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Very little published information is available on the scientific identification of wood species used in the construction of boats in ancient Egypt. This paper deals with the scientific identification of wood species used in the construction of the deckhouse, canopy, and forecastle of King Khufu’s second wooden boat (4th Dynasty—Old Kingdom) in detail. This paper also discusses the principal technological characteristics of the identified woods, considering specifically their utilization for construction of the deckhouse, canopy, and forecastle. Almost all the woods used in the boat’s deckhouse, canopy, and forecastle were made of two imported species of wood (Cedrus libani A.Rich. and Juniperus sp.), with two native species (Ziziphus spina-christi (L.) Willd. and Vachellia sp.) also identified. The analysis most surprisingly revealed the presence of Ziziphus spina-christi (L.) Willd. in 25% of the analyzed forecastle samples, which was discovered for the first time for making cross beams in the construction of boats in ancient Egypt. Another intriguing aspect of the boat’s construction is the presence of Juniperus sp., which surprisingly showed that almost 85% of the analyzed samples were Juniperus sp., used in the deckhouse’s boards, frames, and cross beams. The data let us examine the specific employment of the wood species used in the parts of the boat, which evidenced that the identified woods were suitably used for the construction of the different parts of the deckhouse, canopy, and forecastle of the boat.

Aims We assessed the juvenile climatic niche breadth of a relict mountain species by comparing field observations and transplant experiments within and beyond the elevational limits of its distribution range. Location Lebanon – Near East – Mediterranean region. Methods We studied the survival and growth of the Cedar of Lebanon ( Cedrus libani ) to determine the lower and upper elevational range limits of its juvenile stage through an experimental setup with and without water supplementation and with potentially competing species as a control. The experiment included eight common gardens at elevations ranging from 110 to 2330 m, within and far beyond the warm and cold limits of Cedar distribution observed under natural conditions. Results We observed unexpectedly high survival and growth rates of Cedar at elevations well below the range of its natural distribution in Lebanon. Below the observed warm limit, water stress at very low elevations and competition at low and medium elevations limited juvenile survival. In contrast, cold temperature and water stress limited survival at elevations slightly above the observed upper natural limit. The experimental setup demonstrated that the elevation range suitable for Cedar growth and survival was twice as wide as the range within which Cedar is observed under natural conditions. Main Conclusions High survival rates experimentally observed beyond the warm limit of the natural distribution range of the Cedar of Lebanon raise hope for its resilience to ongoing climate warming. If this pattern were frequent among montane species, it would challenge predictions of massive extinction with climate change and pave the way for promoting adaptive actions such as competition management to improve their survival.

The cedar of Lebanon, Cedrus libani A. Rich, is distributed around the shores of the eastern Mediterranean in Turkey, Syria and Lebanon. The most anamolous aspect of its distribution is its presence in two patches in the Black Sea Region, approximately 500 km to the north of its main distribution in Turkey. Cuneiform tablets speak of an area which was turned into a “land of cedar” during the Hittite era, suggesting that the two patches might have been planted at that time. Genetic studies agree that these two patches originated at a later date than the cedars further south. Here, we make use of another means to test the hypothesis that the northernmost distribution of the cedar of Lebanon was due to reforestation during the mid-Holocene period. We determine distributional patterns for the species using a maximum-entropy algorithm and identify the most important environmental factors in shaping its distribution. We project the distribution of the species under the climatic conditions of the present, the mid-Holocene and the Last Glacial Maximum. We find the distribution range of the cedar of Lebanon to have shifted over time, encompassing western and southern Anatolia in the Last Glacial Maximum, then shrinking and retracting to the western Anatolia range in the mid-Holocene. The current range of the species was arrived at after the Holocene period. The projections support the possibility that the remnant forests in northern Turkey could have been created through reforestation, and that the Hittite myth may be substantiated.

