The Israel Antiquities Authority has announced a discovery that could change the history of the Middle East. Archaeologists have unearthed a highly developed site that is approximately 9000 years old. The find is revealing a sophisticated society and its transition from one based on hunting to agriculture. This discovery is providing new insights into the origin of urban living and civilization in the Levant.

This remarkable site was unearthed during a major infrastructure project some 3 miles (5 kilometers) west of Jerusalem, near the town of Motza. During the construction of some tunnels and a new road junction, workers came across the Stone Age settlement. A group of archaeologists working for the IAA and led by Dr. Hamoudi Khalaily and Dr. Jacob Vardi, have been working at the location for 18 months.

The settlement was located in a fertile valley that has been almost continuously inhabited for 20,000 years. It was previously believed that there had been no major settlements in this part of the Levant in the Neolithic. The discovery of the site now means that settlements similar to those further north and east of the Jordan River once existed in Judea, part of modern Israel.

more at ancient-origins.net