Chronological Trends in Negev Rock Art: The Har Michia Petroglyphs as a Test Case

Abstract

Negev rock art comprises a large and diverse corpus of motifs and compositions developed over the course of several millennia. As dating of specific elements is at present not possible, the rock art was analyzed statistically through the study of individual panels where internal sequences of engraving could be discerned. Examining the set of such individual sequences, larger scale reconstruction of engraving phases, sequences and patterns were recognized. Additional chronological markers, such as the presence of domestic camels or other chronologically diagnostic features, offer benchmarks for tying the general trends to more absolute frameworks. The reconstructed patterns reflect the long term history of the Negev and some of the most significant cultural and social transitions in the region are reflected visually through the rock art, notably a form of self-expression, a crucial complement to the historical sequences derived from sedentary peoples living farther north. For example the introduction of the domestic camel and its symbolic and economic significance is well evident in the rock art. Similarly, the emergence of Islam is expressed through the mark makers' preference for "abstract" (non-figurative) motifs. One motif found throughout all engraving phases, transcending the religious, political and economic structures of Negev society, is the "ibex". Although Negev societies have all focused, to one degree or another, on sheep and goat pastoralism, these animals are rarely present in the Negev rock art and never as herds. Ibex, whose role in the diet and daily subsistence was minimal, was the most commonly depicted zoomorphic motif.

Inscribed landscapes in the Black Desert: Petroglyphs and kites at Wisad Pools, Jordan

“…5). A similar dominance is noted for ibex representations in the Negev (Avner, Kolska Horwitz, & Horowitz, 2017;Eisenberg-Degen & Rosen, 2013), where a disinterest in rendering domestic sheep and goat is also similar. Although the style of pecking is not directly similar, like those from Wisad Pools, the depictions are unmistakable given the exaggerated arch or curling large horns, sometimes including the horizontal bosses.…”

“…Parallels to the majority of petroglyphs at Wisad Pools are limited. Petroglyphs in Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Qatar, Oman, Israel and UAE rarely look similar (Anati, 1968(Anati, , 1996(Anati, , 2015Betts, 2001;De Ceuninck, 1998;Eisenberg-Degen & Rosen, 2013;Haerinck, 1998;Nayeem, 1996;Rothenburg, 2001), usually differing in technique and subject matter, although later styles are very similar between Jordan and northern Saudi Arabia (Guagnin et al, 2015;Khan, 1998: 103). The rich and extensively researched rock art of northern Saudi Arabia records few petroglyphs resembling those at Wisad Pools in style, even where similar animals (ibex, cattle) are depicted (Khan, 1993).…”

Rock art imagery as a proxy for Holocene environmental change: A view from Shuwaymis, NW Saudi Arabia

“…Average annual precipitation of both simulations is indicated with bold grey lines. abundance of gazelles in the faunal record (Eisenberg-Degen and Rosen, 2013;Rollefson et al, 2008).…”

Monumental megalithic burial and rock art tell a new story about the Levant Intermediate Bronze “Dark Ages”

“…Dating rock art is difficult. It is even more complicated when the art is out of context as in the case of the vast majority of rock art found in the Southern Levant deserts [ 40 , 41 ]. The Shamir panel is unique as it is found in an archaeological context, next to a burial dated to the IB.…”