The natural arc of resource-rich land which forms the ‘Fertile Crescent’ of South-West Asia is regarded as the earliest centre of village-based farming in the world and has been the focus of much of our understanding of the transition from Epipalaeolithic hunter-gathers to Neolithic farmers. Beyond the Fertile Crescent is the first volume of the Azraq Project, a large-scale archaeological and palaeoenvironmental survey and excavation project undertaken between 1982 and 1989 in the ecologically diverse sub-region of the Azraq Basin in north-central Jordan: an area rich in Palaeolithic and Neolithic archaeology. Beginning with an overview to the Project aims, a detailed analysis of past and present environments and land use and the history of excavation in the Basin, Beyond the Fertile Crescent explores the geology, stratigraphy and dating of the Late Palaeolithic sites and provides a detailed description of the technology and typology of the lithic assemblages from the sites. These are then compared with those from the wider Levant, in order to explore possible links between technological traditions and social groups in order to understand the evidence for settlement strategies across the region.

• Coverpage
• Titlepage
• Copyright
• Contents
• List of figures
• List of tables
• Preface and acknowledgements
• Abbreviations
• Section A: Project Background
  • 1 Introduction
    • 1.1 Introduction
    • 1.2 Field research on the Epipalaeolithic
    • 1.3 Field research on the Neolithic
    • 1.4 The Azraq Basin Project
    • 1.5 Structure of Volume 1
  • 2 The environmental context
    • 2.1 Present environment of Azraq Basin
    • 2.2 Pleistocene and early Holocene environments of the Azraq Basin
    • 2.3 Pleistocene and early Holocene environments in the Levant
  • 3 History of investigations, survey results and excavation strategy
    • 3.1 Field research in the Azraq Basin prior to 1975
    • 3.2 Field research in the Azraq Basin post-1975
    • 3.3 The Azraq Basin Project
    • 3.4 Aims and methods of the archaeological survey
    • 3.5 The results of the archaeological survey
    • 3.6 The archaeological sounding programme
    • 3.7 The archaeological excavation programme
    • 3.8 Soundings and excavations at sites from other time periods
    • 3.9 Other associated surveys
• Section B: The Late Palaeolithic – Geological Context
  • 4 Geological context and stratigraphy of Late Palaeolithic sites
    • 4.1 Introduction
    • 4.2 Stratigraphy and sedimentological analyses
    • 4.3 Wadi Jilat sites
    • 4.4 Wadi Uwaynid sites
    • 4.5 Azraq sites
    • 4.6 Valley alluviation in Wadi Jilat
    • 4.7 The geomorphology of Qa Azraq
    • 4.8 Event correlation in the Azraq Basin
• Section C: The Late Palaeolithic – Chipped Stone Assemblages
  • 5 Research strategy and analytical approach to chipped stone assemblages from Azraq Basin
    • 5.1 Introduction
    • 5.2 Approaches to elucidating reduction strategies
    • 5.3 Tool typologies and analysis of retouched pieces
    • 5.4 Sampling methods used at each site
  • 6 Chipped stone assemblages from the Jilat sites
    • 6.1 Introduction
    • 6.2 Wadi Jilat 9
    • 6.3 Wadi Jilat 6
    • 6.4 Wadi Jilat 28
    • 6.5 Wadi Jilat 10
    • 6.6 Wadi Jilat 22
    • 6.7 Wadi Jilat 8
  • 7 Chipped stone assemblages from the Uwaynid and Azraq sites
    • 7.1 Introduction
    • 7.2 Uwaynid 18
    • 7.3 Uwaynid 14
    • 7.4 Azraq 32
    • 7.5 Azraq 17
    • 7.6 Azraq 18
  • 8 Intersite comparisons and overall trends among the Azraq Basin assemblages
    • 8.1 Introduction
    • 8.2 Using surface collections to predict subsurface assemblages
    • 8.3 Chronological framework
    • 8.4 Reduction strategies
    • 8.5 Tool blank selection
    • 8.6 Tool types: their fabrication and use
    • 8.7 Overall technological and typological trends
  • 9 Regional patterns in Late Palaeolithic chipped stone production and technology in the Levant
    • 9.1 Nomenclature for classifying chipped stone industries
    • 9.2 Chronometric dating of the assemblages
    • 9.3 Interpreting the Azraq Basin record
    • 9.4 Summary
• Appendices
  • A List of team members and sponsors of Azraq Field seasons
  • B Locus sheet used in 1988–89 excavation seasons
  • C Chipped stone artefact classification
  • D Debitage analysis form
  • E Core analysis form
  • F Microburin analysis form
  • G Tool analysis form
  • H Tool classes
  • I The function of Jilat knives from Wadi Jilat 22: a lithic microwear analysis Mark Becker
  • J Recalibration of radiocarbon dates
• Bibliography