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This study demonstrates the feasibility of speleothem magnetism as a paleo-hydrology proxy in speleothems growing in semi-arid conditions. Soil-derived magnetic particles in speleothems retain valuable information on the physicochemical conditions of the overlying soil, and changes in bedrock hydrology. Yet, the link between magnetic and isotopic proxies of speleothems has been only partly established. We reveal strong coupling between the inflow of magnetic particles (quantified using the magnetic flux index, IRMflux) and δ13C in two Holocene speleothems from Soreq Cave (Israel). The stalagmite record spans from ca. 9.7 to ca. 5.4 ka, capturing the warm-humid conditions associated with the early Holocene and the transition to mid-Holocene wet-dry cycles. Extremely low IRMflux during the early Holocene, indicating minimal contribution from the overlying soil, is accompanied by anomalously high δ13C (approaching bedrock values) hypothesized to be caused by high rainfall and soil erosion. By contrast, IRMflux during the mid-Holocene covaries with the saw-tooth cyclicity of δ13C and δ18O, interpreted as rapid fluctuations in rainfall amount. The peaks in IRMflux precede the negative (wet) δ13C peaks by ~60–120 yr. The apparent lag is explained as a rapid physical translocation of overlying soil particles via groundwater (high IRMflux) as a response to increasing rainfall, compared with slower soil organic matter turnover rates (10–102 yr).

Paleorainfall proxy records from the Middle East have revealed remarkable patterns of variability since the penultimate glacial period (140 ka), but the seasonality of this signal has been unresolvable. Here, seasonal-resolution oxygen isotope data from Soreq Cave speleothems suggest that summer monsoon rainfall periodically reaches as far north as Israel—well removed from the modern monsoon—at times (∼125, 105 ka) that overlap with evidence for some of the earliest modern human migrations out of Africa. These seasonal proxy data are corroborated by seasonal-resolution model output of the amount and oxygen-isotope ratio of rainfall from an isotope-enabled climate model. In contrast to the modern regional climate where rainfall is delivered predominantly in winter months along westerly storm tracks, the model suggests that during extreme peaks of summer insolation—as occurs during the last interglacial (e.g., 125, 105 ka)—regional rainfall increases due to both wetter winters and the incursion of summer monsoons. This interpretation brings clarity to regional paleoproxy records and provides important environmental context along one potential pathway of early modern human migration.

The Levant region of Israel, located along the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, is characterized by Mediterranean climate, but sixty km eastwards towards the Dead Sea Rift Valley (DSRV), the region rapidly becomes a ‘rain shadowʼ desert. Speleothems from the Mediterranean climate zone continuously grew throughout several glacial/interglacial cycles, indicating that water was always available in the unsaturated zone. Their δ18O variations match global and regional climate changes, with the Eastern Mediterranean Sea being the major control on their δ18O values, as evident from the similarity between the speleothems and the planktonic foraminifer G. ruber records. In contrast, speleothems along the central and southern segments of the DSRV grew mainly during last glacial periods coinciding with the higher stands of Lake Lisan, the precursor of the present-day Dead Sea. This paper discusses the newly discovered Zalmon Cave speleothems, located in the northern segment of the DSRV shedding light on the hydrological conditions along the rift during last glacial. Unlike speleothems located further south along the DSRV, Zalmon Cave speleothems grew both during glacial and interglacial periods. However, during last glacial their δ18O values, shifted to lower values by ∼1–2‰ relative to speleothems from central Israel coinciding also with the largest difference in δ18O values between Zalmon Cave speleothems and the marine record. The data suggest that a change of the westerlies' storm tracks occurred during most of the last glacial period, which resulted in increased rainfall in the northern DSRV providing freshwater input during the otherwise relatively ‘drierʼ glacial.

Sapropels S5 and S7 formed in the semi-enclosed Eastern Mediterranean Sea (EMS) during peak interglacial periods MIS5e and MIS7a, respectively, are considered among the most strongly developed Quaternary sapropels. This study investigates the redox dynamics of the water column during their formation, via Fe isotope and Fe speciation studies of cores taken at 2550 m depth at site ODP-967. Both sapropels show an inverse correlation between δ56Fe and FeT/Al, with slopes mostly matching that found for the Black Sea, pointing to a benthic shelf to basin shuttle of Fe and subsequent precipitation of Fe sulphides in euxinic bottom waters. An exception to these Black Sea-type trends occurs during the later, peak, stages of S7, where the negative δ56Fe - FeT/Al slope shallows. Fe speciation studies reveal that the dominant highly reactive Fe phase (FeHR) in the sapropels is pyrite, with Fe (oxyhydr)oxides forming the second major mineral component. Correspondingly, FeHR/FeT plots show increased strengthening of anoxic water conditions during the passage from pre-sapropel sediment into the sapropel. Nevertheless, despite the evidence for euxinic conditions from both Fe isotopes and high Mo concentrations in the sapropel, Fepy/FeHR ratios remain below values commonly used to identify water column euxinia. This apparent contradiction is ascribed to the sedimentary preservation of a high flux of crystalline Fe (oxyhydr)oxide minerals to the basin, which resulted in a relatively low degree of sulphidation, despite the presence of euxinic bottom waters. Thus, the operationally defined ferruginous/euxinic boundary for EMS sapropels is better placed at Fepy/FeHR = 0.6, which is somewhat below the usually ascribed lower limit of 0.7. Consistent with the significant presence of crystalline Fe (oxyhydr)oxides, the change in the δ56Fe - FeT/Al slope during peak S7 is ascribed to an enhanced monsoon-driven flux of detrital Fe(III) oxides from the River Nile into the EMS basin and comcomitant diagenetic sulphidation. Euxinic water column conditions in sapropel S5 and S7 are interpreted here to reflect the positive balance between dissolved sulphide formation and rates of reductive dissolution of Fe (oxyhydr)oxide minerals. Both of these parameters in turn depend on the extent to which water overturn times are reduced and export productivity increased during sapropel formation.

