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Galilee Drought Uncovers Oldest Village In The World
Sunday Times (UK) ^ | 9-23-2001 | Dina Shiloh

Posted on 09/24/2001 1:40:07 PM PDT by blam

September 23 2001 MIDDLE EAST

Galilee drought uncovers oldest village in the world

Dina Shiloh Tel Aviv

ISRAELI archeologists have found what could be the world's oldest village on the dried-out bed of the Sea of Galilee. The settlement, dating back 20,000 years, came to light in one of the worst droughts in recent years.

Thousands of items including huts, tools and fireplaces found at Ohalo, on the southwestern shore, give a unique insight into the semi-nomadic people who lived there towards the end of the early Stone Age.

"We found what every researcher dreams of finding," said Dani Nadel, who leads the Haifa University excavation team, "items used in everyday life, and small artefacts that tell us things we never even dreamed about in regard to the technology, society and environment of these people."

The items are in almost perfect condition because the water that covered them prevented decay. Nadel said the large quantities of seeds and other organic materials meant carbon-14 testing could be used to date them accurately.

"Usually dwellings from this period are not preserved, and we do not know how many they were, where they stood, the number, size, and orientation of their fireplaces, or how the living area was arranged," he said. "Here we found the most ancient huts in the world."

The brush huts - less than 2ft apart - were made with branches of oak and tamarisk trees, with the cracks stuffed with shrubs and grasses.

"These nomads ate mostly fish and fruit," Nadel said. "We are talking about 9,000 years before the beginning of agriculture, before the domestication of animals or plants. But we did find hundreds of thousands of fish bones, so they were fishermen. They also knew how to hunt water fowl, ravens, birds of prey, and even animals like the gazelle, fallow deer, fox, hare and turtle."

The team also found the skeleton of a man. Aged about 40 when he died and just over 5ft tall, he had his hands folded across his chest. Only one other skeleton from this period has been discovered in Israel.

Haifa University intends to display some of the treasures from Ohalo next year. The excavation ended last month and the team has left plenty of material for other archeologists to find when scientific techniques have become more developed.

"The finds unearthed by our team could serve as research material for each and every one of us until we retire," Nadel said. "But we should leave future archeologists things to discover, too."


TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: godsgravesglyphs
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To: Straight Vermonter
Religious or not - Creationist or not - Straight or not. You have bad manners.

Ashland, Missouri

81 posted on 09/25/2001 7:55:01 AM PDT by rface
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To: Critter
Serious question. How long are we supposed to have been here on earth?

Everyone seems to forget the bible wasn't written in English. The word "day" in the Genesis verses is Strong's #3117 in Hebrew meaning:

03117 yowm {yome}

from an unused root meaning to be hot; TWOT - 852; n m

AV - day 2008, time 64, chronicles + 01697 37, daily 44, ever 18,

year 14, continually 10, when 10, as 10, while 8, full 8 always 4, whole 4, alway 4, misc 44; 2287

1) day, time, year
1a) day (as opposed to night)
1b) day (24 hour period)
1b1) as defined by evening and morning in Genesis 1
1b2) as a division of time
1b2a) a working day, a day's journey
1c) days, lifetime (pl.)
1d) time, period (general)
1e) year
1f) temporal references
1f1) today
1f2) yesterday
1f3) tomorrow

As you can see, #3117 designates a time period, not exclusively a 24 hour period. The earth is billions of years old. Genesis explains creation. There's a lot of information in the first part of Genesis that doesn't immediately pop out, but will if you give your mind the key.

82 posted on 09/25/2001 8:07:09 AM PDT by #3Fan
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To: Mugwort
Good to hear from you! I was feeling a bit out of place, maybe a generational thing?

I know of man-made lakes that flooded homes and towns, and they might still be intact, while other houses abandoned on dry ground during the same time have weathered away.

This village must have been flooded fairly quickly, or the huts would be mere piles of sticks at best, or, more likely, compost.

83 posted on 09/25/2001 9:17:00 AM PDT by marigold
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To: marigold
I just reread the post with the pictures of the huts. Guess they WERE pretty much compost! Burnt, too. Oh, well, archaeologists have to do something with their time; and reconstructing stick huts, well, that's one way to earn a salary. :)
84 posted on 09/25/2001 9:27:04 AM PDT by marigold
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Comment #85 Removed by Moderator

To: #3Fan
As you can see, #3117 designates a time period, not exclusively a 24 hour period.

But, we do know that the record in the Hebrew text goes on to say that "the evening and the day were the first day." In fact, that same record is given for each day.

God created the foilage on the 3rd day, and the sun on the 4th day. He also told us that it was to reproduce after its own kind. This means that it was on its own. If there was a long period between those days, the plants and trees would have died, as they live by photosynthesis.

Really, it's simple. We make it more difficult when we add our own thoughts to fulfill our own thoughts and hopes.

It comes down to the fact that we were told that the evening and the day were the first day. That means that these were specified periods of time. It may be possible that the word can have different meanings, but when add the fact that the day was considered a combination of day and night, along with the fact that the plants needed the sun, that rules out your interpretation.

86 posted on 09/25/2001 1:52:54 PM PDT by AlGone2001
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Comment #87 Removed by Moderator

Comment #88 Removed by Moderator

Comment #89 Removed by Moderator

To: lightstream
On the third day the earth, dry land appeared.

