PALEORIENT, vol. 13/1 - 1987

MOLLUSCA FROM YIFTAH'EL, LOWER GALILEE, ISRAEL

D.E. BAR-YOSEF AND J. HELLER

The site of Yiftah'el is located on the alluvial plain of Nahal Yiftah'el, northeast of Tel Yiftah'el in the Lower Galilee (UTM 1719-2401). Whilst constructing a highway, the archaeological site was discovered and salvage excavations were undertaken. The site was first tested in 1982 by A. Ronen of Haifa University and later that year was excavated by M. Davies and M. Lamdan of the M. Stekelis Museum of Prehistory in Haifa. These investigations uncovered Pre-Pottery Neolithic В (henceforth -PPNB) remains tentatively dated to the 7th millennium B.C. (Northern Area, Fig. 1)(1). In 1983 E. Braun of the Department of Antiquities and Museums commenced a large salvage excavation at that site (Areas A and B). In these areas there were several strata : Stratum I : Middle Bronze I Age; Stratum II : early Early Bronze I Age; Stratum Ilia : a fill with Late Neolithic/Early Chalcolithic pottery; Stratum Hlb : Neolithic houses; Stratum IV : installations of Late PPNB or Pottery Neolithic. The molluscs described henceforth derive from Strata III and II (2). An additional area (C) was excavated in the summers of 1983, 1984 and 1985 by Y. Garfinkel of the Department of Antiquities and Museums (3) with PPNB remains in it. The molluscs found in the different areas of the site (Marine, Fresh water and land snails) are presented in Table 1.

I. Data

Following are some comments on the finds mentioned in the Table.

I. Pre pottery Neolithic

1. The Northern Area (4)

Glycvmeris violascens : of the 3 complete valves, one has a hole in the umbo; and an additional fragment which seems to be fossil.

Cerastodenna glaucum : Of 5 complete valves, three are slightly boken. of them one is burnt. In 3 of the valves there is a human-made hole in the umbo. Eour additional fragments were found.

2. Area С (5)

Nerita polita : The single specimen of this Red Sea species has been artificially perforated near the apex.

Cvpraea I Pustalaria) spurca : Two lips of two different specimens were found, which were broken after the shell had been worked by rubbing off its "dorsum".

Cypraea turdus : One fragment of a lip was found, burnt and broken after the shell had been worked and its "dorsum" removed.

Murex trunculus : One of the two specimens is an abraded fragment, which was collected from the sea shore in this condition.

Thais haemastoma : Most of the shell was removed, in a way that only the aperture is left, and could be used as a bead.

Nassarius gibhosula : One complete specimen which has two holes in it (perhaps naturally damaged); another one with the "dorsum" removed, and the apex broken.

Glvevmeris violascens: 28 complete valves were found. 12 of them had been slightly broken or damaged. Of the complete valves, 4 have a natural hole perforated at the umbo, 2 have artificial holes at the umbo and one has a hole in the middle of the valve, probably done by a perforating gastropod. Of 15 additional fragments that were found, one had traces of a hole in the umbo. Thus, there were 8 perforated specimens which could have made part of a necklace.

Acanthocardia tuberculata : 8 complete valves were found (4 of which had slight damages). 2 had a natural hole at the umbo, 1

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