Archeologists dug a copper awl, one of the oldest metal objects found in the Middle East, during an excavation at Tel Tsaf located in Jordan River.

They said the metal was created around the 5^th to 6^th millennium, several hundred years to the date people of the region began to use the metals.

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According to researchers, Yosef Garfinkel from Hebrew University discovered the awl from the grave of a 40-year old woman.

The cone shaped awl was located around her waist belt made of 1,668 ostrich-egg shell beads.

Sariel Shaley, one of the researchers, said the fact that it was found above a skeleton in a sealed grave meant that it was buried with the woman as a burial offering or as part of her possessions.

Researchers believe the artifact was important because it showed that the metal was used before the Late Catholic Period.

This finding moves back the appearance of metal in our region by several hundred years, they explained.

Upon chemical examination, researchers found that the metal may have come from Caucasus, located 1,000 kilometers from Tel Tsaf. 

Researchers said the appearance of the item in the woman's grave represents one of the most elaborate burials that archeologists have seen in the region from the era. They believe it is the first indication of social hierarchy and complexity.

It also constitute evidence of a peak of technological development among the people of the region and therefore, a discovery of global importance.

To date, archeologists are still figuring the use of awl and its implication on the social status of the woman that was buried with it.