'Ain Ghazal Statues: Neolithic Plaster Figurines
c. 6750-6500 BCE · Prehistoric
Around 6750 BCE, inhabitants of 'Ain Ghazal created human figures from lime plaster layered over reed and twig cores. The statues stood up to one meter tall with oversized heads and large shell eyes outlined with bitumen. Residents buried the statues in two caches beneath abandoned house floors. The first cache, dated to approximately 6750 BCE, contained 25 figures, while a second cache dated to 6570 BCE held 7 more. Both full-body statues and busts were found, including some with two heads.
Key Figures
Gary Rollefson
Locations
'Ain Ghazal
Topics
neolithicfigurinesritualstatuesjordan
Connected Events — 2 Connections
PPNB lime plaster figurine tradition at Catalhoyuk preceded and informed the plaster statue-making techniques used at Ain Ghazal Çatalhöyük: Neolithic Settlement
PPNB lime plaster skull modification tradition at Jericho preceded and informed plaster figurine production at Ain Ghazal where artisans applied similar techniques to reed armatures rather than human crania Jericho PPNB Plastered Skulls
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