New Archaeological findings in Kharaysin: The early houses and the origins of agriculture and livestock in Jordan.

A team of Spanish archaeologists from various institutions, led by the Spanish National Research Council (IMF-CSIC), has been excavating at the Kharaysin site (Zarqa) since 2014.

After resuming the excavation works after pausing in 2020 due to the pandemic, the campaigns carried out by the Spanish archaeologists in 2021 and 2022 have presented interesting findings.

Around 10,800 years ago the small oval huts of the first inhabitants of Kharaysin transformed into large square houses with rounded corners. Probably, a new group of settlers contributed setting up this new and sophisticated type of architecture. Studies of charred seeds show that, more than 10,000 years ago, the people of Kharaysin grew legumes (beans, peas, lentils, and chickpeas) in addition to cereals (wheat and barley).

They also found a type of legume that they have not yet been able to identify. Was it a crop that they experimented with, but was later lost? Among the animals consumed, they began to find goats, which became more common as we move forward in time. Are these the first domestic goats? New research techniques that are being developed by archaeologists will allow us to confirm this.

In any case, Kharaysin is a key site to learn about the origins of agriculture and livestock in Jordan and, therefore, in the world.