| go to Ann. Meeting page or session index | 2004
ASOR Annual Meeting |
| F R I D A Y S E S S I O N S | |
| A19) Problems in Ceramic Typology Celia Bergoffen, SCIEM Project, Presiding 82)
Mark Ziese, Cincinnati Bible Seminary Isolating temporal ceramic indicators for the Early Bronze II-III period is a difficult task. Part of the problem stems from the homogenous nature of ceramic assemblages from Early Bronze Age Palestine; part of the problem stems from a continued lack of published information. Both of these issues are addressed by this paper. Excavations at Tell Taannek between 1963 and 1967 unearthed the remains of a multi-period site, including the residues of an EB II-III fortified settlement. Unpublished ceramic evidence from this settlement contributes to a growing set of knowledge that offers promise for isolating temporal indicators for the EB II-III period. These will be outlined along with the suggestion that most residents of Tell Taannek were removed from–or resistant to–"imported" potting traditions that left a powerful imprint elsewhere in North Palestine. A preference for local wares over more expensive or exotic forms underlines a rural conservatism that is consistent with the site's location. 83)
Joseph Weinstein, BBN Technologies Traditional typologies have generally focused on vessel shape, but Middle Bronze Dipper Juglets are better classified by surface treatment: painted (LPW), combed, red/black/brown burnished, cream burnished, cream unburnished, plain, etc. Using this classification scheme, computer/statistical analysis of published finds from the Jericho tombs, Megiddo, and elsewhere reveals distinct patterns of chronological development and regional differentiation, and possibly evidence for class distinctions. The chronological sequence thus obtained both resembles and diverges from the sequence of dipper juglets from Tell el-Dab'a recently published by Kopetzky. It therefore contributes both to the correlation of Southern Levantine stratigraphy with the chronology of the Nile Delta, and to our understanding of the process of differentiation of the two cultures during the later part of the Middle Bronze. 84)
Paul Donnelly, University of Sydney, David Garnett, Helen Waldron, Becquerel Laboratories,
and R.V.S. Wright, University of Sydney
Chocolate-on-White Ware of the southern Levant dates to the Middle to Late Bronze
Ages (c1550 -1400 BC). Chocolate-on-White is a distinctive variant among a number
of white-slipped and decorated wares that developed in the southeastern Mediterranean
at this time. 85)
Carolina Aznar, Harvard University The contrast between the find location and manufacture origin of pottery vessels coming from archaeological excavations provides significant information on the exchanges within and between ancient societies. This paper will present part of the results of a typological, contextual and petrographic analysis conducted on a group of Iron Age II storage jars and Red Slip Ware bowls coming from several sites in the Southern Levant, including Tell Abu Hawam, Meggido, Lachish and Ashdod, among others. The results of this analysis will be used by Ms. Aznar to draw conclusions on the pottery, foodstuff and aesthetic item exchange networks used by the Israelites, the Philistines and the Phoenicians in the Southern Levant during the Iron Age II. 86) Itzhaq
Shai, Bar Ilan University Over 400 whole/complete vessels, including coastal types (for example the Ashdod Ware decoration) alongside Judean types (such as the pre-LMLK jar), and imported pottery (Cypro-Phoenician) dating to the Iron Age IIA, have been discovered during the first six seasons of excavation at Tell es-Safi/Gath. The importance of this group is not only due to its size and excellent preservation, but also the rarity of such assemblages in this period in southern Palestine. In fact, the lack of securely dated assemblages dating to this phase from Philistia and its environs is one of the key arguments for the "low chronology" of the Iron Age. The paper will present the various classes and types according to families, while discussing the implications of the material culture (including chronology, continuity and assimilation) of the Philistines in this period based on the typological analysis. Furthermore, issues regarding problems in defining assemblages when lacking a parallel repertoire.
