Publications
MAY 2023
Ogloblin Ramirez, I., Grono, E., Zuckerman-Cooper, R., Langgut, D., Galili, E., & Friesem, D. E. (2023). Microarchaeological approach to underwater stratigraphy of submerged settlements: A case study of Atlit-Yam Pre-Pottery Neolithic site, off the Carmel Coast, Israel. Geoarcheology 38, 534-564. (Link to the publication)
Our new article presents an integrated microarchaeological field and laboratory protocol for investigating deep stratigraphy from submerged archaeological sites. We apply the protocol to pilot sedimentary cores from the Atlit-Yam site. Our preliminary findings suggest early occupation of the site during the Mid Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (PPNB) and Late PPNB (9859–9323 cal. B.P.) including microarchaeological evidence of anthropogenic activity down to a depth of 95cm below the seafloor. We now are continuing to apply this methodology to ongoing analyses on cores from the Atlit-Yam site.
OCT 2022
Friesem, D., Ogloblin-Ramirez, I., Zuckerman-Cooper, R., Grono, E., & Galili, E. (2022). Deep stratigraphy of submerged Neolithic sites: A micro-geoarchaeological approach to the study of coastal settlements in the Eastern Mediterranean. Antiquity 96, 1606-1611. doi:10.15184/aqy.2022.123 (Link to the publication)
Figure 2.
A) The vessel used to extract the cores, assisted by an onboard crane (photograph by E. Galili); B) a diver using a mechanised hammer to insert the pipe into the clay sediment (photograph by A. Yurman).
Figure 3.
Photographs of the cores showing the stratigraphic units alongside the results of micro-geoarchaeological analyses. Mineralogy is based on Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). Cl = clay; (u.a.) = unaltered; (a) = altered; Ca = calcite; Q = quartz; CHAP = carbonated hydroxyapatite. Phytolith concentration is calculated in 1 million phytoliths per 1g sediment (image produced by I. Ogloblin-Ramirez and D.E. Friesem).