Crop Domestication and Gender j 4343 43
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Figure 3.5 Continued
limestone statuettes representing female forms (Figure 3.5B). Virtually no animal figurines
are known from the Levant during the Khiamian period. What the spiritual or cultural
transformation was that gave rise to the change in symbols is unclear, but the emphasis on
the creation of these female figurines arises concurrently with the increasing importance
of horticulture as an important means of subsistence. According to Bar- Yosef, the change
in iconography from animals to women “epitomizes a departure from being equal partners
within the natural environment to humans as major players on the scene.”^26
The Khiamians incorporated symbolic objects into the very structures of their houses,
suggesting that the houses themselves were taking on a new symbolic significance. Although
no animal figurines were found at Khiamian sites, auroch skulls, complete with horns, were
buried under houses and were also incorporated into raised clay benches inside the houses.
The embedded auroch skulls were often accompanied by the shoulder- blades of aurochs and