Dja'de el Mughara

Dja'de el-Mughara represents a Pre-Pottery Neolithic settlement located approximately 100 kilometers northeast of Aleppo, positioned strategically between the Euphrates River and fertile steppe regions that provided abundant resources for early inhabitants.

The site contains continuous occupation layers dating from 9310 to 8290 BC, spanning three distinct phases from the Late Pre-Pottery Neolithic A through the Early Pre-Pottery Neolithic B periods, documenting the crucial transition from hunter-gatherer to settled agricultural societies.

Excavations revealed the world's oldest known indoor wall paintings featuring geometric patterns in red and black colors on white backgrounds, discovered within a circular mudbrick building that served as a community gathering space for ritualistic activities.

French archaeologists conducted systematic excavations between 1991 and 2010 under Dr. Eric Coqueugniot's direction, uncovering over 80 human burials, numerous artifacts, and architectural remains before work ceased due to the Syrian civil war.

The site contains some of the earliest evidence of tuberculosis in human populations, predating cattle domestication, along with engraved animal bone figurines that demonstrate sophisticated symbolic communication systems among prehistoric Near Eastern communities.