A20) Reports on Current Excavations, ASOR-Affiliated I Jennie R. Ebeling, University of Evansville, Presiding 87)
Susan Cohen, Montana State University Gesher is a small Middle Bronze Age IIA cemetery site located in the northern Jordan Valley in Israel. As the role of the small settlements and rural population that provided the bases of the economic and political networks that supported the urbanizing Canaanite MB IIA culture remains imperfectly understood, Gesher is situated in a position to help shed light on this issue. While the initial excavations at Gesher in 1986 and 1987 indicated the site's importance for examining population and settlement in the rural interior of Canaan in the MB IIA, additional burials and materials uncovered during the renewed excavations in 2002 and 2003 contributed to further understandings of the nature of the cemetery. The 2004 season represents a continuation of previous excavation and analysis at the site, with an increased focus on understanding the extent of the cemetery and the manner in which the burials and mortuary remains help to illustrate Canaanite burials practices and the role of small rural sites in the overall development of the MB IIA in this region. This paper will present the results of the 2004 excavations at Gesher, and will link the resultant biological and archaeological data with material from other, similar Middle Bronze Age IIA cemetery sites. The paper will also present the preliminary conclusions regarding the nature of the cemetery and its role in contributing to current knowledge regarding the development of Canaan in the early Middle Bronze Age. 88)
Rudolph H. Dornemann, ASOR The Tell Qarqur expedition returned to the field for a brief season in the summer of 2004. The emphasis was on studying materials in storage from previous seasons and finishing specific sequences in the field. We concentrated on mapping Early Bronze and Iron Age remains in Areas A and E. The Iron I sequence was continued in soundings in Areas B and D to reach the Late Bronze II levels. The exposure of Iron II architecture in Area A continued in a test area. The Persian Period construction over the Iron II building in Area E 9-12 was removed and a larger portion of the Iron II building exposed. The Early Bronze IVB levels of E1-4 were clarified. More of the Early Bronze IVA levels in Area A, Squares 6/7 and 21-24, were exposed, including the remains of the massive columns. 89)
Suzanne Richard, Gannon University, and Jesse C. Long, Jr., Lubbock Christian
University From the outset of the project, the Khirbet Iskander Excavations have sought to investigate the level of socio-political complexity at one of the few major sites in the so-called "nomadic interlude" of the EB IV period (ca. 2300-2000 BCE). Eight seasons of excavations have revealed permanent multiphase occupation, vestiges of antecedent urban characteristics, intrasite differentiation, monumental architecture, and evidences for elites in residence. In 1997 and 2000, excavations brought to light new strata belonging to the EB II-III urban periods. Substantial, well-preserved structures just inside the fortifications confirmed the view that the founding of the fortifications at the site predate the EB IV period, and that the EB IV community rebuilt and reused the defenses. The season's focus this year was solely on these pre-EB IV layers in Area B at the northwest corner of the mound. The key objectives of this field season were to a) expose more of the aforesaid structures in order to study complete architectural units in the period, b) investigate the earlier mudbrick fortification line discovered in a section below the later stone defensive wall, and c)investigate further an area where transitional EB III/EB IV ceramics have emerged. The project has broadened its research goals to documenting that elusive EB III/EB IV transition, as well as to tracing the processes of urbanization at the site. It is now clear that Khirbet Iskander was occupied throughout the Early Bronze Age. 90)
Rami Arav, University of Nebraska at Omaha The 2004 excavations project will concentrate on the Iron Age IIA city gate. This gate consists of two main strata 5 and 6. Stratum 5 of the gate was built in the mid 9th century BCE and destroyed in the Assyrian campaign of Tiglat Pileser III in 732 BCE. Stratum 6 consists of two sub strata (6b,6a)and dates earlier. How early? When was it built? When and who destroyed the two different sub-strata is the subject of the digging of 2004 season.
A21) Individual Submissions III Jill Baker, AIAR, Presiding 91)
Adam Aja, Harvard University Some topics remain taboo in polite society. While such forbidden fruit inevitably drives this topic underground to be whispered about or chuckled at behind closed doors, at times this clandestine discussion erupts into a more public sphere that can positively explore the subject. Waste management remains a serious issue, even in our modern, industrial world. One only needs a single day spent wilderness-camping or examining the amount a waste produced in the home or office to recognize the value of modern plumbing and curbside garbage disposal. Although ancient methods are considered unhygienic by modern standards, it is clear that ancient people, whether in rural, urban, or maritime environments, made an attempt to effectively deal with the by-products of everyday living. In this open forum, I will offer a limited exploration into the often-avoided topic of excrement and domestic waste management in the Iron Age of the Ancient Near East. The nature of the subject creates difficulty for study. The literary evidence is scarce and the published archaeological evidence tends to focus on more glamorous areas of material culture. Regardless, we can reconstruct a feasible picture of waste management based upon the available architectural, textual, and material evidence, thereby gaining insight into the daily life practices of the peoples of the Ancient Near East. 92)
