Katharina Streit | Austrian Academy of Sciences (original) (raw)

Papers by Katharina Streit

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2022. “Lachish in the Bronze and Iron Ages. A Reply to Garfinkel et al. 2021 and Comments on Current Discussions.” Zeitschrift des Deutschen Palästina-Vereins 138(2):242-253.

Lachish in the Bronze and Iron Ages A Reply to GARFINKEL et al. 2021 and Comments on Current Disc... more Lachish in the Bronze and Iron Ages A Reply to GARFINKEL et al. 2021 and Comments on Current Discussions

Research paper thumbnail of Nicolì, M., S. Riehl, L. Webster, K. Streit, and F. Höflmayer. 2022. “Agricultural Resources in the Bronze Age City of Tel Lachish.” Vegetation History and Archaeobotany.

Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, 2022

In this paper, we present the results of the plant macrofossil analyses from the site of Tel Lach... more In this paper, we present the results of the plant macrofossil analyses from the site of Tel Lachish, Israel with focus on the botanical assemblage of the Middle and Late Bronze Age layers collected in two different areas of the tell: Area S, a trench on the western edge of the site, whose samples belong to Late Bronze Age deposits, and Area P, the palace area on the top of the mound with samples ranging from the Middle to Late Bronze Age. Systematic sampling of these areas and analysis of the remains have extended our knowledge of the agricultural resources of one of the most influential Late Bronze Age cities in the southern Levant. Multivariate statistics have been applied to gain insight into regional patterns of crop growing. Fruit crops account for the majority of the identified remains from this site, which also included large quantities of Hordeum vulgare (barley) and Triticum dicoccum (emmer wheat) grains. The virtual lack of chaff remains is not solely a matter of preservation, since the Late Bronze Age assemblage preserved fragile small seeds. Rather, this finding suggests that cereal processing took place some distance from the area of deposition. Overall high diversity, ubiquity and proportions of fruit crops indicate that these played a fundamental role in their cultivation and probably also in cultural life at Lachish throughout the 15th-12th centuries bce.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2022. “Disentangling a confusion of tongues. On chronological schemes, terminologies, and radiocarbon dating in the eastern Mediterranean.” In Material, Method, and Meaning. edited by U. Davidovich, N. Yahalom-Mack and Z. Matskevich, 55–65. ÄAT 110. Münster. Zaphon.

Chronological debates underlie every interpretation of cultural change, transregional interaction... more Chronological debates underlie every interpretation of cultural change, transregional interactions, and the impact of historical events, but are among the most contested aspects of the archaeology of the Bronze and Iron Ages of the eastern Mediterranean. Instead of resolving these discussions, the advent of radiocarbon dating has seemingly confused the picture further. This paper examines how current chronological schemes and terminologies developed, and how adherence to them has impacted the incorporation of radiocarbon dating into the archaeological toolbox. Chronological debates, such as those revolving around the Iron Age or the Middle and Late Bronze Ages, have stultified, and this is ascribed to two main factors: the tendency to think in 'material-culture blocks' which, among other things, has led to the building of erroneous multi-site Bayesian models, and a tendency to rely on weak connections to historical chronologies, rather than on well-stratified radiocarbon sequences. The paper highlights the need for true interdisciplinary research, where comparable levels of quality control are employed for both archaeological-historical and radiocarbon-based chronologies. It advocates radiocarbon-based site-by-site sequences as a foundation of the absolute chronology of the region, which would allow reconstructions of the directionality and speed of cultural change based on objective grounds.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2021. “Bookreview of Greenberg, R. The Archaeology of the Bronze Age Levant. From Urban Origins to the Demise of City States, 3700-1000 BCE (Cambridge World Archaeology). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2019. (26 cm, XVIII, 413)” Bibliotheca Orientalis LXXVIII(1-2):223–5.

