Islamic Jarash Project

Archaeology in Jordan, 2010 and 2011 Seasons Author(s): Donald R. Keller, Barbara A. Porter and Christopher A. Tuttle Reviewed work(s): Source: American Journal of Archaeology, Vol. 116, No. 4 (October 2012), pp. 693-750 Published by: Archaeological Institute of America Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3764/aja.116.4.0693 . Accessed: 02/11/2012 08:03 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

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NEWSLETTER

Archaeology in Jordan, 2010 and 2011 Seasons DONALD R. KELLER, BARBARA A. PORTER, AND CHRISTOPHER A. TUTTLE

The 2012 edition of the “Archaeology in Jordan” newsletter presents short reports on select excavations and archaeological projects conducted during 2010 and 2011 in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Reports are generally organized geographically from north to south (fig. 1). The authors’ email addresses are listed at the end of the report.*

Two extra-urban hilltop sanctuaries were located and documented: the sanctuary on al-Qabu and the cult place ‘Arqub Rumi. In 2010, a rough plan of the monumental structure on al-Qabu was drawn, and a test trench in the western area verified the presence of a podium temple; in the eastern part of the site, building structures of unknown use were documented. Pottery, marble fragments, and architectural elements (Corinthian capitals, cornices, bases) were found in abundance throughout the entire site. It is currently presumed that a Late Augustan monumental sanctuary complex was located atop al-Qabu. The sanctuary is visible and easily accessible from the main temple complex in Gadara, the so-called theater-temple area, and it had a direct connection to a main east–west supraregional transit route. There may also have been a functional connection with ‘Arqub Rumi, the cult complex for which a topographic map was made in 2011 (online fig. 2). The ceramic material found in both campaigns illustrates the great chronological depth of occupation in the region. For instance, the hilltop with ‘Arqub Rumi shows clear signs of occupation from Late Hellenistic to Roman times, but there is no evidence of use during the following periods. In contrast, the pottery from al-Qabu has revealed the continuous use of this hilltop from at least Late Hellenistic times through the Early Islamic period.

umm qeis/gadara and its urban hinterland Claudia Bührig, Lisa Berger, and Georg Pasewald, Orient Department, German Archaeological Institute, Berlin, report: Recent research on the ancient city of Gadara (present-day Umm Qeis), with its focus on settlement development in Hellenistic to Roman times, is currently being expanded to include a multiperiod survey in the hinterland (online fig. 1). The first two campaigns provided knowledge about the urban hinterland’s settlement, traffic, supply and fortification systems, agricultural and economic use of the region, and the first traces of prehistoric settlements in the area. In the course of reconstructing the environmental and economic conditions in the region, numerous remnants of ancient agriculture and water supply systems, as well as extensive limestone quarries and mining regions for flint, were documented. The survey results also detail various construction activities: defensive watch towers, agricultural installations, homesteads, a Roman villa(?), smaller settlements, and numerous tombs and cemeteries. Preliminary examination of the pottery, lithics, and stone artifacts confirms the theory that there was continuous settlement activity in the region from prehistoric until early modern times. This is supported by favorable topographic and natural conditions, such as springs, fertile soils, available building materials, and flint deposits.

tall zira‘a/wadi al-‘arab Jutta Häser, German Protestant Institute of Archaeology, and Dieter Vieweger, Biblical Archaeological Institute, Wuppertal, report: The Step Trench Investigation in the step trench on the western slope resumed during the spring 2011 campaign. During

* We would like to thank the Department of Antiquities of Jordan, its former directors general, Fawwaz Al-Khraysheh and Ziad AlSaad, and their staff for their continued efforts and support on behalf of all those who are committed to understanding and preserving the cultural heritage of Jordan. Publication of this year’s newsletter was once again made possible in part by a contribution from the American Center of Oriental Research. All figures are by the submitting authors unless otherwise noted. Additional figures can be found under this article’s abstract on the AJA website (www.ajaonline.org).

American Journal of Archaeology 116 (2012) 693–750

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Fig. 1. Sites and projects in Jordan in the 2010 and 2011 seasons (drawing by T. Paradise).

previous excavations, a straight canal was found running from the last Late Bronze Age level through the slope, cutting the city wall and a glacis, which were probably built in the Early Bronze Age. In 2011, one end of the canal was reached; its course was ascertained, and its relation with the wall and glacis was further examined. Area I Area I is located on the northwestern slope of Tall Zira‘a (fig. 2). In 2010, work was resumed in a very deep trench in the central part of Area I, which had uncovered traces of a major landslide dated to ca. 1400 B.C.E. The slope here was backfilled in antiquity, but toward the inner part of the tall enough of the settlement layers remained to give some impression of the Middle Bronze Age strata. Particularly important was

the discovery that stone-built ovens from the Middle Bronze Age continued in use virtually on the same spot into the Late Bronze Age. One of the Middle Bronze Age layers yielded a crucible containing several bronze fragments. Three Middle Bronze Age levels were excavated this season. The latest showed that this part of the tall was used as a domestic area. The second revealed a workshop for bronze or copper production, and the lowest Middle Bronze Age stratum was characterized again by domestic architecture and large storage facilities. At the end of season, the uppermost level of an Early Bronze Age stratum was reached. Two more Early Bronze Age levels were excavated in 2011. The remains consist of various pits, fireplaces, occupational floors, and some faint stone walls. The finds show that this area was used for living activities, such as cooking,

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Fig. 2. Area I on Tall Zira‘a at the end of the spring 2011 campaign.

grinding, and storage. Below these scattered phases, a new occupational layer (Early Bronze [EB] III?) with house structures was reached. In the southern part of Area I, all the city’s phases were uncovered, back to the latest phase of the Late Bronze Age. The 2010 goal was the examination of the earlier phases of the Late Bronze Age and the transition from the Middle Bronze Age. The large building here was studied in more detail and then partly removed. It was determined that the landslide in the central part of Area I also occurred here. Backfill in the area prohibited documentation of the Middle Bronze Age to Late Bronze Age transition. The various installations built to channel water out of the city were particularly important and probably necessary because of the spring in the center of the hill and heavy rains in springtime. Beneath an Iron Age II layer excavated in 2009, an Iron Age I stratum came to light in 2010, revealing a workshop in a four-room house complex, in which glass or faience was worked. The building presented interesting elements of continuity from the Late Bronze Age in regard to architecture and pottery, as noted in the southern and central parts of Area I. Below the Iron I layer, the large inner courtyard of a

Late Bronze Age building was uncovered, and, in 2011, excavations showed that it was limited to the north by a thick wall that was later completely robbed during Iron Age I building activities. Walls of different Iron Age I houses were also found, beneath which were more Late Bronze Age elements. The stone foundations of several rooms came to light, and a few remains of mudbrick walls with lime plaster were uncovered. The most interesting find in this area was a ceramic votive plate with the depiction of a god or warrior. In the summer campaign, the two different Late Bronze Age/Middle Bronze Age occupation layers north of the large Late Bronze Age building were exposed. Area II Area II is situated at the northern edge of the plateau, and excavations continued here in spring 2011. The excavated buildings of the Byzantine and Umayyad periods were clarified in more detail and subsequently removed. The investigation then focused on the Roman and Hellenistic levels heavily disturbed by Byzantine building activities. Several large Roman buildings that conformed to the topography were identified from the extant fragments of foundation and wall courses. In the lowest level investigated,

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some 10 m of a wide east–west wall were explored; this is clearly a massive fortification wall, probably of the Hellenistic period. The Survey in the Wadi al-‘Arab The second season of survey in the Wadi al-‘Arab and its vicinity was conducted in 2010 (online fig. 3) as an integral part of the Gadara Region Project. The goal was to gain a thorough understanding of the landscape around Tall Zira‘a in the Wadi al-‘Arab—one of the easiest ascents from the Jordan Valley to the IrbidRamtha Basin and thus one of the trade routes from the Mediterranean coast to Damascus, Baghdad, and Amman. In 2010, 57 sites were recorded in the area from Doqara up to the vicinity of Irbid. The Wadi al-‘Arab is deeply cut, and one can find settlements mostly at the edges high above the wadi. Most of the ancient settlements are known from previous surveys. Almost all the modern villages occupy sites dating back to at least the Roman and/or Byzantine periods, some to the Iron Age or Bronze Age. Few of the ancient settlements have not been covered and destroyed by modern settlements. Despite the continuing destruction of the ancient sites, a representative amount of pottery could be collected, and from it we can derive a concise overview of the history of the Wadi al-‘Arab.

al-turra and hinterland survey Bethany J. Walker, Missouri State University, reports: The Northern Jordan Project (NJP) returned to the field in 2010 for a multidisciplinary survey in the village of al-Turra. The NJP seeks to understand better the settlement fluctuations of the Middle and Late Islamic periods in the well-watered region between Irbid and the Yarmouk River. Each season, a different historical village is the focus of fieldwork, which is combined with archival, ethnographic, architectural, and environmental analyses. The NJP has completed surveys in Malka (2003), Hubras (2003), Saham (2006), and now al-Turra (2010), as well as excavation in Hubras (2006); each of these villages represents a different topographic or environmental zone of the region.1 The village of al-Turra is located in the southern Hauran, 8 km north of Ramtha, and its fields approach the Syrian border. Al-Turra was selected for study this season because of its location—it lies in an important transit zone between the southern Hauran and the Mediterranean and between Syria and the Hijaz, and it is framed by optimal agricultural land to the west and the steppe to the east. Building on fieldwork done

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by the Department of Antiquities of Jordan 10 years earlier, the NJP season consisted of archaeological surveys and collection of material culture in the village fields and pastureland; investigation and mapping of ancient field, water, and potential road systems; architectural study of the oldest buildings in the village; and ethnographic work in the village related to land use and demographic history. Two archaeological survey teams covered 106 survey parcels totaling 291 ha, which included plowed and fallow fields, olive groves, and rock-cut installations (online fig. 4). Sherd densities and the numbers of parcels used during various periods suggest that the heaviest occupation for the area during premodern times occurred during the Byzantine and Umayyad periods (online fig. 5). The intensity of field use fell during the Abbasid period, only to rebound once again, although not to previous levels. The greatest levels of continuity in parcel use occurred across the Byzantine/Umayyad and Middle/Late Islamic boundaries. The ceramic evidence suggests no significant abatement in occupation or land use from the 16th century on, as compared with other parts of the country. The Abbasid period displays less continuity with either the preceding or following period, possibly indicating a spatial, social, and political reorganization of the alTurra region at the time. Environmental and paleoecological studies have been incorporated in most field seasons. In 2010, a more comprehensive and multifaceted study of land use—through archaeological survey, the study of historical documents, and microfossil and soil chemistry analyses—was combined with study of the phytolith record in an effort to address multiple research questions related to cropping, diet, and climate. In a preliminary effort to examine land use against the backdrop of climatic conditions in a regionally comparative context, soil samples were taken from stratified deposits at sites near al-Turra and from Tall Hisban in central Jordan. The phytolith preservation was excellent; ongoing analysis promises to differentiate between agricultural and animal husbandry strategies and to identify irrigated regimes, drier periods, and intensification of production. In conjunction with this, analyses were conducted to document soil formation, erosion, and landscape development. Sediment samples suitable for magnetic and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating were collected. The results of the 2010 season produced evidence of the impact of the hajj on the development of the village; identification and mapping of potential road

The project website is http://clio.missouristate.edu/bwalker/njp.html.

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and water systems that connected the village with a much larger region in the Roman through Late Ottoman periods; documentation of settlement here in the 18th and early 19th centuries (a period when many other villages in the country were abandoned); and extensive ceramic imports from Italy, Turkey, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria from the Renaissance and Ottoman eras.

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ing complex in the southern part of the site. Using the method described here, vertical and horizontal sections of both complexes were generated to identify the different building phases. A relative chronology for the building features of the Umm al-Surab structures must be based on elements for which we have sure and reliable dating—such as the Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus, which was founded in 489 C.E. Although the church was subsequently modified, its main building features remain evident. For example, we have distinguished two different methods for column construction—an analysis assisted through a close examination of the mortars and other elements pertaining to a reuse of the columns. A 12 m tower associated with this church is very similar to one in the nearby village of Sama‘a. These features have been interpreted as Byzantine bell towers or minarets. This study has confirmed that they are minarets—possibly the earliest examples, dating to the eighth century C.E.—which were built by adapting existing church structures. The large building complex appears to be older than the church. The recent sounding near the northwest corner recovered pottery that suggests the structure dates to the Late Roman period. Other parts of the building have exact comparisons with buildings at nearby Umm el-Jimal that are not precisely dated.

Roberto Parenti and Stefano Anastasio, University of Siena, report: Umm al-Surab is located in the Mafraq district, about 2 km from the Syrian border. Recently, the Department of Antiquities of Jordan carried out some restoration as well as a small sounding. On the whole, scholars have focused on the remains of the Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus and on the surrounding buildings, especially the extant tower (fig. 3) that was considered an early example of a “square Syrianstyle minaret.”2 The current project is aimed at creating an atlas of the building techniques employed at this site and throughout the region. Two seasons of instrumental survey work have been completed. The project documents the wall features through rapid, close-range photogrammetry, producing RGB point clouds (online fig. 6), and returns processed data compatible with many database management systems. The computer-aided methodology allows for a composite survey that includes a marker-based system using a total station; three-dimensional models and photographic renderings using an innovative technology based on RGB point clouds;3 and a visual system that elaborates digital elevation models, orthophotographs, plans, elevations, and sections. Successive building phases can be identified and a relative chronology of the specific building activities established through interpretation of the survey results. This method allows the creation of local typological series without the need for excavation campaigns. Primary written sources, epigraphic evidence, and surface pottery provide the keys to link the relative and absolute chronologies together. Archaeometrical and biochemical analyses of building materials also contribute to the dating of the buildings. The site has been divided into 29 topographic units (TU), most of which have been georeferenced to facilitate comparison with old aerial photographs and survey data. We have focused on the Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus and the recently restored build-

Aaron J. Stutz, Oxford College of Emory University, Liv Nilsson Stutz, Emory University, Trina Arpin, Boston University, Jamie L. Clark, Universität Tübingen, Jason Rech, Miami University, Ohio, and Joshua Robinson, Emory University, report: Mughr el-Hamamah (Cave of the Doves) is a newly discovered early Upper Paleolithic cave site in Jordan. The site is located in the Ajloun Governorate, situated at roughly 80 masl. Upper Paleolithic occurrences have been reported for northwestern Jordan, but no other in situ early Upper Paleolithic deposits have been excavated in this subregion. A series of southern Jordanian sites have offered information about the earliest Upper Paleolithic in the region, but these sites lack associated radiometric dates. Mughr el-Hamamah can potentially provide the most detailed available glimpse into early Upper Paleolithic human behavioral patterns in Jordan. From a broader geographic perspective, we emphasize Mughr el-Hamamah’s southern Levantine setting, long argued to be the supracontinental geographic crossroads in which the earliest Upper

Creswell 1989. Z-Scan and Z-Map by Menci Software (Italy). This system

has virtually the same resolution as a laser scanner, with photographic color fidelity, but with lower costs.

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Fig. 3. The facade of the three-apse Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus at Umm al-Surab and the minaret, after the transformation of the church to a mosque. Photograph is from 2009, after the restoration efforts conducted between 2004 and 2007.

Paleolithic material culture emerged and from which it expanded into Eurasia. Mughr el-Hamamah was first surveyed in 2006.4 Mapping and additional surface collection were carried out in 2008.5 This led to the 2010 subsurface testing at the site, in two test trenches inside the main cave (Cave 2) (online fig. 7). The site stratigraphy exhibits two main components. Layer A is a 20th-century grayish-brown sandy silt dominated by pulverized goat dung. It includes redeposited early Upper Paleolithic artifacts mixed with 20th-century artifacts discarded recently by shepherds. Layer A unconformably overlies layer B, a variable, consolidated, brownish silt containing diagnostic early Upper Paleolithic lithic artifacts throughout. Bone preservation and sediment phosphatization in layer B are inconsistent. Where bone is preserved, the faunal assemblage is rich (the number of identified specimens [NISP] found in situ in layer B is ca. 7,000). Two in situ isolated human teeth were found in association with the hearths and animal-bone

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Lovell 2009. Richter et al. 2009.

concentrations. Hearths, lithic artifacts, and charcoal fragments are found throughout layer B, regardless of bone dissolution and phosphatization patterns. Wood charcoal fragments are common throughout the in situ portions of the early Upper Paleolithic layer B. Three initial 14C samples come from three distinct, albeit nearby, layer B contexts. Two come from the base of thick consolidated ash lenses, the other from under a limestone slab. The uncalibrated 14C dates for the samples are 41,490 ± 790 b.p., 43,160 ± 910 b.p., and 42,440 ± 830 b.p. These ages are statistically overlapping and identical to AMS 14C ages from the earliest Early Ahmarian layer (unit IV) at Kebara Cave.6 The Mughr el-Hamamah uncalibrated means are older than the oldest AMS 14C ages from the initial Upper Paleolithic/Emiran industry layers of Üçağızlı Cave, although this may reflect minute contamination in the samples from either or both sites. The OxCal online calibration program with the INTCAL 2009 calibration data indicates a most likely calendar age of 47–44 ka.

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A fourth 14C date for a terminus ante quem context was obtained from a fragment of wood charcoal found adhering to a basalt grinder or hammerstone that was wedged into a cave-wall crevice; this sample was taken from a spot just above the single el-Wad point recovered and about 0.40 m above the three other AMS 14C samples—the uncalibrated 14C date is 30,570 ± 210 b.p. This radiocarbon age (calibrated to ca. 35 ka) is typical for later Early Ahmarian (final early Upper Paleolithic) deposits in the southern Levant. The 2010 lithic assemblage sample is only about 30% sorted and contains roughly 20,000 artifacts (including chips and chunks). The cores and debitage exhibit evidence of blade and flake production, including both hard and soft hammer removals. The presence of crested blades provides hints about how at least some of the blade removal convexities were prepared. The tools are dominated by uncarinated end scrapers on blades or flakes, diverse burins, and retouched blades. Two Levallois flakes with heavy patination exhibit abrupt retouching across the entire base, and on further measurement and comparison, these may fall into the range of variation acknowledged for Emireh points, considered to be diagnostic of the earliest Upper Paleolithic in the Levant.7 The above-mentioned el-Wad point, two partially retouched pointed blades, and a microgravette with an oblique distal truncation were recovered in situ. The redeposited material from layer A and the bioturbated material from layer B exhibit technological and typological features fully consistent with what we observed for the in situ layer B sample. The early Upper Paleolithic assignment is confirmed by the initial AMS 14C dates and fragments from two narrow bone points (possibly also needles or awls), which are typical for initial Upper Paleolithic/ Emiran and Early Ahmarian sites, in contrast to the thicker beveled or split-based Levantine Aurignacian points from the later early Upper Paleolithic. Published early Upper Paleolithic assemblages with techno-typological characteristics similar to those of assemblages at Mughr el-Hamamah include Kebara Cave units IV–III and Tor Fawaz.8 Mughr el-Hamamah and Kebara and Üçağızlı Caves are the only documented Levantine early Upper Paleolithic sites with securely radiometrically dated >40 ka early Upper Paleolithic components that are also associated with well-preserved bone and charcoal assemblages. While Mughr el-Hamamah is a small site —partially disturbed by recent shepherd activity and bioturbation—the in situ portion of layer B exhibits unusually good charred botanical preservation, and we

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emphasize the potential to retrieve the Levant’s first substantial sample of early Upper Paleolithic charred plant food and combustion-fuel remains.

tell abu al-kharaz Peter M. Fischer, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, and Teresa Bürge, Oriental Institute of the University of Vienna, report: The 2010 and 2011 seasons of excavation at Tell Abu al-Kharaz were mainly devoted to investigation of the Early Iron Age occupation of Area 9, which is in the southern part of the settlement. The excavations were extended toward the east, northeast, and west of a unique Iron Age I compound (phase IX) discovered in 2009. This virtually undisturbed compound, measuring at least 30 m long, contained hundreds of complete objects, many of them imports. Phases X and XI, which postdate the phase IX compound but still date to the first half of the Iron Age, are most likely very close in time, given that the same stone architecture was used. The exposed structure contains 12 walled spaces, all covered by debris and ash. The next space to the east is a stone-paved courtyard; along its southern wall are three stone-lined installations associated with food preparation. Courtyard finds include juglets, ceramic spindlewhorls, and a bronze arrowhead, and there is clear evidence of textile production in this building. The eight spaces to the east are smaller. Two central spaces are partly stone paved; the southern one is disturbed by a sewer dating from the Abbasid period. The central rooms were found to contain numerous pieces of leatherhard, unfired vessels, which indicate local production of pottery. A large, roughly circular installation, most likely a kiln for firing pottery (phase XI), was found in an adjoining room to the east. Phase X finds from the same area include a fishing hook, stone tools, a cylindrical clay lid, a carnelian bead, and a decorated jar with a pattern encircling the entire shoulder (online fig. 8). This pattern gives the impression that an illiterate potter tried to imitate a script; given that similar decorative patterns are much more accurately executed, it is difficult to see this one just as a decoration. The most frequently appearing “sign” resembles a waw; other signs look like kaph, samech, and taw. Of the other vessels recovered in this location, the cooking pots have triangular rim sections, and storage jars often show neck ridges, both of which are typical of the Early Iron Age. Two clay-built ovens are from phase X, and just above them is a kiln from phase XI. From the pottery and radiocarbon dating, phases X and XI

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would appear to belong to the second half of Iron Age I; a preliminary date in the 11th or 10th century B.C.E. is suggested. Removing about 1.5 m of debris and the remains of burnt roofing exposed a large compound with wellconstructed stone walls preserved to almost 2.5 m. Seven pairs of rooms (R1–14) (online figs. 9–11) of equal size were interconnected by standardized entrances. The floor contexts of the rooms were among the most rewarding of all those excavated during the last 20 years. These rooms contained in total about 140 intact or complete ceramic vessels, among them many storage jars and cooking pots, as well as goblets, chalices, juglets, jugs, pyxides, pilgrim flasks, and lamps. Several of the complete vessels were still filled with their original contents: barley, millet, chickpeas, remains of olive oil, and barley flour. A complete transportable oven (tannur) was discovered in Room 14. Of special interest were a double pyxis, a bowl with thick white slip and three loop handles, a jug with white slip and red decoration (Philistine type), and a globular, bichrome decorated jug (Phoenician). Another jug contained 37 balls of unfired clay of unknown function, and yet another was still sealed with a ceramic lid and contained flint blades. Other finds were a four-spouted lamp and a stand, still standing upright, with a chalice as its lid (fig. 4). A scaraboid of steatite shows the head of a horse, and a scarab depicts the possible throne name of Thutmose III (online fig. 12).9 From the pottery and radiocarbon dating, this phase would seem to fall within Iron Age I, and a date of ca. 1100 B.C.E. is suggested for the destruction. All structures from this phase of occupation are now consolidated and preserved. A test trench was dug outside the wall that limits the compound to the north. Finds of interest were four skeletons: the uppermost was only partially preserved, whereas the lower three were almost complete. Two adults embraced each other. The skeletons represent in all probability earthquake victims from the Late Bronze Age, to judge from a few associated ceramics. West of the Early Iron Age compound are several Late Bronze Age contexts, with vessels of Chocolate-onWhite Ware of high quality and other monochrome and bichrome decorated pottery of the typical phase V repertoire from Tell Abu al-Kharaz—that is, from the 15th century B.C.E.10

It came as no surprise that EB II contexts showed up in several spots, since the Early Bronze Age occupation of Tell Abu al-Kharaz was the largest. These contexts contained Metallic Ware juglets imported from Lebanon, including a new shape not found before at Tell Abu al-Kharaz, and several storage jars of the holemouth type inside structures of sun-dried mudbrick.