Gary Arbino, Golden Gate Seminary For the past century, excavations throughout the Levant have been digging up, and often discarding as unimportant, many small, ubiquitous reworked ceramic disks. These sherds have been reworked from body sherds, bases, handles and other parts of vessels. The exact function of these items has often been assumed, but rarely discussed. This paper hopes to shed some light on these disks by examining them within the various contexts in which they have been found. The large collection of these sherds from Tel Miqne-Ekron forms the basis for this investigation. The Miqne collection spans the entire excavated history of the site, from the Roman/Byzantine to the Late Bronze with every Field represented. From contextual and statistical analysis of this large group of disks and comparison to other reworked shapes and other assemblages, some conclusions may be made which point to their function. This may well encourage the collection of these cultural artifacts at more sites. 93)
Kasia Chudzik, University of Saskatchewan, and Carrie Dunn, University of Saskatchewan
This paper grew out of an interest in the widely understood subject of artifact
conservation and restoration. Ceramic reconstruction usually is considered an
occupation of specialized technicians. However, it is imperative for all archaeologists
to recognize that their own involvement in the process of conservation is vital
to the better identification and analysis of archaeological materials. We would
like to argue the essential role conservation and reconstruction skills should
play in every archaeologist's field and scholarly practice. By identifying simplified
techniques, these skills can be more easily learnt and employed by archaeologists,
whether in field or laboratory conditions. Through testing and experimentation,
we would be able to create individualized methods of ceramic treatments. While
considering their applicability and effectiveness we would like to keep in mind
other important issues, such as environmental contamination, health hazards, and
artifact sustentation. 94)
Aaron Burke, University of Chicago Recent research undertaken concerning Middle Bronze Age fortifications in the Levant has prompted a re-evaluation of existing estimates of the labor and materials required in the construction of earthen ramparts. While the conclusions of these estimates, which were published more than a decade ago for sites in the southern Levant, have been widely accepted without careful consideration, various data are available which suggest that these estimates are exaggerated and that more accurate estimates can be provided for rampart construction. Additionally, since unambiguous evidence exists which indicates that these ramparts were also crowned by mudbrick fortification walls, estimates for the labor and resources required in mudbrick wall construction, which were omitted from previous studies, must be added to these estimates. This paper will, therefore, present the data used in these calculations, which consist of rates of construction derived from Old Babylonian sources and ethnographic data for earthmoving and brick construction. Second, it will provide revised estimates for these construction projects which will then be compared to previous estimates. Finally, observations will be offered regarding the significance of these findings for understanding the society and economy of the Levant during the Middle Bronze Age. 95)
Oded Borowski, Emory University
Most reports of archaeological excavations concentrate on stratigraphical details,
ceramic dating, information concerning architectural elements, lists of finds
and various samples. Most reports do not attempt to integrate the diverse data
in order to paint a comprehensive picture of what life was like at the site under
discussion during a particular period.
A22) Problems in the Archaeology of Central Transjordan Debra Foran, University of Toronto and Andrew Graham, University of Toronto, Presiding 96)
Thomas Estrup, University of Copenhagen
The aim of this paper is to show how theory in anthropology of religion can be
applied to the study of religious architecture and its potential for our understanding
of socio-political transformations. Ritual activity and religious belief constitute
a religious ideological cornerstone for the socio-political and economic transformations
of early complex societies. The emerging elite needs an ideology in order to legitimize
its power and to explain the social inequality. Religious architecture reflects
ritual activity which in turn reflects religious ideology. 97)
Robert Chadwick, Bishop's University
This paper will examine gates and gate entrances at urban sites in central Jordan
and surrounding regions during the Iron II period. This paper has two goals. First,
it will examine the role that topography and site elevation played in gate design
and construction. It will be argued that, in addition to economic and defensive
considerations, the size and shape of gates were determined by topography and
the physical settings encountered at particular sites. 98) Cynthia
Finlayson, Brigham Young University
One of the most intriguing archaeological sites associated with both water and
the rituals of paganism and early Christianity in the ancient Near East was the
Birketein, the "Two Pools or Cisterns," situated just north of the ruins of Jerash.