Authigenic uranium isotope compositions of Holocene sapropel S1 (delta U-238(auth) = + 0.10 to + 0.52 %; ODP core 967, 2550 mbsl) are significantly higher than the proposed upper boundary (+0.2%) associated with the transport-porewater diffusion model for sediment uranium uptake. It is shown that these high delta U-238(aut) values are compatible with rapid initial slowdown of thermohaline overturning and the development of an anoxic water column. These conditions would favour U uptake in an organic-rich floccule layer overlying the sediment-water interface. The high delta U-238(aut) values correlate with low delta Mo-98(auth) values (+0.02 to -0.88%), interpreted to reflect weakly euxinic conditions controlled by thiomolybdate-molybdate solution equilibria. The S1 data contrast markedly with published data from last interglacial sapropel S5 from the same core, which show delta U-238(aut) and delta Mo-98(auth) characteristics compatible with a restricted euxinic basin due to progressive slowdown in the thermohaline circulation. The U-Mo isotope data for S1 are similar to a range of published palaeo-settings. Sapropels are therefore shown to be useful templates for the unravelling of the interplay between productivity and deep water renewal times in ancient settings., Geochemical Perspectives Letters, 15, ISSN:2410-339X, ISSN:2410-3403

Highly resolved, well-dated paleoclimate records from the southern South African coast are needed to contextualize the evolution of the highly diverse extratropical plant communities of the Greater Cape Floristic Region (GCFR) and to assess the environmental impacts on early human hunter-gatherers. We present new speleothem stable oxygen and carbon isotope ratios (δ18Oc and δ13C) from two caves at Pinnacle Point, South Africa, covering the time between 330 and 43 ka. Composite δ18Oc and δ13C records were constructed for Staircase Cave and PP29 by combining all stable isotope analyses into a single time series and smoothing by a 3-point running mean. δ18Oc and δ13C values record changes in rainfall seasonality and the proportions of C3 and C4 plants in the vegetation, respectively. We show that in general increased summer rainfall brought about a wider spread of C4 grasses and retreat of the C3 plant–dominated GCFR communities. The occurrence of summer rainfall on the southern coast of South Africa was linked to total rainfall amounts in the interior region through tropical temperate troughs. These rainfall systems shifted the southern coastal climate toward more summer (winter) rainfall when precession was high (low) and/or the westerlies were in a northern (southern) position.

Early Ahmarian, Levantine Aurignacian and Post-Levantine Aurignacian archeological assemblages show that the karstic Manot Cave, located 5 km east of the Mediterranean coast in the Western Galilee region of Israel, was intensively occupied during the Early Upper Paleolithic. The coexistence of these rich archaeological layers with speleothems in Manot Cave provides a window of opportunity for determining the relationships between climatic conditions and the nature of human activity and mobility patterns in the Western Galilee region during the Early Upper Paleolithic period. This study, based on four stalagmites that grew almost continuously from ∼75 to 26.5 ka, covers most of the last glacial, and overlaps with the human occupation of the cave. The speleothems oxygen (δ18O) and carbon (δ13C) isotopic records indicate that climate and environmental conditions fluctuated during the last glacial, some of which correspond with Dansgaard–Oeschger (D-O) cycles 12, 10, 7 and Heinrich (H) events VI and V. Consistent with independent evidence from botanic and faunal remains, these climatic shifts brought about significant environmental changes in the region, ranging from dominant thick Mediterranean forest to more open landscape. A good correlation with less negative δ13C values is most pronounced during the Early Ahmarian time period, but there was also a change to less negative δ13C values during the Levantine Aurignacian and Post-Levantine Aurignacian industries in the Levant. These positive δ13C shifts suggest that environmental transformation towards a more open grassy landscape dominated by C4 vegetation might have played an important role in the development of these cultural entities (mainly the Early Ahmarian) in Manot Cave region.

Two underground cavities in the Northern Calabria region, the Romito and the San Paolo caves, have been selected for speleoseismic analysis in order to provide a timeframe for paleoearthquakes which have shocked the cave sites and the surrounding area. The caves are positioned in a seismogenically active region, which has been struck by medium to large earthquakes in historical and pre-historic times. Moreover, frequent instrumentally measured small to moderate seismicity occurs in the area (M ≤ 5.6). We document damaged carbonate cave deposits, including collapsed and broken stalactites, in-situ severed stalagmites and stalactites, and collapsed bedrock ceilings. Samples were sawed in order to expose breakages and contacts within the laminae. Sixteen laminae, eight pairs of pre and post event laminae, were drilled for dating by the UraniumThorium disequilibrium technique. Three discrete events were defined by six of the speleoseismites to (I) 7.4–2.9 ka, (II) 9.7–8.2 ka, and (III) 28.4–27.4 ka. Two additional speleoseismites gave wide age brackets, but are confined to 65.7–18.6 ka, which overlaps with event III, but might represent additional events. The present speleoseismic work depicts a scenario of a minimum of three well-constrained strong shaking events in a time span of the past ∼28 ky, yielding a maximum recurrence interval of ∼9 ky. In 2012 the area was shaken by a Mw5.2 earthquake that apparently did not produced damage within the study cavities, suggesting that this size is a lower magnitude limit for producing permanent effects in the caves deposits. The speleoseismites we studied collected must have been generated by larger magnitude events, and/or with different epicenter locations. This study adds medium or large earthquake events, previously lacking, to the historic and instrumental record. This may contribute to reduction of gaps in the earthquake record and consequently a more reliable recurrence interval estimate for damaging earthquakes in the region.

Diagenesis and epigenetic remobilization frequently obscure the original depositional environment of sediments that have been affected by Cu- Mn- mineralization. Such is the case for the sedimentary Cu and Mn ores of the Cambrian Timna Formation in Southern Israel, where different interpretations of field, petrographic and geochemical data have led to conflicting genetic models. In this study we show how Sr and Pb isotopic data can help unravel the origins and complex processes involved in the sedimentary-hosted Cu- Mn- mineralization. Applying Pb and Sr isotopic systems to the various host rock types, two petrographical and chemically distinct types of Mn nodules (referred to as A and B) and reduced and oxidized Cu minerals of the Timna Formation indicates that two major solution types were involved. The first solution is depleted in Th and enriched with U, with a constant 208Pb/204Pb ratio and single U source as reflected by the correlation between 206Pb/204Pb vs. 207Pb/204Pb. The second solution has higher Th and lower U concentrations; thus 208Pb/204Pb ratios significantly vary whereas the 206Pb/204Pb and 207Pb/204Pb ratios remain relatively constant. The low Th/high U solution is associated with the deposition of Type A Mn nodules, whose 87Sr/86Sr ratio of 0.7093 ± 0.0005 matches that of the Cambrian Sea. Thus, in keeping with previous petrographic and mineralogical evidence, the isotope data are consistent with primary Mn nodule formation under oxidizing conditions during early diagenesis. In contrast, the second high Th/low U solution is associated with the transformation of primary Type A to epigenetic Type B Mn nodules. During these later processes, U was leached from Type A Mn nodules to form secondary Pb enriched Type B nodules. The Pb isotope composition of these nodules clearly shows that the epigenetic solutions were significantly different from those of a major phase of Oligocene-Miocene Fe- mineralization that affected the bedrocks adjacent to the Dead Sea Transform. Cu- Mn- mineralization exhibits more complex isotopic signatures. Cu-sulfides (mainly covellite) deposited during early diagenesis under reducing conditions, and although their 87Sr/86Sr ratio in places is 0.709, as a whole, their Sr-isotope ratios reflect their location rather than the Cambrian sea water signature, as clearly evident from their Pb isotope compositions. During later epigenetic stages, copper sulfides were altered to form malachite and paratacamite, whose Pb isotope compositions show that the oxidizing solutions underwent fluid-rock interaction with their host rocks, particularly during the transport of Pb in lower pH chloride solutions. Overall, it is evident that the combined use of the Sr and Pb isotope systems allows clarification of the various primary and secondary processes involved in the Cambrian Timna mineralization Cu- Mn- mineralization, and particularly the important identification of the involvement of Cambrian sea water in the primary ore formation processes.

