Excavated Sanctuary
Archaeologists find 9,000-year-old shrine in Jordan desert
Inside the sanctuary were two carved standing stones, an altar, a hearth, sea shells, and a miniature model of the gazelle trap
© Jordanian Antiquities Authority / AFP
Archaeologists have discovered a 9,000-year-old shrine in the Jordan desert. The sanctuary is unique in the eyes of the researchers because of its state of preservation.
A Jordanian-French team of archaeologists has unearthed a sanctuary some 9,000 years old at a remote Neolithic site in Jordan’s Eastern Desert. The ritual complex was found in a Neolithic encampment near large structures known as “desert dragons” or mass traps, believed to have been used to imprison wild gazelles for slaughter.
As reported by the Associated Press, such traps consist of two or more long stone walls that converge to form an enclosure and are scattered across the deserts of the Middle East.
9000 year old shrine in Jordan almost intact
“The site is unique, largely because of its state of preservation,” said Jordanian archaeologist Wael Abu-Azziza, co-director of the project. “It’s 9,000 years old and everything was almost intact.”
The sanctuary contained two carved standing stones with anthropomorphic (human-like) figures – one depicting the “Desert Dragon” – as well as an altar, fireplace, sea shells and a miniature model of the gazelle trap.
According to the researchers, the sanctuary “sheds a whole new light on the symbolism, artistic expression and spiritual culture of these previously unknown Neolithic peoples,” according to a statement.
Traps indicate specialized hunters
The proximity of the dig site to the traps suggests that the residents were specialized hunters and that the traps “were the center of their cultural, economic and even symbolic life in this fringe zone”.
The team that made the historic discovery included archaeologists from Jordan’s Al Hussein Bin Talal University and France’s Middle East Institute. The dig site was excavated during the last digging season of 2021.
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Source: AP