<< Our Photo Pages >> Wadi 'Isaron - Ancient Village or Settlement in Israel
Submitted by motist on Sunday, 29 August 2010 Page Views: 4687
Multi-periodSite Name: Wadi 'Isaron Alternative Name: wadi AshrunCountry: Israel Type: Ancient Village or Settlement
Nearest Town: Eilat Nearest Village: Ma'ale Shacharut
Latitude: 29.894524N Longitude: 34.974258E
Condition:
| 5 | Perfect |
| 4 | Almost Perfect |
| 3 | Reasonable but with some damage |
| 2 | Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site |
| 1 | Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks |
| 0 | No data. |
| -1 | Completely destroyed |
| 5 | Superb |
| 4 | Good |
| 3 | Ordinary |
| 2 | Not Good |
| 1 | Awful |
| 0 | No data. |
| 5 | Can be driven to, probably with disabled access |
| 4 | Short walk on a footpath |
| 3 | Requiring a bit more of a walk |
| 2 | A long walk |
| 1 | In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find |
| 0 | No data. |
| 5 | co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates |
| 4 | co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map |
| 3 | co-ordinates scaled from a bad map |
| 2 | co-ordinates of the nearest village |
| 1 | co-ordinates of the nearest town |
| 0 | no data |
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External Links:
Prehistoric Sites in the Uvda Valley
This valley is located in the mountainous region northwest of Eilat. It is covered with rich alluvial soil from the surrounding mountains. In Neolithic times (8th-4th millennia BCE) there was more rainfall in this region than there is today. This created a savannah environment, permitting human hunter-gatherers to live on wild grains and on the meat of hunted animals (deer, gazelle, wild ass and birds).
The wadi 'Isaron site, in the eastern part of the valley, has been almost completely excavated. This site, of some 400 square meters, dates from the 8th-7th millennia BCE and consists of several dozen rounded stone dwellings, two to four meters in diameter, built close together. The inhabitants of this Neolithic village were hunters, as evidenced by hundreds of flint arrowheads and bones of undomesticated animals found in the dwellings; they also gathered wild grain, which they ground on the primitive grindstones found in the settlement.
Another cult site in the Uvda Valley, an open-air sanctuary, consists of a 12 x 12 m. square courtyard surrounded by a low stone wall. The corners of this structure correspond to the four points of the compass. Three conical basins containing ashes were found in the courtyard and in the center of a ritual cell stood sixteen 20 to 30 cm. high upright stones. Carbon-14 tests provided a 6th millennium BCE date for the site.
A short distance from the sanctuary, a group of sixteen life-size representations of animals, made of small rectangular pieces of limestone, were found embedded into the ground. Fifteen of them face east and represent leopards with square heads, huge eyes, four legs and an upward-curving tail. One horned animal faces west, the slightly twisted horns suggesting an antelope. Is it possible that this was a cult-site where supplication to the gods for protection of the shepherds and their flocks against predators (leopards) was practiced thousands of years ago?
During the Chalcolithic period (4th millennium BCE), an agricultural revolution took place in the region. Hunting and gathering of grain were replaced by cultivation of barley and wheat and by herds of domesticated goats and sheep. Small settlements with planned stone dwellings and stone-lined grain silos dug into the ground were uncovered throughout the valley. Harvesting of the grain was done with sickles of bone or wood, into which toothed flint blades had been inserted; the grain was ground on grindstones, many of which were found in the dwellings.
More info about 'Uvda sites see our pages linked below:
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Nearby sites
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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
614m SSE 150° North wadi Tse'ela open air sanctuary* Ancient Temple
991m S 170° Wadi Tse'ela Habitation site* Ancient Village or Settlement
4.1km ENE 65° S' of Shacharut pass Open Air Sanctuaries* Ancient Temple
4.8km E 83° Zugan Pass Cult Site* Ancient Temple
5.2km NE 40° Mount Shacharut* Ancient Temple
5.4km N 349° Uvda Valley habitation site No 9* Ancient Village or Settlement
5.5km W 264° Wadi Hagdera-'Uvda camp & cult site* Ancient Village or Settlement
5.6km N 350° Uvda Valley habitation site No 18* Ancient Village or Settlement
6.6km N 356° East Uvda valley cult sites* Ancient Temple
6.8km NE 43° Southern Itro pass * Stone Row / Alignment
6.8km N 357° Leopards Open Sanctuary* Ancient Temple
8.3km SW 226° Wadi Milhan Ancient Farm* Ancient Village or Settlement
8.9km NE 36° Itro pass Roded Figurines* Ancient Temple
9.0km SW 233° North Sayarim Valley Tumulus* Barrow Cemetery
9.1km SSW 201° Timn'a cliffs Roded type open air sanctuaries* Ancient Temple
9.3km W 280° South 'Uvda Valley Matseboth* Standing Stones
9.4km WSW 244° North Sayarim Valley Rock Carving* Rock Art
9.5km S 170° Ancient Copper Strip-mine north of Mt. Michrot* Ancient Mine, Quarry or other Industry
9.6km S 177° N' W' Timna valley ancient copper industry* Ancient Mine, Quarry or other Industry
10.0km NE 34° Top Itro pass 7 Matseboth* Standing Stone (Menhir)
10.1km S 176° Mount. Michrot* Ancient Temple
11.0km WSW 240° Sayarim Valley E'* Standing Stones
11.8km S 173° Sasgon valley* Standing Stones
12.1km SSW 199° Timna Valley Copper Mines* Ancient Mine, Quarry or other Industry
12.4km SSW 191° Timna Valley Mushroom Site* Natural Stone / Erratic / Other Natural Feature
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We would like to know more about this location. Please feel free to add a brief description and any relevant information in your own language.
Wir möchten mehr über diese Stätte erfahren. Bitte zögern Sie nicht, eine kurze Beschreibung und relevante Informationen in Deutsch hinzuzufügen.
Nous aimerions en savoir encore un peu sur les lieux. S'il vous plaît n'hesitez pas à ajouter une courte description et tous les renseignements pertinents dans votre propre langue.
Quisieramos informarnos un poco más de las lugares. No dude en añadir una breve descripción y otros datos relevantes en su propio idioma.