Research paper thumbnail of Höflmayer, F., H. Misgav, L. Webster, and K. Streit. 2021. “A New Inscription from Tel Lachish Provides the Missing Link for the Development of Early Alphabetic Writing in the Ancient Near East.” Antiquity.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2021. “After the storm: Political, economic and socio-demographic aspects of the Assyrian defeat of the southern Levant.” In Culture of Defeat – Submission in Written Sources and the Archaeological Record., edited by K. Streit, and M. Grohmann, 261-286. GSANE 16. Gorgias Press.

This series publishes scholarly research focusing on the societies, material cultures, technologi... more This series publishes scholarly research focusing on the societies, material cultures, technologies, religions, and languages that emerged from Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Levant.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K., and M. Grohmann. 2021. “Introduction.” In Culture of Defeat – Submission in Written Sources and the Archaeological Record., edited by K. Streit, and M. Grohmann, 1–5. GSANE 16. Gorgias Press.

This series publishes scholarly research focusing on the societies, material cultures, technologi... more This series publishes scholarly research focusing on the societies, material cultures, technologies, religions, and languages that emerged from Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Levant.

Research paper thumbnail of Vermeersch, S., S. Riehl, B.M. Starkovich, K. Streit, and F. Höflmayer. 2021. “Animal Husbandry from the Middle Bronze Age through the Iron Age in the Shephelah – Faunal Remains from the New Excavations at Lachish.” Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences 13:38

Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences, 2021

Lachish (Tell ed-Duweir) is located in the southern part of the Judean foothills, known as the Sh... more Lachish (Tell ed-Duweir) is located in the southern part of the Judean foothills, known as the Shephelah, and is one of the larger and most extensively excavated multi-period sites in the southern Levant. We present the faunal results of the first three seasons of the most recent excavations, the Austrian-Israeli Expedition to Tel Lachish. The expedition focusses on two areas of the tell encompassing the Middle Bronze Age III through the Iron Age II, area S (deep section) and area P (palace area). The aims for the faunal analysis are threefold: comparing the results between the two areas, seeing how our results compare to previous analyses, and comparing Lachish to other synchronous sites in the Shephelah. We observe differences in subsistence strategies between the areas in addition to diachronic differences. Ovicaprids dominate all assemblages, but we see shifts in the sheep to goat ratio and mortality profiles through time indicating changes in subsistence strategies. Our new results largely agree with the results from previous analyses, showing the value of previous studies and their potential compatibility with newer research. A synchronic comparison of Lachish within the Shephelah shows the occupants of the site were largely self-sufficient but possibly engaged in an exchange of resources in the vicinity.

Research paper thumbnail of Carter, T., K. Campeau, and K. Streit. 2020. “Transregional Perspectives: Characterizing Obsidian Consumption at Early Chalcolithic Ein el-Jarba (N. Israel).” Journal of Field Archaeology:1–21.

Research paper thumbnail of New radiocarbon-based assessment supports the prominence of Tel Lachish during Late Bronze Age IB-IIA

Radiocarbon, 2019

This article presents a new suite of radiocarbon (14C) dates for the lower portion of the Late Br... more This article presents a new suite of radiocarbon (14C) dates for the lower portion of the Late Bronze Age (LBA) sequence of Area S, Tel Lachish. The results show that the lowest levels reached by Ussishkin in the 1980s (S-2 and S-3) date significantly earlier than was previously thought. Level S-3, with its monumental architecture, belongs in the 2nd half of the 15th century BCE, as does the commencement of Level S-2. The laminated deposit of S-2 continues through the first half of the 14th century BCE, coinciding at least in part with the Amarna period. This redating leads to improved agreement between archaeological and textual evidence regarding the presence of a substantial, prominent settlement at Lachish during LB IB-IIA, from the reign of Thutmoses III through the Amarna period.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2019. “The stranger on the mound: Tracing cultural identity at Tel Lachish during the Late Bronze Age.” In A Stranger in the House. The Crossroads III., edited by J. Mynářová, M. Kilani and S. Alivernini, 355–70.