The δ18O and δ13C records of a 230Th/U dated, 2.2-m long stalagmite from Fengyu Cave in south China provide a continuous decadal-resolution (with 3698 measurements) proxy for regional climatic and environmental conditions during 4–65 ka. This single stalagmite reveals all Heinrich cold events, most Dansgaard-Oeschger warm events, deglaciation and Holocene Optimum, generally supporting the Hulu and Dongge records. On 5000–10000 year time-scales, the δ18O and δ13C variations show strongly positive correlations (R = 0.7), reflecting that a common climatic factor controls both δ18O and δ13C of F-1. The comparison of the speleothem, ice core, insolation and marine records reveals strong linkages between N. Atlantic temperature and the Asian summer monsoon over most of the study period. However, there are some regional discrepancies between the stalagmite δ18O records following the deglaciation. Although the NH summer insolation provides the major forcing on Asian monsoon variability over orbital time-scales, the weakest summer monsoon intensity during the last glacial occurred ca. 16 ka corresponding to the Heinrich event 1; a 5–6 ky lag from the minimum insolation during the Last Glacial Maximum. Variations in the monsoonal climate of the study area over the past 700 years have been reconstructed from the δ18O and δ13C records of a 14.6-cm long stalagmite F4 in Fengyu cave, showing wet conditions between AD 1550 and AD 1850 (the Little Ice Age) and relatively dry conditions before and after this interval. Human impacts on local vegetation since AD 1700 were recorded by the δ13C record of stalagmite F4.

The isotopic composition of precipitation ( δ P ) is one of the most widely used and informative terrestrial paleoclimate proxies. δ P integrates a series of hydrological processes; therefore, any interpretation of paleohydrology using δ P requires a thorough understanding and quantification of the full hydrological cycle. In this paper, we use modern data to analytically model the full isotopic hydrological cycle of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Southern Levant, including oceanic evaporation, distillation during transport and precipitation over land. This model allows us to determine the important factors controlling this system. The model results underscore the significance of the isotopic distillation process driven by the land–sea temperature gradient as a significant factor controlling the long-term average isotopic composition of precipitation across Israel. Based on the understanding of the processes that govern the modern system, we model the isotopic composition of precipitation from the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) using published data for speleothem oxygen isotopes in calcite, oxygen and hydrogen isotopes in fluid inclusions and clumped isotope values from Soreq Cave and the isotopic composition of East Mediterranean planktonic foraminifera G. ruber. The data and model results indicate two plausible scenarios for the LGM that entail changes in the magnitude of distillation over Israel, in normalized humidity over the Mediterranean and possible shifts of the moisture trajectories over the Mediterranean. The results presented in the paper illustrate the importance of understanding the full local hydrological cycle when reconstructing and interpreting the isotopic composition of precipitation.

An archaeological site is an integral part of its surrounding landscape. This is one of the main novel approaches in the long-term archaeological project of Tell eṣ-Ṣâfi/Gath. The site has interact...

Given the steep present-day climatic gradients in southern South Africa, comparative studies of its coastal and inland paleoclimate provide important insight into the region's spatial climate dynamics. We present a comparative study of new speleothem stable oxygen (δ18O) and carbon (δ13C) isotopic composition from Efflux Cave (EC; 113–19 ka, hiatus between 105 and 94 ka) in the Little Karoo inland basin and Herolds Bay Cave (HBC; 93–62 ka) at the boundary between the Cape coastal lowlands and the Palaeo-Agulhas Plain. Gaussian kernel based cross-correlation analyses against palaeoclimate proxy records show that rainfall seasonality at EC is related to rainfall amount in the South African interior, whereas HBC is similar to the South African east coast. Our new proxy records, corroborated by archaeological evidence from the Cape coastal lowlands and the Little Karoo, suggest that in both regions, surface water was readily available and grassland ecosystems with variable amounts of C4 and C3 grasses as well as fynbos communities could be found nearby. Cross-correlation analyses of the new records from EC and HBC compared to previously published speleothem records from southern South Africa show only limited statistical correlation. However, there are some similarities in overall trends of palaeoclimate change in the Cape coastal lowlands and the Little Karoo whereby Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5b (mainly Greenland Interstadial 22) and 4 generally have more summer rainfall and higher abundances of C4 vegetation than MIS 5a and MIS 3.

Our original claim, based on three independent numerical dating methods, of an age of ~185,000 years for the Misliya-1 modern human hemi-maxilla from Mount Carmel, Israel, is little affected by discounting uranium-series dating of adhering crusts. It confirms a much earlier out-of-Africa Homo sapiens expansion than previously suggested by the considerably younger (90,000 to 120,000 years) Skhul/Qafzeh hominins.

