7000-year-old evidence of fruit tree cultivation in the Jordan Valley, Israel

Abstract

This study provides one of the earliest examples of fruit tree cultivation worldwide, demonstrating that olive (Olea europaea) and fig (Ficus carica) horticulture was practiced as early as 7000 years ago in the Central Jordan Valley, Israel. It is based on the anatomical identification of a charcoal assemblage recovered from the Chalcolithic (7200-6700 cal. BP) site of Tel Tsaf. Given the site's location outside the wild olive's natural habitat, the substantial presence of charred olive wood remains at the site constitutes a strong case for horticulture. Furthermore, the occurrence of young charred fig branches (most probably from pruning) may indicate that figs were cultivated too. One such branch was ¹⁴C dated, yielding an age of ca. 7000 cal. BP. We hypothesize that established horticulture contributed to more elaborate social contracts and institutions since olive oil, table olives, and dry figs were highly suitable for long-distance trade and taxation.

Figure 1

(a) Map of the southern Levant indicating mean annual precipitation in mm; (b) the position of the southern Levant.

Figure 2

Map of Tel Tsaf and surroundings. Area C = settlement area, Area B = well. Gray area marks a recent cultivated area (Map by J. Rosenberg; taken from[:Fig. 4.6]).

Figure 3

The village of Tel Tsaf; an overview of Area C with courtyard buildings, comprising rectangular and rounded rooms and rounded silos (Photo by Y. Garfinkel).

Figure 4

SEM images of charred-wood sections of taxa identified at Tel Tsaf, Area C. (a) Ficus carica, transverse, scale 500 μm. (b) Ficus carica, tangential, scale 100 μm. (c) Salix/Populus, transverse, scale 200 μm. (d) Olea europaea, radial, scale 200 μm. (e) Olea europaea, transverse, scale 200 μm. (f) Olea europaea, tangential, scale 200 μm. (g) Cercis siliquastrum, transverse, scale 500 μm. (h) Cercis siliquastrum, tangential, scale 200 μm. (i) Quercus ithaburensis (twig), transverse, scale 200 μm. Images were taken by M. Cavanagh using a Tescan VEGA3 LMH scanning electron microscope.

Figure 5

Geographical distribution of wild olive (Olea europaea subsp. oleaster) and cultivated olive in the Mediterranean Basin (modified after^–) together with suggested dates for the beginning of olive horticulture in the Mediterranean regions.