Life at the end of the Holocene moist phase in south‐east Arabia — the Late Neolithic site of Jebel Thanais 1 (JTH1)

The surface site of Jebel Thanais 1 is located in the Emirate of Sharjah (U.A.E.) at the western flank of the Jebel Faya/Jebel Buhais anticline structure. A dense scatter of lithic artefacts and fireplaces indicates Stone Age settlement activities in this area. Radiocarbon dates obtained from fireplaces date the occupation of the site to both the beginning and the very end of the fifth millennium cal. BC. During the second half of the fifth millennium the deterioration of climatic conditions in south‐east Arabia had a noticeable impact on settlement patterns and subsistence strategies. While coastal habitation sites from this time are well known along the shores of the Oman peninsula, only a few poorly dated sites allow insights into habitation and raw material procurement strategies and lithic technology in the interior. Investigations into the spatial structure of the site and an analysis of lithic finds will contribute to a better understanding of this period.