottery and V-shape bowls. There is a punctuated shift with an initial differential adoption of new cultural practices that rippled afterward across the whole Levant through population admixtures. The internal dynamics of the Southern Levantine Chalcolithic societies is generally addressed through an inadequate time-frame and field methodology, ie stretched inferences derived from a single-site in an undifferentiated Chalcolithic time block. The Shiqmim hamlets project carried out in 1993, -with its own limitations-, allows to discuss the formation and evolution of a tight chalcolithic site-cluster. As featured in this paper, the analysis of the internal dynamics of chalcolithic societies requires a regional framework, a fine-grained rendering of sites occupation histories, and a high-resolution chronology.},
     year = {2019}
    }
    

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    T2  - International Journal of Archaeology
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    AB  - The Northern Negev Chalcolithic Period is supposed to have lasted for approximately 1000 years, from ca. 4500 to 3500 BCE. Its beginning and end, as well as internal evolution are hotly debated topics. Archaeological evidence features the accelerated diversification of Late Neolithic mixed-farming societies and expansion into new territories. Some of these groups, through a “chalcolithization” process, adopted copper metallurgy, polychrome pottery and V-shape bowls. There is a punctuated shift with an initial differential adoption of new cultural practices that rippled afterward across the whole Levant through population admixtures. The internal dynamics of the Southern Levantine Chalcolithic societies is generally addressed through an inadequate time-frame and field methodology, ie stretched inferences derived from a single-site in an undifferentiated Chalcolithic time block. The Shiqmim hamlets project carried out in 1993, -with its own limitations-, allows to discuss the formation and evolution of a tight chalcolithic site-cluster. As featured in this paper, the analysis of the internal dynamics of chalcolithic societies requires a regional framework, a fine-grained rendering of sites occupation histories, and a high-resolution chronology.
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Author Information
  • Department of Anthropology and Ethnology, Africa Research Center, Xiamen University, Xiamen, P. R. China

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