Excavations at the submerged Neolithic site of Atlit Yam, off the Carmel coast of Israel

The main focus of research undertaken by Liora Kolska Horwitz has been the interaction between past peoples and animals in the Southern Levant, spanning ca. 1 million years of human history. She has participated in numerous excavations in South Africa and Israel and, since 2004, has co-directed the international team working at Wonderwerk Cave, South Africa. Her special interest in the process of animal domestication led to her collaboration with Ehud Galili on the underwater Neolithic sites off the Carmel coast, Israel. Given their excellent bone preservation, well-dated contexts and palaeo-environmental history, these sites offer an exceptional opportunity to study social, economic and environmental aspects of Neolithic peoples and faunas.