A 12,000-year-old clay figurine unearthed in northern Israel, depicting a woman and a goose, is the earliest known human-animal interaction figurine. Found at the Late Natufian site of Nahal Ein Gev II, the piece predates the Neolithic and signals a turning point in artistic and spiritual expression. Combining naturalism, light manipulation, and symbolic imagination, it reveals how early communities used art to explore the relationship between humans and the natural world.
At a prehistoric village overlooking the Sea of Galilee, archaeologists led by Dr. Laurent Davin have uncovered a clay figurine unlike any found before. The 12,000-year-old artifact, depicting a woman and a goose in what appears to be a mythological or ritual scene, offers a rare window into the symbolic and spiritual world of early sedentary peoples in Southwest Asia.
Discovered at the site of Nahal Ein Gev II (NEG II), a project led by Prof. Leore Grosman of the Institute of Archaeology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, with Prof. Natalie Munro, they describe the find as the earliest known figurine showing human and animal interaction and the first naturalistic depiction of a woman in the region. The study, recently published in PNAS, combines advanced analytical techniques to reconstruct both the artifact’s composition and its cultural significance.
The Find: A Figurine of Clay and Light
The figurine, only 3.7 cm tall, was modeled from local clay and heated at about 400°C, suggesting deliberate control of early pyrotechnology. Microscopic and chemical analyses revealed red pigment residues (ocher) on both woman and goose, along with a preserved fingerprint likely left by the young adult or adult female artisan. The sculptor used light and shadow to create depth and perspective, foreshadowing artistic innovations that would not fully flourish until the Neolithic.
Depicting a woman crouched beneath a goose perched on her back, the scene suggests more than a simple act of daily life. The goose, common in the Natufian diet but also imbued with symbolic value, appears alive rather than hunted. Researchers interpret the composition as an imagined or mythological encounter consistent with animistic beliefs, a worldview that saw humans and animals as spiritually interconnected.
Context and Meaning
The figurine was found in the fill of a semicircular stone structure containing burials and ceremonial deposits, part of the Late Natufian settlement at Nahal Ein Gev II dated to approximately 12,000 years ago. The Natufian culture, spanning roughly 15,000 to 11,500 years ago, marks humanity’s transition from nomadic foragers to settled communities. The discovery reveals that long before agriculture, these early villagers were already experimenting with narrative art, symbolic expression, and clay modeling techniques.
Faunal remains from the site reinforce the connection between geese and ritual life. The birds’ feathers were used for decoration, and certain bones were fashioned into ornaments. The artistic focus on a goose and a woman, the researchers argue, points to an early mythic imagination, a symbolic vocabulary that later blossomed in Neolithic cults and figurative traditions across Southwest Asia.
A Glimpse into the Origins of Belief
"This discovery is extraordinary on multiple levels," says Dr. Laurent Davin, leading author of the paper. "Not only is this the world's earliest figurine depicting human-animal interaction, but it's also the earliest naturalistic representation of a woman found in Southwest Asia."
“The NEG II figurine captures a transformative moment,” says Prof. Grosman. “It bridges the world of mobile hunter gatherers and that of the first settled communities, showing how imagination and symbolic thinking began to shape human culture.”
Beyond its craftsmanship, the piece embodies the earliest seeds of myth, storytelling, and spiritual connection, articulated in clay by hands that lived millennia before the rise of civilization.
12,000-year-old Natufian clay figurine from Nahal Ein Gev II | Credit: Laurent Davin
The 12,000-year-old Natufian clay figurine from Nahal Ein Gev II, depicting a woman leaning forward and a goose enveloping her (accompanied by an artistic reconstruction).
Captions for the illustrations:
1: The 12,000-year-old Natufian clay figurine from Nahal Ein Gev II, depicting a woman leaning forward and a goose enveloping her (accompanied by an artistic reconstruction).
2: Different views of the 12,000-year-old Natufian clay figurine from Nahal Ein Gev II, depicting a woman leaning forward and a goose enveloping her (accompanied by technical and artistic drawings).
3: Left: Map of the Levant showing the location of Nahal Ein Gev II (NEGII) among Natufian sites; Right: The 12,000-year-old Natufian clay figurine from Nahal Ein Gev II, depicting a woman leaning forward and a goose enveloping her (accompanied by an artistic reconstruction).
4: The fingerprint of the young adult who modelled the clay figurine from Nahal Ein Gev II 12,000 years ago.
5: Prof. Leore Grosman and Dr. Laurent Davin with the figurine.
6: Prof. Natalie Munro and Dr. Laurent Davin with the figurine.
The research paper titled “A 12,000-year-old clay figurine of a woman and a goose marks symbolic innovations in Southwest Asia” is now available in PNAS and can be accessed at https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2517509122.
Researchers:
Laurent Davina,b,c, Natalie D. Munrod , and Leore Grosmana
Institutions:
- Institute of Archaeology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
- CNRS. UMR 8068 Technologie et Ethnologie des Mondes PréhistoriqueS, Nanterre, France
- CNRS. UAR 3132 Centre de recherche français à Jérusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
- Department of Anthropology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, USA
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