Research paper thumbnail of Identifying the Lachish of Papyrus Hermitage 1116A Verso and the Amarna Letters: Implications of New Radiocarbon Dating

Journal of Ancient Egyptian Interconnections, 2019

Difficulties reconciling Late Bronze Age archaeological remains in the southern Levant with the t... more Difficulties reconciling Late Bronze Age archaeological remains in the southern Levant with the texts of the Amarna Age and preceding formative years of Late Bronze Age society have long been noted. At some prominent tell sites that according to the texts were major city-states, little to no settlement remains have been identified. Here we revisit this issue at Tel Lachish, showing on the basis of renewed radiocarbon dating that two previously exposed occupation layers should be re-assigned to this timeframe – one to the 2nd half of the 15th century BCE, and the other predominantly to the 1st half of the 14th century BCE. These re-dated strata support the textual picture from Papyrus Hermitage 1116A and the Amarna Letters of a thriving town with which the Egyptians interacted.

Research paper thumbnail of Höflmayer, F., and K. Streit. 2019. “The Impact of Radiocarbon Dating and Absolute Chronology in the Holy Land: A Social Archaeological Perspective.” In The Social Archaeology of the Levant, edited by A. Yasur-Landau, E.H. Cline and Y.M. Rowan, 573–93. Cambridge. Cambridge University Press.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2019. “Archaeological Evidence for the Egyptian Presence in the southern Levant during the Late Bronze Age – A Reappraisal.” Journal of Ancient Egyptian Interconnections 21:68–87.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K., L.C. Webster, V. Becker, A.-K. Jeske, H. Misgav, and F. Höflmayer. 2018. “Between Destruction and Diplomacy in Canaan. The Austrian-Israeli Expedition to Tel Lachish.” Near Eastern Archaeology 81(4):259–68.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2018. “Beyond the Image. Composite Female Figurines and Gender Relations of the Near East in the Mid-Sixth Mill. Cal. B.C.E.” Zeitschrift des Deutschen Palästina-Vereins 134(1):1–27.

This study focuses on anthropomorphic clay, stone and bone figurines found in northern Mesopotami... more This study focuses on anthropomorphic clay, stone and bone figurines found in northern Mesopotamia and the Levant at late Pottery Neolithic to Early Chalcolithic sites. Female representations dominate the assemblage of this period. While 'coffee-bean' eyed figurines of seated women and pebble figurines were characteristic of the early Pottery Neolithic (ca. 6200 -5800 cal. B.C.E.), those of the Early Chalcolithic (ca. 5800 -5200 cal. B.C.E.) show increasing simplification and stylization, in which the female body is reduced to the pubic triangle and, in some instances, eyes. MILEVSKI et al. (2016) recently termed this latter type 'Composite Female Figurines'. These figurines were usually incised on rectangular-shaped pebbles (also known as 'Wādī Raba trapezoid'), carved on bone tubes, or shaped from clay.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2017. “Transregional Interactions between Egypt and the Southern Levant in the 6th Millennium calBC.” Ägypten & Levante 27:403–29.

In the mid-6 th millennium calBC, ceram-LFV DSSHDUHG IRU WKH ¿UVW WLPH LQ WKH )D\XP DQG Delta of ... more In the mid-6 th millennium calBC, ceram-LFV DSSHDUHG IRU WKH ¿UVW WLPH LQ WKH )D\XP DQG Delta of Lower Egypt. A southern Levantine ori-JLQ IRU WKHVH FHUDPLF W\SHV ZDV SURSRVHG RYHU ¿Ity years ago by Jacob Kaplan (KAPLAN 1959) and several different cultural entities have since been considered as the possible origin, including the Yarmukian culture (EIWANGER WKH 4DWL¿DQ culture (SMITH 1989), the Lodian (SHIRAI 2010), the Nizzanim and the Wadi Rabah culture (TASSIE 7KLV SDSHU H[DPLQHV WKHVH ¿YH SRVVLEOH source cultures and reviews the archaeological data based on an absolute radiocarbon chronology. Preliminary results suggest that the Wadi Rabah culture played the most crucial role in the formation of the Neolithic of Lower Egypt, and that there were extensive cultural interactions between the Levant and Egypt. The interactions emerging in this period were embedded in an internationalism that connected most of the Near East. It can be envisaged that favourable climatic conditions in this period might also have enabled and facilitated interactions between the southern Levant and Egypt. The transregional interactions of the 6 th millennium calBC can also be seen as a prelude to the better understood contacts of the Early Bronze Age, which also coincided with a climatic amelioration.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K., R. Favis, and Y. Garfinkel. 2017. “Kaplan’s Excavation at 'Ein el-Jarba (1966). Chapter 12.” In Jacob Kaplan’s Excavations of Protohistoric of Protohistoric Sites 1950s-1980s, edited by A. Gopher, R. Gophna, R. Eyal and Y. Paz, 522–60. Tel Aviv, Wiona Lake, Indiana. Tel Aviv

