Tatyana Kornienko

The so-called modeled skulls that have been found at several sites in the Levantine region (in Jericho, Baysamun, Tell Ramad, Ayn Ghasal, Yiftahel, Tell Aswad, Nahal Hemar and Kfar Hahoresh) continue to be a much-discussed topic among researchers. At present we know of about 100 such objects, which date mainly to Middle Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (МPPNB). The discussions have been focusing on two main questions, namely, who was it that the skulls belonged to, and what was the meaning of the rites they were used for. The author uses archaeological, anthropological and ethnographic data to give an interpretation of the skull-modeling tradition as part of the fertility rites that were practiced in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic.