MOSCOW, June 14. Seven (aerophones) made of bird bones were found in the north of Israel, which were created about 12 thousand years ago, writes Phys.org with reference to an article in the journal Scientific Reports.
They imitate the voice of birds of prey — kestrels and sparrowhawk. There are several hypotheses for what these flutes were used for. First, they were needed during the hunt. The second is that their music sounded during the ceremonies. Third, they could be worn as ritual jewelry.
Aerophones are a rarity. Mostly they were dug up in Europe. The ones found in Israel are the first such instruments identified in the Middle East.
The flutes were found in Ain Mallah, a Natufian settlement. Representatives of the archaeological culture lived here in 13000 — 9700 BC. They were hunter-gatherers.
It was previously reported that archaeologists have found 8,000-year-old blueprints in the Arabian Peninsula. They depict «desert kites» used for hunting.