Earliest modern humans out of AfricaRecent paleoanthropological studies have suggested that modern humans migrated from Africa as early as the beginning of the Late Pleistocene, 120,000 years ago. Hershkovitzet al.now suggest that early modern humans were already present outside of Africa more than 55,000 years earlier (see the Perspective by Stringer and Galway-Witham). During excavations of sediments at Mount Carmel, Israel, they found a fossil of a mouth part, a left hemimaxilla, with almost complete dentition.The sediments contain a series of well-defined hearths and a rich stone-based industry, as well as abundant animal remains. Analysis of the human remains, and dating of the site and the fossil itself, indicate a likely age of at least 177,000 years for the fossil—making it the oldest member of theHomo sapiensclade found outside Africa.Science, this issue p.456; see also p.389

Paleoanthropologists (scientists studying human origins) universally recognize the evolutionary significance of ancient climates and environments for understanding human origins.[1-6] Even those scientists working in recent phases of human evolution, when modern humans evolved, agree that hunter-gatherer adaptations are tied to the way that climate and environment shape the food and technological resource base.[7-10] The result is a long tradition of paleoanthropologists engaging with climate and environmental scientists in an effort to understand if and how hominin bio-behavioral evolution responded to climate and environmental change. Despite this unusual consonance, the anticipated rewards of this synergy are unrealized and, in our opinion, will not reach potential until there are some fundamental changes in the way the research model is constructed. Discovering the relation between climate and environmental change to human origins must be grounded in a theoretical framework and a causal understanding of the connection between climate, environment, resource patterning, behavior, and morphology, then move beyond the strict correlative research that continues to dominate the field.

Chemical Geology, 475, ISSN:0009-2541, ISSN:1872-6836

We take up the question of “why” cultivation was adopted by the end of the Younger Dryas by reviewing evidence in the Levant, a sub-region of southwestern Asia, from the Late Glacial Maximum through the first millennium of the Holocene. Based on the evidence, we argue that the demographic increase of foraging societies in the Levant at the Terminal Pleistocene formed the backdrop for the collapse of foraging adaptations, compelling several groups within a particular “core area” of the Fertile Crescent to become fully sedentary and introduce cultivation alongside intensified gathering in the Late Glacial Maximum, ca. 12,000–11,700 cal BP. In addition to traditional hunting and gathering, the adoption of stable food sources became the norm. The systematic cultivation of wild cereals begun in the northern Levant resulted in the emergence of complex societies across the entire Fertile Crescent within several millennia. Results of archaeobotanical and archaeozoological investigations provide a basis for reconstructing economic strategies, spatial organization of sites, labor division, and demographic shifts over the first millennium of the Holocene. We draw our conclusion from two kinds of data from the Levant, a sub-region of southwestern Asia, during the Terminal Pleistocene and early Holocene: climatic fluctuations and the variable human reactions to natural and social calamities. The evidence in the Levant for the Younger Dryas, a widely recognized cold period across the northern hemisphere, is recorded in speleothems and other climatic proxies, such as Dead Sea levels and marine pollen records.

Terrestrial chemical weathering of silicate minerals is a fundamental component of the global cycle of carbon and other elements. Past changes in temperature, rainfall, ice cover, sea-level and physical erosion are thought to affect weathering but the relative impact of these controls through time remains poorly constrained. This problem could be addressed if the nature of past weathering could be constrained at individual sites. In this study, we investigate the use of speleothems as local recorders of the silicate weathering proxy, Li isotopes. We analysed δ7Li and [Li] in speleothems that formed during the past 200 ka in two well-studied Israeli caves (Soreq and Tzavoa), as well as in the overlying soils and rocks. Leaching and mass balance of these soils and rocks show that Li is dominantly sourced from weathering of the overlying aeolian silicate soils. Speleothem δ7Li values are ubiquitously higher during glacials (~23‰) than during interglacials (~10‰), implying more congruent silicate weathering during interglacials (where “congruent” means a high ratio of primary mineral dissolution to secondary mineral formation). These records provide information on the processes controlling weathering in Israel. Consideration of possible processes causing this change of weathering congruency indicates a primary role for temperature, with higher temperatures causing more congruent weathering (lower δ7Lispeleo). The strong relationship observed between speleothem d7Li and climate at these locations suggests that Li isotopes may be a powerful tool with which to understand the local controls on weathering at other sites, and could be used to assess the distribution of weathering changes accompanying climate change, such as that of Pleistocene glacial cycles.

There is growing evidence that speleothem calcite grows out of isotopic equilibrium with cave drip water, with clumped isotope analysis providing a sensitive indicator for disequilibrium. This disequilibrium is primarily the result of CO2 degassing from a thin film of water, leading to irreversible 13C enrichment and reversible 18O enrichment and Δ47 depletion. Here we examine isotopic disequilibrium in Soreq Cave (Israel) using multiple modern-day and late Holocene speleothems. The variability observed in Δ47 is small, within the analytical uncertainty, but the Δ47-derived temperature is offset from the modern cave temperature by ∼4 °C, reflecting degassing related disequilibrium that is fairly constant spatially. δ18O is more heterogeneous, reflecting short-term variability in drip water δ18Ow combined with variability in the speleothem growth rates and related fractionation between dissolved carbonate species and the growing calcite mineral. This complexity, however, is markedly reduced by spatial or temporal averaging, enabling an interpretation of the cave paleoclimate record. We examine the Soreq Cave speleothems through a comparison with 2 types of thermometers: one is based on CaCO3 precipitation from a bulk solution and is typically used for calibration of the Δ47 and δ18O thermometers; a second that is based on CaCO3 precipitating at the surface of the solution thus focusing and amplifying the thin film characteristics of speleothem formation. Soreq Cave speleothems are intermediate between these thermometers, providing a cave-specific thermometer calibration.

We present stable isotope data (δ18O, δ13C) from a detrital rich stalagmite from Kapsia Cave, the Peloponnese, Greece. The cave is rich in archeological remains and there are reasons to believe that flooding of the cave has directly affected humans using the cave. Using a combination of U–Th and 14C dating to constrain a site-specific correction factor for (232Th/238U) detrital molar ratio, a linear age model was constructed. The age model shows that the stalagmite grew during the period from ca. 950 BC to ca. AD 830. The stable oxygen record from Kapsia indicates cyclical changes of close to 500 yr in precipitation amount, with rapid shifts towards wetter conditions followed by slowly developing aridity. Superimposed on this signal, wetter conditions are inferred around 850, 700, 500 and 400–100 BC, and around AD 160–300 and AD 770; and driest conditions are inferred to have occurred around 450 BC, AD 100–150 and AD 650. Detrital horizons in the stalagmite indicate that three major floods took place in the cave at 500 BC, 70 BC and AD 450. The stable carbon isotope record reflects changes in biological activity being a result of both climate and human activities.