9 According to A. Ahrens, German Archaeological Institute, Damascus (pers. comm. 2010): “a possible version of ‘Men-Khepher-Re’ (= Tuthmose III’s throne name) . . . since the hieroglyphs are locally executed, a definite reading is always difficult.” 10 Fischer 2006, 271–76.

11 The only mining regions in all of southwest Asia where cortical flake production was carried out on an “industrial” scale are the mines in the Wadi Ruweishid region (described here), the flint mines on the northern rim of the Jafr Basin in southern Jordan (Quintero et al. 2002), and those at Qa’ Abu al-Tulayha close to the Jafr Basin (Fujii 2003).

northern badia Bernd Müller-Neuhof, German Archaeological Institute, Orient Department, reports: This project focuses on the identification and documentation of Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age socioeconomic activities in the northern Badia, topographically defined by a basalt desert in the west and the eastern adjacent limestone desert. This region, part of the larger desert Badiat Ash Sham, is frequently regarded as a peripheral zone, even though it is located between southern Mesopotamia and the Levant, where major urbanization processes took place in the fourth millennium. Four archaeological surveys were conducted in 2010–2011. The investigation focused on flint mines in the limestone desert, campsites, and land-use patterns that included evidence for ancient communication routes in the basalt desert and ancient irrigation technologies in the vicinity of the Late Chalcolithic/ Early Bronze Age town of Jawa in the western part of the basalt desert. The Chalcolithic/Early Bronze Age flint mines in the Wadi Ruweishid region on the western escarpment of the al-Risha limestone plateau, south of the modern village of Ruweishid, were surveyed in spring 2010. Here, evidence for cortical scraper (fan scrapers) blank production at an industrial scale was observed.11 The mines and production sites identified to date cover 11.2 ha. The mines are located on the escarpments of the western promontories of the Risha Plateau, where the required flint layer is exposed. Mining was executed by quarrying the outcropping flint layer along the escarpments and most probably by pit mining in shallow pits not more than 0.5 m deep on top of the promontories close to the escarpments. The cortical flakes were produced in the area of the mines and their immediate vicinity. These mining and production sites are characterized by a dense cover of mining debris, flint nodules, cortical flake cores, core-

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Fig. 4. Stand with chalice lid in situ at Tell Abu al-Kharaz (phase IX).

trimming elements (e.g., platform-preparation flakes and blades), and a small number of cortical flakes broken or discarded because of their large thickness or small size. The cortical flake cores are characterized by multiple, generally fan-shaped flake negatives covering their cortical faces (online fig. 13). The flint knappers always tried to detach as many flakes as possible from the cortical flakes of these cores. Besides the broken or discarded blanks, no proper cortical scraper blank was found on these sites, suggesting an export-oriented production. By counting the negatives on the cores in some selected areas, a production output of at least 500,000–750,000 blanks can be calculated for the entire mining region examined thus far. Based on the observation that just a specific flint layer was exploited, which occurs at a specific altitude between 780 and 815 masl and which outcrops only in steep-slope conditions, it was possible to identify the northern, western, and eastern limits of the mining region. At the end of the 2010 survey season, it was determined that the mining region continued farther south. Hypothetically, these cortical tool blanks could have been exported, at least to settlements like Jawa and other Late Chalcolithic/Early Bronze Age communities farther west. One of the major issues with this hypothesis is the need to understand the logistical realities underlying the development and functionality

of such an industry in the basalt desert. At first glance, the area is seemingly neither accessible nor crossable. What kinds of socioeconomic activities can we expect in this “barren” landscape? Two transect surveys were carried out, linking the limestone desert with Jawa by using topographic features such as wadis, mud pans (qi’an), and fissure eruption zones as reference points. Employing this method, we discovered that the basalt desert could have been accessed and crossed in this manner. Numerous campsites, most of them with pen structures, were identified in nearly all parts of the two transects (online fig. 14). Most of the campsites are located close to mud pans and wider wadis, proving that intensive animal husbandry took place in these areas during the seasonal pastoral migrations. This gives a clear impression of the basalt desert as a region in which transhumant pastoralism was one of the major subsistence economies. Most of these sites date to the Late Chalcolithic period/Early Bronze Age, the RomanByzantine period, or the Early Islamic (Umayyad) period, but some originated in the later Islamic periods. Additionally, numerous flint scatter sites from the Epipaleolithic, Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (PPN-B), and Late Neolithic periods were observed. Many campsites with pen structures are multiphased, referring to a long tradition of human herding activities in this region. The

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periods from the Middle Bronze Age through the end of the Iron Age are completely missing. The transects ended at Jawa, the immediate vicinity of which was included in the survey region. Noteworthy is the discovery of an area of 75 ha on which large terrace-garden clusters were identified, just south of Jawa on a higher terrace than the site itself. These gardens are thought to be contemporary with the major occupation phase of Jawa in the Late Chalcolithic/EB I periods. It is interesting to observe that these structures were irrigated by harvested rainwater. Rainwater fell directly into the gardens, and adjacent and associated hills were “tapped” by simple surface channels that directed the surface water. This system employed a combination of overflows and channels to direct excess water from the upper terraces for use in the lower sections. The surface channels are mostly characterized by cleared surfaces with simple stone borders. If the preliminary dating of these structures to the Late Chalcolithic/Early Bronze Age is correct, then they represent the first evidence of rainwater harvesting from such an early period. This system, together with the wadi water irrigation (flash-flood harvesting) in the Wadi Rajjil at Jawa already described by Helms,12 makes two sophisticated water harvesting systems from a very early period at Jawa.

jarash hinterland survey Fiona M.C. Baker, Firat Archaeological Services, Scotland, and David L. Kennedy, University of Western Australia, report: The Jarash Hinterland Survey objectives and a map showing the survey area are presented elsewhere, along with the results from 2005 and 2008.13 The final field season, which took place in 2010, covered a further 1.3 km2 and recorded 519 new sites.14 The total area surveyed was 3.8 km2, and 1,140 archaeological sites were recorded. Of the 10 km2 surrounding the Jarash city walls, we estimate that approximately 2 km2 of the area have already been developed with new housing. The main objective of the final season was to ensure that we had linked the city walls to the outer limits of the survey area, which extends some 1–2 km beyond the walls. In this way, we could assess whether the types and densities of sites changed as we moved away from the urban core, even though it had become clear that covering the full 10 km2 would not be possible.

Helms 1981. Kennedy and Baker 2009. See Keller and Tuttle (2010, 519–21) for Baker and Kennedy’s report on the Jarash Hinterland Survey. 14 Copies of the preliminary reports (Kennedy et al. 2005, 2008, 2010) on each season have been deposited in three li12 13

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In 2010, we found that at the outer limits of the survey we located olive and wine presses more frequently, and at least one Roman farmstead site was recorded. Noted at the northern survey limits were Early Bronze Age tumuli, megalithic Iron Age walls, and lithic scatters. Caves are also more frequent the farther one travels from the city walls. This suggests that the Classical-period exploitation of the landscape around Jarash was most intensive in the 1 km immediately surrounding the city. Farther from the city, traces of preclassical landscapes survived, and the Roman use of the landscape was predominantly focused on exploitation of agriculture and resources—with agricultural terraces, quarrying, and water management dominating the types of sites recorded. The artifact scatters became considerably less frequent and dense at about 1 km from the city walls, and architectural fragments—so frequent immediately adjacent to the city walls—were practically nonexistent. The density of Classical-period tombs also decreased, except along the major routes that served the ancient city. Despite the intense Classical-period use of the land immediately surrounding the city walls, discrete lithic scatters from the Epipaleolithic, Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPN-A), and PPN-B periods were found in the south Wadi Jarash and along the ridge of Tell Abu Suwwan. Possible flint mines were also located along the east side of the Abu Suwwan ridge, and these sites are considered part of the Neolithic “megasite” of Tell Abu Suwwan southeast of the Arch of Hadrian. Quarries were the most frequent type of site and were recorded in all areas; major quarries were recorded to the south and the northwest of the city (online fig. 15). At some sites, small crosses cut into the rock may have been quarry masters’ marks. Examples of specialist quarrying for sarcophagi were also located to the north of the city. Quarried outcrops had been reused and adapted to make rock-cut tombs. Rock-cut basins and cup holes were recorded toward the outer reaches of the survey area, whereas none had been recorded closer to the city walls. These features could have had various uses as small localized cisterns, mortars for grinding acorns and cereals, or, where they are associated with tombs, possibly places for libations. More enigmatic were two petroglyphs associated with small cup holes recorded in the northwest survey area (online figs. 16, 17).

braries in Amman: the libraries of the American Center of Oriental Research, the Council for British Research in the Levant, and the Department of Antiquities of Jordan. The final report, with an associated online database, is projected for 2014.

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The 2010 survey recorded a major water management system on the east side of Tell Abu Suwwan (fig. 5) and explored in some detail to the north the Shawahid, Qairawan, and Birketein springs complex that fed the ancient city. Currently, these three springs discharge about 5,500 m3 per day, which indicates how significant they would have been to the ancient city. More cisterns were also recorded farther from the city, in the agricultural landscape. One goal of the project has been to monitor the impact of new development. Sites recorded in the previous seasons were revisited to assess their condition (online figs. 18–20). The survey found that between 2005 and 2010 at least 45% of recorded sites were damaged or completely destroyed. From these figures, we can extrapolate that approximately 10% of archaeological sites in the immediate environs of Jarash are being destroyed every year.

the islamic jarash project Louise Blanke and Alan Walmsley, University of Copenhagen, report: Excavations South of the Qibla Wall of the Early Islamic Mosque With the completion of excavations within the compound of the mosque, focus shifted to investigation of the lane and associated structures south of the mosque’s southern wall (the qibla wall). This area consists of deep archaeological deposits that extend from the wall across the street and continue into the northern part of the adjacent macellum, where there are four unexcavated rooms. To investigate the mosque area fully and to relieve pressure from the deposits on the macellum, the project team decided to excavate the area. The excavations over the lane were sectioned between the north wall of the macellum and the original main mihrab (niche) of the mosque and a later mihrab. The clear archaeological sequence is as follows: (1) establishment of the southern limits of the bathhouse structures and associated street; (2) demolition of the bathhouse and construction of the mosque’s qibla wall (most of which was built on top of the demolished walls, except for the mihrab, which was built on laid foundations within a trench cut into earlier street surfaces) (online fig. 21); (3) accumulation of debris at the street level; (4) formation of a collapse level with stone, wall fill, and roof tile; (5) construction of a smaller niche, east of the original mihrab, resting on foundations over the collapse; (6) buildup south of the mosque wall and terminal collapse. Important is the significant chronological separation of the first mihrab of the mosque, which was built as an integral part of the original structure, and its replacement with

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the smaller mihrab following a major collapse. Survey work has demonstrated the simultaneous addition of a mihrab in the western sector of the prayer hall, representing its division into two unequal parts. An analysis of architecture and ceramics has revealed a complex history for the area, extending ca. 300–1200 C.E. Attention was also paid to one of the macellum rooms, where a circular kiln was excavated. Built of roughly coursed stone blocks in the room’s southwest corner (online fig. 22), the kiln had an approximate diameter of 3 m; in elevation it was divided into two main sections. The lower section was defined by a step inward, which would have supported the kiln’s floor. The kiln was accessed on the east side via a small entrance with an inverted V-shaped capping; this entrance was reached from the room (previously excavated), where cleaning revealed work areas and glass for recycling. While burning on the kiln walls showed its use, it was found cleaned of firing residues, as if it had been in the process of renovation before the final collapse. Mosque Consolidation and Restoration Using original building techniques, all of the qibla wall, a section of the west wall, and half of the east wall were consolidated. In addition, a row of five shops along the cardo east of the mosque was partially restored, also using traditional methods and original stone. The Late Antique Jarash Project The Late Antique Jarash Project commenced in 2011 as an Islamic Jarash Project subcomponent directed by Blanke. It is aimed at exploring a part of Jarash where domestic remains may be found. The hilltop in the southwest quadrant of the site was selected for investigation based on the presence of water features, roads, buildings, and two churches. The specific research questions relate to the logistics of daily life, such as the supply, distribution, and drainage of water, garbage disposal, and access to and movement between buildings. Architectural remains between the south decumanus, the city wall, and the congregational mosque were mapped. Subsequently, five smaller areas located east of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul along a street that extends south from the south decumanus were recorded in detail. These five areas (A–E) were selected for further examination, as they include visible architectural remains, cisterns, and bedrock cuts. The street (Area E) extends some 300 m, perpendicular to the south decumanus, from the triple-church complex of Saints Cosmas and Damian, Saint John, and Saint George to the hilltop in the southwest quadrant of town. The adjacent Area D revealed a rectangular building with three rooms along the street and at

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Fig. 5. Aerial view of site 744, water-channel complex, and associated cave cisterns (sites 767, 786, 788) on the east side of Tell Abu Suwwan. The water channels can be seen as scars in the limestone.

least another two rooms along the north wall (online fig. 23). Later walls encroached from Area D onto the street, when the original width of the street was no longer required. An open space seemingly defines a courtyard with a pear-shaped cistern cut into bedrock. It was fed with water from a reservoir (Area C) situated south of Area D, from which remains of channels have been found on the stonework. Similarly, water from the reservoir was channeled eastward to a series of tanks and cisterns cut into the bedrock (online fig. 24). A rectangular building, a third cistern, and a circular feature (Area A) define the eastern extent of the research area (online fig. 25). The building is characterized by two platforms along the west wall, which could have supported roof-carrying arches. The cistern is located immediately northwest of the building. Altogether, nine cisterns have been identified around the southwest hilltop. They vary in depth and appearance from the pear-shaped type with rounded openings (Areas B and D) to larger cisterns with square openings.

khirbet es-samra’ ancient cemetery excavation project Abdalla J. Nabulsi, Universität Hamburg, reports: Excavations were undertaken in 2010 and 2011 in available areas of the Roman-Byzantine Khirbet es-

Samra’ cemetery located some 50 m east of the related ancient settlement and within the modern village of Rowdhat Al-Amir Mohammad in the Mafraq district. Despite extensive looting early in the 20th century, excavations in the cemetery succeeded in obtaining a rich range of material and information. The cist-shaft tombs are generally oriented east– west. The stratigraphy in the cemetery area consists of only three strata: basalt bedrock, a hard virgin soil layer of decomposed basalt, and a topsoil layer containing all the traces of human activity. The artifacts collected from the topsoil indicate three phases of use separated by gaps of more than 1,200 years. The earliest phase is represented by flint artifacts from the Neolithic period and possibly earlier. The second phase is represented by pottery, glass, metal, and stone fragments of different objects datable from the first to the eighth centuries C.E. The last phase is represented by waste material from the past two centuries. In the 2010 season, 400 m2 were excavated at site A2. Of the 66 excavated tombs, 6 were intact; 58 included some human skeletal remains (varying from a few teeth to almost complete skeletons), and at least 2 contained multiple burials. Among the diverse material retrieved was a basalt tombstone reused as a covering slab in Tomb 517; it had a polished face engraved

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with a Nabataean inscription. Although the inscription has not been closely dated, the stone indicates the epigraphic richness of the Khirbet es-Samra’ cemetery, which contains tombstones inscribed in four different scripts: Greek, Syro-Palestinian Aramaic, Hismaic, and Nabataean. The 2011 excavations were carried out at site E (a 200 m2 area with 26 tombs) and site A (a 175 m2 area with 28 tombs). Of the 54 excavated tombs, only 4 were intact; 47 contained human bones, and at least 3 cases of multiple burials were noted. This part of the cemetery revealed diversity in the funerary practices with clear evidence of some wooden coffins. With the conclusion of the 2011 season, 614 tombs have been excavated in the Khirbet es-Samra’ cemetery. A wide range of objects from surface collection and excavation have also been retrieved. Although many objects are fragmentary, incomplete, or too fragile to restore, these objects reflect an abundance not reported from other similarly dated cemeteries in Jordan— and this despite having been looted a century ago.

khirbet al-batrawy Lorenzo Nigro, Rome “La Sapienza” University, reports: The Early Bronze Age site of Khirbet al-Batrawy is in the Upper Wadi az-Zarqa at the northern periphery of the modern city of Zarqa. The Batrawy I–IV periods cover the time span from 3300 to 2000 B.C.E., and the architecture and material culture demonstrate a fortified Early Bronze Age city followed by an extensive rural village in the last quarter of the third millennium B.C.E. The Palace of the Copper Axes (Palace B) The 2010–2011 seasons were dedicated to the exploration of the large Palace B, which consists of two roughly symmetrical pavilions (Buildings B1 and B3) with an entrance or passage in the middle. Palace B was found buried under a thick layer of burnt debris from a violent fire that destroyed the EB IIIB city of Batrawy. Both seasons focused entirely on the Western Pavilion (Building B3) of Palace B. A large hall (Pillared Hall L.1040) was discovered (fig. 6) with two main doors—one in the west wall and one in the south— both with steps made of yellowish mudbricks. Between the southwest corner and the west door, burnt traces of a wooden bench or shelf were visible. Two secondary blocked doors were located near the corners on the eastern side; a fifth door, which was approached

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through a step in the emerging bedrock, opened at the eastern edge of the southern side of the hall, giving access to an elongated rectangular room (L.1120). Along the central east–west axis, four pillar bases of various shapes were arrayed on the edge of the bedrock step, which formed the flooring. Four round cup marks and a channel were also cut into this floor. Numerous pottery vessels and other objects were buried in the destruction layer filling Pillared Hall (L.1040) (online fig. 26). Large storage jars and pithoi were aligned all around the walls in at least two rows; others (including a metallic pattern-combed jar) were grouped in the middle. Distinctive features of the pithoi were the wheelmade neck fixed on the coil-built body, the rope-like ridge hiding the junction, and a capacity ranging from 80 to 120 liters. Many big jars, pithoi, and holemouth jars were filled with carbonized seeds (up to a capacity of ca. 2 tons of barley); one pithos contained red ochre, while small vessels apparently contained liquids and ointments. The large vessels and jars were usually encircled by a series of small vessels. These included medium-sized jars, jugs, juglets, vats, miniature bowls, and beakers. The shoulders of some of the jars showed designs made with applied ceramic coils recalling Egyptian hieroglyphs. Next to the second door, a medium-sized jar was found with the plastic figure of a snake applied on the shoulder. Found in front of a door was a medium-sized jar incised on the shoulders with a herringbone motif separating two panels in which, respectively, a snake and a scorpion were represented. In a cachette cut in the bedrock beside the second pillar, close to the grouped vessels, four copper axes were found (online fig. 27). One axe of the flag type with a square handle hole showed use marks on the blade. The three other axes were apparently not used, probably accomplishing a symbolic function as insignia of power. A fifth copper axe was recovered in Hall L.1110, which lies to the south. The discovery of the axes is particularly noteworthy, since copper axes from Early Bronze Age Jordan are rare.15 Excavation in a storeroom (L.1120) and another large hall (L.1110) recovered many more storage vessels and other ceramics, some of which seem to have come from an upper story. Against the western face of the eastern wall of Hall L.1110 is a bench with a seat or a niche and, underneath this installation, a jar containing about 600 beads of carnelian, bone, seashell, and rock crystal, which were strung on a copper wire. Eight medium-sized jars were arrayed east–west roughly at the

15 Fewer than 30 pieces for both EB II and EB III are known in Palestine and Transjordan. Eleven EB III specimens exist, six of which derive from an uncertain context in Tell el-Hesi (Bliss 1894, 39, figs. 69, 73–7).

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Fig. 6. Khirbet al-Batrawy, general view from the northeast of EB IIIB Palace B, erected inside the EB II–III Main Inner City Wall. Pillared Hall (L.1040) is visible in the foreground (M. Al-Bataineh).

middle of the hall, and one contained a bone ring and a group of seashells (for a necklace), while two others had small cups at their bases. Clusters of smashed jars and other vessels were uncovered around the central pillar, including an Egyptianizing lotus vase. The southern side of the room hosted a stone-built bench in a niche in the wall, with a pithos inside it. In the doorway, two jars were found with a small cylindrical cup or measurer. The fifth copper axe mentioned above was found in a bedrock cavity just inside one of the doors.

jneneh Khaled Douglas, Hashemite University, reports: Jneneh is located in the northwestern periphery of the city of Zarqa and covers about 45 ha on a natural hill on the western bank of the Zarqa River. It is surrounded on three sides by gentle slopes; only the east side is protected by a sharp cliff rising from the Wadi az-Zarqa. The site was first discovered in 1993 during the Upper Wadi az-Zarqa survey conducted by Palumbo, and it was identified as a large open village.16

16

Palumbo et al. 1996, 388 (site JRS 45).

In 2011, a combined survey and excavation project by the Hashemite University and the Department of Antiquities of Jordan began at the site. The preliminary results of the intensive survey show that the site was occupied during two major phases—EB I and Iron II. During EB IV, the site was reoccupied in the form of a small seasonal camp, as indicated by a few pottery sherds on the surface. The goals of the subsequent first excavation campaign were (1) to explore the origin of urban culture in the Early Bronze Age in the Upper Wadi az-Zarqa by understanding the connection between Jneneh and the EB II–III fortified settlement of Khirbet al-Batrawy located 1.5 km east of Jneneh, across the Wadi az-Zarqa; and (2) to explain the nature of Iron Age culture north of Amman (or Ammon). Excavations in the first season concentrated on the highest area (north side) of the site, where traces of buildings and fortification walls were still visible on the surface (fig. 7). Five areas, covering a total of 248 m2, were excavated partially or completely; the work in the 2011 season focused on the latest occupational

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Fig. 7. Topographic map of Jneneh.

phase in the settlement. Five buildings were partially exposed: two in Area I and three in Area IV. Pottery and 14C dates show that the last occupational phase in Jneneh dates back to the eighth century B.C.E. The parts revealed from the first building in Area I (Building 1) include an open courtyard and three rooms. The courtyard (Building 1, Room 1) is enclosed by four walls and contains a mud-surface floor and a big fireplace situated in the northeast corner. An entrance from the courtyard leads into a narrow room (Building 1, Room 2) with a thick white plaster floor. The room was rich with artifacts, primarily small basalt plates and grinding stones. Both short sides of this room are connected to two other rooms. That on the northeast side is a narrow room (Building 1, Room 3) with only the one entrance and a white plaster floor. Rooms 2 and 3 form a T shape. Both of these rooms were covered with thick ash and destruction layers. On the southwest side of Room 2 is another room (Building 1, Room 4) accessed through a wide entrance with a threshold made of three large stones lined up on

the inner side of the entrance. The second building of Area I (Building 2) is located to the south of Building 1. A small part of this building was excavated, exposing only parts of two rooms during this season. In Area IV, situated 10 m to the east of Area I, a building (Building 3) with two rooms was partially exposed. Room 1 in Building 3 is L-shaped but not yet fully excavated. In the northwest corner of the room, attached to both walls, there is a mud-surfaced platform, its outer sides lined with large, well-cut stones. Two installations are built against the east wall using a single row of stones. The entrance of this room is not exposed. The second room of this building (Room 2) was not fully uncovered. A fourth building with two main rooms (Building 4) (online fig. 28), which we have named the Pillared Building, is attached to Building 3 on its northeastern side. Although all walls of this building were uncovered, no outer entrance was found. The main room in this building is rectangular with a mud floor. In the center of the room are two rectangular pillar bases

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built with large hewn limestone blocks. In the northeastern corner of the pillared room, there is a niche. On the northwestern side, there is an entrance leading to a smaller rectangular room. This room is divided into two smaller rooms by a wall built from one course of stones, with a space on the east side that served as a doorway. One of these small rooms is paved with small slab stones. To the east is a large building (Building 5) connected directly to the Pillared Building. Parts of the southern side of Building 5 were excavated. It consists of a wide room or courtyard, which is connected through an entrance to a smaller room. This small room may have been used for storage, given that remains of three collared-rim jars were found in situ. A segment of a 2 m wide fortification wall built of large stones was uncovered to the southeast of Buildings 4 and 5. Some of its lower courses were excavated from within Room 1 of Building 5. It is clear that the foundations of this wall were wider than its upper part. The extension of this wall can easily be followed on the surface toward the east to the edge of the cliff of Upper Wadi az-Zarqa; it then turns northwest along the wadi, and, at the northeastern corner of the site, it turns toward the west, where its extension gets lost. This fortification wall may have enclosed the upper area of the site, whereas the rest of settlement was unfortified. Different pottery forms, such as cooking pots, jugs, plates, storage jars, and lamps, were found. Some were painted with brown, black, or white bands on red slip. Loomweights, basalt grinding stones, and fragments of female clay figurines were also found. This diversity of pottery ware and other finds indicates that the site was used for domestic purposes. The existence of a fortified sector in the upper part of the settlement might be an indicator of the existence of an important area that could include public buildings.

‘ain ghazal Gary O. Rollefson, Whitman College, Zeidan Kafafi, Yarmouk University, Khaled Douglas, Hashemite University, and Ahmad Lash, Department of Antiquities of Jordan, report: In July 2011, the Ministry of Education began bulldozing operations as a preliminary stage of construction for a new school building in the center of ‘Ain Ghazal (online fig. 29). After several days of destruction, which affected more than 2 ha of the site, bulldozing was brought to a halt through the efforts of the authors, the Department of Antiquities, and the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. In late 2011 and early 2012, the authors undertook two salvage excavations at the site (fig. 8). Kafafi, Douglas, and Lash cleaned and studied several areas of the bulldozer sections in October 2011 to record the features in and stratigraphy of the destroyed areas on the

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western part of the site. Probes were subsequently excavated into the sections by a team of volunteers led by Rollefson and Kafafi during December 2011 and January 2012 to recover as much information as possible. The two field seasons recorded many important features in the damaged sectors. These included walls built of small unhewn stones, some that also employed mudbricks, and one “monumental wall” constructed of massive limestone and flint blocks arranged on end. Numerous use surfaces, some plastered (crude lime, ground chalk, and/or huwwar), were documented in the various excavated areas. In one sector, amid the collapsed rubble, large chunks of plaster were found that probably originated from a ceiling. Various installations were documented, including a plastered basin of unknown purpose, a sun-dried clay storage facility, and two small, round closed pits constructed beneath a plaster floor. The architectural contexts of the features and a discussion of the different chronological associations will be presented in the preliminary reports. The most dramatic discovery, made in sector III.1 (Middle Terrace), was a burial (young female?) in the northeast corner of a Yarmoukian structure (online fig. 30). This is the first Yarmoukian burial found at ‘Ain Ghazal and only the second one known in Jordan. The rescue excavations at the site revealed substantial new information about the Neolithic village of ‘Ain Ghazal. Architectural density for the Pre-Pottery Neolithic C (PPN-C) appears to remain very low, but the case for the Yarmoukian period contradicts our earlier surmise about the area of ‘Ain Ghazal after the Late Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (LPPN-B) megasite collapse at the beginning of the seventh millennium. Drought clearly played a part in the dramatic reduction of the PPN-C presence at the site, but some amelioration is likely to have spurred a regrowth (albeit still very nonintensive) in the latter half of the seventh millennium, during the Yarmoukian period.

quseir ‘amra Gaetano Palumbo, World Monuments Fund, and Giovanna De Palma and Carlo Birrozzi, Istituto Superiore per la Conservazione ed il Restauro, report: Two fieldwork seasons were conducted in 2011 at the World Heritage site of Quseir ‘Amra by a joint mission of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan, the Istituto Superiore per la Conservazione ed il Restauro in Rome, and the World Monuments Fund. The site, a complex dating to the Umayyad period (early eighth century C.E.), comprises a building (with a main hall, a so-called throne room, and a small bathhouse), a nearby saqiya (a well with a water-lifting device), and other structures, including the ruins of a quseir, a small mosque, another saqiya, and other unidentified structures and wall traces. The main building contains

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Fig. 8. Sketch map of the bulldozed area of a construction site for a new school building in the center of ‘Ain Ghazal, showing the areas cleaned and tested in October 2011 and December 2011–January 2012. Map indicates the locations of sectors III.1 and III.2; trenches 2, 4, and 5; and Floors 1, 2, 6, and 7.

a cycle of mural paintings; these paintings decorate every room, showing the iconographic and thematic influence of Byzantine and Sassanian art and representing the most complete evidence of the transition from a classical tradition to Islamic art. Work on the exterior of the monuments has included removing layers of cement applied to stabilize the extrados of the vault during previous interventions. The cement was replaced with lime mortar. Cement-based repointing mortars were replaced with lime-based mortars prepared according to a formula imitating the original ones. The base of the walls was particularly affected by erosion of the mortar layers, leaving unconsolidated rubble and voids that threatened the stability of the building. These were filled with mortars using minimal quantities of water to avoid the transfer of moisture to the interior of the building. New fixtures were installed, as were new glass covers over the portholes on the roof of the building. Since the sealing of all openings may cause changes in the building’s environmental conditions, a program of environmental monitoring was established to correlate these possible changes to the variations in humidity and temperature that might result from these new installations. Other diagnostic and documentation procedures included implementation of an

infrared survey of the building, preparation of threedimensional models of several rooms, high-resolution photography (including infrared and raking light), cataloguing of the many marble fragments collected from the exterior of the building, and collection of early photographic documentation from archives around the world. A procedure to remove the thick shellac layer applied to the paintings in the 1970s was developed during the spring campaign and then applied in the course of the fall campaign (fig. 9). Cleaning has exposed approximately 5 m2 of the south wall of the west aisle at present. Brilliant colors have been found under the layers of soot, grime, and products applied in previous conservation. Many new details were found on the scenes treated so far, such as a peacock-feather flabellum, the original, natural-looking form of a peacock tail, and the hands and legs of the characters located in the lunettes of the wall under conservation. Above the heads of these characters, two Greek inscriptions were found, possibly describing at least one of the characters as Jonah sleeping under a gourd tree, a scene well known in Early Christian art since the second century C.E. The project also included a training component for Department of Antiquities masons and conservators.

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Fig. 9. A section of a mural painting at Quseir ‘Amra, showing the differences before (top) and after (bottom) the current conservation and cleaning efforts.

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One of the next steps will be to develop a site-management plan to respond to the World Heritage Committee’s request to provide such a plan and defined site boundaries. Two more campaigns are programmed for 2012 with the objectives of completing the wall treated so far and consolidating the outer walls of the main building, praefurnium, and saqiya.

maitland’s mesa Yorke M. Rowan, University of Chicago, Gary O. Rollefson, Whitman College, and Morag M. Kersel, DePaul University, report: Rising up approximately 50 m above the wadi floor, Maitland’s Mesa is one of a dozen Miocene basaltcapped mesas in a string along the western edge of Wadi al-Qattafi, approximately 60 km east-southeast of Azraq (online figs. 31, 32).17 Most of these mesas have at least one large basalt tomb on top and animal corrals along the lower slopes. In addition to a large chambered tomb, however, Maitland’s Mesa has a series of more than 50 rectangular chambered cairns that form a chain along the southern edge of the plateau (online fig. 33). These cairns appear somewhat similar to a defensive structure from a distance. Both the top of the plateau and the slopes include corrals, cells (huts?), and tombs. Maitland’s Mesa is one of two areas of intensive building activity under study as part of the Eastern Badia Archaeological Project, which includes the site of the Wisad Pools. During 2010, we began initial recording of the hundreds of structures on and around Maitland’s Mesa, with the hope of understanding their chronological range. This initial investigation at Maitland’s Mesa suggests that the most intensive building activity concentrates in three areas: the summit, the southern and western slopes, and the northern slope (fig. 10). We estimate there are more than 250 structures on the summit, most either animal pens or small cells; cells are often two attached round units that may have served as temporary huts. Other, more enigmatic structures include U-shaped stone alignments—some paved— while others are probably burial cairns. Most impressive is the collapsed and looted large tower tomb at the northeastern edge of the site, from which the chain of 53 chambers emanates along the edge of the plateau. Similar so-called tailed tombs are known at Wisad Pools and farther to the south on the Arabian peninsula.18

17 It was first discovered by Maitland, who published an interpretation of the site as a “hillfort” (Maitland 1927). The site was not visited again until the 1980s, when Betts relocated the site and discovered that the “hillfort” appearance was the result of natural basalt formations (Betts 1983). The current team has renamed the site Maitland’s Mesa to remove

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The southern and western slopes are characterized by numerous stone structures as well as earlier Late Pre-Pottery Neolithic (ninth–eighth millennia B.C.E.) and Late Neolithic (seventh–sixth millennia B.C.E.) hunting and chipping stations. Some stone structures resemble nawamis, the roofed tombs with linteled entrances best known in the Sinai peninsula.19 Other larger structures are somewhat similar to the nawamis but lack roofs. Smaller burial cairns were also noted. More than 80 tombs and more than 50 cells were recorded on the northern slopes. The summit of Maitland’s Mesa is slightly concave, forming a protected area with shallow pools during the rainy season. Water is a common factor between Maitland’s Mesa and the Wisad Pools, and both were apparently central sites over a long period. Firm dating for Maitland’s Mesa has yet to be obtained. Although Middle Paleolithic use is attested, most tools recovered from the top of the mesa suggest a primarily late prehistoric use. Based on OSL dates of similar structures in the Negev,20 the tower tomb may date as early as the late sixth to early fifth millennium B.C.E. The nawamis on the southern slope probably also date to the fourth millennium B.C.E. (Late Chalcolithic–EB I), but, here again, firm dating is necessary.

wisad pools Gary O. Rollefson, Whitman College, Yorke Rowan, University of Chicago, Megan Perry, Eastern Carolina University, and Wael Abu-Azizeh, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, report: The Eastern Badia Archaeological Project resumed research at Wisad Pools (ca. 115 km east of Azraq) in 2011. The 1.5 km2 site comprises a dense distribution of tumuli, tower tombs and other ritual buildings, and pastoral structures including animal pens and dwellings that span from the Early Epipaleolithic period through the Early Bronze Age. The attraction for this concentration of cultural activity in the hyperarid environment was a series of natural depressions in the basalt bed of a short wadi that collected substantial amounts of water during years when rain fell in the area.21 One pool was calculated to hold more than 2,000 m3 of rainwater, a phenomenon we witnessed at the beginning of the 2011 season following a rainstorm that flooded the nearby plateau two weeks before we arrived.

the inaccuracy conveyed by the use of “Maitland’s Fort” or “Hillfort.” 18 Braemer et al. 2001. 19 Palmer 1872, 121; Bar-Yosef et al. 1986. 20 Rosen and Rosen 2003; Rosen et al. 2007. 21 More than nine pools have been recorded.

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Fig. 10. Aerial view of Maitland’s Mesa, showing huts, pens, and possible ritual structures on top. Note the tower tomb and chain of chambered cairns along the southern edge of the mesa. Nawamis and other structures are visible along the southern slope (D. Kennedy; © Aerial Photographic Archive for Archaeology in the Middle East).

The central core of the site was mapped using kite aerial photography.22 More than 30 ha were covered around the site, and another 3.75 ha Late Neolithic village at the far southeastern end of the wadi (near Pool 9) was also photographed. Three prominent tower tombs (two looted) are located on the west side of the wadi. The project included excavation in and around the looted tombs to recover human remains ignored by the looters. Bones were recovered from Tower Tomb W-110,23 some of which were wrapped in a relatively well-preserved woven textile. The cloth suggested an age much later than what we had estimated before, and, after closer inspection, it is now clear that all three tower tombs are Safaitic, as indicated by the concentration of inscriptions and rock art in the immediate vicinity of the towers (fig. 11). The towers had been built atop earlier (Late Neolithic–Early Bronze Age) basalt structures,

and an entrance chamber had been constructed on the eastern side of each one and sealed off with a tall basalt standing stone (weighing ca. 1 ton). Safaitic inscriptions are rare east of the wadi, and the towers in that sector probably all date to the Chalcolithic/ Early Bronze periods.24 East of the pools, we excavated what appeared to be a small looted tower tomb but instead turned out to be a collapsed Late Neolithic dwelling (Structure W-66). There were several phases of intensive occupation with intervening periods of little evident activity. The earliest phase was a low circular or subcircular oneroom construction that incorporated a gypsum plaster floor, which lay 0.35 m below the modern ground level to the west of the building. The room measured approximately 4.25 m from the western edge of the large basalt bedrock slab in the northwest part of the room to the southeast corner, although the room may

The work was conducted by Wael Abu Azizeh. The images were orthorectified and georeferenced to a 1:50,000 topographic map. 23 The tomb was looted only a week before our arrival, ac-

cording to the Badia police. 24 Similar secondary tower construction was noted on several of the basalt-capped Ghura al-Qattafi and Umm Nukhayla mesas ca. 60 km to the west of Wisad.

22

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Fig. 11. Tower Tomb W-117 at Wisad Pools, view to the north.

have been extended by almost 1 m at a later time (see below). The floor included an elliptical plaster basin near the western side of the room. The plaster of the basin was about 1 cm thick, which matched the thickness of the floor plaster preserved in several patches near the southern wall of the room. The basin was probably simply a shallow depression excavated into the level floor surface and coated with plaster when the floor was laid (online figs. 34, 35). A large basalt pillar dominated the center of the room. The western, southern, and southeastern walls show clearly that the construction here involved several straight wall segments consisting of stacked basalt slabs. Each segment was angled slightly in relation to its adjacent neighbors, so that the interior geometry (at least) was not curvilinear but polygonal. The height of the stacked slabs was approximately 0.50 m, at which point the succeeding stones above were corbeled toward the center of the room, eventually reaching the pillar that served as the central support for the last corbeling stones. The corbeling stones were huge, with estimated weights up to 200 kg each (though some were much smaller). At the “corners” of the segments of the polygonally arranged walls were occasional columns of smaller flat slabs stacked ostensibly to increase the stability of the corbeling. The upshot of this design is that the inhabitants virtually would have had to crawl

about in the room, since the roof measured only 1 m high at its maximum and reduced to only half that dimension near the walls. Several other structures were probed, including one of the 44 small rectangular chambers that formed a “tail” leading in a westerly direction from the towerplatform complex (Structure W-13). The chamber was empty and reinforced the earlier idea that these constructions functioned more as scheduled symbolic gestures, perhaps as kinds of cenotaphs. Similar empty chambers have been noted elsewhere at Wisad Pools and among the 53 chambers trailing from the tower tomb atop Maitland’s Mesa in the Ghura al-Qattafi chain.

tall al-‘umayri Douglas R. Clark and Kent V. Bramlett, La Sierra University, report: The 2010 excavations spanned four fields on the site (fig. 12): field A on the central-western escarpment (transitional Late Bronze/Early Iron I), field H on the southwestern corner of the tall (Early Iron I and Late Iron II), field L along the southern edge (Late Iron II and Hellenistic periods), and field M in the central-western part of the site (Late Iron II). The 2011 excavations spanned only two fields on the site—field H and field L. The field H operation was

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Fig. 12. Aerial photograph of the western part of Tall al-‘Umayri.

the major reason for this expedition, given evidence from the previous season of an emerging domestic structure. Field L saw only the removal of Hellenistic walls, which were cleared for the purpose of exposing earlier Iron Age architectural features. In field A, a fourth building along the western perimeter wall of the tall from the Early Iron I period was exposed. The buildings are attached to one another with common walls (online fig. 36). Evidence of a massive destruction continues to emerge, as do remarkably well-preserved remains that are mostly domestic in nature. Field H is poised to add to this picture, likely from a little later in the Early Iron I period, with a new possible four-room structure supplemented with additional rooms to the north and west (online fig. 37). Field L has exposed a Late Iron II olive oil pressing space that is partially preserved. In the western part of field L, architecture is beginning to appear. Field M has produced several phases of a large cobble-paved area sealing several rooms or buildings (online fig. 38). Objects and artifacts consisted mostly of domestic ceramic and stone wares but also included several seals and seal impressions, some of exquisite quality. The excavation goals in field H in 2011 included investigation along the length of the southern face of east–west Wall 4 to understand more fully the earliest phases associated with the wall; excavation also cov-

ered the phases of the wall itself, including its foundation. This investigation also prepared for the eventual removal of the wall, as it is one of the last substantial architectural features remaining in field H of the Late Iron I/Early Iron II open-air courtyard sanctuary (online fig. 39) excavated several seasons prior. Investigation of the extramural space south of the courtyard sanctuary indicates that activity continued to extend there. The outer face of the southern wall was used to form rooms. Previous excavations in this area had identified occupational phases dating to the Persian, Late Iron II/Persian, and Late Iron II periods. The 2011 goal in field L was the removal of the walls of the Hellenistic agricultural complex. Previous seasons clarified the internal structure of the Hellenistic building, and the remains of Iron II and even Iron I strata had already begun to emerge throughout the field. The removal of the Hellenistic remains would open a window into the Early Iron I presence. A careful study of the walls used in the Hellenistic buildings confirmed earlier observations made in the hinterland excavations. The Hellenistic builders preferentially chose previously founded sites and reused the earlier constructions (e.g., Rujm Miriam, excavated by the Tall al-‘Umayri team in 1987). They also constructed thinner walls atop the older ones and used smaller wall stones.