The Birketein hosted the Maiuma Water Festival held annually to venerate the goddess
of love, Aphrodite/Venus. The festival was celebrated by the plunging of temple
priestesses into the cistern complex. This symbolized the renewal of their virginity
as well as honored the fertility rituals of Aphrodite's cult centers throughout
the Mediterranean. 99)
Debra Foran, University of Toronto The Muslim Conquest of the mid-7th century had a profound effect on the socio-political climate in central Transjordan. What was once believed to be a period of decline and abandonment is, in actuality, characterized by cultural continuity and sustained economic prosperity. An abundance of archaeological and epigraphical evidence attests to the construction of new churches and the renovation of existing structures. However, the specific fate of the monasteries of the region has yet to be examined. A number of monasteries were founded in the area surrounding Mount Nebo during the Byzantine period, and by the end of the 6th century as many as nine monastic communities had been established, making them an integral part of society in the Madaba region. When the Umayyads instituted the capliphate in Damascus and absorbed central Transjordan into the Islamic Empire, the monks would have been isolated from the Christian Empire that had until now assured their prosperity. How did the monks cope with this change and what effect did it have on their status in the region? And is the new view of the Late Byzantine-Early Islamic transition applicable to these monastic communities? These questions can be answered through a careful examination of the archaeological, inscriptional, and iconoclastic evidence from each building. The picture that emerges is slightly different from what has been observed elsewhere, the Muslim Conquest appears to have had a more of an influence on the monasteries of the region than the rest of the Christian community. 100)
Bethany Walker, Grand Valley State University, and Øystein LaBianca, Andrews
University The 2004 season at Tall Hisban was concerned with the ecological, economic, and social impact of state land policies on the Iron Age through Early Modern villages and indigenous responses to them. To this purpose, six fields were investigated. Excavation continued in Area L, where the extent and floor plan of the Mamluk complex's storeroom was determined and data acquired on the character, role, and length of use of the citadel as an administrative center and garrison. New squares in Areas C and B investigated the architectural remains of the pre-modern village in an effort to determine the chronology and layout of the settlement in the Islamic periods. Continued excavation of Area M further clarified Iron Age and Roman use of the tell and contextualized a Nabatean inscription discovered in 2001. An environmental and water survey of Wadi al-Majarr began this season to identify agricultural and water structures, collect soil samples, and gauge the potential of the wadi for future GPR investigations. Rounding out the multi-disciplinary investigations of this season was the architectural exploration of the modern village, begun in 2001, combined with ethnoarchaeological fieldwork aimed at elucidating the survival strategies of local residents in adapting to fluctuating levels of intensity of local administration and regional integration. A23) ETANA (Electronic Tools and Ancient Near Eastern Archives) Workshop I: ETANA Digital Library Project Theme: Update and Demonstration James W. Flanagan, Case Western Reserve University and Douglas R. Clark, ASOR, Presiding 101) Edward
A. Fox, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University 101)
Randall W. Younker, Andrews University, and Art Chadwick, Southwestern Adventist
University This paper will present the results of a new mapping and drafting technology utilizing the Z Max GPS Survey System at Tall Jalul, Jordan. This new GPS system is superior to earlier systems in that, among other things, it locks on to a larger number of satellites (both U.S. and Russian) which enables a more accurate location of geographic points-to a scale of centimeters. It employs ADAPT-RTK-Automatic Decorrelation and Parameter Tuning and Real Time Kinematic positioning. The geographical data from this new GPS system can be used by a new graphic software that can create 3D images that can be manipulated in a numbers of way for research and publishing. This new GPS system has been used successfully in the field of paleontology for mapping and creating 3D images of dinosaur skeletons, including small bones and teeth-it holds tremendous potential for archaeology. Its potential lies in the area of more rapid and accurate mapping and drafting, plus the data are all in a digital format for easy exchange with scholars. The paper will conclude with brief discussion of how this new technology might be integrated into the goals of ETANA. A24) Reports on Current Excavations, ASOR-Affiliated II Yorke Rowan, University of Notre Dame, Presiding 103)
Leigh-Ann Bedal, Pennsylvania State University - Erie
The discovery of a garden and pool-complex at the heart of Petra, capital of ancient
kingdom of Nabataea, has led to a reassessment of Petra's City Center and a heightened
awareness of the role of gardens and water display in monumental cultural centers
dating to the Late Hellenistic and Early Roman periods. In addition, it has provided
a welcomed opportunity to explore and develop methodologies for the archaeological
investigation of gardens within the context of monumental architecture and in
an arid, desert environment. 104) Douglas
Edwards, University of Puget Sound
From 1998-2003 a multi-disciplinary team has explored Khirbet Qana, a multi-period
village site. The focus of the studies was the site's relationship to the local
and regional landscape from the earliest evidence for human activity to the present
day. This presentation examines the transformation of the site, especially as
it moved from a Jewish village in the early Roman period to a Byzantine pilgrim
site in the fifth/sixth centuries C.E. Khirbet Qana had a long period of occupation
as indicated by isolated finds such as a Neolithic arrowhead and a Bronze age
cylinder seal. Occupation within the perimeter of the village is largely confined
to two areas, an acropolis and a lower village to the south. A miqveh, stone vessels,
and an apparent synagogue provide important clues to the character of the village