of The Institute of Archaeology, Tel Aviv University Cover Art: Front cover: A Yarmukian clay fig... more of The Institute of Archaeology, Tel Aviv University Cover Art: Front cover: A Yarmukian clay figure from Ha-Bashan Street; back cover center: holemouth jar with figure in relief from >Ein el-Jarba; back cover left, top to bottom: clay objects -weights? from Ha-Bashan Street; a clay figure from Kefar Gil>adi (note red paint)

Research paper thumbnail of Carter, T., Z. Batist, K. Campeau, Y. Garfinkel, and K. Streit. 2017. “Investigating Pottery Neolithic Socio-Economic “Regression” in the Southern Levant. Characterising Obsidian Consumption at Sha'ar Hagolan (N. Israel).” Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports(15):305–17.

This paper details the characterisation of 34 obsidian artefacts from Sha'ar Hagolan in the Jorda... more This paper details the characterisation of 34 obsidian artefacts from Sha'ar Hagolan in the Jordan Valley, a major Pottery Neolithic Site of the southern Levantine Yarmukian culture (6400–6000 cal BCE). Employing an integrated approach that melds sourcing data from EDXRF spectroscopy with the artefacts' techno-typological characteristics, we contrast Sha'ar Hagolan's lithic traditions with those of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic southern Levantine sites in the context of alleged socioeconomic disruptions in the Pottery Neolithic. The results indicate that community's obsidian consumption habits largely followed deep-time regional traditions (with only the slightest decrease in relative quantities), i.e. the use of Cappadocian raw materials (Göllü Dağ and Nenezi Dağ) to make pressure blades, and occasional projectiles, with only a small proportion of eastern Anatolian products (Nemrut Dağ). While the Sha'ar Hagolan material seems to embody continuity of southern Levantine cultural tradition, other broadly contemporary assemblages attest to the initiation of new procurement networks, and novel modes of consumption that reflect the increasing degree of cultural heterogeneity of the period. Finally, the distribution of obsidian across the site does not support the idea that social distinction at Sha'ar Hagolan was part-based on the preferential access to these exotic resources.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2016. “The 6th Millennium Cal. BCE Wadi Rabah Culture: Further Excavations at Ein el-Jarba in the Jezreel Valley, Israel (2015–2016).” Strata. Bulletin of the Anglo-Israel Archaeological Society 34:13–40.

Rabah culture in the Jezreel Valley, dating to the 6 th millennium cal BC. The site was under exc... more Rabah culture in the Jezreel Valley, dating to the 6 th millennium cal BC. The site was under excavation from 2013 to 2016, and the fifth and final season of fieldwork in 2016 completed a project that aimed to explore this settlement and its transregional interactions with the northern Levant. Remains of rectilinear architecture with floor levels, stone lined pits, and plastered installations were uncovered. Four burials were unearthed within the domestic quarter and have tentatively been dated to a later phase of Wadi Rabah occupation. The finds indicate that Ein el-Jarba played a key part in an exchange network that extended between the Halaf and the Wadi Rabah cultures, and which brought goods and notions of style and iconography into the southern Levant. Below the Early Chalcolithic remains, finds dating to the Pottery Neolithic Yarmukian and Jericho IX/ Lodian cultural entities have been unearthed, suggesting a continuous occupation at Ein el-Jarba from the Neolithic to the Early Chalcolithic period.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2022. “Lachish in the Bronze and Iron Ages. A Reply to Garfinkel et al. 2021 and Comments on Current Discussions.” Zeitschrift des Deutschen Palästina-Vereins 138(2):242-253.

