Environmental impact of ancient copper extraction in Timna Valley, southern Israel
Erez Ben-Yosef, TAU
Please join us for our departmental seminar next Monday on the 19th of June from 15:00 to 16:00 at the Porter Auditorium
Environmental impact of ancient copper extraction in Timna Valley, southern Israel
Erez Ben-Yosef, TAU
Timna Valley is one of the best-preserved ancient copper production regions in the world. Our team has been conducting research in this region since 2012, excavating mining and smelting sites from various periods. In this talk we will discuss evidence for substantial environmental impact of the ancient copper industry, including permanent changes that are part of the valley’s landscape today. We will focus on three aspects: (1) The impact of mining on erosional processes; (2) the impact of smelting on the local vegetation in this extreme arid zone; (3) the impact of smelting on soil composition and the scale of metalliferous soil pollution
Erez Ben-Yosef
Erez Ben-Yosef is Professor of Archaeology in the Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Cultures, Tel Aviv University. His research focuses on ancient technologies, especially metal production, and on the archaeological sciences. Ben-Yosef studied archaeology and geology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (BA, BSc, MSc) and archaeology and anthropology at the University of California, San Diego (MA, PhD). His postdoctoral research at Scripps Institution of Oceanography focused on the ancient copper mines of Cyprus and the application of slag material in geomagnetic research. Ben-Yosef has authored multiple research papers on Bronze and Iron Age archaeology, including studies related to the historicity of the Hebrew Bible that have triggered a broad discussion on the role of archaeology in biblical studies. Ben-Yosef won multiple awards and research grants, including a Fulbright Fellowship, an ERC - Marie Curie Career Integration Grant (CIG), and the Kadar Family Award for Outstanding Research (2018). Since August 2020 he serves as a member of the Archaeological Advisory Board of Israel's Ministry of Culture. In 2022 he was elected as a member of The Israel Young Academy, the leading body of Israeli academics under 45 years old
Homepage: https://english.tau.ac.il/profile/ebenyose
Publications: https://telaviv.academia.edu/ErezBenYosef
Alon Shepon
The Department of Environmental Studies
The Porter School of the Environment and Earth Science
Tel Aviv University | website
The Israeli Forum for Sustainable Nutrition
