A recent study by researchers from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has revealed a fascinating discovery: tools known as spindle whorls, approximately 12,000 years old, found at the archaeological site of Nahal Ein Gev II in northern Israel. This finding represents the earliest evidence of rotational technology with wheels in the Levant, shedding light on the technological advances of the Natufian culture, a key society in the transition toward agricultural life in the Neolithic period.

The study, published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE and led by Talia Yashuv and Professor Leore Grosman from the Computational Archaeology Laboratory at Hebrew University, uses a pioneering methodology to analyze perforated objects based on 3D digital models of the stones and their central cavities.

Through this approach, the researchers analyzed over a hundred small stones, mostly limestone, which have a circular shape with a central hole. Thanks to this particular structure, scientists concluded that these stones were probably used as spindle whorls. This hypothesis was confirmed by recreating these tools and successfully using replicas to spin flax.

Perforated Stones Natufian
The place of the findings, NEG II on the banks of Ei Gev Rive, facing the Sea of Galilea. Credit: Naftali Hilger

Spindle whorls are round, heavy objects that attach to a stick, forming a device similar to the wheel-and-axle concept. As they spin, these tools allow the spindle to rotate faster and longer, facilitating the gathering of natural fibers like wool or flax to transform them into thread.

The research highlighted that this type of high-speed spinning technology is the oldest evidence of its kind in the Levant, dating back about 4,000 years before previously known textile tools. This represents a major advancement in human innovation history, especially in textile manufacturing.

According to Professor Grosman, the perforated stones found at Nahal Ein Gev II represent the earliest examples of round objects with a central hole connected to a rotating shaft that were used long before the wheels intended for transportation appeared. These early rotation tools, from which key inventions in human technological history emerged, laid the groundwork for future rotational innovations, such as the potter’s wheel and the cart wheel, fundamental inventions that appeared around 6,000 years later.

Perforated Stones Natufian
(a) Manual thigh-spinning [64]; (b) Spindle-and-whorl “supported spinning” [68]; (c) “drop spinning” [66]; (d) the experimental spindles and whorls, the 3D scans of the pebbles and their negative perforations. The bottom pictures show Yonit Kristal experimenting spinning fibres with replicas of the perforated pebbles, using supported spinning and drop spinning techniques. Credit: Talia Yashuv

The concept of a round stone with a hole in the center used in a rotational function not only illustrates a rudimentary understanding of circular motion but also reveals how humans began applying basic mechanical principles long before complex uses arose. This early use of rotational tools highlights the Natufians’ ability to explore and develop mechanisms that optimized practical tasks, like producing thread, an essential element for making garments and other textile applications.

The archaeological site of Nahal Ein Gev II, characterized by its permanent structures, lime burials, and diversified tools, is a unique testament to the end of the Natufian culture and its transition from a hunter-gatherer lifestyle to an agricultural one.

This change marks one of the most relevant moments in human history, when societies began to establish permanent settlements and develop technology to facilitate their new way of life. Recent findings underscore how technological advances were a key factor in the Neolithization process, that is, the transition to agricultural and sedentary societies.

SOURCES

Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Yashuv T, Grosman L (2024) 12,000-year-old spindle whorls and the innovation of wheeled rotational technologies. PLoS ONE 19(11): e0312007. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0312007

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