in the Roman period. AMS 14C analysis has allowed the dating of several structures
including in the case of the synagogue complex different building phases. The
lower village contains a Christian pilgrim cave, apparently associated with the
miracle story of Jesus turning water to wine. The cave functioned as a pilgrim
site through the Crusader period. 105)
Christopher Foley, University of Saskatchewan This paper presents the results of a recent archaeological survey that was conducted as a component of the Wadi ath-Thamad Archaeological Project. The survey mapped the Iron Age fortress of Rujm ar-Rumayl, together with a number of outlying cisterns and wall features. The fortress is strategically located on the southwestern escarpment of the Thamad graben overlooking the plain surrounding the junction of the Wadis Zafaran and Thamad. The site is in close proximity to a contemporary open air shrine located to the south overlooking the westwards extension of the wadi system. The fortress, external cisterns and wall features, together with the shrine, comprise an extensive complex for which there are two probable explanations. The first is that the complex served as a control and provisioning point along an Iron Age north-south highway traversing the Thamad graben at this point. The second option to consider, an extension of the first, is that during the Iron Age a settlement grew up around the fortress of Rujm ar-Rumayl.While some of the wall features located outside the fortress's moat are suggestive of terrace walls and others of large animal enclosures, some are suggestive of dwellings. While individually neither a settlement nor the ability to provide supplies for road traffic might account for the unusual number of storage features and walls, the combined impact of settlement and provisioning might make the large number of cisterns and other features located outside of the Rumayl fortress explicable. 106)
Robert J. Bull, Drew University
The Drew-McCormick Expedition to Tell Balatah (Shechem) determined that the last
walled city in the mound at Tell Balatah (Shechem) was Hellenistic (325 B.C. to
110 B.C.). It was the chief city of the Samaritans. Robert J. Bull of Drew University
excavated Tell-er Ras, positioned on the northernmost peak of Mt. Gerizim, 300
m directly above the remains of Shechem. Theme: Current Excavations Jennifer C. Ross, Hood College, Presiding 107)
Marie-Henriette Gates, Bilkent University
Excavations at Kinet Höyük, an ancient harbor on the Bay of Iskenderun,
have since 1995 uncovered 325 m2 of a large-scale building
that burned in the late 17th c./16th c. BC because of earthquake, and was then
sealed off by a thick flood deposit. The exposed sectors of storerooms and workshop
areas have produced in situ finds providing an instructive cultural and chronological
middle ground between Kinet's west Syrian neighbors Alalakh and Ebla, and Cilician
Tarsus. The building's contents and furnishings also give a lively picture of
this provincial administrative center's industries, household goods and food supplies
during the late Middle Bronze Age. 108)
Timothy Matney, University of Akron This paper summarizes archaeological excavation, geophysical and geomorphological survey conducted at the Assyrian regional center of Ziyaret Tepe between 1997 and 2004. Ziyaret Tepe is located on the Tigris River between the modern cities of Diyarbakir and Batman in southeastern Turkey and served as a major urban center within the Assyrian empire from the 9th through the 7th centuries BC. The focus of the paper is the latest seasons of fieldwork in 2003-2004 and on-going analyses of material recovered in earlier excavations. In particular, this paper focuses on the documentation of the Late Assyrian urban settlement: fortifications, elite and non-elite residential architecture, monumental public buildings and an small archive of cuneiform tablets. The implications of this work for reconstructing the nature and functioning of the Assyrian city at Ziyaret Tepe is discussed, as is the role of subsurface geophysical survey utilizing both magnetic gradiometry and electrical resistivity techniques in documenting the location of structures within the Assyrian city. Finally, this paper discusses our continuing geomorphological study of the surrounding landscape with a focus on documenting the impact of Assyrian urbanization on the region. 109)
Roger Matthews, University College London The rugged landscape of north-central Turkey, situated between Ankara and the Black Sea, hosted a broad variety of human communities through the millennia of its past. Recent research here has included a multi-period regional survey, Project Paphlagonia, directed by Dr. Roger Matthews (now of University College London), which involved five seasons of extensive and intensive survey. Amongst some 300 detected archaeological sites of all periods, from Palaeolithic to Ottoman, a clear group of sites comprises those with evidence of fortifications. These sites are located on natural prominences, either in very remote locations or at strategically significant points in the landscape. They may have served a range of functions, including refuge, retreat, and control of routes of communications. Such sites can be difficult to assign a precise date, due to paucity of surface materials, but in general they appear as early as the third millennium BC and are most commonly dated to the Late Bronze Age, Iron Age, and Late Byzantine periods. In this paper I argue that they can be associated with episodes of severe stress and instability across the entire region of northern Anatolia, and thus in terms of settlement can be contrasted with more peaceable episodes in the region, such as that of the Roman imperial age. 110)
Sharon R. Steadman, SUNY Cortland, and Ronald Gorny, University of Chicago Work at this large mound continued in the 2004 season. Our focus centered on the Byzantine remains on top of the mound as well as to the north on the lower terrace. Our belief that the top of the mound was used as both a military garrison as well as the religious center during the Byzantine period was investigated. Beyond these endeavors we further explored the possibility that the lower terrace south of the mound features a significant residential area dating to the Byzantine and possibly earlier periods. Finally, other excavations relating to the Hittite, Early Bronze Age, and Chalcolithic periods were undertaken in order to better the occupation at the site during these periods as well as the transitions between them.
