View source for Place:Kaukaba

{{Other places|Kawkab (disambiguation){{!}}Kawkab}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name                    =Kaukaba
|other_name             =Kawkaba
| native_name             = كوكبا
| native_name_lang        = ara<!-- ISO 639-2 code: "fr" for French, "ara" for Arabic -->
| settlement_type         = Village
| image_skyline           =22.Djisr-Burghuz, pont sur le Litany (Leontes).jpg
| image_alt               =
| image_caption           =The bridge over Litani River by Kaukaba, by [[Biography:Charles William Meredith van de Velde|van de Velde]], in 1851
| pushpin_map             = Lebanon
| pushpin_label_position  =
| pushpin_map_alt         = Map showing the location of Kfarhamam within Lebanon
| pushpin_map_caption     = Location within Lebanon
| coordinates             = {{coord|33|23|44|N|35|38|18|E|region:LB_type:city|display=inline,title}}
| grid_position =140/162 L
| coordinates_footnotes   =
| subdivision_type        = [[Earth:List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name        = {{flagcountry|Lebanon}}
| subdivision_type1       = Governorate
| subdivision_name1       = Nabatieh Governorate
| subdivision_type2       = District
| subdivision_name2       = Hasbaya District
| established_title       = <!-- Founded -->
| established_date        =
| founder                 =
| leader_party            =
| leader_title            =
| leader_name             =
| area_footnotes          =
| area_total_km2          =
| area_note               =
| elevation_footnotes     =
| elevation_m             =
| elevation_min_m         =
| elevation_max_m         =
| population_footnotes    =
| population_total        =
| population_as_of        =
| population_density_km2  = auto
| population_note         =
| timezone1               = [[Eastern European Time|EET]]
| utc_offset1             = +2
| timezone1_DST           = [[Eastern European Summer Time|EEST]]
| utc_offset1_DST         = +3
| postal_code_type        = Postal code
| postal_code             =
| area_code_type          = Dialing code
| area_code               = +961
| website                 =
| footnotes               =
}}

{{Infobox ancient site
|name = Kaukaba
|native_name = كوكبا
|alternate_name =
|image =
|alt =
|caption =
|map_type =
|map_alt = 650 metres
|map_size =
|location =5 miles from [[Place:Rashaya|Rashaya]], [[Place:Lebanon|Lebanon]]
|region =
|coordinates =
|type = Rock Shelter
|part_of = Settlement
|length =
|width =
|area =
|height =
|builder =
|material = Limestone
|built = c. 8200-6200 BC
|abandoned =
|epochs =PPNB, [[History:Neolithic|Neolithic]]
|cultures =
|dependency_of =
|occupants =
|event =
|excavations = 1957, 1964
|archaeologists = P. Billaux, F. Skeels, L. Skeels
|condition = ruins
|ownership =
|management =
|public_access = Yes
|website =
|notes =
}}
'''Kaukaba''', '''Kaukabet El-Arab''' or '''Kaukaba Station''' is a village in the  Hasbaya District in the Nabatiye Governorate in southern [[Place:Lebanon|Lebanon]].

==Archaeology==
By the village is a [[History:Neolithic|Neolithic]] archaeological site East of Majdel Balhis near [[Place:Rashaya|Rashaya]] in the Beqaa Valley, [[Place:Lebanon|Lebanon]]. It was first found by P. Billaux in 1957 who alerted Jesuit Archaeologists, Fathers Henri Fleisch and Tallon. Open air site excavations by L. and F. Skeels were also carried out in 1964.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=KlZtAAAAMAAJ&q=Kaukaba Hours, Francis., Atlas des sites du proche orient (14000-5700 BP), pp 57, 198 & 490, Maison de l'Orient Mediterraneen, 1994.]</ref>

