Excavations at the Neolithic settlement of Jericho revealed the remains of a sizable farming community inhabited as early as 10,350 years ago. Here in the Jordan River valley, crops could be grown almost continuously due to the presence of a bounteous spring and the rich soil of an Ice Age lake that had dried up some 3,000 years earlier. In addition, flood-borne deposits originating in the Judean highlands to the west regularly renewed the fertility of the soil.
To protect against these floods and associated mud flows, as well as invaders, the people of Jericho built massive wall of stone surrounding their settlement. Within these walls, which were 2 meters wide and 4 meters high and behind a large rock cut ditch, which was 8 meters wide and 2¾ meters deep, an estimated 400 to 900 4 people lived in house of mud brick with plastered floors. A stone tower that would have taken a hundred people over a hundred days to build was located inside one corner of the wall. A staircase inside it probably led to a mud-brick building on top.
This massive wall- near mud-brick storage facilities as well as peculiar structures of possible ceremonial significance - provides evidence of social changes in these early farming communities. A village cemetery reflected the sedentary life of these early people. Close contact between the farmers of Jericho and other village is indicated by common features in art, ritual, use of prestige goods, and burial practices. Other evidence consists of obsidian and turquoise beads from Sinai as well as marine shells from the coast, all discovered inside the walls of Jericho.
The sedentary life of Jericho was inferred by the evidence of:
Correct Answer: A. A Village cemetery
Solution:The sedentary life of Jericho was inferred by the evidence of a village cemetery. The presence of a cemetery indicates a settled, long-term community with established burial practices. This sedentary lifestyle is further supported by the construction of permanent structures such as houses of mud brick with plastered floors and defensive walls.The rock-cut ditch, stone tower, and staircase are significant architectural features, but the cemetery specifically highlights the permanence and stability of the population at Jericho. These burial practices reflect the community's investment in their settlement and their connection to the land.