A26) Southern Levantine Archaeology: Crossing Modern Political Borders Elizabeth Bloch-Smith, Tel Dor Excavations, Presiding 111)
Yuval Goren, Tel Aviv University
Ancient Near Eastern archives of cuneiform texts contain numerous tablets whose
origin is unknown. Letters often contain the name and address of the sender, but
not always. Moreover, the location of some ancient Near Eastern countries and
towns has not yet been clearly established. Recently, we have conducted a study
which approaches the problem of locating the provenance of the Amarna tablets
through mineralogical and chemical analyses of over 300 documents. The system
has proved itself reliable, and has supplied highly interesting results. In a
current study, we apply similar methodology on the corpus of second and first
millennia BC cuneiform texts from the southern Levant according to a planned problem-oriented
research program. 112)
Aaron Brody, Pacific School of Religion
Five seasons of excavations in Tel Akko's Area H were conducted from 1979-1984.
Seven phases were defined from the MBA to the Hellenistic period. I will discuss
conclusions for the Bronze and Iron Age phases in Area H, localized Stratum 7-4.
113)
Sharon Zuckerman, Hebrew University
Hazor of the Late Bronze Age is a well-known Canaanite polity, both through contemporary
written documents and its archaeological remains. The city is considered one of
the most powerful and flourishing Canaanite kingdoms in the second millennium
BC (Middle and Late Bronze Ages). The glory of Hazor came to an abrupt and violent
end in the Late Bronze Age, an event which has been a major issue in the research
of the site. 114)
Stefan Muenger, University of Fribourg
Ancient Kinneret (Tell el-Oreimeh/Tel Kinrot), situated on the northwestern shore
of the Sea of Galilee, will be in the focus of the paper. The "Kinneret Regional
Project" - a German-Finnish-Swiss joint expedition - currently explores the
site. The beginning of the settlement at Kinneret was possibly as early as in
the Chalcolithic period. Habitation is attested until Ottoman times. However,
the settlement history was not continuous throughout the past. Major gaps indicate
changes in population and when less evident they are e.g. witnessed in diverse
food patterns or different use of livestock. Kinneret had its heydays during some
parts of the Bronze and especially during the Early Iron Ages when it was one
the most prominent city in the greater region. However, regarding the identity
of the population of the Early Iron Age city there are still uncertainties.
A27) Outreach Education: Communicating Archaeology to the Public Gloria London, ASOR Outreach Education Presiding 115)
Pam Wheat, Fulton, TX Theme: Archaeological Reports David F. Graf, University of Miami, Presiding 115)
Friedbert Ninow, Theologische Hochschule Friedensau In the course of the Wadi ash-Shkafiya Survey Project which was established to collect archaeological data from one of the main tributary wadis of Wadi al-Mujib east of the Dead Sea a number of new sites were discovered. Among these is Khirbat al-Mamariyah, which according to the pottery finds, places the site in the same category as a number of other Iron I sites that are similarly situated at the northern and eastern edge of the Moabite plateau. This presentation seeks to evaluate this concentration of Iron I sites in the immediate region. 116)
John Peter Oleson, University of Victoria We plan in 2004 to build on the results of previous excavation in the fort and of a geophysical survey of the fort and surrounding area in 2002. We hope to complete the exposure of several important structures that will broaden our understanding of this important fort, one of the very few principate forts in the Near East. A second season of geophysical survey will be extended to several new areas. Several of the rooms excavated in the praetorium (unit commander's residence) have colourful mosaic floors, the only mosaic floors in the Hisma. More mosaics should appear as the remaining rooms are excavated. We hope to identify the granary and recover its complete plan. We also will attempt to trace much of the pressurized, terracotta water pipeline that served several structures within the fort, possibly allowing us to find the latrine and fountains. Outside the fort, we will examine several structures in the vicus (civilian settlement) associated with the fort, and possible traces of the Via Nova Traiana identified by geophysical survey. These structures provide striking testimony of the importance of this well-preserved fort. 117)