Lachish in the Bronze and Iron Ages A Reply to GARFINKEL et al. 2021 and Comments on Current Disc... more Lachish in the Bronze and Iron Ages A Reply to GARFINKEL et al. 2021 and Comments on Current Discussions

Research paper thumbnail of Nicolì, M., S. Riehl, L. Webster, K. Streit, and F. Höflmayer. 2022. “Agricultural Resources in the Bronze Age City of Tel Lachish.” Vegetation History and Archaeobotany.

Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, 2022

In this paper, we present the results of the plant macrofossil analyses from the site of Tel Lach... more In this paper, we present the results of the plant macrofossil analyses from the site of Tel Lachish, Israel with focus on the botanical assemblage of the Middle and Late Bronze Age layers collected in two different areas of the tell: Area S, a trench on the western edge of the site, whose samples belong to Late Bronze Age deposits, and Area P, the palace area on the top of the mound with samples ranging from the Middle to Late Bronze Age. Systematic sampling of these areas and analysis of the remains have extended our knowledge of the agricultural resources of one of the most influential Late Bronze Age cities in the southern Levant. Multivariate statistics have been applied to gain insight into regional patterns of crop growing. Fruit crops account for the majority of the identified remains from this site, which also included large quantities of Hordeum vulgare (barley) and Triticum dicoccum (emmer wheat) grains. The virtual lack of chaff remains is not solely a matter of preservation, since the Late Bronze Age assemblage preserved fragile small seeds. Rather, this finding suggests that cereal processing took place some distance from the area of deposition. Overall high diversity, ubiquity and proportions of fruit crops indicate that these played a fundamental role in their cultivation and probably also in cultural life at Lachish throughout the 15th-12th centuries bce.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2022. “Disentangling a confusion of tongues. On chronological schemes, terminologies, and radiocarbon dating in the eastern Mediterranean.” In Material, Method, and Meaning. edited by U. Davidovich, N. Yahalom-Mack and Z. Matskevich, 55–65. ÄAT 110. Münster. Zaphon.

Chronological debates underlie every interpretation of cultural change, transregional interaction... more Chronological debates underlie every interpretation of cultural change, transregional interactions, and the impact of historical events, but are among the most contested aspects of the archaeology of the Bronze and Iron Ages of the eastern Mediterranean. Instead of resolving these discussions, the advent of radiocarbon dating has seemingly confused the picture further. This paper examines how current chronological schemes and terminologies developed, and how adherence to them has impacted the incorporation of radiocarbon dating into the archaeological toolbox. Chronological debates, such as those revolving around the Iron Age or the Middle and Late Bronze Ages, have stultified, and this is ascribed to two main factors: the tendency to think in 'material-culture blocks' which, among other things, has led to the building of erroneous multi-site Bayesian models, and a tendency to rely on weak connections to historical chronologies, rather than on well-stratified radiocarbon sequences. The paper highlights the need for true interdisciplinary research, where comparable levels of quality control are employed for both archaeological-historical and radiocarbon-based chronologies. It advocates radiocarbon-based site-by-site sequences as a foundation of the absolute chronology of the region, which would allow reconstructions of the directionality and speed of cultural change based on objective grounds.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2021. “Bookreview of Greenberg, R. The Archaeology of the Bronze Age Levant. From Urban Origins to the Demise of City States, 3700-1000 BCE (Cambridge World Archaeology). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2019. (26 cm, XVIII, 413)” Bibliotheca Orientalis LXXVIII(1-2):223–5.

Research paper thumbnail of Höflmayer, F., H. Misgav, L. Webster, and K. Streit. 2021. “A New Inscription from Tel Lachish Provides the Missing Link for the Development of Early Alphabetic Writing in the Ancient Near East.” Antiquity.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2021. “After the storm: Political, economic and socio-demographic aspects of the Assyrian defeat of the southern Levant.” In Culture of Defeat – Submission in Written Sources and the Archaeological Record., edited by K. Streit, and M. Grohmann, 261-286. GSANE 16. Gorgias Press.

