Some twenty-five years ago, hundreds of clay sealings as well as a series of stone stamp seals were foundin excavation at Tell Sabi Abyad in Syria. Dating to the late seventh millennium cal. BC,... Show moreSome twenty-five years ago, hundreds of clay sealings as well as a series of stone stamp seals were foundin excavation at Tell Sabi Abyad in Syria. Dating to the late seventh millennium cal. BC, the find repre-sents one of the largest assemblages of prehistoric sealings known in the Near East until now. By now, evenmore seals and sealings have been found at the site. Their occurrence in securely stratified contexts allowed for interpretations about their use in controlled storage events by pastoralists. This paper is primarilyconcerned with the date of introduction of the sealing practice at Tell Sabi Abyad and its embedding inthe wider cultural setting of the time. Show less
The Late Neolithic period in Upper Mesopotamia is generally associated with a surge in human settlement, in terms of their number, geographic distribution, and organizational complexity. In... Show moreThe Late Neolithic period in Upper Mesopotamia is generally associated with a surge in human settlement, in terms of their number, geographic distribution, and organizational complexity. In archaeological discussion, the “advanced farming village” is often seen as the logical “end product” of the agricultural transformations that began in the Early (“Pre-Pottery”) Neolithic. However, the complex later prehistoric landscape did not emerge overnight. Current evidence suggests that this profound transformation took about one and a half millennia, and showed much localized variability. Over the past decades, regional surveys have resulted in a rich body of evidence that stimulates the exploration of long-term trends in settlement through the Neolithic period. Here we present a synthesis of this exploration. We highlight some important methodological and conceptual challenges to interpreting these data, and we point out a number of possible shifts in the ways Late Neolithic communities inhabited the landscape. Show less
