From the BBC Online:
24 August 2011 Last updated at 18:19 ET
Saudis 'find evidence of early horse domestication'
Saudi officials say archaeologists have begun excavating a site that suggests horses were domesticated 9,000 years ago in the Arabian Peninsula.
The vice-president of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities said the discovery at al-Maqar challenged the theory it first took place 5,500 years ago in Central Asia. Ali al-Ghabban said it also changed what was known about the evolution of culture in the late Neolithic period.
A number of artefacts were also found. They included arrowheads, scrapers, grain grinders, tools for spinning and weaving, and other tools that showed the inhabitants were skilled at handicrafts. Mr. Ghabban said carbon-14 tests on the artefacts, as well as DNA tests on human remains also found there, dated them to about 7,000 BC.
"This discovery will change our knowledge concerning the domestication of horses and the evolution of culture in the late Neolithic period," he told a news conference in Jeddah, according to the Reuters news agency. "The al-Maqar civilisation is a very advanced civilization of the Neolithic period. This site shows us clearly, the roots of the domestication of horses 9,000 years ago," he added.
Although humans came into contact with horses about 50,000 years ago, they were originally herded for meat, skins, and possibly for milk. The first undisputed evidence for their domestication dates back to 2,000 BC, when horses were buried with chariots. By 1,000 BC, domestication had spread through Europe, Asia and North Africa.
However, researchers have found evidence suggesting that the animals were used by the Botai culture in northern Kazakhstan 5,500 years ago.
Neighhhhhh! Do these remind you of any chess pieces with which you may be familiar???
According to this article at The Daily Star (Lebanon):
“This discovery will change our knowledge concerning the domestication of horses and the evolution of culture in the late Neolithic period,” said Ali al-Ghabban, vice president of Antiquities and Museums at the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities in Jeddah. “The Maqar Civilization is a very advanced civilization of the Neolithic period. This site shows us clearly, the roots of the domestication of horses 9,000 years ago.”
The remains of the civilization were found close to Abha, in southwestern Asir province, an area known to antiquity as Arabia Felix.
The civilization, Ghabban added, used “methods of embalming that are totally different to known processes.”
Among the remains found at the site are statues of animals such as goats, dogs, hawks, and a meter-tall bust of a horse, the official said: “A statue of an animal of this dimension, dating back to that time, has never been found anywhere in the world.”
24 August 2011 Last updated at 18:19 ET
Saudis 'find evidence of early horse domestication'
Saudi officials say archaeologists have begun excavating a site that suggests horses were domesticated 9,000 years ago in the Arabian Peninsula.
The vice-president of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities said the discovery at al-Maqar challenged the theory it first took place 5,500 years ago in Central Asia. Ali al-Ghabban said it also changed what was known about the evolution of culture in the late Neolithic period.
A number of artefacts were also found. They included arrowheads, scrapers, grain grinders, tools for spinning and weaving, and other tools that showed the inhabitants were skilled at handicrafts. Mr. Ghabban said carbon-14 tests on the artefacts, as well as DNA tests on human remains also found there, dated them to about 7,000 BC.
"This discovery will change our knowledge concerning the domestication of horses and the evolution of culture in the late Neolithic period," he told a news conference in Jeddah, according to the Reuters news agency. "The al-Maqar civilisation is a very advanced civilization of the Neolithic period. This site shows us clearly, the roots of the domestication of horses 9,000 years ago," he added.
Although humans came into contact with horses about 50,000 years ago, they were originally herded for meat, skins, and possibly for milk. The first undisputed evidence for their domestication dates back to 2,000 BC, when horses were buried with chariots. By 1,000 BC, domestication had spread through Europe, Asia and North Africa.
However, researchers have found evidence suggesting that the animals were used by the Botai culture in northern Kazakhstan 5,500 years ago.
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The BBC did not contain photographs of some of the spectacular horse-related artifacts recovered at the site! The following are from an article on the discovery at Past Horizons: |
| From Far Horizons, one of the horse figurines recovered at the Al Maqar site projected over an image of the site. |
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| Another horse figurine, Al Maqar site, Saudi Arabia. |
Neighhhhhh! Do these remind you of any chess pieces with which you may be familiar???
According to this article at The Daily Star (Lebanon):
“This discovery will change our knowledge concerning the domestication of horses and the evolution of culture in the late Neolithic period,” said Ali al-Ghabban, vice president of Antiquities and Museums at the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities in Jeddah. “The Maqar Civilization is a very advanced civilization of the Neolithic period. This site shows us clearly, the roots of the domestication of horses 9,000 years ago.”
The remains of the civilization were found close to Abha, in southwestern Asir province, an area known to antiquity as Arabia Felix.
The civilization, Ghabban added, used “methods of embalming that are totally different to known processes.”
Among the remains found at the site are statues of animals such as goats, dogs, hawks, and a meter-tall bust of a horse, the official said: “A statue of an animal of this dimension, dating back to that time, has never been found anywhere in the world.”
"Neighhhhhh! Do these remind you of any chess pieces with which you may be familiar???"
ReplyDeleteDuhhhh, it's obviously a bishop, with his mitre knocked askew.
LOL! An original point of view for sure.
ReplyDelete