This series publishes scholarly research focusing on the societies, material cultures, technologi... more This series publishes scholarly research focusing on the societies, material cultures, technologies, religions, and languages that emerged from Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Levant.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K., and M. Grohmann. 2021. “Introduction.” In Culture of Defeat – Submission in Written Sources and the Archaeological Record., edited by K. Streit, and M. Grohmann, 1–5. GSANE 16. Gorgias Press.

This series publishes scholarly research focusing on the societies, material cultures, technologi... more This series publishes scholarly research focusing on the societies, material cultures, technologies, religions, and languages that emerged from Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Levant.

Research paper thumbnail of Vermeersch, S., S. Riehl, B.M. Starkovich, K. Streit, and F. Höflmayer. 2021. “Animal Husbandry from the Middle Bronze Age through the Iron Age in the Shephelah – Faunal Remains from the New Excavations at Lachish.” Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences 13:38

Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences, 2021

Lachish (Tell ed-Duweir) is located in the southern part of the Judean foothills, known as the Sh... more Lachish (Tell ed-Duweir) is located in the southern part of the Judean foothills, known as the Shephelah, and is one of the larger and most extensively excavated multi-period sites in the southern Levant. We present the faunal results of the first three seasons of the most recent excavations, the Austrian-Israeli Expedition to Tel Lachish. The expedition focusses on two areas of the tell encompassing the Middle Bronze Age III through the Iron Age II, area S (deep section) and area P (palace area). The aims for the faunal analysis are threefold: comparing the results between the two areas, seeing how our results compare to previous analyses, and comparing Lachish to other synchronous sites in the Shephelah. We observe differences in subsistence strategies between the areas in addition to diachronic differences. Ovicaprids dominate all assemblages, but we see shifts in the sheep to goat ratio and mortality profiles through time indicating changes in subsistence strategies. Our new results largely agree with the results from previous analyses, showing the value of previous studies and their potential compatibility with newer research. A synchronic comparison of Lachish within the Shephelah shows the occupants of the site were largely self-sufficient but possibly engaged in an exchange of resources in the vicinity.

Research paper thumbnail of Carter, T., K. Campeau, and K. Streit. 2020. “Transregional Perspectives: Characterizing Obsidian Consumption at Early Chalcolithic Ein el-Jarba (N. Israel).” Journal of Field Archaeology:1–21.

Research paper thumbnail of New radiocarbon-based assessment supports the prominence of Tel Lachish during Late Bronze Age IB-IIA

Radiocarbon, 2019

This article presents a new suite of radiocarbon (14C) dates for the lower portion of the Late Br... more This article presents a new suite of radiocarbon (14C) dates for the lower portion of the Late Bronze Age (LBA) sequence of Area S, Tel Lachish. The results show that the lowest levels reached by Ussishkin in the 1980s (S-2 and S-3) date significantly earlier than was previously thought. Level S-3, with its monumental architecture, belongs in the 2nd half of the 15th century BCE, as does the commencement of Level S-2. The laminated deposit of S-2 continues through the first half of the 14th century BCE, coinciding at least in part with the Amarna period. This redating leads to improved agreement between archaeological and textual evidence regarding the presence of a substantial, prominent settlement at Lachish during LB IB-IIA, from the reign of Thutmoses III through the Amarna period.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2019. “The stranger on the mound: Tracing cultural identity at Tel Lachish during the Late Bronze Age.” In A Stranger in the House. The Crossroads III., edited by J. Mynářová, M. Kilani and S. Alivernini, 355–70.

