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An Early Neolithic Flint-Knapping Spot from Ali Kosh , Southwestern Iran

The Neolithic mound of Ali Kosh is located in the Deh Luran Plain, southwestern Iran (c. 150 m a.s.l.; Fig. 1). It rises c. 4 m above the surrounding fields, containing c. 7 m of archaeological deposits in thickness. Ali Kosh was first investigated by a French mission in 1903 (Gautier and Lampre 1905: 81-83). However, thanks to later excavations directed by F. Hole in the early 1960s (Hole et al. 1969), it has become one of the most informative sites yielding evidence of early agricultural societies in the eastern wing of the Fertile Crescent. Although Hole and his colleagues have published their excavations at a high standard, the site’s chronology deserves a revision. More recently acquired radiocarbon dates have also increased ambiguities in this regard (cf. Zeder and Hesse 2000). Therefore, a stratigraphic trench was excavated under direction of H. Darabi in 2017 (Darabi et al. 2017). In order to gain new samples from save contexts, a small area (2.5 x 2.5 m) was first opened on the southern edge of the trench remaining from the former excavations (not filled back). Then, this new area was reduced to 2 x 2 m down to virgin soil (Fig. 2). This could provide us with a sequence of layers as close to Hole’s stratigraphy as possible. Generally speaking, the new stratigraphy indicates the remains of 18 occupational phases: Of interest was a “knapping spot” of a thickness between 3-8 cm, resting above virgin soil. This paper discusses a preliminary analysis of the chipped flints recovered from this lowermost layer of the site.