article High-resolution isotopic and geochemical analyses in a modern (1990-2008) Soreq Cave stalagmite are com- pared to instrumental records of rainfall and dripwater from the cave, with the aim of determining how seasonal-resolutionclimateinformationistransmittedtospeleothemgeochemistry.Insitu,micron-scaleanalysis of oxygen isotope ratios (δ 18 O) and trace elements by ion microprobe in combination with a continuous, linear traverse of trace element concentrations by laser-ablation ICP-MS (LA-ICP-MS) allow the definition of geochem- ical pathways within the cave. Fluorescent banding, imaged by confocal laser fluorescent microscopy (CLFM), as well as δ

A new approach for dating ancient quarries is applied to shed new light on the problem of calcite-alabaster provenance in the southern Levant. Until now, calcite-alabaster artifacts from this region were commonly attributed to Egyptian sources. This raw material was used for the production of luxury vessels as well as high-class architectural elements and furniture. We show for the first time that calcite-alabaster was quarried in the southern Levant from flowstone, which is deposited in karstic caves under free air conditions. Two flowstone quarries were discovered, in Te'omim and 'Abud Caves, located on the western slopes of the Central Highlands of Israel. Both quarries produced together over 200 m 3 of raw material. A broken column at 'Abud Cave indicates that large calcite-alabaster artifacts were produced inside the cave. Following the quarrying, additional flowstone was deposited on top of the quarried surface by continuous sheet flow of water. We use this deposit to constrain the quarrying period. The first abandoned parts of the Te'omim quarry are dated by U–Th to the Middle Bronze Age (first half of the 2nd millennium BCE). This dating is corroborated by archaeological finds within Te'omim Cave, as well as by the wide distribution of calcite-alabaster artifacts in south Levantine sites during this period.

An article in the special issue "Quantification of human–environment interactions in the past" comprising 8 articles (plus the introduction). This special issue is a contribution to PAGES' Focus 4 (human–climate–ecosystem interactions) theme and specifically the Land Use and Cover Soil and Sediment and Water Themes which ran up until 2014. The volume emerged from the PAGES supported meeting: ‘Towards a more accurate quantification of human–environment interactions in the past’ held in Leuven Belgium from 3–7 February 2014. ABSTRACT: Mediterranean landscapes have been characterized by the ongoing interaction between natural processes and anthropogenic activities over several thousands of years. However separating the relative contributions of these two factors in shaping the landscape has proved to be difficult. With reference to three excavated probes located in the environs of the archaeological site of Tell es Safi/Gath (central Israel) we outline a methodological approach that may aid in distinguishing between the impact of natural and anthropogenic agencies on the accumulation of sediment fills. We conclude that at Tell es Safi/Gath natural geomorphic processes were the major factors that shaped the landscape but anthropogenic activity is expressed in a brief period of time as evidenced by a high sedimentation rate combined with high d13C values a relatively high quantity of phytoliths and a high concentration of charred particles. This anthropogenic signature is interpreted as resulting from the destruction of the site by Hazael King of Aram Damascus (ca. late 9th century BCE). This research demonstrates how high resolution multi disciplinary sampling of probes for dating C isotopic composition phytolith characterization pollen analysis and assessment of sedimentation rates in combination with the study of human cultural history at an archaeological site may facilitate the distinction between natural and anthropogenic causes of sedimentation.

The Eastern Mediterranean (EM) - Levant region is the eastern borderland of the Eastern Mediterranean Sea (EMS). The EMS brings Mediterranean climate zones to the immediate coastal region and hinterland, but away from the influence of the EMS, the region rapidly becomes a desert. Paleoclimate evidence derived from a large number of studies on speleothems from caves located along sharp climatic gradients enables deep insight into the climate in the EM-Levant region. Growth periods and isotopic composition of speleothems from the various climate regimes capture the regional signals of temperature, rainfall amount and vegetation. Speleothems from northern and central Israel grew continuously in areas where present-day annual rainfall is ∼400–500 mm and show that water was always available during glacials and interglacials. These speleothems display a well-defined δ18O orbital modulation of glacial and interglacial marine isotope stages (MIS) and show good correlations with the EMS marine records, pointing to strong direct sea-land links. The climatic record indicates relatively drier and cooler glacials but extreme wet peaks during interglacials, mainly MIS 5e between 128–120 ka BP. Pluvial conditions penetrated to the northern, central and southern Negev Desert. The present-day climatic gradient between the different climatic regions existed through interglacials. However, growth periods of speleothems from the northern Negev Desert, from the “rain shadow’ desert, and the Dead Sea Basin, suggest that during last glacial the desert boundary moved from its interglacial and present-day position ∼30 km farther south and ∼60 km farther east, due to positive water balance.

Deposits in sea caves found along the southern coastline of South Africa have produced a rich and detailed archaeological record of early modern humans. There is, however, little evidence for coastal cave deposits and human occupation older than MIS5e (∼120 ka). Based on the correlation of four different chronological methods we present evidence for remnant cave deposits of 1.1–1.0 Ma from the quartzite sea cliff of Pinnacle Point, near Mossel Bay. Initial uranium–thorium ages at isotopic equilibrium indicated an age of >500 ka for two flowstone layers, confirmed by uranium–lead dating of these flowstones from 1.099 ± 0.012 to 1.047 ± 0.011 Ma. TT-OSL (thermally transferred optically stimulated luminescence) provides an age of 1.02 ± 0.088 Ma for the sand grains imbedded in the tufa underlying the flowstone and 0.720 ± 0.066 to 0.665 ± 0.056 for the overlying beach sediments, producing an internally consistent age sequence centring on 1.0–1.1 Ma. The normal palaeomagnetic signal of the younger section of the flowstone is interpreted to represent the Jaramillo between 1.07 and 0.99 Ma. There is a clear hiatus in the middle of this flowstone, leading us to interpret the lower normal signal as the Punaruu event at ∼1.115–1.1051 Ma. Together these four techniques point to an age of 1.1–1.0 Ma for these cave deposits at Pinnacle Point, far older than anticipated. The persistent presence of these 1.1–1.0 Ma deposits means that the enigmatic lack of Earlier Stone Age (Acheulean) artefacts in the sea caves along this coastal region can no longer be explained entirely by the age of the caves or through removal of sediments by previous sea level highstands. We believe that these and other coastal caves from this region, if located high enough above sea level, may contain deposits of great antiquity, which could provide outstanding records of climate, environment, sea level change, and human occupation back into the early to middle Pleistocene.

