Renewed excavation by a team from the universities of Haifa and Tübingen has yielded new insights into the Paleolithic occupation of Sefunim Cave, Israel. This site is one of the largest caves in the Mount Carmel and shows evidence of repeated use dating to the Middle Paleolithic, Upper Paleolithic and Epi-Paleolithic periods, as well as Neolithic and historical times. In this talk, I present some of the team's latest results from the cave, including studies about radiometric dating, archaeogenetics, fauna, and even the sediment itself. In addition, the cave yielded the largest collection of Stone Age shell beads yet documented in Israel, shedding light on the symbolic life of its early inhabitants. These new results provide a more complete picture of how Paleolithic people made use of the cave and the resources surrounding it.

Andrew Kandel bio: My current field work focuses on the Levantine corridor in Israel, the Armenian Highlands, and the West Coast region of South Africa. My research emphasizes the analysis of diachronic settlement patterns, landscape archaeology, Pleistocene lifeways, modes of subsistence, environmental reconstruction and coastal adaptations. I also study the development of personal ornaments and the emergence of ochre use in Africa. My work examines changes in culture related to new technological and subsistence behaviors.

• Date: 9 November 18h30
• RSVP: secretary@archaeology.org.za