Ghassul

Chalcolithic site northeast of the Dead Sea in the Jordan Valley with four major occupations indicated - most notably the culture of the 4th millennium BC known from the sites of Teleilat Ghassul and Nahal Mishmar. The houses were of pisé (simple mud-brick on stone foundations) and had elaborate polychrome frescoes. A wide range of well-made pottery shapes were in use, which were found on many other Palestinian sites. Carbonized date and olive stones are among the earliest evidence for the cultivation of these fruits. Burials were in cists, made of stone slabs and covered by stone cairns. The culture exploited copper early on and was the last period of large-scale stone tool use in Palestine.

A Palestinian site northeast of the Dead Sea, consisting of several low mounds. Four main occupation layers were revealed by excavation, all belonging to the Chalcolithic period of the 5th and early 4th millennia be. This site has given its name to the local Chalcolithic culture, which is known as the Ghassulian. The settlement consisted of simple mud-brick houses, irregular in plan, built on stone foundations. Some walls were decorated with remarkable painted wall plaster; the motifs include geometric designs and representations of stylized dragons, human figures and birds, and a sailing boat with oars. Burials were in cists, made of stone slabs and covered by stone cairns.