Athabasca University, Athabasca
ANTH 277
ANTH 277
Assignment 2: Investigating a Neolithic Dwelling
Tutor: Dr. Laurie Milne
DATE
NEOLITHIC DWELLING 2 of 15
Abstract
The Neolithic site at Jarmo in what is now Northern Iraq but was part of ancient
Mesopotamia, shows evidence of innovation and adaptation of technologies that were
revolutionary for their ti
...[Show More]
ANTH 277
Assignment 2: Investigating a Neolithic Dwelling
Tutor: Dr. Laurie Milne
DATE
NEOLITHIC DWELLING 2 of 15
Abstract
The Neolithic site at Jarmo in what is now Northern Iraq but was part of ancient
Mesopotamia, shows evidence of innovation and adaptation of technologies that were
revolutionary for their time. The period of occupation and the activity in the region shows
evidence that it was a period of transition not only in technologies but in many areas of life from
societal organization to religion and food sources. The site was first excavated by Robert
Braidwood between 1948 and 1955. Braidwood was searching for evidence to fill a gap he had
identified between the last hunter-gatherers and the first agriculturist communities that spanned
almost 2,000 years. Jarmo was a part of the answer to that gap and shows occupation in the PrePottery Neolithic (PPN) and Pottery Neolithic (PN) periods with some of the earliest evidence of
agricultural practice. Braidwood used what were considered groundbreaking techniques at the
time in their excavations with modern approaches to recovery including the collection of faunal
remains (Price et al, 2013, p. 443). Radiocarbon dating calibrates the occupations as ranging
from approximately 11,240-6,300 years ago (Price et al, 2013, p. 444). At the height of its
occupation, it is assumed that up to 150 people or possibly more lived on the 1.3-hectare (3.2
acres) site. Jarmo is thought to have been a permanent, year-round settlement and is one of the
earliest instances of a settlement with evidence for an economy that included farming. The
Neolithic inhabitants were early pioneers of animal husbandry, domestication of cultivated plants
including lentils, and possibly the production of beer.
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