Syrian Badiah is the cradle of ancient man… Findings and Evidence

Archeologists consider the Syrian Badiah region as one of the most important sites in Syria and the region, whose discoveries indicate the existence of ancient man over tens of thousands of years since the beginning of the Stone Age.

Previous excavations in the Area, specifically in the village of al-Koum, which lies between Palmyra and the Euphrates, revealed the presence of flint tools, that confirm the fact that the area has been inhabited for some 100,000 years, from which, according to archeological researchers, man headed north, east, west, and south.

The flint tools that were discovered in that area date back to various Neanderthal times, followed by other eras in which man began the manufacturing process. Pieces were found in layers , especially at the Umm Hamel site, which contained more than 25 settlement layers on top of each other. Axes, knives, scrapers and other tools made of flint have been identified thanks to the radiocarbon dating process and modern methods of analysis.

Bone remains of extinct animals, including parts of an elephant’s bone, were found, which indicates that it lived in that area, as well as the bones of what is known as the giant camel, found in layers dating back about 400 thousand years.

In a statement to SANA, the archeologist Mohamed Khaled Al-Asaad explained that the Koum Basin in the Badiah of Palmyra formed a corridor between the continents of Africa, Asia, and Europe and was, according to his expression, the smelter from which man set out to build his ancient world.

Al-Asaad asserts that the half-skull of the first human being, the oldest human being, found in this region demonstrates the ancient age of human life in this Mesopotamian and the large oases of Palmyra.

Archeologist Dr. Khalil al-Hariri, former curator of Palmyra National Museum, indicated in a statement to SANA that the Palmyra Badiah basin is one of the richest in the world, containing some 100,000 traces and antiquities, including flint tools polished on both sides, including very sophisticated cutting-edge tools that resemble modern knives.

He clarified that the stone tools, primarily hand axes, were made from the high-quality flint that residents had brought from quarries 5-10 km away from the site. They were accurate in their form, refinement, and symmetry, showing that the manufacturer paid special attention to them, exceeding their functional and practical needs.

Hariri pointed out that  research  in this area is supposed to  solve another mystery, which is the transition from the Middle Stone Age to the Neolithic age. Dr. Jacques Kauvan, who previously served as director of the French archeological mission in the Palmyra region, said, “Man, wherever you are, you should be proud that you have two homelands where you live now and where your ancestors grew up from ancient times in the present-day land of Syria.”

The Swiss archeologist, Dr. John Marie Lutansor, who discovered half of this skull at the site of the Nadaweya, Ain Askar in the Koum Basin, described this discovery, which dates back to 400 thousand years BC, as extraordinary because it helps to know the ways through which our ancient ancestors spread. It also shows that the ancient Syrian man produced sophisticated industries that have shaken the inherited ideas about the mental abilities of our early ancestors.

Amal Farhat