Presenters
Ian Kuijt
Department of Anthropology University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, USA
Title
I Live, I Die, I Live Again: 10,000 year old ritual heirlooms and the life history of Near Eastern Neolithic plastered skulls
Abstract
Around 10,000 years ago Neolithic ritual specialists at the site of Jericho recreated the physical appearance of the dead by rebuilding the human face and skulls with clay. Recent high-resolution CT and micro-CT imaging of Jericho skull D117 (Chau Chak Wing Museum, Sydney) provides insights into the sophisticated technical skills that Neolithic ritual practitioners employed to create life-like plastered skulls, including the sequence and timing of production stages, and different materials used. Remarkably, it is now clear that skull manufacture was organized around multi-stage production of separate components, such as ears and noses, that were then placed into anatomical position on skulls without mandibles. Ultimately, this study helps us understand the importance of ritual knowledge within early village communities.