This study focuses on warm Last Glacial episodes in the southernmost extension of the Alpine karst range of the Eastern Mediterranean (Levant) region through the study speleothems in Mizpe Shelagim Cave, located in Mt. Hermon. The Alpine karst range extends from Turkey through Syria and Lebanon, reaching its southern limit in Mt. Hermon at an elevation of more than 2000 m. Under present-day conditions, southern Mt. Hermon receives 1000–2000 mm precipitation, mostly as snow, that originates in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. Speleothems deposition in this high altitude region was continuous during interglacials, but during the Last Glacial growth only occurred when average annual temperatures exceeded ∼3 °C as inferred from the study of speleothem fluid inclusions. Warming episodes occurred at: ∼65 ka, ∼56 ka, 54.5 ka, ∼52.5–51 ka, ∼49 ka, ∼42 ka, and ∼36 ka and are coincident with maximum insolation at 65 °N. The main depositional period from ∼56 ka to 51 ka coincides with Dansgaard–Oeschger interstadial 15 and 14, and warming in the northeastern basin of the Mediterranean Sea. Warming in the southern Alpine karst range of the Eastern Mediterranean was manifested by vegetation development, together with significant snow melting that resulted in the drainage of large amount of water to the Dead Sea Rift Valley.

This work presents a statistical reconstruction of average mid-winter (DJF) temperature in Jerusalem since 1750. It is a first comprehensive attempt to reconstruct the temperature in Jerusalem, as a good representation of the Eastern Mediterranean (EM) climate. This representativeness is verified here. The data has been reconstructed by using a statistical model based on Principal Component Regression (PCR), using both instrumental data and high temporal resolution records of proxy data, including tree ring chronologies from Jordan, and records of DJF precipitation and Sea Level Pressure from central and Western Europe. A split validation procedure has resulted in a 0.73 correlation between observed and reconstructed temperature. The warming trend of last decades is well noted in the reconstruction and is in line with other studies. Winters which were cold/warm were historically documented as wet/dry, respectively, consistent with earlier studies pointing a strong relationship between Jerusalem temperatures and precipitation. It is shown here for the first time that the 'First Aliyah' (immigration) to Israel during 1882-1904 initiated during favouring climate conditions (cool and wet) to establish an agricultural community in the region. These conditions were found to be exceptional compared to other periods since 1750.

This paper explores the environmental conditions that faced the people of ancient Jawa during the Holocene, as well as previous prehistoric periods of the mid-late Pleistocene. Calcite speleothems in a lava tube are dated using the U-Th method, to marine oxygen isotope stage 7 from ∼250 to 240 ka and from ∼230 to ∼220 ka; and the stage 5/4 transition between ∼80 and 70 ka. The available evidence indicates general aridity of the Black Desert during most of the mid-late Quaternary, punctuated by short wetter periods, when the Mediterranean cyclonic systems intensified and penetrated the north Arabian Desert. These Mediterranean systems had a longer and more intense effect on the desert fringe closer to the Mediterranean and only rarely penetrated the Black Desert of Jawa. The results do not exclude some increase of rainfall which did not change water availability dramatically during the warm Holocene. The ancient Jawa city appears to have depended on technological ability to build elaborate runoff-collection systems, which became the prime condition for success. © 2008 University of Washington. All rights reserved.

This paper explores the possible links between rapid climate change (RCC) and social change in the Near East and surrounding regions (Anatolia, central Syria, southern Israel, Mesopotamia, Cyprus and eastern and central Sahara) during the ‘long’ 4th millennium (∼4500–3000) BC. Twenty terrestrial and 20 marine climate proxies are used to identify long-term trends in humidity involving transitions from humid to arid conditions and vice versa. The frequency distribution of episodes of relative aridity across these records is calculated for the period 6300–2000 BC, so that the results may be interpreted in the context of the established arid episodes associated with RCC around 6200 and 2200 BC (the 8.2 and 4.2 kyr events). We identify two distinct episodes of heightened aridity in the early-mid 4th, and late 4th millennium BC. These episodes cluster strongly at 3600–3700 and 3100–3300 BC. There is also evidence of localised aridity spikes in the 5th and 6th millennia BC. These results are used as context for the interpretation of regional and local archaeological records with a particular focus on case studies from western Syria, the middle Euphrates, southern Israel and Cyprus. Interpretation of the records involves the construction of plausible narratives of human–climate interaction informed by concepts of adaptation and resilience from the literature on contemporary (i.e. 21st century) climate change and adaptation. The results are presented alongside well-documented examples of climatically-influenced societal change in the central and eastern Sahara, where detailed geomorphological studies of ancient environments have been undertaken in tandem with archaeological research. While the narratives for the Near East and Eastern Mediterranean remain somewhat speculative, the use of resilience and adaptation frameworks allows for a more nuanced treatment of human–climate interactions and recognises the diversity and context-specificity of human responses to climatic and environmental change. Our results demonstrate that there is a need for more local environmental data to be collected ‘at source’ during archaeological excavations.

Current global warming necessitates a detailed understanding of the relationships between climate and global ice volume. Highly resolved and continuous sea-level records are essential for quantifying ice-volume changes. However, an unbiased study of the timing of past ice-volume changes, relative to polar climate change, has so far been impossible because available sea-level records either were dated by using orbital tuning or ice-core timescales, or were discontinuous in time. Here we present an independent dating of a continuous, high-resolution sea-level record in millennial-scale detail throughout the past 150,000 years. We find that the timing of ice-volume fluctuations agrees well with that of variations in Antarctic climate and especially Greenland climate. Amplitudes of ice-volume fluctuations more closely match Antarctic (rather than Greenland) climate changes. Polar climate and ice-volume changes, and their rates of change, are found to covary within centennial response times. Finally, rates of sea-level rise reached at least 1.2 m per century during all major episodes of ice-volume reduction.