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tall al-kafrayn Thanasis J. Papadopoulos and Litsa Kontorli-Papadopoulos, University of Ioannina, report: Tall al-Kafrayn is located just north of the Dead Sea, a few kilometers south-southwest of the al-Kafrayn Dam and in a prominent position overlooking the central Jordan Valley. The Hellenic Archaeological Expedition has been conducting excavations at the site since 2002. Within the context of the archaeological sites surrounding it, this tall represents an important site in terms of size and complexity, and it provides interesting insights into the lifeways and subsistence patterns of ancient communities in the area. Selected Phase III Results The goals of phase III are to continue exploring and documenting the earlier occupation levels on the tall to enhance our knowledge and understanding of the site’s history. The following presents some of the highlights from the 2010 and 2011 seasons. Work continued on the top and the slopes of the tall in 2010 (online fig. 40). A trench in the northeast area of the summit revealed a northern extension of the eastern defensive wall. The wall is about 1.5 m wide and preserved to a height of about 1 m, and it was founded directly on the bedrock. The northernmost part of the wall is lost because of erosion, but it seems almost certain that it once formed a right angle at this point, turning to the west. Another trench opened on the north slope revealed the easternmost part of the north defensive wall—which appears to be the continuation beyond the posited right angle mentioned above. The northern wall has the same dimensions, but its full preserved height is unknown since its base remains covered by deposits of fallen mudbrick, stones, and earth. On the external side of the easternmost exposed area of the northern wall, a partially preserved tannur or tabun was found with fragments of a cooking pot in direct association. This oven is similar to those found in other trenches on both the south slope and the top of the tall.25 Also recovered were a fragmentary bronze pin, flint blades, fragments of carbonized wood, and cereal seeds. The most significant find was an ivory Egyptian scarab (online fig. 41) dated to the earlier part of the Ramesside period. In 2008–2009, an exploratory trench opened on the northern side of the tall had revealed parts of the defensive wall described above, a possible retaining wall, and a massive house wall. In 2010, new walls and

25 Papadopoulos and Kontorli-Papadopoulos 2010, 298, fig. 37. 26 Glueck (1935) gives the site name as “Khirbet ‘Ayûn Mûs6” and notes (Glueck 1935, 110, n. 313) that it is to be

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house floors from two main levels were uncovered. In the upper level, two walls of a possible room corner and three successive beaten-earth floors were found; remains of several cereals were collected from this space. In the lower level, no architectural features were revealed, but a nearly intact alabaster vase was recovered (online fig. 42). Exploration of the west slope of the tall began in 2010 when the excavators opened a trench to test the stratigraphic sequence. At a depth of 6.5 m, four successive beaten-earth floors, part of a well-built stone wall, and a fifth, lower, beaten-earth floor were found. Another oven suggests the presence of a house kitchen. The finds from this trench included Iron Age pottery, animal bones, flint blades, a loomweight, a whetstone, basalt grinders and pounders, and a fragmentary, small Late Greek skyphos (fourth century B.C.E.) found in a stratum beneath the oven. During the 2011 season, excavation work continued in the northern and western exploratory trenches, revealing additional architectural remains, Iron Age I–II pottery, loomweights, and stone artifacts. However, much of this season’s work was devoted to aerial photography of the tall from 250–300 m using a balloon with a telecontrolled camera. Various samples have also been analyzed at the University of Ioannina Archaeometry Center. The dating of the sherds and samples used the Riso TL/OSL DA-15C/D system; the sherds yielded a range from 1400 ± 800 B.C.E. to 2700 ± 1700 B.C.E., and the sediments provided a range from 720 ± 630 B.C.E. to 1100 ± 200 B.C.E. It is hoped that additional research employing other techniques such as radioisotope-induced energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (EDXRF) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) will clarify the observed variations in the dates obtained.

tell al-mashhad Francesco M. Benedettucci, Associazione OLIM, Rome, reports: The site of Tell al-Mashhad, located near the ‘Ain Musa spring at the foot of Mount Nebo, was visited for the first time by Glueck in 1932.26 He described the archaeological features of the old settlement, collected numerous sherds and a small clay figurine,27 and created the first rough map of the site, the main human occupation of which should be dated to the Iron Age. In 2010, we discovered that a 6 m deep robber’s trench had been recently cut in the middle of Build-

identified with “el-Meshhed.” 27 In the 1950s, Henke (1959) collected another clay figurine.

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ing A (online fig. 43). As a consequence, we decided to concentrate our efforts on the enclosure walls. The lengths of the north and west walls were completely excavated, as were two trenches along the east wall, starting from each corner. All the walls had been erected directly on bedrock. The archaeological activities of the 2011 season were mainly concentrated in Area A, which is inside Building A, near the northwest corner (online figs. 44, 45). An alignment of several dressed stones was visible at the surface in this area and shown to be part of a north–south wall (Wall W1), set directly on bedrock, that divides Area A from the upper terrace of the building. Wall W1 also appeared to be supported by three smaller east–west walls built using a combination of medium- and large-sized stones. The most important of these (Wall W1A) was probably employed as a step to the upper terrace. Excavations conducted in the northern sector of Building A exposed the remains of Wall N1, which was also built directly on the bedrock. The presence of Iron Age IIC sherds demonstrates that it was built at the same time as Building A. Most of the excavated ceramic material is datable to the latest phase of Iron Age II (eighth–sixth centuries B.C.E.). The most frequent ceramic types are ridged-necked jars and kraters with large mouths. Other recovered objects include a small number of spindlewhorls, a small fragment of a glazed object (possibly from an Egyptian or Egyptianizing amulet), and a fragment of a small clay horse head with an inner channel, perhaps from a cultic vessel. Stone objects (mostly limestone or basalt) recovered as surface finds and in the excavations make up at least four groups: upper grinding stones, lower grinding stones, pestles, and mortars. Another interesting object recovered is the Veneridae shell (probably from the Mediterranean Sea) used as a pendant.

qasr mushash Karin Bartl, Orient Department, German Archaeological Institute, and Ghazi Bisheh, Department of Antiquities of Jordan, report: Qasr Mushash is one of so-called desert castles in northeastern Jordan that form a distinct group of buildings of the Early Islamic period. After several visits to the site by various scholars including A. Musil and A. Stein in the early 20th century, it was only in 1980–1981 that King gave a more detailed description of Qasr Mushash and the surrounding area.28 Within the framework of that project, numerous hydraulic constructions were documented in the greater sur-

28

King 1982, 85–8.

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roundings of Qasr Mushash. In 1982–1983, G. Bisheh investigated Qasr Mushash and the most important structures in the vicinity. He pointed out that the site was of particular interest for its elaborate water supply system, which might indicate a special function of the place—for example, as a halting place for official caravans on the route to the Hijaz via Wadi Sirhan. Aspects of water supply are generally of special interest for the interpretation of the character of Early Islamic desert castles (e.g., temporary vs. permanent use), and only a few of the other contemporary sites show as comparably broad a variety of water installations as Qasr Mushash. The site and its surroundings offer great potential for more detailed study of all questions concerning water collection and distribution. Therefore, a resumption of investigations was initiated in 2011. The program included documentation of the water system in general and, specifically, contextual association with contemporary neighboring water supply systems and reexamination of the structures at the site itself. As a first step, systematic surface investigations at the site of Qasr Mushash and its vicinity (10 km in diameter around the site) were carried out to register all archaeological remains in the area and to update documentation of the hydraulic structures and their state of preservation. The first season of work focused mainly on the region north of Wadi Mushash, and 80 findspots were documented, most of them located on the banks of the wadis. The finds represent two periods of use: the prehistoric periods between the Lower Paleolithic and the Neolithic, and the late historical periods between Roman and Early Islamic times. Very few finds provide evidence for the time span between the sixth and the first millennia B.C.E. Architectural remains or surface finds from the historical periods were documented at 34 findspots, including the remains of 13 water installations—that is, birkeh, reservoirs, dams, and wells—all of them probably of Early Islamic date (online fig. 46). Prehistoric surface finds were recorded at 48 findspots and comprise either flint scatters or agglomerations of lithic tools and flakes. No real site could be defined. The Lower and Middle Paleolithic were represented at numerous findspots, and comparable data are known from adjacent Qasr al-Kharana.

tall hisban Bethany J. Walker, Missouri State University, and Øystein S. LaBianca, Andrews University, report: The Tall Hisban Project returned to the field for a brief excavation and study season in 2010, which

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concluded the phase II operations that began in 1996 and largely focused on the summit of the tall. Eleven squares in four fields were opened on the summit (field Q), in two cave systems (fields G and M), and at an off-site location in the modern village (the socalled Nabulsi quseir). Fieldwork was complemented by a preliminary paleoenvironmental study, the first step in postseason materials analysis for final publication of the phase II excavations. Three small squares were opened on the summit at the top of the staircase by which one enters the medieval citadel today. This allowed the project team to document how and when the summit was militarized and transformed from sacred and domestic space and to date with more confidence the bathhouse in the citadel, a structure that is a bit of an anomaly for Mamluk-era castles in this region. Square Q.5, located between the top of the extant citadel staircase and the south end of the bathhouse, revealed a room fronted by what appeared to be an animal pen and an exterior beaten-earth courtyard (online fig. 47). Tentatively dated to the Late Mamluk or Early Ottoman period, this room would have blocked the staircase and obviated the use of the inner southwest tower as a defensive structure. As for the bathhouse, a stratigraphic connection was finally established between the bathhouse and the citadel storeroom that will facilitate dating the original construction of the hammam. A preliminary assessment suggests that the bathhouse and east end of the storeroom complex were built at the same time and that the area of the bathhouse was spatially defined in the Early Islamic period. Fieldwork in field M, in the vicinity of the northeast corner tower of the citadel, sought to date and describe the function of the industrial installations on the north slope and to map and investigate the use of the extensive system of tunnels under the northeast corner tower. A complex history of construction was documented in square 4 on the northern slope, where a Mamluk-era house reused remnants of an Early Byzantine house, the latter built over a series of Romanera water channels. The area appears to have been used as a quarry previous to Roman activity. Excavations were renewed in the largest of the cave systems at Tall Hisban. The aim of fieldwork in field G, south of the tall, was to better understand the cultural and natural processes that transformed these natural caves into massive water systems and subterranean dwellings over the course of millennia. Additionally, a previously unexplored cave system was mapped in field M, under the northeast corner tower of the citadel, and sherds were collected from the cave surface. Together, the two caves provided evidence for extensive Byzantine modification of the natural caves for use as

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cisterns, their subsequent domestic occupation in the Early Islamic era, and their use as village middens in the Middle Islamic/Mamluk period. The Nabulsi quseir—a fortified farmhouse located to the southeast outside the archaeological site—may have been built in its original form in the mid 19th century. In preparation for the restoration of the stable of this complex as the new visitors’ center, the project team explored the structure in an attempt to elucidate its history. It appears to have been built on and incorporated parts of a much earlier building. Although the date of the earlier structure was not determined, the combination of the underlying cobblestone pavement, roughly laid walls, huwwar surfaces made from a mixture of chalk and clay, and cistern suggest previous use of the space as an outdoor animal pen and shared courtyard. The date of the ancient walls with arches that form the inside wall of the stable, though they are stylistically suggestive of troughs of the Late Byzantine or Early Islamic period, was not determined stratigraphically this season. Soil sampling for preliminary phytolith and soil genesis analyses was conducted at the conclusion of this field season so the project team could begin addressing an array of questions related to the development of cropping practices at the site, the human factor in environmental and landscape change, and the processes of site formation. Living surfaces, storage facilities, middens, and cisterns were sampled for this purpose. The excellent preservation of phytoliths in the samples was quite promising for the study of changes in diet and cropping practices from Medieval to modern times. Likewise, the geomorphological study suggested that more water flowed through the subterranean water systems than previously believed, causing substantial erosion and significantly transforming the landscape in the process.

wadi zarqa ma‘in James Pokines, Boston University School of Medicine, reports: Additional test excavations were conducted in 2011 at the site of Wadi Zarqa Ma‘in 1 (site WZM-1), located 10 km south-southwest of Madaba and less than 20 km east of the Dead Sea. The site is located less than 0.5 km from the wadi and at 730 masl. This open limestone sinkhole is a natural faunal trap, measuring more than 30 m in maximum depth and diameter; the sinkhole base can be accessed safely only with climbing gear (fig. 13). The site contains at least 11 m of talus slope deposits with an unknown depth beneath them. The bedrock is Cretaceous-era banded limestone/chert, and the irregular surface provides many natural roosting areas for raptorial birds and other species. The

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Fig. 13. Wadi Zarqa Ma‘in, site WZM-1 entry point, facing east. The site can be accessed only with climbing gear.

formation of the site is likely from dissolution, and travertine deposits are present at the upper margin. The age of the sinkhole feature itself is currently unknown. This site was first located in 2005 by M. Bisson, C. Cordova, and A. Nowell, as part of a survey of the Madaba/Wadi Zarqa Ma‘in area for Middle Paleolithic sites. The site surface remains were mapped and some limited test pits excavated in 2008. During the 2011 season, an area near the west sinkhole wall, test pit 1, was dug to 3.1 m below the surface; additional probing extended to 3.6 m. A minimum of 15 discrete layers was detected. All deposits were finescreened with 2 mm mesh, yielding a large sample of vertebrate microfauna (mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians), carbonized plant remains, and mollusks for paleoecological analysis. This area was chosen because of its location beneath multiple recent raptor roosts of species including kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) and barn owl (Tyto alba). Lesser numbers of large mammals, primarily sheep/goats (Ovis aries/Capra hircus), domestic dogs (Canis familiaris), cattle (Bos taurus), striped hyenas (Hyaena hyaena), and a large felid, were also obtained. A variety of soil samples were also collected for analyses. Since most accumulation in the sinkhole resulted from natural forces, very few

artifacts were recovered from test pit 1. The artifacts included, in addition to recent trash, a small number of ceramic sherds, one Middle Paleolithic stone tool, and one shaped, circular basalt cobble. To date, more than 30 vertebrate taxa have been identified from site WZM-1, including some no longer present in the area. Multiple vectors of species accumulation have been determined, including accidental falling, deliberate disposal of livestock by the local herders, remnant raptor meals, raptor pellets, and natural mortality of sinkhole inhabitants. This site is potentially a rich new resource for paleoecological data in the region, with deposits that may span the entire history of domestication in the Near East and extend well into the Pleistocene. The particular questions to be examined by this research program include the following: How did the faunal community change in this region, and what do these changes indicate about natural fluctuations in the paleoenvironment? What anthropogenic changes can be identified, including deforestation, desertification, urbanization, faunal extinctions, and the introduction of domesticated herds and plants into this area? What is the full spectrum of taphonomic processes that introduced osseous remains into site WZM-1, and how did these processes

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affect the zooarchaeological data used to answer the above questions?

khirbat ‘ataruz Chang-Ho Ji, La Sierra University, reports: Khirbat ‘Ataruz rests on a knoll in the Jabal Hamidah municipality in central Jordan. Five excavation seasons since 2000 have revealed an ancient city with an Iron Age temple located in the acropolis area (fields A and E). The ‘Ataruz temple certainly had the character of a national or at least regional center of religious activities between the tenth and eighth centuries B.C.E. Its location was central to the region proper: a relatively high elevation in the middle of Jabal Hamidah, commanding a view of the entire ‘Ataruz-Qariyat-Machaerus area and the northern end of the Dhiban Plateau to the south. The temple was of modest size during the transition of the tenth–ninth centuries B.C.E. (temple phase I). It was expanded to a large religious compound in the ninth–eighth centuries B.C.E. (temple phases II–III), extending over most of the upper mound. The 2010– 2011 fieldwork presented here focuses on new findings related to the Iron Age temple. A dozen 6 x 6 m probes were made in the western (field A) and southern (fields A and C) parts of the temple compound. The fieldwork determined that the temple had a high place in its western courtyard. This Western High Place (a towerlike structure) is reminiscent of the Eastern High Place found in 2008 at the eastern skirt of the temple compound. The Western High Place was likely accessed from the western courtyard through an entrance flanked by two rectangular rooms. The walkway from these entrance rooms to the sanctuary rooms via the Western High Place was partially paved with stone blocks. At the eastern end of the pavement were two benches associated with the main sanctuary rooms. The pavement, which did not extend under the benches, covered an area of about 1 x 2 m. In the middle of the western courtyard were found a standing stone in situ and a cistern that collected rainwater. The Western High Place was in use during both phase I and phase II (the early–mid ninth century B.C.E.), while the other structures and installations in the nearby courtyard seem to have been built during the expansion of the temple. In the southern area of the temple compound, the fieldwork identified a phase II rectangular cultic building that contained numerous religious objects, including a terracotta bull statue, a jug with four reliefs (depicting females) on the handles, and a ceramic lioness statue, among many others. A couple of wall lines were uncovered to the west and south of this building, but an elucidation of their date and relationship to the building awaits future excavation.

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Excavations to the southeast of this building unearthed a rectangular structure standing on a beatenearth floor. Three additional beaten-earth floors were found beneath this surface; these are parallel to the phase I–II floors in the central courtyard outside the main sanctuary and are attributable to the early ninth century B.C.E. These findings suggest that the rectangular structure was built sometime in the phase II era. The team was unable to recover sufficient information to determine an original use of this structure because of additional modifications made in the late ninth to the eighth centuries B.C.E. (phase III), when an altar was built over the structure. During the phase II era, the rectangular structure and its northern courtyard, the Inscription Column Courtyard (see below), were entered on the south from the central courtyard through a narrow entrance at the corner of two courtyard walls. This courtyard was about 0.6 m lower in elevation than the central courtyard. A three-step staircase found between fields A and E had been built on the south side of the entrance to facilitate access between the two courtyards. In temple phase III (late ninth century B.C.E.), the altar was approached using a single step built against its northern face. Two stone columns flanked this step, one of which was found in situ and complete. A side of this column was incised with inscriptions dated to the late ninth century B.C.E. The presence of the second column was confirmed by the recovery of a boxlike container from the top part of the column, perhaps used to burn incense or hold fire. Roughly 5 m north of the altar, three flat stones were lying on the phase III floor of the Inscription Column Courtyard. Aligned in a row, these probably functioned as offering tables related to the altar. In phase III, the entrance that connected the central courtyard and the Inscription Column Courtyard during phase II was blocked so a square fireplace or furnace could be put in the corner. Concurrently, the staircase south of the phase II entrance was covered with soil and incorporated into the beaten-earth courtyard floor. These modifications indicate that the area was transformed in the late ninth century B.C.E. into an enclosed courtyard surrounded on three sides by the altar and two walls and was entered only from the east.

wadi ath-thamad project Jonathan Ferguson and Christopher J. Gohm, University of Toronto, report: Regional Survey The regional survey of the Wadi ath-Thamad Project concentrated on the northwestern portion of its research territory in 2010; work centered on the Iron Age fortress of Khirbat al-Hiri, between Umm al-Walid and

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az-Za‘faran. The fortress occupies a high hilltop with a commanding view over the region, and its defensive walls still stand more than 2 m high in places. Although the site has been known to the scholarly community for more than a century, it has never been studied or mapped in any detail. The site was documented and surveyed to produce a detailed plan of the fortress with its internal and external features. Spreading out from Khirbat al-Hiri, topographic surveying was conducted to produce an accurate map of the surrounding landscape. Fifteen new archaeological sites were also documented and mapped in this area, including cemeteries, dams, a megalithic circle with two standing stones, and a Byzantine–Early Islamic settlement with four buildings (online fig. 48). The early 20th-century village of Umm Rus:m was relocated, filling a gap in the archaeological knowledge of this region’s more recent past. The survey visited and documented 21 sites. Looting and vandalism continue to be serious threats: eight previously unknown cemeteries were found to have been systematically looted, and the Roman fort of Khirbat az-Zuna suffers from ongoing damage. Khirbat al-Mudayna The 2010 and 2011 seasons of excavation at Khirbat al-Mudayna focused on eight distinct areas, including fields A, B, D, E, and G on the summit (Iron Age II) and fields K, L, and N at the northern foot of the mound (Nabataean/Early Roman). The 2010 season almost completely revealed the extent of the Nabataean complex comprising two buildings: B800 and B802. Building 800 includes a stairway to an unpreserved upper story. The adjacent unit, Building 802, includes rooms ranged along three of its sides. Both structures were built of boulder-andchink masonry with arches that formerly supported ceilings. West of Building 802 was found a heavily plastered feature that may have been related to water storage, although its exact function remains unclear. Finds from this domestic complex include painted Nabataean fine ware and unpainted wares, as well as imported pottery such as terra sigillata. Southeast of this residential complex, excavations in fields K and L exposed a room connected to the western side of a previously excavated Nabataean reservoir. This room appears to date to a secondary phase of the reservoir, when it was covered with an arched roof and reused as a residential space. In field A, small-scale excavations were conducted within Gate 100 to clarify problems with the architectural sequence. This work, involving the removal of a bench, resulted in the identification of the construction surface on which the central-eastern pier, the southeastern pier, and the associated doorway

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threshold were footed, demonstrating that the original design of the gate was that of a six-chambered type. New units were opened beyond the outer casemate wall in the eastern part of field B to document the external defensive features of the site. From west to east, this work resulted in the identification of the outer face of the casemate wall, packed soil layers adjacent to the wall covered with decayed wall plaster, a sloping glacis of earth mixed with pebbles and cobbles, a subterranean retaining wall, and a stone-reinforcement and soil-stabilization installation. The construction and depositional sequences of industrial Buildings 205 and 210 were fully documented. In Building 205, major walls were found to be footed either on bedrock or on very large foundation boulders, and the first-use surfaces were typically supported by a layer of cobbles and small boulders to even out the fissured bedrock. In Building 210, excavations in the east identified further evidence of textile production, several large textile fragments, and a destruction layer. In the central and western parts of Building 210, excavations beneath floor level demonstrated that significant work also went into the preparation of this area for construction. Excavations in field D to the west examined the eastern street system and further documented the layout and phasing of several previously identified residential structures. Work in Street 220 clarified the construction sequence of the ramps into Buildings 205 and 210, identified another potential ramp leading into Building 306 to the west, and revealed a series of walls blocking a secondary entrance into Building 306. Excavations in Building 306 resulted in the near-complete documentation of the structure, and the layout was found to comprise 11 rooms around a central rectilinear hall with a staircase (online fig. 49). Excavations near the western fortification system contributed greatly to the elucidation of the settlement plan. In the southern building (Building 309), several upper-story features were fully preserved, including two semicircular bins and numerous walls. Following their documentation and removal, the lower story was investigated, revealing additional walls and great quantities of smashed ceramic vessels. Small-scale excavations in Building 315 to the north identified several use phases beneath an upper-story collapse similarly rich in fragmentary ceramics. Two casemate rooms were also examined, one of which contained several well-preserved ground-stone tools. Interestingly, the floor level in this casemate room was more than 1 m below the doorway through the inner casemate. At the southern end of the site, previous excavations in fields E and G had revealed a casemate fortification system and part of a domestic area (Complex 400).