This study was carried out to estimate the effect of crown closure classes (degraded forest, low crown coverage, medium crown coverage, and full crown coverage) and growth characteristics (three heights, diameter at base, diameter at breast height, and crown diameter) on cone production and to estimate fertility variation and its allied parameters in 130-year-old natural populations of Taurus cedar, also called cedar of Lebanon (Cedrus libani A. Rich.). The effect of biotic (e.g., growth characteristics, crown closure) and abiotic (e.g., light penetration, temperature, humidity, and soil characteristics) factors on cone production, fertility variation, and gene diversity was evaluated in two consecutive years of Taurus cedar. The factors, viz., altitude, temperature, aspect, and rainfall, varied, while some of them could be managed by cultural operations such as management of the crown and stand density. The impact of crown closure on cone production, fertility variation, and related parameters were observed in Taurus cedar’s natural populations sampled from southern Turkey. Maximum cone productions of 29 and 40/tree were recorded with full crown closure in two consecutive years, due to significant differences among individuals within crown closure class. For instance, cone productions were between 10 and 67 in the full crown closure of the first year. The sibling coefficient, which is a measure of the fertility variation in a stand, was the highest (1.16) for the full crown closure in the first (meaning 86% fertile trees) and the second years (1.55, 65%), while it was the lowest for the medium crown closure (1.09, 92%) in both years. Gene diversity decreased from a degraded patch (0.987) to that with full crown closure (0.984). Results of variance analysis showed a significant (p ≤ 0.05) difference between crown closure classes for cone production within the second year and between years. Significant positive (p ≤ 0.05) correlations were noted between years for cone production (r = 0.22) and between cone production and crown closure in the first and second years (r = 0.29). However, growth characteristics had no effect on cone productions in individual crown closure classes, while there were significant (p ≤ 0.05) correlations between the diameter at breast height and cone production for both years (r = 0.15 and 0.17) in pooled populations.

Genetic diversity was described in 17 cedar populations covering the geographical range of the four species of the genus Cedrus. The study was conducted using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) on haploid tissues (megagametophytes). Eleven selective AFLP primer pairs generated a total of 107 polymorphic amplification products. Correspondence and genetic distance analyses indicated that Cedrus deodara constitutes a separate gene pool from the Mediterranean cedars. Within Mediterranean cedars, we distinguished two groups: the first one is made of Cedrus atlantica, while the second one is made of Cedrus libani and Cedrus brevifolia, these latter two species being genetically similar despite important divergence previously observed for morphological and physiological traits. The lowest intrapopulation variability was found in the two C. deodara populations analyzed. Surprisingly, C. brevifolia, the endemic taxon from the island of Cyprus that is found in small and fragmented populations, showed one of the highest levels of diversity. This unexpected pattern of diversity and differentiation observed for C. brevifolia suggests a recent divergence rather than a relictual, declining population. Patterns of diversity within- and among-populations were used to test divergence and fragmentation hypotheses and to draw conclusions for the conservation of Cedrus gene pools.

Based on data obtained from 36 sample trees, above-ground biomass development of Taurus Cedar was modeled according to tree components on a single-tree basis. Carbon concentrations of tree components were established with the help of samples taken from sample trees. The biomass and sequestered carbon were modeled from the standing stem volume of single trees. It was determined that a coefficient of 0.51 could be used for Taurus Cedar species as a conversion factor from fresh weight to dry weight. Carbon concentrations were found to be lowest in branch barks, with a ratio of 49.5%, and highest in needles, with a ratio of 52.8%. According to the results of a comparison between volume, biomass and stored carbon amounts, 70.27 tons of biomass and 35.56 tons of carbon are stored in each standing stem volume of 100 m3.