The combination of ion microprobe analysis of d 18 O and confocal laser fluorescent microscope imaging of annual growth bands in a Soreq Cave speleothem provides sub-annual-scale climate information between 34 and 4 ka. This high-resolution methodology is ideal both for comparing seasonal climate patterns across broad windows of time and examining rapid climate events, such as the Younger Dryas termination, in detail. The sub-annual d 18 O gradients we report represent a combination of seasonal variability in rainfall amount and air temperature. A distinct change in both the pattern of fluorescent banding and the gradient of d 18 O measured in situ across single, annual growth bands indicates a change in seasonal climate patterns of the Eastern Mediterranean region following Heinrich event 1 and again after the Younger Dryas. Throughout the Holocene, wet winters and dry summers characterized regional climate. During the Younger Dryas, we find that regional climate may have been more arid than in the Holocene, but the fluorescent banding pattern indicates that the supply of dripwater to the cave was more consistent year-round. We suggest that a reduced gradient of seasonal precipitation, occasional snowfall, and vegetation differences may have all contributed to the isotope and fluorescent banding patterns observed during Heinrich event 1 and the last glacial stadial. Detailed investigation of the Younger Dryas termination reveals a rapid onset of regional environmental change. Fluorescent band counting indicates that the Younger Dryas termination, as recorded by rainfall in the

We show how the copper (Cu) and lead (Pb) isotope systems provide a powerful combination of methods for tracing the environmental conditions and sources of sedimentary copper mineralization. The mineralization was studied at three different locations in southern Israel and comprises copper sulphide concretions hosted by Lower Cretaceous sandstones that unconformably overlie Cambrian sediments. At one location, Timna Valley, the Cambrian sediments contain extensive copper and manganese ores, whereas at the two other locations (Amram and Rehavam (Elat) located south of Timna) the Cambrian sediments are not mineralized. The Pb isotopic ratios of the Lower Cretaceous copper minerals at Timna Valley show a tight group with non-radiogenic values and overlap those of epigenetic (Type B) manganese nodules (Bar-Matthews, 1987) in the underlying Cambrian rocks. This overlap establishes a genetic connection between the fluids that remobilized copper into the Lower Cretaceous sandstones and the fluids that formed the epigenetic manganese mineralization. The Pb isotopic compositions of the Lower Cretaceous sandstone hosted Cu-sulphide concretions at Amram and Rehavam, demonstrate that they formed from solutions that originated in the Timna Valley and then migrated southward while mixing with other, more radiogenic, Pb solutions. The Cu-isotopic compositions of copper sulphide concretions from all three Lower Cretaceous localities define a bimodal distribution with δ65Cu = − 0.91 ± 0.51‰ and − 3.32 ± 0.29‰. Using fluid speciation modeling calculations (Asael et al., 2009), calculated Eh values for representative conditions are 0.45 and 0.65 V (logfO2 ≈ − 29 and − 19 bars), respectively. Overall, open system conditions are inferred for the regional mineralization, whereby copper-bearing solutions originating in the Timna Valley Cambrian rocks moved freely through the Lower Cretaceous sandstones. Redox (Eh) and salinity variations were the major regional parameters controlling the Cu isotopic composition variation, and the mobilization and precipitation of copper minerals. Organic matter decay and bacterial sulphate reduction locally influenced redox conditions at the site of Cu concretion formation.

The emplacement of calcite-filled veins perpendicular to the Dead Sea Fault Zone in northern Israel reflects strain partitioning during transpression. We present structural, geochemical, and U–Th geochronological data that constrain the mechanism, conditions and timing of vein formation. Vein walls are strongly brecciated and commonly cemented with coarsely crystalline calcite, whereas calcite-filled veins are composed of wall-parallel bands of calcite crystals. Elongated blocky and fibrous calcite crystals grew perpendicular to the vein walls and are characterised by a truncate sealing-hiatus morphology, indicating episodes of partial or complete sealing of the fractures during calcite precipitation. Stable isotope and rare-earth element and yttrium (REY) analyses indicate that calcite-filled veins precipitated by karst processes, involving meteoric water and limited fluid-rock interactions. U–Th dating results show a prolonged history of vein growth. While some veins initiated prior to 500 ka, the majority of the veins were active between 358 and 17 ka. Age constraints on vein activity correspond to an ∼E–W regional shortening phase in this sector of the Dead Sea Fault Zone, associated with an increased component of convergence during the late-Pleistocene.

Speleothems in arid and hyper-arid areas of Negev Desert, Israel, are used in paleoclimate reconstruction of northern margins of Saharan-Arabian Desert, focused on the following objectives: 1) precise U–Th dating of the timing of speleothem growth as an indicator of periods of humid climate, i.e. positive effective precipitation; 2) the origin of rainfall using the speleothem δ18O and changes in spatial pattern of speleothem deposition and speleothem thickness along a north–south transect; 3) changes of vegetation cover based on speleothem δ13C variations. During the last 350 ka major humid periods, referred to herein as Negev Humid Periods (NHP), occurred in the central and southern Negev Desert at 350–310 ka (NHP-4), 310–290 ka (NHP-3), 220–190 ka (NHP-2), and 142–109 ka (NHP-1). NHP-4, NHP-2 and NHP-1 are interglacial events, whereas NHP-3 is associated with a glacial period. During NHP-1, 2 and 3 the thickness and volume of the speleothems decrease from the north to the south, and in the most southern part of the region only a very thin flowstone layer formed during NHP-1, with no speleothem deposition occurring during NHP-2 and 3. These data imply that the Eastern Mediterranean Sea was the major source of the rainfall in northern and central Negev. More negative speleothem δ18O values, relative to central parts of Israel (Soreq Cave) are attributed to Rayleigh distillation because of the increasing distance from the Mediterranean Sea. Speleothem deposition during the NHP-4 in the southern Negev was more intensive than in most of the central Negev, suggesting the prominence of the tropical rain source. Decrease in speleothem δ13C during NHP events indicates growth of the vegetation cover. Nevertheless, the ranges of δ13C values show that the vegetation remained semi-desert C4 type throughout the NHPs, with an additional significant carbon fraction coming from the host rock and the atmosphere. These observations, together with small thickness of the speleothem layers, favor that NHP events consisted of clusters of very short humid episodes interspersed with long droughts. NHP events were contemporaneous with climate periods with monsoon index of ≥51 (cal/cm2 × day) and with the formation of sapropel layers in the Mediterranean Sea. Such simultaneous intensification of the monsoon and Atlantic-Mediterranean cyclones is probably related to the weakening of the high pressure cell above sub-tropical Atlantic Ocean, which enabled more rainfall to penetrate into the Saharan-Arabian Desert from the north and south. The contemporaneous occurrence of the NHP events and the increased monsoon rainfall could have opened migration corridors, creating climatic “windows of opportunity” for dispersals of hominids and animals out of the African continent.

