Visual Code in the Nahal Mishmar Hoard: The earliest case of proto-writing?

Visual codes including three types of signs (logograms, phonograms and determinatives) are the earliest stage in the development of writing. Until recently, the oldest known visual code identified so far, the early precursor of the hieroglyphs, has been discovered in pre-Dynastic Egyptian context (Tomb U-j, near Abydos, 3320 BCE). An examination of artifacts from the Nahal Mishmar copper hoard (end fifth millennium BCE) suggests the development of a visual code that employs these three types of signs in Southern Levant, many centuries before its earliest expression in Egypt and in Mesopotamia. This visual code is tridimensional, and its encoded messages focus on metallurgical processes and their cultural significance. The implications for our understanding of the Ghassulian culture and the development of writing in the Ancient Near East are discussed.