This study investigated the potential acaricidal and repellent effects of tar obtained from the Lebanon cedar (Cedrus libani A. Rich.) against the brown dog tick species Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato Latreille (Acari: Ixodidae). The goal was to find an alternative, safe, and effective way to eliminate ticks. Tar is traditionally extracted from cedar trees in the Antalya region of Türkiye. The composition of the tar is primarily characterized by a diverse mixture of terpenes, with β-himachalene (29.16%), α-atlantone (28.7%), ar-turmerone (8.82%), longifolene-(V4) (6.66%), α-himachalene (5.28%), and β-turmerone (5.12%) emerging as the predominant constituents. The toxic effects of tar on tick larvae were studied through larval immersion tests (LIT), and its repellent activity was evaluated using a new larval repellent activity test (LRAT). The results revealed significant acaricidal effects, with mortality rates of 77.7% and 82.2% for the Konyaalti and Kepez strains of the brown dog tick, respectively, in response to a 1% concentration of tar. LC50 and LC90 values were determined as 0.47% and 1.52% for the Kepez strain and 0.58% and 1.63% for the Konyaalti strain, respectively. When comparing the repellent effect of tar to the widely used synthetic repellent DEET, repellency rates of up to 100% were observed. As a result, this study establishes, for the first time, the larvicidal and repellent effects of C. libani tar on ticks.

This study investigates variation in the phytochemical composition of Cedrus libani A. Rich. leaves across an altitudinal gradient, focusing on volatile and flavonoid profiles. Leaf samples were collected from three elevations (1300, 1500, and 1700 m) in the Yukarı Gökdere Forest region (Isparta, Turkey). Volatile compounds were analyzed using GC-MS, and flavonoid compounds were determined by RP-HPLC. A total of 45 volatile compounds were identified, predominantly consisting of monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes. Major components included limonene, β-myrcene, α-pinene, caryophyllene, and germacrene-D, with significant variation observed among elevation groups. One-way ANOVA indicated that several volatile compounds differed significantly across elevations ( p  < 0.05). Flavonoid analysis showed that rutin and kaempferol decreased with increasing elevation, whereas quercetin and catechin exhibited higher values at higher elevations. All analyzed flavonoid compounds showed statistically significant differences among elevation groups ( p  < 0.05). Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed separation patterns among samples based on their chemical composition. Overall, the results indicate that the phytochemical composition of C. libani leaves varies along the studied elevational gradient. These findings provide a preliminary and descriptive assessment of altitude-related chemical variation and highlight the need for further studies incorporating broader sampling designs and environmental measurements.

Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technologies are valuable tools for managing forest ecosystems today. This study employed a Binary Logistic Regression Model to analyze the environmental factors influencing the natural regeneration of Cedrus libani A. Rich. within its native habitat in the Jawbat Burghal forest of Syria. The effects of various environmental factors (spatial and forest structure, topography, and spectral indicators) were assessed both individually and collectively to understand their impact on the probability of C. libani seedling presence in Jawbat Burghal. The model’s accuracy significantly improved when considering the combined effects of these factors, reaching 94.3%, exceeding the accuracy of the other models evaluated (none of which surpassed 85%). Higher stone density, increased broadleaved tree cover, and favorable summer soil moisture were found to promote the natural regeneration of C. libani in Jawbat Burghal.

Ongoing climate change increasingly affects growth conditions of native conifers such as Picea abies (Norway spruce) and Pinus sylvestris (Scots pine) in Central Europe. These conifers are primarily cultivated for wood production. To obtain ecologically and economically stable forests, forestry seeks alternative species that might be less prone to novel climatic conditions, such as Cedrus libani (Lebanon cedar). We aim at investigating growth responses to climatic factors of C . libani compared to native P . abies and P . sylvestris in Central Europe for 25 years (1994–2019). Growth responses were used as a proxy for tolerance towards climatic stress events, such as heat and drought. Height, diameter at breast height (DBH) and radial increment were measured for 40-year-old tree stands of C . libani and native conifers. Radial growth responses to selected climate parameters were analysed using bootstrapped correlations with detrended growth index chronologies and growth response indices for drought years (2003, 2012, 2015, 2018). For C . libani , radial growth was positively correlated with high water availability in late winter and spring, while for P . abies , February and summer and for P . sylvestris , July showed such a relationship. Cedrus libani exhibited the highest resistance, recovery, and resilience in response to climatic extremes. Against the background of climate change, C . libani could serve as an alternative conifer species to establish climate-resistant viable forests in Central Europe.