Lapidary technology revealed by functional analysis of carnelian beads from the early Neolithic site of Nahal Hemar Cave, southern Levant

Use-wear analysis applied to two carnelian beads from Nahal Hemar Cave, southern Israel, and dated to the Middle Pre-Pottery Neolithic B period, revealed a manufacturing procedure that corresponds to genuine lapidary technologies of contemporary traditional societies. Based on ethnographic observations combined with experiments in working carnelian, wear patterns were interpreted to be produced by a multi-stage manufacturing sequence that includes abrasion against varying abrasion surfaces, drilling probably with a splinter drill equipped into a rod and finally, tumbling. These beads are one of the earliest examples of carnelian beads and thus represent a lapidary technology with roots from over 9000 years ago.