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While the south edge of this complex is delimited by the inner casemate wall, further excavation has shown that Complex 400 extends eastward, and it appears to abut the inner casemate wall as it turns northward along the east side of the site. In addition to regular domestic items, finds include some unique items, such as a painted male statue, several limestone altars, a steatite cosmetic mortar, and vessels of faience, calcite, alabaster, and fine-grained basalt. Such finds have no parallels in Jordan, and the dynamics of trade and exchange whereby these objects arrived at the site are a mystery.

khirbat iskandar Suzanne Richard, Gannon University, Jesse C. Long, Jr., Lubbock Christian University, Rikke Wulff Krabbenhøft, Uppsala University, and Shelby Dyann Webb, Abilene Christian University, report: Phase C Settlement Evidence in Area B The previously exposed phase C settlement at Khirbat Iskandar included structures built against the fortifications and extending southward, comprising a central room (in squares B1 and B7) with a contiguous courtyard and a work area. In 2010, we exposed more of a courtyard west and south of the central room. To the west, excavation (in square B1) brought to light a hearth with two use phases, the uppermost of which connected with the courtyard area to the south (in square B6). The hearth was probably part of a larger outdoor activity area extending southward. In square B6, earlier excavation uncovered a courtyard below a significant amount of collapsed mudbrick and ash, along with a stone-lined bin or pillar base associated with a pavement and plaster surface. The team discovered contiguous features on the same surface, including a mortar surrounded by small stones and two postholes (online fig. 50). Two midden strata found in the southeast quadrant contained an abundance of bone fragments, pottery sherds, and seeds found together with grinding-stone fragments, hammer stones, and a few lithics. While the earlier midden appeared to be contemporary with the plaster surface of the phase C courtyard, the upper midden postdated that phase. Along the southern balk at the southeast corner, a stone wall was found in a postdestruction phase that included EB III and EB IV pottery, which may correspond with the transitional EB III/IV phase discovered in Area C. Phase A/B Settlement in Area B The phase A architectural plan covers the entire field, probably representing the largest exposure of an EB IV permanent agricultural settlement in the south-

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ern Levant. Excavations exposed more of the long (13 m), multiroomed phase A building in the southwest corner of Area B. The southern wall of the B19/ B20 structure was exposed, south of which extended a courtyard. As elsewhere in phase A, the surface was composed of leveled mudbrick debris (the top of the destruction debris from phase B), and the B19 phase A walls proved to be built over phase B walls. In square B21, a phase A bin was found dug into the phase B destruction matrix. The phase B level included a narrow room with what appeared to be benches along the walls (online fig. 51). A whole teapot was found in this level. Similar whole and restorable vessels have been found in phase B throughout field B. To the north and east lies what we have dubbed the EB IV phase B “storeroom,” a complex comprising a tripartite building with a bench room and a pillared central room. Both of the rooms contained quantities of whole and restorable pottery. Abutting the southern wall was an extremely narrow “corridor room,” the southern extent of which was not known. To locate this wall, the team excavated below phase A layers and discovered that the corridor room extended farther south than projected. Moreover, excavation revealed an additional wall running east along the north balk, where it proved to join a north–south wall newly discovered to the north. These discoveries indicate that the southern section of the storeroom building displays a tripartite arrangement of rooms already seen in the northern section of the building. Fortifications Evidence came to light at the western perimeter that confirmed our view that the line of outer fortifications was erected in phase C but reused and partially rebuilt in phase B, with some kind of reuse in phase A. This means that Khirbat Iskandar is the only excavated site thus far known to have been fortified in EB IV. The fortifications consisted of outer and inner parallel walls intersected at intervals by transverse walls. The area between the walls contained rubble fill. This rubblefilled wall joined the tower at the northwest corner. Furthermore, evidence for an earlier (phase D) wall of mudbrick and stone has come to light and appears to match the mudbrick and stone wall found along the northern perimeter. A new discovery this season concerned the relationship between the tower (phase C) at the northwest corner and the two previously uncovered curvilinear walls. Excavation demonstrated that the curvilinear structures were probably remnants of juxtaposed, earlier phase D towers on either side of a stone threshold. Additional evidence for the relationship between these two defense systems appeared in the form of founding stones for the northern curvi-

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linear wall discovered to run under the phase C tower (online fig. 52). Further reconfirmation of the fortification construction history came to light south of the tower in a string of squares on the perimeter. It is impossible to adequately describe here the maze of walls uncovered in this area. However, in a 4 m long east–west probe, two stone walls were articulated; in between them was another massive rubble wall. These walls parallel the defenses on the northern perimeter. The phase C fortifications appear to have been built on top of an earlier (phase D) mudbrick wall. Excavation reached the stone foundation of that wall—the lowest point reached on the mound so far. Additionally, at different points along the perimeter, there were indications for use of the fortifications in Phase B and possibly in Phase A. South of the tower, it was confirmed that two Phase A walls extended up to the exposed line of the inner fortification, which suggests a reuse of the fortifications in this final phase.

al-khayran Matthew V. Kroot, University of Michigan, reports: The Assal-Dhra Archaeological Project was initiated in 2007 to study changing economic practices and relations during the development of village-based communities of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic in west-central Jordan. The primary focus of the 2010 season was the PPN-B field house site of al-Khayran on the southern ridge of Wadi ‘Assal. Excavations uncovered a single structure (Structure 001) (online fig. 53) and the material remains of associated activities. Other work included the creation of a detailed topographic map of the site, identification and recording of nearby natural resources, and test excavations of a large Chalcolithic/ Bronze Age structure adjacent to the Neolithic component of the site. The excavation results from Neolithic al-Khayran are described below. Stratigraphy Four stratigraphic patterns of deposition have been identified for the site of al-Khayran. First, north of Structure 001 (downhill from the entrance to the structure), a midden layer (locus 002) was excavated that contained knapped-stone debitage, spent and broken formal knapped- and ground-stone tools, expedient knapped-stone tools, faunal remains, carbonized plant materials, ash, bituminous waste, plaster fragments, fire-cracked rock, and other broken and fragmentary small finds. Second, the interior of Structure 001 contained three separate depositional layers: (1) an earlier phase of the structure (locus 001/phase 001)

29

Quintero and Wilke 1995.

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with a sizeable in situ artifact assemblage overlying a mud-plaster floor, (2) a water-washed layer of sediment devoid of artifacts (locus 003), and (3) a later phase of the structure (locus 004/phase 002) containing several in situ ground-stone artifacts overlying a heavily degraded plaster floor. Third, a slab-constructed patio and entrance to phase 002 of Structure 001 were found largely devoid of artifacts (locus 005). Fourth, a cobblestone surface found to the east and west of the patio of phase 002 contained significant quantities of ash, faunal remains, fragmentary carbonized materials, fire-cracked rock, and knapped-stone debitage (locus 006). Architecture Structure 001 is square (5 x 5 m) and constructed of local sandstone blocks. Phase 001 of the structure includes a quern and flat cutting stone set into the floor. At the end of this phase, the structure collapsed while the site was uninhabited. After a period of disuse, attested by the water-washed layers of locus 003, the structure was rebuilt. The builders used and reinforced portions of the walls that were still standing and constructed new walls and a new north-facing entrance. The above-mentioned slab-built patio and entranceway and the cobblestone surface were added at this time as well. Subsequently, this later habitation phase was also abandoned and collapsed. Knapped Stone The 7,827 knapped-stone artifacts recovered during excavation include single and multiple platform cores as well as one unused and two exhausted bidirectional naviform cores.29 Flakes predominate over blades. However, blade blanks are more frequent than flakes as both formal and informal tools. Blades are primarily bidirectional. Preliminary examination has identified 29 blades with sickle sheen. Formal tool types include significant quantities of drills, borers, awls, burins, and projectile points. Eighteen identifiable projectile points were excavated, including four different point types: el-Khiam points, typical of the PPN-A (n=2), and Helwan (n=6), A45 (n=9), and Byblos points (n=1), all typical of the PPN-B (online fig. 54). Fauna The faunal sample comprises 77 identified specimens. Preservation is poor, and many of the bones are fragmentary, discolored, and calcified. Several trends can be seen. All specimens are from medium-sized mammals, and meat-bearing long bones predominate. Four specimens have been identified as sheep or goats,

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and two of these are first phalanges with fully fused epiphyses. No other elements have yet been identified to the subfamily, genus, or species level. Ground Stone Most ground-stone objects are made of local sandstone. These include the in-floor quern and cutting stone noted above, an incised “pillow-shaped piece,”30 a sandstone object ground flat and chipped into a discoidal shape,31 a single handstone, and a double handstone. In addition to these objects, three basalt ground-stone artifacts were excavated in the midden deposits of locus 002: two broken pestles and one broken shaft straightener. Basalt is not locally available; the closest surface source is more than 21 km east-northeast of al-Khayran. All three basalt objects are small and easily portable.

karak resources project Gerald L. Mattingly, Johnson University, reports: The main purpose of the Karak Resources Project (KRP) is to investigate and document continuity and change in the use of the Karak Plateau region’s natural resources at the excavation site of the Late Iron Age II fortified settlement of Khirbat al-Mudaybi‘ and in its environs. Khirbat al-Mudaybi‘ sits on the western scarp of Fajj al-‘Usaykir, a natural corridor between the Desert Highway and settlements in the interior of the Karak Plateau and points beyond. The KRP has excavated 27 squares to bedrock at Khirbat al-Mudaybi‘; these represent five excavation fields (A–E), all strategically placed to sample different sections of the site’s grid. In the 2011 season, team members excavated in fields B, D, and E. Most of the recovered pottery dates to Iron Age II and the Late Byzantine/Early Islamic period. Nine squares were worked in field D, in the northwestern quadrant of the fort (online fig. 55). The area contains a complex of interconnected buildings with some open spaces—mostly small rooms with evidence for daily activities, as most objects recovered reflect food production and building construction. Next to a major deposit of animal bones was found an iron knife, including pins that held the partially preserved handle in place. One square contained a small tabun and a large tannur (online fig. 56), along with considerable ash deposits. From the packed surfaces in another square, the team recovered numerous sherds (including painted and burnished pieces), along with ground-stone tools and an almost complete Iron II oil lamp.

30 31

Hermansen and Gebel 1996. Gebel et al. 1997, 252–57.

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The substantial fort defenses include a casemate wall system revealed in field D, which contains a wellpreserved room (online fig. 57). The doorway of the room is located in the inner casemate wall and is well constructed with header and stretcher blocks. Entering this room requires ascending three steps to the door’s threshold and then descending three steps to the room’s floor. The room contains two features of special interest—a small tabun and a raised platform. Work was conducted around the four-chambered gate in field B to try to explain an unusual asymmetry in its construction noted in the 2010 season (fig. 14). In field E, the team opened a major probe that fell inside the courtyard of the Byzantine/Islamic khan/ caravanserai complex of vaulted buildings. The probe sought to identify the extent of Iron Age construction in the center of the site. Excavation exposed a substantial section of the khan’s interior/courtyard wall and raised questions about its relation to structures in the center of the original Iron Age fort. The regional survey focused on the Karak Plateau’s southeastern corner and added another 19 sites to the Middle Eastern Geodatabase for Antiquities (MEGA)– Jordan. Team members also revisited 27 sites documented by the Miller-Pinkerton survey32 in order to assess their condition and collect additional information. The KRP regional studies team also conducted further research on the region’s water resources and its evidence for agriculture and irrigation, roads, and ancient quarries.

wadi hamarash (neolithic sites) Adamantios Sampson, University of the Aegean, Greece, reports: Wadi Hamarash 1 During the greater survey of the Ghor es-Safi Project in 2006–2007, three Pre-Pottery Neolithic sites were discovered and recorded. Wadi Hamarash 1, the most significant, is located on a plateau at the intersection of the Wadis al-Hasa and Hamarash-Suweif. It is isolated and not readily accessible. The ancient occupation seems to cover only 0.5 ha of the plateau. The systematic excavation of the site by the University of the Aegean started in 2008 and continued with seasons in 2009, 2010, and 2011. In 2010, the excavation was focused mainly on a large rectangular building in Area IV that had been located the previous year (online fig. 58). The internal space of the structure was divided into squares, and the research was advanced using 10 cm stratigraphic

32

Miller and Pinkerton 1991.

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Fig. 14. End of central pier wall in the field B gate at Khirbat al-Mudaybi‘, looking south across the total width of the Iron Age gatehouse.

intervals. The building, with its exceptional masonry and large dimensions, does not comply with the orientation of the other buildings in the settlement. Two main doors with comparable widths, both with stone thresholds, provide access into the building: one on the western side and another in the southwest corner. Three closely spaced, narrow openings exist in the western side. In the interior, the walls have irregularly sized niches for supporting wooden poles. The plastered floor was found at a relatively shallow depth, preserved in only a few areas, and plaster on the walls was also visible in a few places. The only feature in the building was a rectangular hearth. Near the hearth, a circular pit, surrounded with small stones, was revealed in the floor level; it contained a roughly spherical flint nodule. On one side of the stone, two similar incised symbols were visible (online fig. 59). Between the Area IV rectangular building and Area II, another excavation unit was explored in 2010. Nineteen rooms were excavated; each was trapezoidal with rounded corners. Smaller rooms were connected to larger rooms via narrow openings. This architecture closely resembles that at es-Sifiya and Ghweir I in southern Jordan. Locus 19 was the most important because lime plaster was found in the floor and the walls. In 2011, the excavation extended to the northwest of the large rectangular building in Area VI. The test

sections in front of the main building proved that, apart from the trapezoidal structure, an open area (courtyard) existed, and a slab pavement was found at the southwest corner of the building. The presence of a courtyard is of particular importance and reinforces the significance of the rectangular building. In front of this building, a wall with an extraordinary trapezoidal ground plan was revealed extending to the northwest. Of particular significance is a small wall with a rectangular niche later added to this larger wall. The presence of a small ortholith here possibly explains the peculiar construction and the use of the niche in which it probably was placed. In 2011, Area V on the southwest side of the settlement was investigated. A wide street extends to the east and separates the area in two parts. On the northern side, a densely built cluster of loci includes a mixture of storage spaces ranging from small to medium in size. Of particular interest is locus 11, which contains a slab pavement covered by lime plaster. On the south side, there is a density of buildings. Approximately 350 ground-stone tools and many dozens of stone vases were found in Area V. More than 1,600 m2 have been excavated at the site (fig. 15). More than 1,000 ground-stone tools and many hundreds of stone vases have been recovered since 2008; these artifacts were registered during the 2011

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Fig. 15. Topographic grid of Wadi Hamarash 1. Excavation areas are marked with Roman numerals I–V.

field season. Four charcoal samples collected from the settlement gave the following uncalibrated radiocarbon dates: 8660 ± 45 b.p., 8650 ± 60 b.p., 8710 ± 50 b.p., and 8425 ± 45 b.p.; these samples correspond with the presence of Helwan-type arrowheads and thus suggest a date for the site in the early stages of the PPN-B. Wadi Hamarash 4 Wadi Hamarash 4 is a small PPN-A settlement on the top and the slopes of a hill overlooking the Wadi al-Hasa River. Illegal excavations and intense erosion have partly destroyed its round constructions. In 2011, seven loci were cleaned and investigated on the hilltop. Most important was locus 1, which sits on a small plateau and was disturbed by looters. The building is 3.50 m in diameter and constructed from a mixture of large blocks and small stones. The soil was dark with remains of burning and contained many lithics and animal bones, as well as a few shells, a green stone bead, and one cylindrical pestle. At a depth of 1.10 m, a floor was located, on which scattered human and animal bones were found. Under the floor, at the eastern part of the locus, more human bones, animal bones, a

turquoise bead, and lithics were found, including an arrowhead of the el-Khiam type. Locus 7 is a structure with an ellipsoid shape. A floor appeared at a depth of 1.00 m, and, under this, a skeleton in a crouched position was found. In the southern area of the locus not far from the burial, two upright stones were located, each bearing two lugs on the upper part resembling the horns of bulls. Many ground-stone tools and flint artifacts (blades, pointed tools, and cores) were recovered. Numerous millstones indicate extensive food preparation and cultivation of cereals, presumably on the plateau, which provides easy access to fresh water from the wadi. Charcoal samples from well-stratified contexts provided dates ranging from 9930 ± 50 to 9650 ± 50 b.p. (calibrated).

ghor es-safi Konstantinos D. Politis, Hellenic Society for Near Eastern Studies, reports: Work during 2010 and 2011 concentrated on understanding the process of the sugar factory at Tawahin as-Sukkar.33 The eastern pressing room, which was

Tawahin as-Sukkar is the traditional name given to this structural complex. “Tawahin” is the plural for “mills.” However, sugar is pressed rather than ground. The Hellenic Society for Near Eastern Studies archaeological reports have begun referring to this structural complex as “Masna‘ [factory] as-Sukkar” and the pressing installations as “Ma‘asir,” or “presses.” 33

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excavated and back-filled in 2004,34 was reexposed and restored according to the documentation. The western pressing room (excavated in 2010) was also reexposed to the level of the crushing stones and paving slabs and then documented (online fig. 60). A more complete picture of the size and importance of the double-press sugar factory is now emerging (online fig. 61). The vertical penstock on the southwestern end of the complex was also cleared to the 2004 state. This was obviously constructed later than the two pressing chambers and apparently used for channeling a more regular water flow for irrigation purposes. A mill or crushing installation may have been present but is not apparent today. A multichambered building with evidence of intense burning at the northwestern side of the sugar factory partially excavated in 2010 (Department of Antiquities of Jordan) was presumed to be the place where sugarcane juice was refined through boiling. Its associated ash dump on the northeastern end of the site was excavated in 2004 (Hellenic Society for Near Eastern Studies) and sampled for botanical remains in 2011, disclosing evidence of actual sugarcane fragments for the first time. Analysis of the pottery indicates that the sugar factory could have functioned from as early as the eighth or ninth century C.E. but primarily operated during the 12th to 14th centuries C.E. The most significant of the pottery finds are two types of related “sugar pots,” which are by far the most ubiquitous at the site (77% of all pottery finds). A study of other finds indicates a ca. 15th- to 16th-century squatting occupation in the disused sugar factory and a final phase in the early 20th century, when adobe buildings were erected, probably for the Ottoman army.

jafr basin, neolithic barrage systems Sumio Fujii, Kanazawa University, Japan, reports: The Jafr Basin Prehistoric Project aims to trace the process of pastoral nomadization in the southern Levant on the basis of archaeological evidence. Since the first campaign in 1997, we have investigated more than a dozen sites varying in date and nature. Our recent efforts focused on a small settlement from the Middle Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (MPPN-B)/LPPN-B in the Wadi Abu Tulayha and proved that short-range pastoral transhumance started immediately after the domestication of sheep and goats. It was sustained by a small outpost for seasonal stay in arid peripheries, a large cistern for supplying drinking water, and a basinirrigation barrage system for creating remote arable

34

Politis et al. 2005.