Research paper thumbnail of Identifying the Lachish of Papyrus Hermitage 1116A Verso and the Amarna Letters: Implications of New Radiocarbon Dating

Journal of Ancient Egyptian Interconnections, 2019

Difficulties reconciling Late Bronze Age archaeological remains in the southern Levant with the t... more Difficulties reconciling Late Bronze Age archaeological remains in the southern Levant with the texts of the Amarna Age and preceding formative years of Late Bronze Age society have long been noted. At some prominent tell sites that according to the texts were major city-states, little to no settlement remains have been identified. Here we revisit this issue at Tel Lachish, showing on the basis of renewed radiocarbon dating that two previously exposed occupation layers should be re-assigned to this timeframe – one to the 2nd half of the 15th century BCE, and the other predominantly to the 1st half of the 14th century BCE. These re-dated strata support the textual picture from Papyrus Hermitage 1116A and the Amarna Letters of a thriving town with which the Egyptians interacted.

Research paper thumbnail of Höflmayer, F., and K. Streit. 2019. “The Impact of Radiocarbon Dating and Absolute Chronology in the Holy Land: A Social Archaeological Perspective.” In The Social Archaeology of the Levant, edited by A. Yasur-Landau, E.H. Cline and Y.M. Rowan, 573–93. Cambridge. Cambridge University Press.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2019. “Archaeological Evidence for the Egyptian Presence in the southern Levant during the Late Bronze Age – A Reappraisal.” Journal of Ancient Egyptian Interconnections 21:68–87.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K., L.C. Webster, V. Becker, A.-K. Jeske, H. Misgav, and F. Höflmayer. 2018. “Between Destruction and Diplomacy in Canaan. The Austrian-Israeli Expedition to Tel Lachish.” Near Eastern Archaeology 81(4):259–68.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2018. “Beyond the Image. Composite Female Figurines and Gender Relations of the Near East in the Mid-Sixth Mill. Cal. B.C.E.” Zeitschrift des Deutschen Palästina-Vereins 134(1):1–27.

This study focuses on anthropomorphic clay, stone and bone figurines found in northern Mesopotami... more This study focuses on anthropomorphic clay, stone and bone figurines found in northern Mesopotamia and the Levant at late Pottery Neolithic to Early Chalcolithic sites. Female representations dominate the assemblage of this period. While 'coffee-bean' eyed figurines of seated women and pebble figurines were characteristic of the early Pottery Neolithic (ca. 6200 -5800 cal. B.C.E.), those of the Early Chalcolithic (ca. 5800 -5200 cal. B.C.E.) show increasing simplification and stylization, in which the female body is reduced to the pubic triangle and, in some instances, eyes. MILEVSKI et al. (2016) recently termed this latter type 'Composite Female Figurines'. These figurines were usually incised on rectangular-shaped pebbles (also known as 'Wādī Raba trapezoid'), carved on bone tubes, or shaped from clay.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2017. “Transregional Interactions between Egypt and the Southern Levant in the 6th Millennium calBC.” Ägypten & Levante 27:403–29.

In the mid-6 th millennium calBC, ceram-LFV DSSHDUHG IRU WKH ¿UVW WLPH LQ WKH )D\XP DQG Delta of ... more In the mid-6 th millennium calBC, ceram-LFV DSSHDUHG IRU WKH ¿UVW WLPH LQ WKH )D\XP DQG Delta of Lower Egypt. A southern Levantine ori-JLQ IRU WKHVH FHUDPLF W\SHV ZDV SURSRVHG RYHU ¿Ity years ago by Jacob Kaplan (KAPLAN 1959) and several different cultural entities have since been considered as the possible origin, including the Yarmukian culture (EIWANGER WKH 4DWL¿DQ culture (SMITH 1989), the Lodian (SHIRAI 2010), the Nizzanim and the Wadi Rabah culture (TASSIE 7KLV SDSHU H[DPLQHV WKHVH ¿YH SRVVLEOH source cultures and reviews the archaeological data based on an absolute radiocarbon chronology. Preliminary results suggest that the Wadi Rabah culture played the most crucial role in the formation of the Neolithic of Lower Egypt, and that there were extensive cultural interactions between the Levant and Egypt. The interactions emerging in this period were embedded in an internationalism that connected most of the Near East. It can be envisaged that favourable climatic conditions in this period might also have enabled and facilitated interactions between the southern Levant and Egypt. The transregional interactions of the 6 th millennium calBC can also be seen as a prelude to the better understood contacts of the Early Bronze Age, which also coincided with a climatic amelioration.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K., R. Favis, and Y. Garfinkel. 2017. “Kaplan’s Excavation at 'Ein el-Jarba (1966). Chapter 12.” In Jacob Kaplan’s Excavations of Protohistoric of Protohistoric Sites 1950s-1980s, edited by A. Gopher, R. Gophna, R. Eyal and Y. Paz, 522–60. Tel Aviv, Wiona Lake, Indiana. Tel Aviv