The rock shelter site lies amongst fields covered with [[Earth:Basalt|basalt]] boulders from ancient [[Earth:Lava|lava]] flows. It is in a low pass from the Karaoun Dam to Rashaya. This area is close to the 4 heads of the Jordan River and is drained by feeders such as the Dan, Banias, Hasbani and Upper Jordan rivers, North of Hasbaya.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=KlZtAAAAMAAJ&q=Kaukaba Copeland, Lorraine & Wescombe, P. J., Inventory of Stone Age Sites in Lebanon (1966) Part 2: North - South - East Central Lebanon, pp 23, 37 & 39 Melanges de L'Universite Saint-Joseph, Volume 42, Universite Saint-Joseph (Beirut, Lebanon), 1966.]</ref><ref name="Moore">{{cite book|last=Moore|first=A.M.T.|title=The Neolithic of the Levant|publisher=Oxford University, Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis|year=1978|pages=192–198|url=http://ancientneareast.tripod.com/74.html}}</ref>

Artefacts found on the surface included [[Earth:Flint|flint]] [[Engineering:Axe|axe]]s, [[Sickle|sickle]]s, [[Chemistry:Obsidian|obsidian]], [[Earth:Basalt|basalt]] vessels and arrowheads dated to the oldest [[History:Neolithic|Neolithic]] periods. Prominent artefacts found included a series of flint picks with heavily worn points due to extremely heavy usage. Fragments of agricultural tools such as basalt [[Engineering:Hoe (tool)|hoes]] have been found with very slight dating suggesting the 6th millennium or earlier. Flints were not knapped on site and the centre of the hoe production has not yet been found.<ref>J. Cauvin., Mèches en silex et travail du basalte au IVe millénaire en Béka (Liban)., pp. 118-131, Melanges de l'Universite Saint-Joseph, Volume 45, Universite Saint-Joseph (Beirut, Lebanon), 1969.</ref><ref>Copeland, Lorraine., Neolithic village sites in the South Bekaa, Lebanon., pp. 83-114, Melanges de l'Universite Saint-Joseph, Volume 45, Universite Saint-Joseph (Beirut, Lebanon), 1969.</ref><ref>Copeland, Lorraine & Wescombe, P. J., Inventory of Stone Age Sites in Lebanon (1966) Part 2: North - South - East Central Lebanon, pp 23, 1-174, Melanges de L'Universite Saint-Joseph, Volume 42, Universite Saint-Joseph (Beirut, Lebanon), 1966.</ref>

==Modern era==
In 1838, during the [[Place:Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] era, Eli Smith noted the  population of Kaukaba as Maronite and [[Philosophy:Druze|Druze]],<ref>Robinson and Smith, 1841, vol 3, 2nd appendix, p. [https://archive.org/stream/biblicalresearch03robiuoft#page/138/mode/1up 138]</ref> while in 1875, Victor Guérin found the population to mostly be Maronite.<ref>Guérin, 1880, p. [https://archive.org/stream/descriptiongogr00gugoog#page/n338/mode/1up 298]</ref>

==See also==
*Battle of Kaukaba
*Emily Nasrallah

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
{{ref begin}}
* {{cite book|last=Guérin|first=V.|title=Description Géographique Historique et Archéologique de la Palestine|url=https://archive.org/details/descriptiongogr00gugoog|volume=3: Galilee, pt. 2|year=1880|publisher= L'Imprimerie Nationale|location=Paris|language=fr}}
*{{cite book|last1=Robinson|first1=E.|last2=Smith|first2=E.|author-link2=Eli Smith|year=1841|url=https://archive.org/details/biblicalresearch03robiuoft |title=Biblical Researches in Palestine, Mount Sinai and Arabia Petraea: A Journal of Travels in the year 1838|  location=Boston|publisher=Crocker & Brewster|volume=3}} 
{{refend}}

==External links==
* [http://www.localiban.org/article4299.html  Kaoukaba], Localiban

{{Archaeological sites in Lebanon}}
{{Navbox prehistoric caves}}


[[Category:Archaeological sites in Lebanon]]

{{Sourceattribution|Kaukaba}}