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land.35 The advance and retreat of this triple set holds a key to tracing the initial process of pastoral nomadization in southern Jordan. Three Neolithic sites were excavated in the 2010 and 2011 field seasons to test this possibility in a broader context: Wadi Ghuweir 17, Wadi Ghuweir 106, and Wadi Nadiya 1. Wadi Ghuweir 17 is a small settlement at the head of the wadi of the same name that drains the northeastern part of the Jafr Basin. The site was discovered in 1997 by L.A. Quintero and P.J. Wilke, and rescue excavations were undertaken by the author in the summer field season of 2010 in combination with the nearby barrage site of Wadi Ghuweir 106. Although the site was heavily disturbed by illicit digging, the excavation revealed several semisubterranean stone structures. No 14C dates are available at present, but the occurrence of diagnostic finds—including naviform coreand-blade components, Byblos- and Amuq-type points, flint basin querns, flint bowlets, and limestone game boards—allows us to regard the site as the second example of the PPN-B agropastoral outpost following the type-site of the Jafr Pastoral PPN-B. Considering that smaller features clustered around the entrance space of a large oval structure to form a complex analogous to Complex I of Wadi Abu Tulayha, it is conceivable that the small settlement represents a single-phase outpost used for only a short term at the end of the MPPN-B or the very beginning of the LPPN-B. Of interest is the occurrence of a few petroglyphs that depict a possible scene of seasonal pasturing around the remote outpost (online fig. 62). A cross-check against faunal evidence is expected to validate the iconographical interpretation. Also of significance is the evidence for a probable cistern, which was found recently at a point approximately 130 m north of the outpost. Given this tentative identification, it would follow that as with the type-site, the outpost was equipped with a reliable source of drinking water. Wadi Ghuweir 106 is a barrage site approximately 6 km west of the outpost, consisting of two stone-built barrages constructed at the lower end of a semiopen playa system. The two unique features were designed to create a shallow, extensive flooded area on a permeable silty-sand terrain, suggesting their function as basin-irrigation barrages or anthropogenic pastures in a dry year (fig. 16). As with the other PPN-B barrages known in the basin, they incorporated a few large, bilaterally notched and/or bifacially grooved stone weights into their walls, probably as ritual objects intended to evoke protection of the barrages. A similar product was found in situ on the floor of the

35

Fujii 2009, 2010a.

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Fig. 16. Barrage 1 of Wadi Ghuweir 106 (view to the northeast).

core structure at the nearby outpost, attesting to the chrono-functional correlation between the two. Wadi Nadiya 1, another barrage site excavated in 2011, is approximately 20 km northwest of Wadi Ghuweir 106, and it contains two stone-built barrages constructed at the lower edge of the semiopen playa system, an ideal location for both feeding and draining seasonal runoff surface water (online fig. 63). The location was intended to cope with salt damage bisecting irrigated agriculture in dry land. The excavations shed new light on the procurement strategy of construction material and the renewal history of the two barrages. This series of investigations has shown that Wadi Abu Tulayha was never an exceptional case; Jafr PPN-B pastoral transhumance supported by cisterns and barrages penetrated deep into the basin beyond the typesite.36 Clearly, such successful preadaptation paved the way to the subsequent pastoral nomadization, and the multifaceted pastoral transhumants took the initiative toward infiltrating into the Early Holocene arid margin. The Jafr pastoral PPN-B may be defined as another aspect or even as a forefront of the megasite

36 37

Fujii 2010b. Gebel 2004.

phenomenon in the contemporary west.37 It is also conceivable that it triggered the Neolithization in the northern half of the Arabian peninsula.

shkarat msaied Aiysha Abu-Laban, Moritz Kinzel, Charlott Hoffmann Jensen, and Ingolf Thuesen, Copenhagen University, Denmark, report: Shkarat Msaied is located roughly 13 km north of Petra in the Namala region, about 980 masl. It was occupied mainly during the MPPN-B period.38 The area is dominated by the sandstone plateau to the east and the escarpment into Wadi Arabah and the drainage systems to the west. The vegetation today mainly consists of oak, pistachio and juniper forests, shrubs, and other minor herb plants. Initiated in 1999, the Shkarat Msaied Neolithic Project has uncovered about 600 m2 of the settlement. Excavations have revealed circular constructions with evidence of domestic activities, tool production and food processing, and even some buildings (Buildings F and K) that show evidence of ritual activities (online

38 Seven uncalibrated conventional 14C dates range from 9590 ± 90 b.p. to 8880 ± 80 b.p.

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fig. 64).39 Evidence of tool production and storage was also found in some small enclosures and sections of the open areas.40 The first objective of the 2010 campaign was to conduct preservation and conservation measures for the site’s future presentation. The second goal was to excavate further the southern area, and this in turn led to a revision of the entire settlement’s occupation history. Modifying Space The results of the 2010 season and research on the architectural remains41 suggest a complex construction history with at least six building phases (I–VI). The earliest phase consists of curvilinear structures less substantial in nature, while the latest phase consists of subrectangular buildings. Moreover, minor excavation operations revealed that most of the buildings (e.g., Buildings B, D, E, F, J, and L) had at least two construction phases; a central posthole was identified in most floors, and the interior surfaces were enlarged in the buildings’ late phases. Evidence of transition to more rectangular-shaped constructions was initially suggested after the 2003 excavation; four partition walls running north–south along both sides of Building F were interpreted to represent a new way of dividing space.42 Alterations and additions seen in three other buildings (Buildings H, “g,” and DD) confirm this trend. Building H is one of the most substantial buildings discovered so far (28 m2). It was excavated down to the occupation floor. The building has a circular outline, and in a later occupation phase two wall segments were added to the inner wall face of the outer wall. One wall is constructed in the west and one in the north. These alterations have thus transformed the shape of the building’s interior from circular to a rather (sub)rectangular shape (online fig. 65). In the same way, a wall segment was added abutting the western wall of Building “g,” providing a more polygonal shape to the interior. Burying the Dead The human remains are estimated to derive from 37 individuals—17 adults and 20 subadults. A preliminary study of the bones indicates that some individuals suffered from anemia or malnutrition, and some of the foot bones and vertebrae display degenerative joint diseases, which could be due to overuse and stress on joints. All the human remains except for one individu-

Hermansen and Jensen 2002. Jensen 2008; Abu-Laban 2010. 41 Kinzel 2011.

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al were interred below the floors of Building F. Burial 6 is situated in the eastern end of the building, where the other burial cists have been found in previous seasons (fig. 17); it consists of a cist constructed of flat sandstone slabs and contains numerous fragmented bones, which were placed inside after decomposition had taken place. The bones seem to have been directly dumped into the cist without any kind of sorting or organizing, unlike the other burials exposed so far. Only two intact skeletal remains have been found; one belongs to an approximately two-year-old child (Burial 8), and the other belongs to an approximately oneyear-old child (Burial 7). No grave goods were found in association with the burials. Artifacts and Ecofacts—Tools and Ornaments The finds consist mainly of chipped- and groundstone tools as well as animal bones and a few ornaments. Although study of the chipped-stone assemblage is not complete, it is quite evident that it displays the bipolar knapping technology typical of the PPN-B period. The worked pieces include arrowheads (primarily of the so-called Jericho type), sickle blades, borers, and scrapers. In the area west of Building “g,” a very high concentration of chipped lithics (more than 200 flakes and blades within an area of 90 cm2) might indicate a dump area or a flint workshop. The ground stone includes grinders, grinding stones, mortars, and pestles, of which sandstone, limestone, granite, and basalt are the most common materials. Ornamental objects made of seashells include beads made of Cypraea and Nerita shells. Animal bones are quite abundant, and a current study shows that the reuse of animal bones for tools is much more frequent than previously assumed. Preservation, Conservation, and Site Presentation The primary focus this season was the conservation and preservation of the architectural remains. Strategies for site presentation were initiated. In cooperation with the Petra Archaeological Park and the Department of Antiquities of Jordan—and as part of the Neolithic Heritage Trail project43—the structures in the northern and central parts were permanently filled with fine-grained, sterile sand quarried from the closest wadi. The upper parts of the walls were kept visible for site presentation. In the other buildings, floors have been covered with sand and partly backfilled until further excavation and conservation work can take place. Minor consolidation operations were

39

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Kinzel 2004, 2011. Finlayson et al. 2007; Kinzel 2008.

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Fig. 17. Building F at Shkarat Msaied, showing the exposed burials.

undertaken using local materials. These measures are initial steps toward more comprehensive site management and preservation.

umm saisaban Ulrich Hübner, University of Kiel, reports: The Early Bronze Age settlement of Umm Saisaban (or Saysaban), located between Petra and Bayda, was discovered in 1984 by Lindner. It has been partially excavated during three previous campaigns (1998–1999, 2001, and 2008).44 The main goal of the 2011 season was to excavate a rectangular structure (House 20) in the center of Plateau IV of the EB II site (fig. 18). The entrance lies near the southwestern corner. The walls were built of hewn stones laid without mortar directly on the bedrock— those along the southern edge were later robbed and are now missing. The structure is surrounded on three sides by a courtyard, and the back wall of the house is protected by a natural rock knoll. Benches were built against the inner faces of the northwestern, northeastern, and southeastern walls. The smoothed bedrock surface served as the floor.

44

Lindner et al. 2001, 2005.

Artifacts found inside the building include sherds from at least 12 storage jars, a spindlewhorl made from local stone, four jar lids made from local stone, a rectangular (cosmetic?) palette made from a green stone, and the fragmentary horns of two caprids (ibex?). All vessels were handmade from red clay with fine to medium grits. Almost all the vessels were storage jars.

bir madhkur Andrew M. Smith II, The George Washington University, reports: The Bir Madhkur Project is a multidisciplinary field project involving both excavation and intensive regional survey, which has as its main goal the examination of the role of Petra in the ancient economy from a rural, landscape perspective. The focus is the ancient site of Bir Madhkur (online fig. 66), which was occupied from the Hellenistic to Early Islamic periods and served as a regional hub of economic activity in the Wadi Arabah. Peripheral sites also under investigation include a Nabataean/Roman caravan station (Khirbet Sufaysif) south of Bir Madhkur and several agricultural installations. Features at Bir Madhkur that highlight

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Fig. 18. Umm Saisaban, House 20, view from the south, 2011.

the significance of the site in the hinterland of Petra include a third-century C.E. fort, a bath/caravanserai complex, a civilian settlement (vicus), and cemeteries. In 2010, our work focused on excavations in the Roman fort (Area A), in the bath/caravanserai complex (Area B), in the vicus west of the fort (Area C), and at Khirbet Sufaysif (Area M). In Area A, excavations concentrated along the western perimeter wall and in the heavily damaged area of the northwest corner tower to assess the sequence of occupation and the architectural history of the fort. Our focus in Area B was to define further the plan of the bath complex and to clarify the function of the attached structure, which we have tentatively identified as a caravanserai. In Area C, excavations were carried out largely to delineate and conserve architectural remains in the heavily disturbed area abutting the recently renovated modern housing units. Lastly, we conducted soundings at the nearby caravanserai, Khirbet Sufaysif, which was presumably a station along the ancient incense route that linked Petra with Gaza. Based on preliminary study of the data—particularly the ceramics—three major phases of occupation seem apparent, ranging from the second century B.C.E. to the seventh century C.E. The Hellenistic period is poorly defined although clearly evident in the ceramic corpus. The evidence from Khirbet Sufaysif suggests

activity at the site only in the first and sixth centuries C.E. Other material culture is undergoing conservation and remains to be analyzed, including approximately 720 coins, 95 copper objects, 62 iron objects, and 56 stone objects. The 2011 focus was on the regional survey, targeting the alluvial fans and wadis to the north of Bir Madhkur as well as areas immediately to the south. We continued to document the ancient agricultural systems in the region (fig. 19) and explored the land routes connecting Bir Madhkur with Petra. We recorded a total of 454 new sites. In addition to the alluvial fans, the survey covered the Wadis al-Qunay, Madsus, and Ahaymar. Sites similar to those along the alluvial fans, including small settlements, were recorded in these wadis. The survey also continued the documentation of the ancient agricultural fields in the central Wadi Arabah. Essentially, these systems were mapped from satellite imagery and then ground checked to produce more detailed site descriptions. In addition to those field systems clearly visible in the satellite imagery, we documented many more minor field systems discovered during our transects. All this data will allow a more comprehensive assessment of the agricultural basis of economic activity in Petra’s hinterland. In 2011, we continued our investigations of the land routes and communication

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Fig. 19. Overview of agricultural fields near Wadi Musa in the foothills of Wadi Arabah.

networks that linked Bir Madhkur with Petra, and we cursorily explored two wadi systems through the foothills of Wadi Arabah, Wadi al-Qunay, and Wadi Silaysil.

brown university petra archaeological project Susan E. Alcock, Brown University, and Christopher A. Tuttle, American Center of Oriental Research and Brown University, report: The first two seasons of the Brown University Petra Archaeological Project were conducted in and around the Petra Archaeological Park in 2010 and 2011. Several distinct but overlapping research initiatives were carried out during both seasons. These include the Petra Area and Wadi Silaysil Survey (PAWS), test excavations in the Bayda Islamic Village, geophysical survey near the Petra city center, and the Petra Routes Project (PRP). The PAWS team conducted intensive regional survey to the north of Petra (Areas a–f), completing a total of some 350 ha of coverage in the two seasons (fig. 20). Preliminary study indicates the presence of pottery ranging in date from the Early Bronze Age to the modern period, with notable concentrations in the Nabataean/Roman and Medieval (Middle to Late Islamic) periods. Early Bronze Age pottery was

found for the first time in 2011, and a stronger presence of Iron Age and Hellenistic pottery was noted. Lithic finds are numerous, with later prehistory (Chalcolithic and Bronze Age) best represented across the entire survey region, although notable earlier finds were made, including several pieces from the Lower Paleolithic era. Finally, the survey team continued documenting the extent of modern debris (plastic, glass, metal) widely distributed across the landscape. In addition to artifact quantification and collection, a team mapped and recorded anthropogenic features in the survey landscape; these included such elements as walls, shrines, cisterns, dams, water channels, terracing, rock reliefs, and quarries. Some of these features are very complex in nature, with numerous individual rock-cut and/or built components. Nearly 650 features have been recorded, indicating the massive degree of human modification this landscape has experienced over the millennia. Work at the Bayda Islamic Village is intended to improve our understanding of the Islamic periods in the Petra region, not least our grasp of Islamic ceramic chronologies in southern Jordan. In 2010, an initial map of the Bayda Islamic Village was made (online fig. 67) through surface surveying. During the two field seasons, three trenches were excavated in different

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Fig. 20. Overview plan of the Petra Area and Wadi Silaysil Survey units completed in the 2010 and 2011 seasons (A. Knodell).

sectors of the village.45 Trench A explored a courtyard and a single-room house, both of which had multiple use phases during the Later Islamic period (ca. 14th– 16th centuries C.E.). Trench B revealed material

ranging from an in situ Nabataean floor (dated by a well-preserved coin) to later walls of various periods, including the Ottoman era. Trench C was placed near a previously excavated building that had a different,

All Bayda Islamic Village trenches were placed in association with areas previously explored during test excavations conducted by the Beidha Documentation and Excavation Project directed by P.M. Bikai, former associate director of American Center of Oriental Research. 45

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finer construction style and was briefly occupied in Late Medieval/early modern times. Geophysical work employing both ground penetrating radar (GPR) and magnetometer surveys was undertaken in the Petra city center. The areas of focus were the so-called Upper Market, the Petra Church, the Temple of the Winged Lions, and the Turkmaniyyah Tomb Complex. Although analyses are still underway, the preliminary results from the data are extremely promising (online fig. 68).46 The PRP is dedicated to a general exploration of access routes in and out of the Petra city center, with a view to identifying both interregional road networks and more local systems of movement and communication, especially the relationship to the PAWS survey area. The PRP team meticulously documented Wadi Ma‘esra East and West, noting and mapping features such as agricultural installations and terraces, cisterns, cultic elements, tombs, and stairs. Most impressive are the remains of roads, which extend up to 300 m in length and are still used by people (and goats) today.

petra archaeological park: defining boundaries and mapping risk Giorgia Cesaro, Azadeh Vafadari, and Anna Paolini, UNESCO Office, Amman, Mario Santana-Quintero, Koen Van Balen, and Ona Vileikis, Raymond Lemaire International Centre for Conservation, Catholic University of Leuven, report: The UNESCO Office in Amman, in partnership with the Raymond Lemaire International Centre for Conservation and in cooperation with the Petra Development and Tourism Regional Authority and the Department of Antiquities of Jordan, has been conducting a project for the assessment of risks at the Petra Archaeological Park (PAP) since February 2011. The main objectives of this project are the identification and mitigation of risks within the Petra World Heritage property, from defining the boundaries and outlining guidelines and regulations for the buffer zone to proposing a risk-management methodology. The PAP continues to be threatened by natural and anthropogenic risks. The lack of an implemented management plan,47 the absence of clearly defined property boundaries, and limited sustainable visitor management have resulted in major gaps in the management of the property and increasing risks to the site. Accordingly, risk assessment and research in the field of risk management in Petra have been identified as the most appropriate tools for mitigation of risks and protection of the value of the property.

For some preliminary results from the Petra Upper Market, see Urban et al. 2012. 47 Despite the existence of four drafted plans by USAID 46

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Activity 1: Mapping the Petra Archaeological Park Boundaries Clearly defined boundaries are essential to the protection of the outstanding universal value, integrity, and authenticity of a World Heritage site. Despite this requirement, the PAP still lacks a comprehensive base map to serve as a reference for all management, tourism, and conservation activities undertaken in the site. Scattered efforts have been made to define the PAP boundaries: arbitrary borders were placed on the 1985 subscription nomination dossier map; different boundaries were set during the 1993 creation of the Petra National Park (PNP); other border lines were drawn in 2007 when the PNP was developed into the 264 km2 PAP. Even with these efforts, however, many of the assumed PAP boundaries continue to follow arbitrary criteria without regard to obvious natural or anthropogenic features. To resolve this problem, a group of experts from the UNESCO Office in Amman and the Catholic University of Leuven surveyed the 1993 PNP government boundaries in 2011. GPS coordinates of the 1993 boundaries were provided by the Petra Development and Tourism Regional Authority GIS department and then systematically mapped on the ground. Where original boundary points were identified, they were kept in their original positions. When no trace of the original markers was present, new temporary marks were made using iron angles fixed on concrete bases, with clear indication of the point number. New GPS coordinates were also taken. As a result, a new boundary polygon was drawn in AutoCAD and inputted into a GIS system. All data have been given to the Jordanian authorities, and upon their verification and validation official PAP boundaries can be eventually identified and the decision submitted to the World Heritage Centre. Activity 2: Field Application of a Risk-Management Methodology The core phase of the risk-mapping project consists of delineating a risk-management methodology for the PAP, to be used as a tool to identify risks, assess their impact, and provide a framework in which the vulnerability and rate of deterioration of the site are consistently identified and monitored. On this basis, a risk-management plan has been drafted for Petra. The “threats” and “disturbances” categories established by the MEGA–Jordan project have been used for identifying and recording risk and condition. Ten specific “agents of deterioration,” as defined by Monuments

(1968), UNESCO (1994), U.S. National Committee of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (1996), and U.S. National Park Service (2000).