of The Institute of Archaeology, Tel Aviv University Cover Art: Front cover: A Yarmukian clay fig... more of The Institute of Archaeology, Tel Aviv University Cover Art: Front cover: A Yarmukian clay figure from Ha-Bashan Street; back cover center: holemouth jar with figure in relief from >Ein el-Jarba; back cover left, top to bottom: clay objects -weights? from Ha-Bashan Street; a clay figure from Kefar Gil>adi (note red paint)

Research paper thumbnail of Carter, T., Z. Batist, K. Campeau, Y. Garfinkel, and K. Streit. 2017. “Investigating Pottery Neolithic Socio-Economic “Regression” in the Southern Levant. Characterising Obsidian Consumption at Sha'ar Hagolan (N. Israel).” Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports(15):305–17.

This paper details the characterisation of 34 obsidian artefacts from Sha'ar Hagolan in the Jorda... more This paper details the characterisation of 34 obsidian artefacts from Sha'ar Hagolan in the Jordan Valley, a major Pottery Neolithic Site of the southern Levantine Yarmukian culture (6400–6000 cal BCE). Employing an integrated approach that melds sourcing data from EDXRF spectroscopy with the artefacts' techno-typological characteristics, we contrast Sha'ar Hagolan's lithic traditions with those of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic southern Levantine sites in the context of alleged socioeconomic disruptions in the Pottery Neolithic. The results indicate that community's obsidian consumption habits largely followed deep-time regional traditions (with only the slightest decrease in relative quantities), i.e. the use of Cappadocian raw materials (Göllü Dağ and Nenezi Dağ) to make pressure blades, and occasional projectiles, with only a small proportion of eastern Anatolian products (Nemrut Dağ). While the Sha'ar Hagolan material seems to embody continuity of southern Levantine cultural tradition, other broadly contemporary assemblages attest to the initiation of new procurement networks, and novel modes of consumption that reflect the increasing degree of cultural heterogeneity of the period. Finally, the distribution of obsidian across the site does not support the idea that social distinction at Sha'ar Hagolan was part-based on the preferential access to these exotic resources.

Research paper thumbnail of Streit, K. 2016. “The 6th Millennium Cal. BCE Wadi Rabah Culture: Further Excavations at Ein el-Jarba in the Jezreel Valley, Israel (2015–2016).” Strata. Bulletin of the Anglo-Israel Archaeological Society 34:13–40.

Rabah culture in the Jezreel Valley, dating to the 6 th millennium cal BC. The site was under exc... more Rabah culture in the Jezreel Valley, dating to the 6 th millennium cal BC. The site was under excavation from 2013 to 2016, and the fifth and final season of fieldwork in 2016 completed a project that aimed to explore this settlement and its transregional interactions with the northern Levant. Remains of rectilinear architecture with floor levels, stone lined pits, and plastered installations were uncovered. Four burials were unearthed within the domestic quarter and have tentatively been dated to a later phase of Wadi Rabah occupation. The finds indicate that Ein el-Jarba played a key part in an exchange network that extended between the Halaf and the Wadi Rabah cultures, and which brought goods and notions of style and iconography into the southern Levant. Below the Early Chalcolithic remains, finds dating to the Pottery Neolithic Yarmukian and Jericho IX/ Lodian cultural entities have been unearthed, suggesting a continuous occupation at Ein el-Jarba from the Neolithic to the Early Chalcolithic period.