SUMMARY
1. Extensions are given of the recorded range (Meinertzhagen 1954) or periods of occurrence of certain species.
2. Spring passage of waders at Aden was light except for Grey Plover Charadrius squatarola. There was a very noticeable passage of shrikes there 30 April‐12 May.
3. Individuals of many species of northern‐breeding waders were recorded in summer.
4. A light but steady S.W. movement of birds was noticeable at Aden from the beginning of July onwards. Waders began to increase in numbers by the middle of the month, and by the first week in August quite large flocks were present.
Rehydroxylation (RHX) dating was recently suggested as a simple, cheap, and accurate method for dating ceramics. It depends on the constant rate of rehydroxylation (the slow reintroduction of OH) of clays after they are fired and dehydroxylated (purged of OH) during the production of pots, bricks, or other ceramics. The original firing of the ceramic artifact should set the dating clock to zero by driving all hydroxyls out of the clay chemical structure. To examine whether this assumption holds, especially for pot firings of short duration and low intensity, as those in small-scale traditional settings, we performed thermogravimetric analysis of clay samples of known mineralogy at temperatures and for durations reported from traditional sub-Saharan, American, and South Asian pottery firings. Results demonstrate that in the majority of samples, complete dehydroxylation (DHX) did not occur within, or even beyond, the conditions common in traditional firings. Consequently, between .01 and 1.5% of a sample"s mass in residual OH may remain after firings analogous to those observed in the ethnographic record. Lack of complete DHX at the scales we have observed can result in the over-estimation of ceramic ages by decades to tens of thousands of years, depending largely on the age of the sample, and the amount of residual OH present. Thus, in many cases, a key assumption underlying current RHX dating methods is unlikely to have been met, introducing considerable error in dates.
We present the first analysis of a chipped stone assemblage recovered from the PPNA layers of el-Hemmeh, Southern Jordan. The sample (31,725 pieces) shows general affinities to PPNA material described elsewhere from the Southern Levant but also provides evidence for a distinctive suite of typological and technological traits. These include the presence of at least two reduction sequences, a lack of traditional PPNA point types, and an emphasis on the production of burins and tools manufactured on burin spalls. We suggest that this assemblage, together with those from other PPNA sites (WF16 and ZAD 2), provides evidence of indigenous cultural development during the Late PPNA in Southern Jordan.
RésuméCette contribution présente l'analyse préliminaire d'un assemblage de pierres taillées provenant de niveaux datés du Néolithique précéramique A (PPNA) à el-Hemmeh, Jordanie du Sud. L'échantillon montre des affinités générales avec le matériel du PPNA décrit pour d'autres sites de la Jordanie du Sud, mais suggère également la présence de signes distinctifs au niveau typologique et technologique. Ces derniers incluent la présence d'au moins deux schémas opératoires, l'absence de pointes caractéristiques du PPNA et la prédominance de la production de burins et d'outils manufacturés à partir de chutes de burin. Il est proposé que cet assemblage, avec ceux provenant d'autres sites du PPNA (WF16 et ZAD 2), indique un développement culturel indigène pendant la fin du PPNA dans le sud de la Jordanie.
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