Archaeologists from the University of Oxford used satellite imagery to identify and map
Led by Dr. Michael Fradley, the groupScientists from the Endangered Archeology in the Middle East and North Africa (EAMENA) project used open-source satellite imagery to thoroughly survey the eastern Nafud Desert region. This little-explored area.
Red dots: places found as part of the EAMENA project
White dots: previously known locations.
Source: ox.ac.uk
These structures consist of low stone walls,sometimes several kilometers long. It is believed that they were used to drive game, such as the gazelle, into an area where they could be easily caught or killed. There is evidence that these structures appeared in 8000 BC. and appeared during the Neolithic period.
"Kites" are not easy to observe from the ground, howeverthe advent of commercial satellite imagery and platforms such as Google Earth has helped scientists. Although these structures were already well known from eastern Jordan and adjacent areas in southern Syria, studies have shown that they extend 400 km further east through northern Saudi Arabia. Moreover, some of them were also first discovered in southern Iraq.
“The structures we found indicateintricate, meticulous design. In terms of size, some of them can be up to 100 meters wide, and the guide walls are incredibly long. In some places, the surviving parts of the walls run almost in a straight line for 4 kilometers, often over very diverse terrain, ”said Dr. Fradley.
Photo: ox.ac.uk
For creation, maintenance and restorationstructures, ancient people coordinated enormous significant resources for generations. Researchers believe that their exaggerated scale and shape emphasized the status, identity and territoriality of the “clans”. They occupied an important place in the symbolic and ritual spheres of the Neolithic peoples of the region.
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