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The Impact of Environmental Conditions on Ghassulian Settlement (Ca The Impact of Environmental Conditions on Ghassulian Settlement (ca. 4,500-3,900 BC): A GIS- based Spatial Analysis Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of “DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY” by Rona Winter-Livneh Submitted to the Senate of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev June 2013 Beer-Sheva The Impact of Environmental Conditions on Ghassulian Settlement (ca. 4,500-3,900 BC): A GIS based Spatial Analysis Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of “DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY” by Rona Winter-Livneh Submitted to the Senate of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev Approved by the advisors Approved by the Dean of the Kreitman School of Advanced Graduate Studies June 2013 Beer-Sheva This work was carried out under the supervision of Prof. Isaac Gilead In the Department of Bible, Archaeology and the Ancient Near East The Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Prof. Tal Svoray In the Department of Geography and Environmental Development The Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Research-Student's Affidavit when Submitting the Doctoral Thesis for Judgment I Rona Winter-Livneh whose signature appears below, hereby declare that (Please mark the appropriate statements): _X_I have written this Thesis by myself, except for the help and guidance offered by my Thesis Advisors. X The scientific materials included in this Thesis are products of my own research, culled from the period during which I was a research student. X This Thesis incorporates research materials produced in cooperation with others, excluding the technical help commonly received during experimental work. Therefore, I am attaching another affidavit stating the contributions made by myself and the other participants in this research, which has been approved by them and submitted with their approval. Date:__ _21/06/13__ Student's name: Rona Winter-Livneh_ Signature: _________________ Table of Contents Acknowledgments 1 Abstract 2 1. Introduction 4 1.1 General review on Ghassulian culture research 4 1.1.1 The Ghassulian culture 4 1.1.2 The research history 5 1.1.3 The research method 7 1.2 General review on the research papers 9 1.2.1 Where to live? – Settlement patterns in the northern Negev 9 1.2.2 All that lives must die – Cemeteries and settlement patterns in the coastal plain and the Shephella 11 1.2.3 My house is [not] your house – architectural symmetry and patterns of structures 15 2. Published papers 18 2.1 Settlement patterns, social complexity and agricultural strategies during the Chalcolithic period in the Northern Negev, Israel 18 2.2 Secondary burial cemeteries, visibility and land tenure: A view from the southern Levant Chalcolithic period 30 2.3 Shape reproducibility and architectural symmetry during the Chalcolithic period in the southern Levant 47 3. Discussion and Conclusions 63 4. References 68 77 5. תקציר Acknowledgments Funding for this research was provided by the Pratt Foundation PhD Fellowship Program at Ben- Gurion University of the Negev. I acknowledge the Geological Survey of Israel for kindly providing the DEM. This research would not have been possible without the support of many people; First and foremost I thank both my advisors Prof. Isaac Gilead and Prof. Tal Svoray. Prof. Isaac Gilead’s critical readings and excellent editorial commentary improved this document substantially. I am grateful for his uncompromising standards, professionalism and advice throughout the analysis and writing stages. Prof. Tal Svoray proved to be an excellent advisor on method and data analysis. Tal introduced me to GIS analysis and encouraged me along the path of GIS archaeology. I am grateful for his faith in my abilities. A great debt of gratitude is due to Prof. Steve Rosen for his critical reading, generous help, valuable advice and continuous encouragement in all stages of the research. I would also like to thank Prof. Kenneth Kvamme and Prof. Lynne Goldstein for their help with less accessible literature. The professional help of the Israel Antiquities Authority deputy director, Dr Uzi Dahari, Dr Peter Fabian, Dr. Edwin van den Brink, Dr. Hagit Torge, and all members of the Israel Antiquities Authority southern regional office is acknowledged. I acknowledge Paola Ronzino who prepared the first version of the coastal plain cemeteries dataset. Janet Levy and Karni Golan are thanked for their kind help in previous drafts. The members of the GI-Lab at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev are thanked for providing useful information concerning GIS procedures. Rona Winter-Livneh’s PhD Dissertation | Ben-Gurion University of the Negev Page 1 Abstract This study explores spatial aspects of the Ghassulian