Coastal South Africa draws interdisciplinary interests due to the co-occurrence of a rich record for early human behavioral modernity, hyper-diverse vegetation with very high endemism (the Cape Floral Region), and globally influential oceanic and climate systems. High resolution and continuous climate and environmental records are needed to provide the context for the evolution of behavioral modernity and this diverse flora. Here we present the first such record for climate and environmental change from 90 000 to 53 000 years ago from the southern Cape coast. This important time span covers a burst of expression of several indicators of human behavioral modernity, as well as several key cycles in global climate change. Our research location is ideally placed near the location of several critical archaeological sites, near the boundary of the winter and summer rainfall regimes, and close to isotopically distinct floral zones. We used isotopic analysis of precisely dated speleothems to document shifting vegetation and rainfall, and show that the presence of winter rain and C3 grasses waxes and wanes in response to Southern Hemisphere shifts in SSTs and global temperature. When proxies of global temperatures indicate warmer conditions, δ 18 O and δ 13 C indicate more winter rain and more C3 grasses, respectively, and vice versa. This record displays abrupt and short-term changes previously undocumented. It is often argued that the Cape Floral Region partially owes its high diversity to relative climatic stability. Our record shows isotopic variability that at least matches that displayed in the Levantine Mediterranean system, so climatic stability may not have characterized the south coast. One short-lived phase of human technological innovation (the Still Bay) associated with early evidence for behavioral modernity occurs synchronous with an abrupt environmental perturbation. Early modern humans in this region confronted a variable climate and adapted quickly in a manner similar to behaviorally modern humans.

Changing climates, environment, and sea levels during the Middle and Late Pleistocene must have had significant impacts on early modern humans and their behavior. However, many important archaeological sites occur along the current coastline of South Africa where the gradual slope of the offshore Agulhas Bank meant that small changes to sea level height potentially caused significant shifts in coastline position. The geographic context of these currently coastal sites would have been transformed by sea level shifts from coastal to near-coastal to fully terrestrial. To understand human adaptations as reflected in the archaeological deposits of these now-coastal sites we need to accurately model coastline position through time. Here, we introduce a Paleoscape model as a conceptual tool to ground the records for human behavioral evolution within a dynamic model of paleoenvironmental changes. Using integrated bathymetric datasets, GIS, and a relative sea level curve we estimate the position of the coastline at 1.5 ka increments over the last ∼420,000 years. We compare these model predictions to strontium isotope ratios from speleothems as an independent test and then compare the coastline predictions to evidence for shellfish exploitation through time. Both tests suggest our model is relatively robust. We then widen our paleoscape model to most of the Cape region and compare the predictions of this broadened model to evidence from Blombos cave.

article i nfo Mass-balance amongreducedandoxidizedsolutionspeciesexertsastrongcontrol ontheisotopiccompositionof sulphide minerals. We explore this issue for copper isotopic fractionation in sedimentary copper sulfide deposits through fluid speciation-isotopic Eh-pH calculations based on the thermodynamic stability of copper chloride aqueous solution complexes and experimentally measured copper isotope fractionation factors. Applying these speciation diagrams to MC-ICP-MS copperisotope data on the Kupferschiefer (SW partof theLubin-Sieroszowice Copper District) and Timna (S. Israel) Sediment-hosted Stratiform Copper deposits (SSC), identifies differences in ore formation redox conditions. Timna Valley copper sulfides have light Cu-isotopic compositions ofδ 65 Cu= −2.04±0.44‰ 2σ (relatively to SRM 976 copper standard), which are shown to correspond to Eh values of 0.5 to 0.6 V at formation conditions (T=40 °C; pH b6). These Eh values indicate precipitation at relatively oxidized conditions where the Cu(I) solution complex (CuCl3 2− )i sb10% of the total solution species. In contrast, the Kupferschiefer Cu-sulfides analyzed in this work dominantly show significantly higher δ 65 Cu values= −0.39±0.36‰, corresponding to Eh values of 0.4 to 0.5 V at formation conditions (T=100 °C; pH=6.3). In these Eh conditions, most copper in solution occurs as CuCl3 2− complexes (~80%). The above observations are in accord with field relations showing that Cu(II) minerals dominate the Timna system, but Cu-sulfides are the major minerals of the Kupferschiefer deposits. Fluid speciation-isotopic calculations show that copper isotopes can be used as effective tracers of redox conditionsandthisapproach can bepotentiallyappliedtovarioushydrothermal oredeposits,such as black smokers and volcanic-hosted massive sulphide deposits, and to other metallic isotope systems. However, the isotopic fractionation mayalso be strongly influenced by the types ofligand bondingofcopper ions and these effects need to be fully evaluated before the isotope geochemistry of copper ores can be fully understood.

The Qesem karst system may serve as an example for aging chamber caves. It includes two caves which have undergone several stages of natural and human-induced deposition, as well as subsidence and collapse. Natural deposits include calcite speleothems, bedrock collapse debris, and clay fill. Karst dissolution and associated sagging and decomposition have operated since the initial cave formation. Inclined sediments are attributed to several processes, mostly dominated by gravitational sagging into underlying dissolution voids, affecting cave deposits and sometimes the host-rock. U-Th dating shows that speleothem deposition has been common during the mid-late Quaternary, but deposition sites shifted according to local conditions. The aging of caves occurs when they become totally filled by sediments and ultimately consumed by surface denudation, as documented in Qesem Cave. © 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Analysis of oxygen isotope ratios (δ18O) by ion microprobe resolves a sub-annual climate record for the Eastern Mediterranean from a Soreq Cave stalagmite that grew between 2.2 and 0.9 ka. In contrast to conventional drill-sampling methods that yield a total variation of 1.0‰ in δ18Ocalcite values across our sample, the methods described here reveal up to 2.15‰ variation within single annual growth bands. Values of δ18O measured by ion microprobe vary in a regular saw-tooth pattern that correlates with annual, fluorescent growth banding where calcite grades from light to dark fluorescence. Modern records of precipitation and of cave dripwater indicate that variable δ18Ocalcite values record regular seasonal differences in δ18Orainfall modified by mixing in the vadose zone. Large differences in δ18O values measured across a single band (i.e., between the dark and light fluorescent calcite, or Δ18Odark-light) are interpreted to indicate wetter years, while smaller differences represent drier years. Oxygen isotopes record: 1) month-scale growth increments, 2) changes in Δ18Odark-light that represent seasonality, 3) a systematic, long-term decrease in maximum Δ18Odark-light values, and 4) an overall increase in average δ18Ocalcite values through time. These results suggest a drying of regional climate that coincides with the decline of the Roman and Byzantine Empires in the Levant region.