Researchers have found a collection of seven miniature flutes, thought to be 12,000 years old, at the prehistoric site of Eynan-Mallaha in northern Israel. The flutes, made from the bones of a small waterfowl, may have been used for mimicking raptor calls, although the precise reason is unknown. They are the first aerophones ever discovered in the Near East and were likely used for hunting, music or to communicate with birds. The Natufians, a Near Eastern civilisation that occupied the site between 13,000 and 9,700 BCE, were known to attribute symbolic value to birds, and had many bird talon ornaments.

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