Early epipaleolithic engraved objects from Ein Qashish South Jezreel Valley, Israel

Recently excavated Ein Qashish South (EQS), a 23000 years old large Early Epipaleolithic base camp in the Jezreel Valley, Israel yielded three engraved limestone palettes. Two of these are engraved on both sides and bear red stains. The engraved motifs include ladders, cross-hatching, chevrons as well as the image of a bird - the first figurative representation found so far in context of Early Epipaleolithic in the Southern Levant. Microscopic analysis indicate that one of the motifs, namely "the ladder" is accumulative in nature and can be interpreted as a notation system, similarly to previously described patterns of the same type found in contexts of Upper Paleolithic in Western Europe as well as in Late Epipaleolithic Natufian - culture associated with transition to agriculture in the Levant.