Orit Shamir, Israel Antiquities Organization Three sites from the Early Islamic period were selected for analysis: (1)Yotvata: twenty eight wool textiles and 17 textile impressions on 'Negabite' pottery discovered at a building Yotvata (35x 35 m) which probably served as a farm house and a way station. Some of the textiles have alternating bands in natural colors and a few are dyed blue in various shades that are very shiny and others reveal remains of sewing threads used for mending, patching, joining and hemming. (2) Nahal Shahak: Sixteen textile fragments were uncovered at buildings on the site. They are made of wool, goat hair and linen. The most important one is light brown wool decorated with a purple-red band composed of both wool and goat hair and red bands made of wool. The red and purple-red dyes have been identified as madder. (3) Nahal Omer: Two hundred fifty textiles were discovered in the environs, and six textile fragments were recovered from the ruins of the buildings. The textiles are made of cotton, linen, wool, goat hair, and silk. Eight cotton fragments are decorated in warp ikat that is colored blue, brown, reddish-brown, tan, red, or combinations of these colors. These finds contrast sharply with the rather drab assemblages characterizing nearby sites of the same period. The origin and use of the materials, the spinning and weaving production, the dying process and the colors used in decoration of these textiles will be discussed. A29) Archaeology of Anatolia II Theme: Social Systems and Material Culture Sharon R Steadman, SUNY Cortland, Presiding 118)
Moise Isaac, UCLA This paper seeks to interpret the Karatepe Phoenician inscriptions as a symbol of textual social discourse and evaluates its use in transforming social identity. In order to achieve this task, we will first determine the nature of social discourse and language in which major discussions will center on linguistic anthropology and the ethnography of communication. Secondly, an analysis of textual discourse, scribes, and community perceptions about public texts will follow. The importance of text and representation within culturally constructed environments will conclude this paper. 119)
Paul Zimansky, Boston University and SUNY Stony Brook Excavations in the outer town at Ayanis have brought to light ceramic evidence suggesting of a group of Assyrians may have been in residence there in the mid 7th Century BCE. This is not entirely unexpected given Rusa II's testimony that he brought captive Assyrians and other population groups to the site. A new dimension is added to this by the recent discovery near Van of a stele mentioning sacrifices to the god Assur. The paper discusses the relationship of these sources and argues that the worship of Assur in the vicinity of Van and reflects the multi-cultural composition of the kingdom of Urartu. 120)
Marie Marley, SUNY Binghamton
Consumption studies of the prehistoric Near East often fall into two camps; food
production in relation to the domestication of plants and animals and secondly
in feasting contexts. What is skipped over is what lies between, the quotidian
practices of food preparation for the general community. It is in these daily
activities, however, that important information about these past communities can
be found. 121)
Deirdre Fulton, Pennsylvania State University The practice of deity worship on mountaintops is found throughout the Mediterranean. In Anatolia, Iron Age cult sites dot the landscape and Greek tradition tells of the encounters of gods and goddesses on mountaintops both in Anatolia and across the Aegean. This paper will examine the settings, monuments, and traditions associated with them in light of the Anatolian and Greek sources. Attention will focus on double throne carvings, such as those found on Mount Sipylus and Phrygia. I will focus on the relationship between these seats of honor and the ritual significance of divine kingship and marriage.
K. Lawson Younger, Jr., Trinity International University, Presiding 122)
Fredrick Mabie, UCLA/Talbot School of Theology The scribal auxiliary mark known as the 'Glossenkeil' is used approximately 181 times in 93 texts in the Amarna corpus, overwhelmingly in letters hailing from the regions of Syro-Canaan. This paper will seek to illustrate that this scribal auxiliary mark was regularly employed beyond its default role of a gloss marker. Especially notable in this study is the likelihood that this mark was used to denote emphasis and possibly even to mark direct speech. In addition to the proposed syntactical functions of the Glossenkeil, the different graphemic forms of the Glossenkeil (and the implication for regional scribal conventions) will be highlighted in this presentation. 123)
James K. Hoffmeier, Trinity International University
The ongoing excavations at Tell el-Borg, a military site on Egypt's eastern frontier,
continued during March and April 2004. Located 5 kms. SE of Tell Hebua, ancient
Sile (Tjaru), this site may well be the second fort on the sequence of the famed
Seti I relief at Karnak, viz. "The Dwelling of the Lion." 124)
Eliot Braun, Israel Antiquities Authority Ever since the discovery of a royal Egyptian symbol (serekh) of King Narmer at Tel Erani, scholars have been aware of interaction between the southern Levant and Egypt in late Proto-dynastic/Late EB I times. Several recent decades of discoveries have produced a prodigious amount of evidence indicating a considerably greater degree of interaction during this period than was hitherto understood. Scholars have suggested a number of different models for interpreting this evidence. Models include a military campaign, an empire based on extensive tribute extracted from a south Levantine province, a highly developed colonial system in the region of southern Israel under an Egyptian administration, and an extensive trade network between these regions. New data from Tel Lod and several sites in the Soreq Basin of south-Central Israel presented in this paper help to place evidence for Egyptian-South Levantine interaction within its broader context. This discussion introduces recent finds, including the largest, site-specific assemblage of Egyptian serekhs found outside the Nile Valley. This new evidence argues for a more complicated pattern or relationships within the specified chronological parameters, one of changing degrees and forms through the trajectory of time. 125)