settlements of the Chalcolithic period (ca. 4500-3900 B.C.) in relation to their immediate environments. The objective of the study is to illuminate the social and economic aspects which determined the spatial behavior of these communities. From the methodological aspect, this is a GIS (Geographic Information Systems) based research which includes geo-statistical analyses such as: Moran’s I spatial autocorrelation analysis, Ripley’s K-function, and Kernel density spatial analysis. Other analytical methods include Viewshed analysis, Continuance Symmetry Measure and a new method, Shape Reproducibility, which was developed for the purpose of this research. The conclusions are based on intra- and inter-site spatial variability and they shed new light on a number of issues concerning aspects of Ghassulian social and economic organization. The results of the research were published in three papers, which deal with settlement distribution related to different scales and across diverse geographical regions. The first paper focuses on the Northern Negev where numerous Chalcolithic period sites have been discovered. Within this region of interest I have examined the distribution of ca. 150 Chalcolithic sites located on the banks of the two main drainage systems of the northern Negev, Nahal Beer-Sheva and Nahal Besor. Analyzing the relations between the sites clusters locations and the physical attributes of the nearby riverbeds which includes their topography, the wadi volume, flow accumulation, the wadi gradient and its riverbanks gradient. The second paper explores Chalcolithic settlement patterns in the coastal plain and Shephella, where many Ghassulian burial sites are located. It analyses the spatial interrelationships between 48 burial sites and habitation sites and their surroundings, and considers the social implications. In this paper I have measured the size of the area from which a burial site is visible and the area from where the neighboring habitation site is visible. I have measured how much these two areas overlap and complement one another. Next I measured how unique or distinguished are these measurements to this specific spatial pattern. The third paper explores the spatial and architectural attributes of Ghassulian structures and their inter- and intra-sites variability. This paper focuses on four large Chalcolithic settlements, with a relatively detailed site plan published by the sites excavators. Using these plans I have examined the symmetry of each structure and its shape reproducibility in relation to the rest of the structures within the same site. Next, I compared the results to the same measurements of structures in the other sites. Rona Winter-Livneh’s PhD Dissertation | Ben-Gurion University of the Negev Page 2 This study shows that in the northern Negev the location of sites clusters along the wadis is not random and is determined according to the topographical conditions of the region’s riverbanks, indicating that the community did not require any use of artificial elements such as diversion walls or dams for agricultural prosperity. Within the coastal plain and the Shephella the location of burial sites and their spatial relation with the neighboring settlement indicate cemeteries played a role in claiming land tenure and access rights. The analyses of architectural remains results in similar levels of intra-site heterogeneity between Ghassulian sites which could suggest intensification of economic differentiation, perhaps due to increased reliance on agriculture. All three papers indicate the significance of agricultural activity for the Chalcolithic period communities, the intensity of agricultural production and the growing reliance on it. This could explain the spatial patterning of the northern Negev settlement, the relation between the location of burial sites and their neighboring habitation sites, as well as the level of architectural heterogeneity observed within the main settlements of the Chalcolithic period. Keywords: settlement patterns; prehistoric architecture; secondary burial; agricultural strategies; Chalcolithic period; Ghassulian culture; southern Levant; spatial analysis; GIS Rona Winter-Livneh’s PhD Dissertation | Ben-Gurion University of the Negev Page 3 1. Introduction 1.1 General review on Ghassulian culture research 1.1.1 The Ghassulian culture The Chalcolithic period and its main cultural entity, the Ghassulian (ca. 4500-3900 BC after Gilead 2007), follow the establishment of the Neolithic period sedentary agricultural societies and precede the first urban societies of the Early Bronze Age. Thus, the Ghassulian can be regarded as a transition between these two different socio-economic systems. The social and cultural attributes of the Ghassulian communities during this time of transition is one of the primary interests of the current research of the
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