Natufians Developed Advanced Wild Grain Harvesting 15,000 Years Ago in Levant
A new study from the University of Haifa reveals that the Natufian culture, which lived in the Levant region about 15,000 to 12,000 years ago, practiced sophisticated wild grain harvesting long before formal agriculture began. Published in Scientific Reports, the research shows that the Natufians tracked the ripening stages of wild cereals and harvested them over several weeks, indicating an early and complex approach to plant resource management.
The Natufians, transitioning from hunter-gatherers to more settled communities, used flint sickle blades as key tools for harvesting. Researchers examined 158 flint sickle blades from two archaeological sites: Nahal Cave Terrace on Mount Carmel and the Natufian site of Shubayqa 1 in the Jordan Valley. Using microscopes with up to 200x magnification, they analyzed wear patterns on the blades to identify contact with cereal plants and the timing of harvest.
Experimental harvesting with replica sickles helped interpret the wear marks, confirming that all blades were used for cereal harvesting. The findings showed that harvesting was not a single event but a prolonged season starting when grains were partially ripe and continuing until full ripeness. About half the blades showed signs of extended use and maintenance, such as resharpening, indicating these were durable tools.
Dr. Iris Gruman-Yaroslavsky, who led the study, emphasized that the Natufians' knowledge and tool use were more advanced than previously thought. The research suggests they selectively harvested wild grains before seed dispersal, which would have required them to save and sow seeds to maintain yields, representing a proto-agricultural practice.
This gradual process of managing wild plant resources challenges the idea of a sudden shift to agriculture, instead highlighting a long transition where humans learned to cultivate and sustain food supplies. The study sheds light on early human intervention in plant life cycles well before domestication in the Neolithic period.