You still fail to account for the fact that the greenery appeared. It needed light to live, as God declared that it would reproduce after its own kind. Things work out marvelous for you when you leave holes in the message. But, when you have to face the greenery, its an entirely different story.

90 posted on 09/25/2001 6:44:15 PM PDT by AlGone2001
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To: lightstream
The day you speak of was called a Grand Age and lasted 25,856 of our Earth years.

I can't wait to see you reference that passage. Humor me.

91 posted on 09/25/2001 6:45:50 PM PDT by AlGone2001
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To: AlGone2001
But, we do know that the record in the Hebrew text goes on to say that "the evening and the day were the first day." In fact, that same record is given for each day.

Exactly. For each of these time periods there was a beginning (evening) and an end (day) designating that they didn't overlap. Each phase of creation had it's own time for being.

God created the foilage on the 3rd day, and the sun on the 4th day. He also told us that it was to reproduce after its own kind. This means that it was on its own. If there was a long period between those days, the plants and trees would have died, as they live by photosynthesis.

A sun was created on the first day. As I've shown above each "day" was a time period. There wasn't an extended period of darkness after a sun was established.

It comes down to the fact that we were told that the evening and the day were the first day. That means that these were specified periods of time. It may be possible that the word can have different meanings, but when add the fact that the day was considered a combination of day and night, along with the fact that the plants needed the sun, that rules out your interpretation.

How so? A sun was created on the first day.

92 posted on 09/25/2001 9:08:11 PM PDT by #3Fan
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Comment #93 Removed by Moderator

To: Mugwort
That's what I would guess. I didn't know there were hot springs in the area, but it's not a big surprise. As you say, it is a geologically active region.

Now, as to whether it was a village or a hangout for bandits or a leper colony........I don't think I'll get into that.

94 posted on 09/26/2001 9:11:47 AM PDT by marigold
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To: Straight Vermonter

Hello,
4-14-05
I just finished reading an article about Ohalo 2. I wanted to get more information about this find and my search came up with this website and this article DROUGHT UNCOVERS OLDEST VILLAGE......

I noticed your comment about being prepared for the creationist. Just want to let you know that the article I just finished reading was printed by Reasons To Believe and it states that the evidence shows that the Ohalo 2 site is probably 12,000 years older than the Neolithic revolution. Not all of us who believe in creation have fallen into the trap of believing the earth is only 6000 years old. I for one believe it is 4.5 billion. If your interested, check out the website www.reasons.org.

Thanks, John


95 posted on 04/14/2005 7:26:36 AM PDT by jminardi
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To: blam; Fred Nerks

· join list or digest · view topics · view or post blog · bookmark · post a topic ·

 
Gods
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Glyphs
Thanks Blam.

Note: this pre-GGG list topic is from 2001.

Blast from the Past.

Just adding to the catalog, not sending a general distribution.

To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list.
GGG managers are SunkenCiv, StayAt HomeMother, and Ernest_at_the_Beach
 

· Google · Archaeologica · ArchaeoBlog · Archaeology magazine · Biblical Archaeology Society ·
· Mirabilis · Texas AM Anthropology News · Yahoo Anthro & Archaeo ·
· History or Science & Nature Podcasts · Excerpt, or Link only? · cgk's list of ping lists ·


96 posted on 09/15/2008 8:51:16 AM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/_______Profile hasn't been updated since Friday, May 30, 2008)
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Farming Origins Gain 10,000 Years
BBC | 6-23-2004
Posted on 06/23/2004 4:42:34 PM PDT by blam
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1158957/posts


97 posted on 09/15/2008 8:55:13 AM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/_______Profile hasn't been updated since Friday, May 30, 2008)
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World's Oldest Brush Huts by MAS:
Some of the Earliest Homes are discovered in Israel's Jordan Valley

Discovering Archaeology
September / November 2000
A major archaeological discovery emerged from the Sea of Galilee recently as sealevel fell in the wake of a a brutal drought. The receding water revealed the well-preserved remains of the oldest brush huts ever found. The rudimentary homes are 19,400 years old.

The prehistoric campsite in Israel's Jordan Valley contained the dirt-packed foundations of six huts, a grave, several hearths, and an area believed to have been used as a garbage dump. Preservation, because it was submerged under water for millennia, was incredible considering its age, said archaeologist Dani Nadel of the University of Haifa.

Radiocarbon dating shows the huts to be among the oldest surviving structures in the world. The floor of one hut yielded a unique array of artifacts, including chipped stone tools, animal bones, and burned fruit and seeds. Excavations near another of the structures revealed the grave of an adult male who was buried with a carved gazelle bone.

The largest hut, an oval some four meters (13 feet) on its long axis, apparently consisted of thick oak branches covered with grass and leaves. No postholes were found. "For the first time," Nadel said, "we have artifacts that tell us about the daily indoor activities of the people that lived here 19,000 years ago."

98 posted on 10/31/2012 8:28:05 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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http://mushecht.haifa.ac.il/archeology/ExhibitionC_eng.aspx?id=7

 GGG managers are SunkenCiv, StayAt HomeMother & Ernest_at_the_Beach
Thanks blam.

To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list.


99 posted on 10/31/2012 8:33:57 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: Straight Vermonter
“Trouble not yourself with ENDLESS genealogies”
100 posted on 05/25/2013 8:51:59 AM PDT by stockpirate (F. Douglass, "A man's rights rest in three boxes: ballot box, jury box, and ammo box)
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