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Watch in Flanders,48 have been introduced and linked to the MEGA–Jordan categories to identify and record the cause of threats. Two field seasons were conducted to test the risk methodology in the form of a rapid risk assessment based on visual inspection. In May 2011, a two-week workshop was undertaken by a group of conservation graduate students from the Catholic University of Leuven and the PAP staff to identify risks in four areas representing the property’s outstanding universal value. GPS coordinates of 100 site elements were mapped; agents, disturbances, and threats were recorded; photographs were taken; and all information was entered into the MEGA– Jordan system. In October 2011, the methodology was applied and tested as a whole in a pilot area of the PAP during three weeks of fieldwork, which included training and capacity building of the PAP staff responsible for the management of the property. During this fieldwork, the Temple of the Winged Lions, the Turkmaniyyah Tomb, and the Basin area were assessed. Threats and disturbances were located, identified, and recorded; the impact of those risks was assessed; mitigation strategies were suggested; and priorities were determined.

petra: wadi mataha David Johnson, Brigham Young University, reports: Work continued at site 15 (Tomb Brünnow 676)49 on the west side of the Wadi Mataha, north of its confluence with the Wadi Mudhlim, in 2009 and 2010. Site 15 includes the open area directly in front of and east of the tomb facade as well as the interior of the tomb. In the tomb interior, there are 15 loculi evenly spaced along the south, west, and north walls as well as four loculi cut into the rock face above the floor on the western wall. Exterior The western half of square 15D was excavated to bedrock. A heavy concentration of sherds and lithics was recovered. The bedrock in the western half contains a shallow basin with a cobble and clay floor extending west into the unexcavated square 15I, probably a pool area with a water channel cut into the bedrock on the eastern side. All of square 15E was excavated to bedrock, and the western half produced a covered water channel (cut into the bedrock) leading to an underground cistern with three arches. Since the channel slopes away from the cistern, it would have carried away excess storage water. The channel ends

48 49

More information is at www.monumentenwacht.be/. The name refers to the catalogue of monuments estab-

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at a deep cut edge in the bedrock, which then slopes steeply to the east, around a square structure sitting on a layer of rubble over bedrock. Interior In the interior of the tomb, 15L1 is the first rockcut loculus on the southern side. It was found covered by at least 1.5 m of animal dung and dark-brown soil streaked with black decomposing cement. A pile of cut rocks included three sculptural pieces; all three bases displayed diagonal dressing marks (cuts and grooves). One appeared to represent a Harpocrates figure. Seven other loculi were cleared. Loculus 15L15, located in the interior chamber in the northeastern corner near the tomb entrance, was open to the outside because of erosion. A unique rectangular cut with a double burial was found in the floor. The rectangular cut had two distinct, layered burials. The upper burial was well preserved but disturbed by the weight of the cover stones. The grave contained the complete skeleton of an adult female (aged ca. 25–35) with a wide sciatic notch and preauricular sulcus. Her height was between 1.52 and 1.60 m based on measurements of the humerus, radius, ulna, femur, and tibia. Her fifth lumbar vertebra was fused to the sacrum; extreme lipping and a roughened surface on the thoracic vertebrae indicated osteoarthritis. A large quantity of later first-century C.E. Nabataean ceramic material was recovered. Below this burial, on top of the cover stones of the second burial, a silver denarius of Trajan, with a figure of Pax on the obverse, was found and dated to ca. 106 C.E. The second undisturbed burial below was covered with large, flat stones wedged into the burial cut and covered by a layer of small rounded and polished stones. The articulated skeleton lay on its side, the head oriented to the south and its face toward the east. Molar wear indicates an age of 33–45 years; the wide sciatic notch, gracile brow ridges, and preauricular sulcus point to a female who had given birth. A layer of curved plaster below the skeleton indicates a plaster coffin. Two elegant gold earrings were found near the skull. Chert lithics and a sea urchin fossil were recovered, along with Nabataean fine ware that indicates a mid first-century C.E. date.

petra: solar influence on sandstone Thomas R. Paradise, University of Arkansas, reports: Recent geological research at Petra focused on an isolated and unrecorded so-called djinn block above and to the north of the three djinn blocks that flank

lished in Brünnow and von Domaszewski 1904.

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the entrance road into the Siq. The block is at an elevation of approximately 1,024 masl, and it exhibits the relatively orthogonal dimensions of a modified cube, measuring roughly 7 x 8 m and up to 4 m in height (above the hewn base) (online fig. 69). This is a location where the Umm Ishrin and Disi strata of sandstone are in contact and not clearly separated but interspersed with lenses of each formation. Prior research has shown that variations in iron oxide and calcium carbonate in the Umm Ishrin affect weathering through disaggregation; iron oxides in the rock matrix essentially halt deterioration (>4%), while carbonaceous components in the matrix greatly accelerate surface deterioration, along with the development of weathering features such as tafoni.50 Since the Disi sandstone contains little or no iron and a modicum of carbonaceous matrix constituents, the Disi weathers and disaggregates faster and “differently.” The Umm Ishrin sandstone typically exhibits huge tafoni and cavities, while the Disi displays distinctive domed features and smaller tafoni and alveolar weathering. Differences in the two lithologies are key to understanding landscape evolution and architectural decay in the region. The Disi sandstone has been well documented geologically; however, its study in architectural analysis, weathering research, and landscape evolution is rare.51 Using the original Nabataean stone dressing marks as baselines from which weathering recession has occurred, the development of surface weathering features such as alveoli, tafoni, stone lace, and honeycomb can be measured and analyzed. The djinn blocks represent an ideal outdoor laboratory for weathering research for several reasons: they often exhibit 360° of aspect, have a relatively unaltered and dated exposure to environmental conditions (e.g., climate, insolation, humans), and have a researched lithology across the region.52 Laser levels, micrometers, and pin, dial, and digital calipers were used to measure all features within the tafoni expanse in relation to the Nabataean dressing marks. Cavity length, width, and depth were ascertained in relation to aspect/face. Aspect was analyzed in both full range (0°-360°-0°) and as mirrored aspects (0°-180°-0°). Mirroring aspectual values is crucial in weathering studies,53 since 360° equals 000°, and the sudden decrease in value at true north renders statistical analysis useless and/or complicated. Dimension measurements (±3 mm) were then tabulated in a spreadsheet for graphic representation and statistical

Paradise 1999. Paradise (forthcoming). 52 Amireh et al. 2001.

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correlation analysis (r2). Since the tafoni had developed in a relatively homogenous bed of Disi sandstone capped by a thin layer of a more femic Umm Ishrin sandstone (depth 7–18 cm), lithological variation was not measured, so that dimension relationships to lithology were not made within the tafoni field. Since aspect is directly related to insolation (solar flux), correlations were then determined for recession and feature dimensions to aspect (000°-180°-360° N) and insolation (megajoules/m2/year). The analysis of the tafoni aspect and dimensions divulged important relationships. First, influences and/or relationships between insolation (incoming solar radiation) and feature dimensions became obvious—some positively and some negatively correlated. It was found that the southern aspects displayed the longest, widest, and deepest weathering features (e.g., tafoni, stone lace, alveoli, honeycomb). Correlations of determination (r2) revealed significant relationships between aspect (mirrored) and dimension. This relationship was previously identified, and it explained a positive relationship between tafoni size and aspect.54 Conversely and unexpectedly, this study also identified a decrease in dimension and rate toward the east and west, with moderate growth toward the north and the greatest dimensions toward the south, both away from east and west aspects—a previously unknown phenomenon (online fig. 70). Since the Nabataeans dressed these surfaces approximately 1,900–2,100 years ago, we can ascertain recession rates (speculating that such surface recession is linear). On vertical faces, minimum surface recession was found predominantly on eastern and western faces ranging from 10 to 127 mm/millennium. Moderate tafoni developments were identified on northern aspects ranging from 105 to 110 mm/millennium. On southern vertical faces, the greatest development ranged from 120 to 220 mm/millennium. Solar flux (megajoules/m2/year) was then correlated to the tafoni dimensions, since insolation can be determined from aspect, latitude, and elevation. Here, the unexpected and previously undocumented relationships were further explained. The data set revealed a minimal recession depth (and rate) on all faces of approximately 10–45 mm/millennium, above which northern influences increased deterioration “moderately” up to 110 mm/millennium. Southern influences had the greatest exacerbating effect with a maximum recessional rate of 220 mm/millennium—producing

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Paradise 2002. Paradise 2002, (forthcoming).

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the greatest surface retreat from sandstone weathering (disaggregation), nearly 1 inch (22 mm) each century (online fig. 71). These weathering rates and dimensional measurements represent the first such data set created (in Western literature) for the Disi sandstones of southern Jordan, and they have both vital theoretical weathering implications for sandstone weathering in deserts and significant management applications in sandstone architectural conservation in Petra.

calls the physician his “friend and companion”; the latter word is used in Nabataean inscriptions in the context of a ritual banquet (marzeah). In connection with the Isis sanctuary, part of a channel system that collected runoff water was documented near a facade with several inscriptions. This may allow an interpretation of the site as a Nabataean Isis sanctuary that had accommodations for ritual baths related to healing.

petra: wadi abu ‘ullayqa south

petra: stibadia study

Marie-Jeanne Roche, Institut Catholique de Paris, reports: The Epigraphic and Archaeological Project in the Wadi Abu ‘Ullayqa South, at the foot of Jabal Harun, aims to collect data from the Nabataean Isis sanctuary and its surroundings as well as from a Dushara/ al-‘Uzza sanctuary located farther down the wadi. Surveys were conducted by the author and F. Zayadine in three previous seasons (2005, 2007, and 2008). In 2011, the project team completed documentation on the southern terraces around the Isis sanctuary. Some remains of monumental Nabataean letters painted on the lower part of a rocky facade, near a large terrace covered with graffiti and drawings of feet, were first recorded. The presence of such dipinti suggests a more sophisticated organization of the sanctuary than previously believed and indicates that the epigraphic data at the site represent more than simple graffiti. The team also undertook a new examination of the cultic niche that contains a relief depicting an enthroned Isis. Investigations clearly show various traces of hammering, which defaced the monument: the head was destroyed; the hands were broken from the arms; and the breasts and the Isiac knot were damaged. These defacements of the image share a context with the deliberate breaking of Isis’ name in the inscription dedicated to the goddess, which is written in a remote place near the Isis statue niche. The date of these defacements is uncertain. A small open-air biclinium just large enough to accommodate two persons was recorded on the south bank of the wadi bed, under the large terrace; it could be easily confused with the natural wadi banks, although it exhibits the typical Nabataean tooling (online fig. 72). This biclinium, like the larger one on the north bank, provides clear evidence for ritual dining. These biclinia are the archaeological counterparts of the longest inscription at the site, which mentions a scribe and a physician. In this inscription, the scribe

Laurent Tholbecq, Université Libre de Bruxelles, reports: The discovery of a curvilinear rock-cut bench structure near the Obodas Chapel complex encouraged the Mission Archéologique Française du Pétra to undertake the recording of similar rock-cut structures previously discovered in Petra.55 Eleven such monuments were published by Dalman and identified as stibadia in his book Petra und seine Felsheiligtümer.56 Nine new monuments were added in the late 1980s and 1990s from surveys carried out by D. Tarrier and L. Nehmé, raising the total to 20 (so-called) stibadia in the Petra area.57 Nine of these monuments were sketched by Dalman, but most of the others remain poorly documented or completely unpublished. To produce updated comparative data, the mission recorded and analyzed these structures during two short field seasons in 2010 and 2011. The following is a list of the monuments studied. Two monuments were mapped in the Wadi as-Siyyagh area, the Stibadium Dalman 397 and the so-called Stibadium Dalman 398, which is in fact a nonspecific triclinium. In the funerary context of Mughr al-Mataha, a structure associated with Tomb Brünnow 693 was recorded; its function remains unclear. Monuments in the Bab as-Siq and Madras areas were also documented: the funerary Stibadium Dalman 48 near the Obelisk Tomb (Brünnow 34–35), the unpublished funerary stibadium (Nehmé Ma4) on the way from the Bab asSiq to Madras, and, in the suburban area of Madras, the large Stibadium Dalman 85, which is probably related to the cultic niches in the nearby cliff face. In the Wadi Farasa, the Stibadium Dalman 256 was recorded, along with the structures known as Stibadia Dalman 257 and 260, which are in fact primarily rectilinear triclinia that terminate with semicircular central benches only at their enclosed ends. The Stibadia Dalman 769 (on al-Khubthah) (fig. 21) and Dalman 441 (ad-Dayr) were properly drawn and set in their respective built

Tholbecq 2011. Dalman 1908. Stibadia are a type of triclinia that are curvilinear rather than rectilinear.

57 Publication of this important survey is now in progress, and the first volume is expected to appear soon.

55 56

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Fig. 21. Stibadium Dalman 769 on al-Khubthah in Petra (drawing by S. Delcros; © Mission Archéologique Française du Pétra).

and rock-cut environments. Two unpublished stibadia in the southern Bayda area (Nehmé B90 and B124) were studied, and another one was discovered. In the western Ma‘esra mountain massif, the Stibadium Nehmé M81 was of a particular interest, since it showed a rare association between the semicircular couch and a large water basin fed by a sophisticated canalization system. In eastern Ma‘esra, the structure Nehmé M134, formerly interpreted as a stibadium, seemed to be nothing more than the remains of a limited quarry. The structure Dalman 862 (Siq Umm al-Aldah) was not visited, and three other previously recorded but unpublished stibadia could not be located.58 This survey of a specific class of monument has demonstrated significant variety in both the types and uses of the Petraean stibadia; they appear to be related to various types of infrastructure and were found equally in funerary, domestic, and religious contexts. The survey emphasized evidence of specific uses, the recurrence of associated light shelters or canopies, and the presence of related built structures and engraved board games as well as a rock-cut hydraulic infrastructure that ranged from simple to highly sophisticated.

petra: funerary topography and the al-khubthah tombs Lucy Wadeson, University of Oxford, reports: In 2010–2011, two concurrent fieldwork projects were undertaken to expand current knowledge of

58 Nehmé M159.1, Nehmé M313 (western Ma‘esra), and Shub Qays 1.

Nabataean funerary activities, building on the author’s earlier doctoral research.59 The Funerary Topography of Petra Project (FTPP) focuses on the area outside the facade tombs and their topographic setting. The International Khubtha Tombs Project (IKTP) was set up to obtain material that can further understanding of the elusive funerary practices of the Nabataeans and contribute to ongoing debate about the chronology of Nabataean facade tombs. The FTPP focused on resurveying approximately 500 facade tombs to carefully record the physical relationships between tombs of different facade types, between facade tombs and other tomb types, and between tombs and other rock-cut installations, such as houses, religious structures, hydraulic features, and quarries. The data are currently being analyzed to ascertain how the different cemeteries of Petra developed and to elucidate their relationship to domestic and religious space. So far, the newly proposed chronological sequence introduced by the author’s earlier research is being confirmed by the FTPP study. The relationship between the block tombs and the facade tombs is also being clarified. It is argued that the facade tombs are a sort of abstraction of the earlier block tombs, and that the semiblock tombs (which are still attached to the rock at the back or sides) are an intermediary type (fig. 22). The so-called tomb complexes at Petra, with accompanying features such as triclinia, platforms, cisterns,

59

Wadeson 2010.

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Fig. 22. Tombs Brünnow 270, 273, and 276 (from left to right), Wadi Farasa, Petra.

porticoes, and basins, were the subject of exploration in 2011. Selected complexes were chosen for documentation and planning to determine the function of the various elements and their role in the funerary tradition. New insights were gained into the sacred nature of the property of the complexes—as indicated by the boundary structures and the location of betyls and basins at entranceways—as well as the functions of different spaces for gathering and feasting in honor of the dead. It is suggested that the apogee of the tomb complexes was around the middle of the first century C.E., based on the results from the excavation of the Soldier Tomb Complex by S. Schmid and the observed similarities between some of the largest tomb complexes, such as location, stone dressing, size, inclusion of statues and portraits, and arrangement and type of burial installations. The IKTP focused on Tombs Brünnow 779 and 781 (facade tombs), which are situated on a small terrace south of the Urn Tomb at the base of the al-Khubthah mountain (online fig. 73). The significance of these tombs is suggested not only by their location in one of the most important necropoleis in Petra but also by their burial chambers, which are noteworthy for their size, the variety of their funerary installations, and their characteristic stone dressing and carved decoration.

Like most of the tombs at Petra, Tombs Brünnow 779 and 781 were looted and lived in over the centuries. Nevertheless, sufficient material from the original burials survives to allow a reconstruction of the burial customs and to attempt a dating of the tombs, while the rock-cut structures revealed in the floor provide crucial information about funerary activities. Tomb Brünnow 779 has now been completely cleared and excavated. In the large, neatly carved burial chamber, four floor graves were revealed in the southeastern corner. The only feature carved in the walls is an arcosolium, which is located in the center of the back wall and aligned with the entrance. This structure, originally decorated with painted plaster, contains a 3 m deep grave carved in its floor and a rectangular niche in its southern wall. The graves revealed portions of the original sealing system used to close the burial, as well as human remains, significant amounts of ceramics, some metal finds, and traces of wood and lime. The method of burial appears consistent across all the graves. Bodies were placed in wooden coffins on a layer of lime at the bottom of the graves. Wellcarved stone slabs were placed on rock-cut shoulders, and, above this, compact layers of large stones and various types of mortars were used to fill and seal the shaft of each grave. Two graves contained particularly

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well-preserved human remains, including an almost complete skull. Iron nails and wood testify to the use of coffins. The foot of a bronze camel figurine was found in the arcosolium. The painted sherds recovered from the burials and the mortar sealing them are mostly dated to Schmid’s phase 3b, providing a terminus post quem of 75–100 C.E. for the burials. Medieval pottery was also retrieved in Tomb Brünnow 779, and a stone inscribed with a cross and a game board were found in one of the graves. Tomb Brünnow 781 lies to the south of Tomb Brünnow 779. The chamber of Tomb Brünnow 781 is spacious and contains 16 loculi placed evenly and symmetrically in the back and side walls. In the center of the back wall is a subsidiary chamber accessed via a decoratively carved entrance. This chamber has an arcosolium carved in its back wall and a 3 m deep pit grave, which had a vaulted burial niche on the east side of the shaft, originally closed by a built wall. Such a burial installation, with space for three burials, has not been previously noted at Petra. The painted pottery from this grave ranges from Schmid’s phases 2a to 3c (i.e., mid first century B.C.E.–early second century C.E.); however, the disturbance of the burials renders it difficult to establish whether they were contemporary or succeeded one another over time.

petra: temple of the winged lions Christopher A. Tuttle, American Center of Oriental Research, Asma Shhaltoug, Department of Antiquities of Jordan, and Maria Elena Ronza, American Center of Oriental Research, report: The Temple of the Winged Lions (fig. 23) is a Nabataean religious building situated prominently on the north slope of the Wadi Musa overlooking the ancient Petra city center. The American Expedition to Petra (AEP), under the direction of the late Philip C. Hammond, began excavating two areas in this sector in 1974. By the completion of this first excavation season, the AEP had discovered part of a residential sector of the ancient city and revealed the presence of a monumental temple. Included among the artifacts recovered in the temple during the first season were unique capital fragments (online fig. 74) decorated with “winged lions,” which prompted the designation of the building as the “Temple of the Winged Lions.” The AEP excavations in the temple complex would subsequently continue for 19 seasons between 1974 and 2005. The extensive excavations and exposure of buildings carried out by the AEP have the potential to make a profound contribution to our knowledge of Petra. However, much of the data generated by the original project was never made readily accessible, and almost no conservation was undertaken at the site. As a re-

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sult, not only is the long-term survival of the temple severely threatened, but the fullness of its story has yet to be told. In 2009, the Temple of the Winged Lions Cultural Resource Management Initiative was launched as a cooperative project by the American Center of Oriental Research, the Department of Antiquities of Jordan, and the Petra Archaeological Park, with cooperation from numerous international organizations and missions. This is a multiyear campaign that includes redocumentation, conservation, preservation, restoration, presentation, and republication of this important monumental complex. The project received a boon in 2009 when Lin Hammond kindly agreed to permit the return to Jordan of her late husband’s entire AEP archive. Progress on the project was further aided when it was awarded an Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation Large Grant by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs in 2011. During 2009–2010, efforts were focused on documenting and assessing the preservation state of the temple complex, reviewing the AEP archive data, and developing the overall project strategy and protocols. In 2011, the project began community-development initiatives aimed at building conservation capacity and creating related small-scale industries within local communities; these included a women’s cooperative for making sandbags out of recycled burlap rice bags to buttress collapsing sections of the complex and to protect the floors from further damage during project work. Efforts are also underway to establish a hydraulic lime-processing depot for the creation of historically appropriate mortars and to train the necessary personnel for implementing future conservation interventions.

petra church Barbara A. Porter, American Center of Oriental Research, reports: In 2010, consultations were undertaken to determine the best course of action for conservation efforts for the Petra Church, as the mosaic floors and sandstone walls needed attention. The overall project was entrusted to F. Sciorilli of the Franciscan Archaeological Mission, who had already worked on the mosaics in 2004. The main problems are the detachment between mosaic layers, swelling, deterioration of preparatory layers, and the poor condition of tesserae because of fracturing, exfoliating, and erosions. In the fall of 2011, Sciorilli and A. Vaccalluzzo, a master restorer from Ravenna, supervised the lifting of mosaic floor sections from the western end of the south aisle (online fig. 75). The strappo technique was employed, and the procedure went smoothly. The American Center of Oriental Research took the

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Fig. 23. Aerial overview of the Temple of the Winged Lions excavation site in Petra, view to the southwest.

opportunity to excavate a small sounding below the lifted area. The mosaic floors and the wall surfaces were treated for salt efflorescence, a constant problem throughout Petra. New mortars were also prepared for the floors and the walls. An additional component of the project was to examine the drainage system of the modern shelter over the church. To do so, the modern pavement on the exterior south side of the church was lifted, and trenches were excavated. This effort is ongoing, and the trenches will be exposed in 2012 to allow the moisture to evaporate and the ancient walls to dry.

shammakh to ayl archaeological survey, southern jordan Burton MacDonald, St. Francis Xavier University, Larry Herr, Canadian University College, D. Scott Quaintance, Independent Researcher, and Hilary Lock, Memorial University, report: The main objective of the Shammakh to Ayl Archaeological Survey (SAAS) is to discover, record, and interpret archaeological sites in an area of approximately 600 km2 (fig. 24). This data will contribute to the writing of an archaeological history of southern Jordan from Wadi al-Hasa in the north to Ras an-Naqb in the south.

