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Recently, archaeologists uncovered a Stone Age mega-site that had been buried. The site, named after the neighborhood in which it was found (Motza) first started as a Neolithic village around 10,000 years ago, but a couple thousand years later, it was a bustling center of trade and activity, with a population of about 3,000 people (quite large for that time). What researchers thought was an uninhabited region was actually home to a human society quite advanced for that time. The original inhabitants were likely hunter-gatherers who gradually became more sedentary and experimented with crops.
By around 6-7,000 BCE, it had large buildings, public facilities, and ritual centers. There was an organized street system with alleyways between buildings. In other parts of the city, storage sheds were used to keep seeds and foods, including lentils and chickpeas, which were very well preserved. The excavations also unearthed flint tools, including arrowheads used for hunting and possibly fighting, plus axes, and various kinds of blades. Some of these tools would have been used in farming, enabling the development of agriculture in the city, which grew wheat, barley, and beans. Inhabitants also ate cows and pigs – and may have been the first known society to domesticate goats.
An aerial view exemplary of the urban planning at Motza, including roads and variable sized homes.
Shells and beads found at Motza
Archaeologists recovered thousands of flint tools crafted by early farmers, such as sickles to harvest crops and arrowheads for hunting and warfare.
Archaeologists unearthed about 300 human burials under plaster floors, in courtyards and between walls. Skeletons were curled on their sides, knees tightly tucked, suggesting the bodies had been bound.
Cultural artefacts and precious crafted objects such as bracelets and medallions preserved in the city's tombs and elsewhere reveal evidence of a community who possessed and traded all kinds of exotic things. Unique stone-made objects were found in the tombs, made of an unknown type of stone, as well as items made of obsidian (volcanic glass) from Anatolia (present day Turkey), and sea-shells, some of which were brought from the Mediterranean Sea and some from the Red Sea hundreds of miles away. Archaeologists theorize that goods found in burials (some of which were buried below the floors of buildings) were meant to accompany the dead into the afterlife. Archaeologists unearthed about 300 human burials under plaster floors, in courtyards and between walls. Skeletons were curled on their sides, knees tightly tucked, suggesting the bodies had been bound. Some were missing heads. The skulls may have been removed and covered in plaster, as was the custom at other sites in the region.
The amount of planning for large buildings and public spaces indicates the need for formal leadership, and archaeologists have found homes of varying sizes with different amounts of personal goods, indicating social stratification or hierarchy. Ultimately the site was abandoned perhaps due to growth that outpaced resources and social organization.
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