Epipalaeolithic occupation and palaeoenvironments of the southern Nefud desert, Saudi Arabia, during the Terminal Pleistocene and Early Holocene

Abstract

International audienceThe transition from the Terminal Pleistocene to the Early Holocene is poorly represented in the geological and archaeological records of northern Arabia, and the climatic conditions that prevailed in the region during that period are unclear. Here, we present a new record from the site of Al-Rabyah, in the Jubbah basin (southern Nefud desert, Saudi Arabia), where a sequence of fossiliferous lacustrine and palustrine deposits containing an archaeological assemblage is preserved. Sedimentological and palaeoenvironmental investigations, both at Al-Rabyah and elsewhere in the Jubbah area, indicate phases of humid conditions, during which shallow lakes developed in the basin, separated by drier periods. At Al-Rabyah, the end of a Terminal Pleistocene phase of lake expansion has been dated to ∼12.2 ka using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL), with a mid-Holocene humid phase dated to after ∼6.6 ka. Palaeoecological reconstructions based primarily on non-marine molluscs and ostracods from the younger lacustrine deposits indicate a relatively shallow body of freshwater surrounded by moist, well-vegetated environments. A lithic assemblage characterized by bladelets and geometric microliths was excavated from sediments attributed to a drier climatic phase dated to ∼10.1 ka. The lithic artefact types exhibit similarities to Epipalaeolithic industries of the Levant, and their occurrence well beyond the ‘core region’ of such assemblages (and at a significantly later date) has important implications for understanding interactions between Levantine and Arabian populations during the Terminal Pleistocene–Early Holocene. We suggest that the presence of foraging populations in the southern Nefud during periods of drier climate is due to the prolonged presence of a freshwater oasis in the Jubbah Basin during the Terminal Pleistocene–Early Holocene, which enabled them to subsist in the region when neighbouring areas of northern Arabia and the Levant were increasingly hostile

Remote sensing and GIS techniques for reconstructing Arabian palaeohydrology and identifying archaeological sites

“…However, the presence of small playa deposits in interdune depressions (some radiocarbon dated to between 8.4 and 5.2 ka BP, see Whitney et al, 1983) suggests that periods of increased moisture availability during the Holocene may also have resulted in some level of (ephemeral) water availability in the dunes themselves, particularly in areas with shallow groundwater. Indeed, Holocene lakes at Tayma and Jubbah (Garrard et al, 1981;Engel et al, 2011;Crassard et al, 2013b;Hilbert et al, 2014) confirm the presence of increased rainfall in the Nefud between c. 10 and 6 ka. To the south, in the Shuwaymis region, reactivation of drainage on the basalt flows associated with the upper Wadi Ar Rimah/Batin would have led to ponding in minor depressions along the drainage courses on the Harrats Ithnayn and Khaybar, forming palustrine areas (this phenomenon was visible on a reduced level immediately after heavy rainfall during fieldwork).…”

Middle to Late Pleistocene human habitation in the western Nefud Desert, Saudi Arabia

“…Conversely, Holocene sites appear to be extremely limited (but see Engel et al, 2012;Hilbert et al, 2014). Geomorphological and sedimentological field observations, in conjunction with ages obtained from previous research (i.e., Rosenberg et al, 2013), have facilitated the identification of two distinct phases of lake formation in the southern Nefud associated with Lower and Middle Palaeolithic archaeology.…”

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

“…From localities such as Jubbah sparse Epipalaeolithic, Neolithic and possibly Chalcolithic stone tool assemblages have been identified Garrard et al, 1981;Hilbert et al, 2014;Parr et al, 1978). However, no faunal remains of this date have been retrieved or analysed in the region.…”