The territory is part of the southern segment of the Transjordanian Plateau, or the so-called Edomite Plateau. The area investigated ranged from Shammakh in the north to Ayl in the south and included all land above the 1,200 masl line to both the east and west. The area is about 30 km (north–south) by about 20 km (east–west) and is not rectilinear—it follows the 1,200 masl topographic line on its east and west boundaries. For archaeological-investigative purposes, the survey territory is divided into three topographic zones: zone 1 (the western segment) lies in the area where elevations are between 1,200 and 1,500 masl; zone 2 (the west-central segment) is the mountainous region where elevation values are greater than 1,500 masl (actually a segment of Jabal ash-Sharah); and zone 3 (the eastern segment) is the area from the 1,500 masl line to the 1,200 masl line. The principal method for discovering archaeological materials, including sites, is based on recording the remains collected while transecting randomly chosen squares (500 x 500 m) in the three topographic zones of the survey territory. A GIS database randomly selected the 115 squares, which represent about 5% of the total area of each of the topographic zones in the survey territory. SAAS team members transected 108 random squares and recorded 366 sites during the 2010 and

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Fig. 24. Map of the Shammakh to Ayl Archaeological Survey area, showing ecological zones and random squares. Zones 1 and 3 are located between 1,000 and 3,000 masl. Zone 2 represents elevation values greater than 1,500 masl.

2011 seasons. Preliminary analyses indicate that the materials collected by the survey range in date from the Lower Paleolithic to the Late Islamic period. However, not all cultural-temporal units are represented. Of those that are, the Middle Paleolithic, Iron Age II, Nabataean, Roman, Byzantine, and Late Islamic are

dominant. The site types documented include agricultural hamlets and villages; aqueducts; enclosures (many of which are circular and probably seasonal pastoralists’ camps); farms; forts; graves/tombs; inscriptions, rock art, and wusum (tribal markings); lithic and sherd scatters; the enigmatic linear feature

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known as the Khatt Shabib (online fig. 76) and rectilinear structures; roads (including segments of the Via Nova Traiana); traditional southern Jordan villages (e.g., Shammakh); watchtowers (online fig. 77); and winnowing areas.

‘ayn gharandal Robert Darby, University of Missouri-Columbia, and Erin Darby, University of Tennessee, report: The ‘Ayn Gharandal Archaeological Project (AGAP) carried out two seasons of excavations in 2010 and 2011. The 2010 season focused on two squares in the auxiliary bathhouse and three squares in the presumed Late Roman castellum. The Late Roman Military Bathhouse Two rooms can now be securely identified as the caldarium and tepidarium. Investigation of the caldarium revealed that the recessed heating pipes (tubuli) were still intact in the east and west walls. A large plastered concrete fragment from the east wall exhibited at least two partial lines of Greek text and a graffito of a seated camel. Two additional Greek graffiti adorned the east and west walls of the caldarium. Excavations were halted before reaching floor level in an effort to preserve the inscriptions. Clearance of the tepidarium (the North Room) confirmed that it had been looted to the level of the finely paved floor, a fact made apparent by the discovery of a large hole ripped through to the subfloor hypocaust system as well as by the presence of several modern objects at floor level. Most of the tepidarium remained remarkably intact (fig. 25), and all four of its walls were still partially covered by their original plaster and contained numerous tubuli in situ. Two doorways were fully exposed; one led to the caldarium, while another connected to the West Room (tentatively identified as the frigidarium). Although only a small portion of the West Room was excavated, its east and south plastered walls bore numerous Greek graffiti as well as anthropomorphic and zoomorphic figural depictions. A series of contiguous plastered mudbrick and stone walls, forming three walls of a rectangular room, stood immediately southwest of the heated rooms of the bathhouse. The room featured an exceptionally well-preserved paved stone floor surrounded on the north and west by a large channel with a drain on either end. The form follows the typical plan of a Roman latrina. An in situ plaster lining appears to have extended to a uniform level (ca. 0.50 m) on the walls above the drainage channel, suggesting the presence of a wooden installation, perhaps a multiseat toilet bench. The location of the latrine adjacent to the

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balneum allowed for the secondary use of water exiting the baths. The Late Roman Castellum Three squares in the castellum provided the entire depth of the deposits inside the north, west, and south curtain walls. Also recorded were the full measurements of these walls, preserved to about 3.0 m in height and about 2.0 m in width and made of a rubble and mud core with alternating boulder-and-chink facing courses resting on stone socles wider than the walls. The stone walls appeared to have been topped with mudbrick. Additionally identified were interior partition walls in two of the three squares, confirming that rows of rooms lined the fort walls and faced onto an open courtyard, as was common in other Late Roman castella. The third square contained an additional stone wall. The discovery of a staircase on its west face in proximity to the southwest corner tower suggests that it may have provided access to the tower. A line of stone arches was parallel with the north curtain wall. The arches appeared to have supported ceiling beams in at least two rooms; one of the rooms produced an assemblage of three complete vessels and an oil lamp (online fig. 78). Numerous fragments of painted plaster were recovered, one of which yielded extensive remains of a finely painted Greek dipinto that had fallen from the west curtain wall. Two sondages excavated in Area B produced conclusive evidence for an arched gate in the center of the east curtain wall. The debris contained at least one finely cut voussoir with a mason’s mark. Based on preliminary ceramic readings, we hypothesize that the earliest preserved occupational strata date from the end of the third century to the beginning of the fourth century. All areas were continuously occupied through the fourth and fifth centuries with no major abandonment or destruction phases. The fort appears to have been abandoned after the fifth century. There is evidence for subsequent small-scale squatter’s fires as well as burial, though these produced little ceramic material and will be dated based on 14C tests of charcoal and textiles. At present, we assume these phases date considerably later than the fort’s main period of occupation.

humayma M. Barbara Reeves, Queen’s University, reports: In 2010, the Humayma Excavation Project reexamined field E077 at Humayma (ancient Hawara), where a small bathhouse—built in the Roman period and renovated in the Byzantine period—had been excavated in 1989. Subsequent probes had suggested

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Fig. 25. North Room (tepidarium) of the Late Roman military bathhouse at ‘Ayn Gharandal.

that the bathhouse was larger than originally thought and that there were remains of Nabataean buildings to its southwest. Field E077 was reopened to collect additional information about the transition from Hawara’s Nabataean to Roman-period community and to expand the plan and phasing of the bathhouse by excavating the remains of rooms not visible from the surface. Eighteen squares were opened or reopened around all four sides of the freestanding remains of the bathhouse. The 2010 data suggest that field E077 originally contained at least two finely constructed Nabataean structures comprised of carefully cut sandstone blocks and flagstone floors. These structures were probably damaged ca. 75–85 C.E., as evidenced by a large dump of broken pottery found beyond the eastern perimeter of the Nabataean structures. Crude walls overlying the original architecture suggest a period of squatter occupation following damage of the original Nabataean structures. Both the original Nabataean walls and the squatter walls were robbed in the second century C.E., and the Roman bathhouse was built over part of one of the Nabataean structures. This bathhouse was probably intended for the use of the Roman garrison stationed in the new fort built at Hawara immediately following the Roman annexation of the Nabataean kingdom.

Based on the 1989 excavations in the freestanding ruins of a seemingly complete bathhouse, the original excavator, J.P. Oleson, argued that the Roman-period bathhouse had contained only five rooms, whereas it had grown to contain six or seven rooms by the Byzantine period. This growth (and the small size of the original structure) does not seem reasonable when it is considered that the original Roman garrison at Hawara comprised about 500 soldiers, whereas the Byzantine-period garrison probably contained fewer than 200 soldiers. The new work revealed that the Roman-period bathhouse contained at least 11 rooms and was reduced in size (rather than expanded) during the Byzantineperiod renovations. The Roman bathhouse was also much grander than previously thought, containing a piscina (immersion basin) and a latrine (fig. 26). The problem of the bathhouse’s water supply, left unresolved in 1989, was solved by tracing a branch line connecting the northern quadrant of the bathhouse with the town’s ancient aqueduct. The new trenches revealed evidence of at least 27 different rooms dating to the Nabataean, Roman, or Byzantine periods. Some were bathing rooms, but other rooms were part of adjacent preexisting or contemporaneous structures. The high concentration of building activity in this sector suggests that the region

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between defended positions (at least by day) was critically important to the Ottomans.60 This is testimony to the chronic and ubiquitous nature of the insurgent threat represented by the Hashemite Arab forces operating in the desert in 1917 and 1918. Our investigations are chronicling the archaeological imprint of Ottoman overstretch and the character of their counterinsurgency effort through creatively militarizing the landscape.

wadi yutm

Fig. 26. Latrine (foreground) and piscina (above), Humayma.

surrounding the garrison’s bathhouse formed the core of the Roman settlement outside the fort.

hijaz railway line, ma’an to ramleh Nicholas J. Saunders and Neil Faulkner, University of Bristol, report: In 2010 and 2011, the Great Arab Revolt Project, in cooperation with Al-Hussein Bin Talal University, continued its reconnaissance, survey, and excavation of Ottoman sites associated with the Great Arab Revolt (1916–1918). The project team traveled north to south along the Hijaz railway line, investigating 10 sites in the area between Ma’an and Tell Shahm. The interdependent outposts protected the railway line (online fig. 79) and consisted of such features as rubble stone walls with loopholes, earth banks, communication and breastwork trenches, blockhouses, and stone tent rings laid out in a standardized and military order (online fig. 80). The 2010 and 2011 field seasons confirmed the interpretation of previous seasons that intervisibility

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John M. Scott, University of Bristol, reports: The 2011 Wadi Yutm Archaeological Survey (WYAS) is a component of the Great Arab Revolt Project based at the University of Bristol and undertaken in affiliation with the Al-Hussein Bin Talal University. The focus of the initial fieldwork was to gather archaeological information on World War I and the Great Arab Revolt of 1916–1918 and to address an archaeological data gap in the Wadi Yutm region (fig. 27) for all time periods. Thirty-five locations of ruins and cultural material concentrations were documented and combined into 14 sites. Four of these sites had been previously recorded; three were Roman-Nabataean fortifications, and the fourth was a late (1900) Ottoman garrison. All four (Khirbet al-Khalde, Khirbet al-Kithara, Khadra, and Merced) were substantially updated by the WYAS. The most significant of the 10 newly recorded sites include Asela, Al-Magrass, Mezfer, and Mughra. Asela consists of five locations of ruins (Areas A–E), one breached dam and reservoir (Area F), one small oasis-like area with at least two relatively shallow wells and several garden-like terraces (Area G), and one enclosed large terrace with a deep artesian well (Area H). These eight loci occur on either side of a 1.5 km stretch of the northern end of a small wadi (online fig. 81). Observed ceramics, ruins, and two partially standing structures indicate that the area was used from the Neolithic through the Turkish-Ottoman periods and possibly as late as the World War II period. Al-Magrass is located on high fingerlike ridges above Wadi Yutm and is difficult to reach from the drainage. The site consists of five locations (Areas A–E) that appear to be circular stone habitation structures spread along 800 m of the upper rim above the wadi. Area A covers approximately 1,500 m2 with four circular structures. Area B is approximately 4,000 m2 and includes about 30 circular stone structures. Area C measures 3,000 m2 and contains about 12 stone circles. Some of the largest Area C stone circles are distinct, circular, platform-like structures at the site’s highest point

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Fig. 27. Wadi Yutm Archaeological Survey project area, located just northeast of Aqaba (© 2012 Google Earth).

above the wadi floor. Area D is the most feature-dense locus and measures 3,900 m2 in size, containing more than 50 agglutinated circular stone structures. Area E is a large single stone circle located approximately 180 m northeast and up the valley from Area D, where water was probably more easily available. Ceramics, debitage, and milling stones are present across the site. Mezfer is located in a tributary drainage about 3 km west-northwest of Wadi Yutm. This widely spread site consists of seven standing Turkish-Ottoman buildings and three clusters of much older ruins associated with Iron Age and possibly Early Nabataean culture. Also present and associated with the Turkish-Ottoman occupation and possibly a later World War II–era occupation are subterranean structures known in military jargon as “spider holes.” These subterranean structures are scattered across the site and generally appear sufficient in size to contain one or two people. Artifacts associated with these spider holes include firearm cartridges from the late 1800s to the early 1900s and a material scatter from the mid 1900s. A cemetery with a few relatively recent-appearing graves and approximately 30 older (probably early 19th-century) burials was observed. Finally, five cists and two rock shelters that contain stone structures were documented on a small mountain located in the site’s northeastern quarter. These features overlook the lower ruins on the valley floor. The cists are generally small natural hollows in the bedrock sealed by rock walls with small formal openings. The rock shelters each contain up to three larger rock and mortar structures, which also exhibit

small formal openings similar to the smaller cists. Both types of features are hypothesized to be tombs, but no intact burials were found. Artifacts associated with the rock shelters suggest military use during World War II and later. Local residents have provided anecdotal evidence that this site was a Turkish-Ottoman garrison known as “Mane.” This post controlled a pass from Wadi Yutm to Wadi Arabah as well as nearby water. The garrison is alleged to have been attacked and captured by a local tribe of the Al-Howeitat during the Great Arab Revolt. Several combatants, including a Bedouin sheik, were reported to have been killed. Mughra consists of two clusters of features (Areas A and B) (online fig. 82) and three locations of petroglyphs. The site is in a topographic bowl at the northeast foot of Jebel Hirmas. Area A is situated on and around the main drainage confluence of the bowl at the western edge of the site. It measures 45,000 m2 and contains 12 square and rectangular block foundations for rooms, each surrounded by collapsed wall rubble. Some of these ruins appear to have been constructed on low earthen platforms, and they are aligned on a northwest–southeast axis. Area B is located 150 m east of Area A. It appears to be a cemetery with most of the graves looted. These suspected graves consist of about 45 semicircular stacked-stone walls and several circular dense clusters of rock that may have been monuments or cremation burials. Most of these grave-like features are aligned northwest–southeast in a 70 m long area on a low ridge. Approximately five additional features also suspected to be graves are located 35 m to

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the north. The three petroglyph locations are widely spaced. They include multiple depictions of ibex on the flat face of a boulder, an ostrich on a small boulder, and a quadruped and three lines on a small boulder.

islamic aylah (aqaba) Kristoffer Damgaard, University of Copenhagen, and Michael Jennings, University of Chicago, report: Aylah (modern Aqaba) constitutes one of the earliest urban units in Islamic history. It continued to function as such until the early 12th century C.E. In 2011, the Aylah Archaeological Project (AAP) conducted its second season of excavations in five coherent units (IM 1–5) in the town’s southwest quadrant (fig. 28). The AAP builds on the pioneering work of Donald Whitcomb, who excavated substantial parts of the site from 1986 to 1995. IM1 is a 10 x 10 m excavation unit explored during the 2008 and 2010 campaigns.61 Limited excavation was conducted here in 2011. Most importantly, the south balk was removed to reveal the morphology of walls extending between units IM1 and IM3 (online fig. 83). Unit IM2 extends the full length of both units IM1 and IM4 (20 m). The primary objective in 2011 was to expand the unit north of unit IM4 to reveal more of a large east–west street and its junction with an equally impressive perpendicular street. The exposed surfaces corresponded to Fatimid/Jarrahid levels (phase 1), and the stratigraphic sequence consisted of thin laminations with thicker fills interspersed. In the western end of unit IM2, a deep modern trash pit was removed and the historical stratum under it exposed. The latter consisted of a moist dark-brown soil with a high density of burnt olive pits. Samples were taken for future analysis. Excavation in unit IM3 was complicated in 2010 when a number of modern walls were found integrated with the latest historical walls. Both types featured the same techniques and materials (uncut granite cobbles set in a mud slurry), and this obfuscated architectural morphology. A primary goal of the 2011 season was therefore to distinguish between the modern and historical architecture and to remove features securely identified as modern. Several phase 1 (11th- to early 12th-century) surfaces and contexts were exposed and excavated. In the northern part of unit IM3, three new walls were identified (Walls 19, 21, and 25), which linked the phase 1 architecture there

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to that of unit IM1. In the western half of the unit, a fill was excavated in arbitrary spits, as it consisted of homogeneous beach sand without clear stratigraphy. Part of a collapsed mudbrick structure was identified along with two low stone walls that may link to features in IM5, but further investigation to confirm this is needed. In the southeast corner, two related floor surfaces were identified on either side of a doorway. In one room, three intact Early Islamic glass weights were found, including one embedded in a lump of corroded iron. Three small copper bowls were found in the same context. They were seemingly part of a scale device designed for weighing things in small quantities, and it is tempting to imagine that those things were traded goods, such as spices or gold dust. The surface also yielded several hand grinders, a basalt pestle, a whetstone, and the corroded but intact remains of a curved iron knife. The finds corroborate our working hypothesis that this area was heavily engaged in mercantile initiatives. The 2011 work in unit IM4 exposed a north–south street as wide as any other so far uncovered at Aylah. It was flanked on either side by large buildings. The street and associated buildings are clearly important features of Aylah’s southwest quadrant, and the project team was interested to ascertain if they had been used for mercantile activities (e.g., storage). The 2011 excavations revealed that the street continued south to the southern limit of the excavation unit and must have been an important thoroughfare connecting the beachfront with the rest of the town in Fatimid times. It appears that the street veers to the west in unit IM5, but the turn remains hidden by the balk. The street in unit IM5 is nevertheless narrower and preserved at a higher level, indicating that it is later than its counterpart in unit IM4. Excavations revealed that the east–west thoroughfare in unit IM4 had been blocked repeatedly and in multiple phases. Removing the east balk in unit IM4 allowed us to begin visualizing the building that flanked the street on the east. This large building, which is the same one already partially revealed in unit IM1, is situated on the corner of two major streets and must once have produced large quantities of liquid, as indicated by the discovery of at least three stone-lined cesspits that had been dug into the streets. We presume that these installations were related to some type of production or processing that occurred in this structure, but so far the archaeological evidence remains inconclusive.

61 An initial season was conducted in 2008 as part of the Belgian Islamic Aqaba Project (IAP), where Damgaard served as field director for the Aylah excavations. When the IAP was halted in early 2009 because of the untimely death of its director, J. De Meulemeester, the AAP was founded to continue the important work.

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Fig. 28. Detail of excavated area in Aylah (modern Aqaba) (W = wall; F = feature; IM = excavation unit is intra muros) (© Aylah Archaeological Project). City plan of Islamic Ayla (ca. 145 x 170 m) is shown left of key.

Wael Abu-Azizeh, [email protected] Aiysha Abu-Laban, [email protected] Susan E. Alcock, [email protected] Stefano Anastasio, [email protected] Trina Arpin, [email protected] Fiona M.C. Baker, [email protected] Karin Bartl, [email protected]

Francesco M. Benedettucci, [email protected] Ghazi Bisheh, [email protected] Louise Blanke, [email protected] Kent V. Bramlett, [email protected] Claudia Bührig, [email protected] Teresa Bürge, [email protected] Giorgia Cesaro, [email protected]

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Douglas R. Clark, [email protected] Jamie L. Clark, [email protected] Kristoffer Damgaard, [email protected] Erin Darby, [email protected] Robert Darby, [email protected] Khaled Douglas, [email protected] Shelby Dyann Webb, [email protected] Neil Faulkner, [email protected] Jonathan Ferguson, [email protected] Peter M. Fischer, [email protected] Sumio Fujii, [email protected] Christopher J. Gohm, [email protected] Jutta Häser, [email protected] Larry Herr, [email protected] Charlott Hoffmann Jensen, [email protected] Ulrich Hübner, [email protected] Michael Jennings, [email protected] Chang-Ho Ji, [email protected] David Johnson, [email protected] Zeidan Kafafi, [email protected] Donald R. Keller, [email protected] David L. Kennedy, [email protected] Morag M. Kersel, [email protected] Moritz Kinzel, [email protected] Litsa Kontorli-Papadopoulos, [email protected] Matthew V. Kroot, [email protected] Øystein S. LaBianca, [email protected] Ahmad Lash, [email protected] Hilary Lock, [email protected] Jesse C. Long, Jr., [email protected] Burton MacDonald, [email protected] Gerald L. Mattingly, [email protected] Bernd Müller-Neuhof, [email protected] Abdalla J. Nabulsi, [email protected] Lorenzo Nigro, [email protected] Gaetano Palumbo, [email protected] Anna Paolini, [email protected] Thanasis J. Papadopoulos, [email protected] Thomas R. Paradise, [email protected] Roberto Parenti, [email protected] Megan Perry, [email protected] James Pokines, [email protected] Konstantinos D. Politis, [email protected] Barbara A. Porter, [email protected] D. Scott Quaintance, [email protected] Jason Rech, [email protected] M. Barbara Reeves, [email protected] Suzanne Richard, [email protected] Joshua Robinson, [email protected] Marie-Jeanne Roche, [email protected] Gary O. Rollefson, [email protected] Maria Elena Ronza, [email protected] Yorke M. Rowan, [email protected] Adamantios Sampson, [email protected] Mario Santana-Quintero, [email protected]

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Nicholas J. Saunders, [email protected] John M. Scott, [email protected] Asma Shhaltoug, [email protected] Andrew M. Smith II, [email protected] Aaron J. Stutz, [email protected] Liv Nilsson Stutz, [email protected] Laurent Tholbecq, [email protected] Ingolf Thuesen, [email protected] Christopher A. Tuttle, [email protected] Azadeh Vafadari, [email protected] Koen Van Balen, [email protected] Dieter Vieweger, [email protected] Ona Vileikis, [email protected] Lucy Wadeson, [email protected] Bethany J. Walker, [email protected] Alan Walmsley, [email protected] Rikke Wulff Krabbenhøft, [email protected]

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