Getting Blood from a Stone: Excavations at a Paleolithic Oasis in Azraq, Northwest Jordan

April Nowell, Associate Professor, University of Victoria

Over the millenia, Azraq, NW Jordan, has borne witness to multiple migrations of early human ancestors including Homo erectus and Neandertals, many of whom left behind clues about their ways of life in an often challenging environment. One particularly rich archaeological locale is the 250,000 year-old Shishan Marsh site in southern Azraq. Based on studies of the inhabitants’ stone tools (some with blood residue still on them!) and the diverse strategies they used to hunt and scavenge their prey, it was discovered that these early humans were surprisingly sophisticated technologically, socially and cognitively.

Dr. April Nowell is a Paleolithic archaeologist and Professor of Anthropology at the University of Victoria. She directs an international team of scientists in the study of Lower and Middle Paleolithic sites in Jordan She directs an international team of researcher in the study of Lower and Middle Paleolithic sites in Jordon and is known for her publications on cognitive archaeology, Paleolithic art, the Archaeology of children, and the relationship between science, pop culture and the media. She is the author of Growing up in the Ice Age (2021)

Zoom link: https://carleton-ca.zoom.us/j/98290723721

Presented under the patronage of the Embassy of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, and in collaboration with the College of the Humanities of Carleton University.