Jonathan David, Pennsylvania State University This paper argues that nearly all of Herodotus' anecdotes about Egyptian kings are explicitly or implicitly tied to what the anthropologist Jan Vansina calls "mnemotechnic" devices, and that this association stems from Herodotus' method of inquiry. Herodotus repeatedly cites as sources the priests of the Memphite Hephaistos temple, whose stories are chiefly attached to local monumental constructions. For example, Min, Moiris, Sesostris, Proteus, Rhampsinitos, Asychis, Sethos, Psammetichos, and Amasis each built at least one monument of the precinct. The remaining named kings are Pheros, Cheops, Chephren, Mykerinos, Sabakos, the Dodekarchs, and the Saites, each of whose stories reference constructions elsewhere. With the exception of Anysis, every named king is connected with a major monument. Those with multiple tales are connected with multiple works. While examining Herodotus' histories of the thirteen pre-Saite dynasty kings (2.99-142) in light of the findings of modern ethnographic historians, this paper challenges the conventional view of Herodotus' source citations and methodology advocated recently by such classicists as Donald Lateiner, Alan Lloyd, and Rosaria Munson. It shows definitively that Herodotus' oral sources for the majority of his "legendary" material resulted from monument tours at Memphis, Giza, and Sais, a finding paralleled in his other books at Delphi, Samos, and Babylon. Some implications of this observation, both for Herodotus' historiography and for the fifth-century life of the Ptah temple, are briefly explored. Only after answering the important questions raised by this study should analysis proceed to issues of reliability, historical accuracy, and the use of Herodotus for constructive historiography. 126)
Peter Feinman, Institute of History, Archaeology and Education
The relationship between the Egypt and the land of Canaan was one of long duration.
During the prehistoric and early dynastic periods of Egypt, the relationship has
been characterized as one of intermittent and isolated activities. The first change
to be noted occurred with the emergence of the Hyksos. The world as the Egyptians
knew it turned topsy-turvy with people from beyond the land of ma'at now ruling
the people of the civilized world. To some extent, this period, the Second Intermediate
Period or Middle Bronze IIB illustrates the reality of two people in contact speaking
different languages as the different nomenclature today for the same time period
suggests.
A31) Material Culture in Ottoman Syro-Palestine Theme: The role of local notables and throne villages in the decentralized socio-political conditions in southwest Bilad es-Sham during the 18th-19th centuries Bert de Vries, Calvin College, Presiding 127)
Kamal Abdulfattah, Birzeit University The
weakening of the central Ottoman imperial administration due to the defeats in
central Europe beginning in 1687 (Siege of Vienna) and the Treaty of Karlowitz
(1799), had resulted in an overall decentralization of the once very powerful
central imperial administration ruled from Istanbul. That resulted in the emergence
of provincial and sub provincial local powers throughout the Ottoman territories. 128) Nazmi
Al-Ju'beh, Riwaq Center for Architectural Conservation and Birzeit University
The throne villages, approximately twenty-four in number, reflected an Ottoman
administrative strategy suitable for the political and social circumstances of
highlands of rural Palestine during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The
throne village architecture consisted of core feudal mansions and castles, which
are mostly still intact. These castles were the seats of local power, asserted
in the vacuum of weak central Ottoman government. Most of these castles are in
bade shape, deteriorating and in need of emergency plans to rescue this important
indicator of history of Palestine. 129)
Hamed Salem, Birzeit University
This paper presents an archaeological model of Ottoman settlement system, land
use, population movement and economic constraints in the Jenin region of Palestine.
This paper will show that the specific settlement patterns were the result of
cultural and natural causes respectively. 130)
Eveline van der Steen, AIAR
Akila Agha was one of the most charismatic tribal leaders of the 19th century.
Son of an Egyptian immigrant, he created a powerful tribal force in the Galilee,
and outmaneuvered the Ottoman government on several occasions. He had a strong
influence on the complex political and social structure of 19th century society,
which mainly consisted of interacting and competing tribes, but he never crossed
the border from tribal leadership to other, more absolute forms of leadership. 131)
Lynda Carroll, Binghamton University
Research at Tall Hisban has been a model for studies of the Ottoman Period in
Jordan. Over the years, archaeologists, historians, architectural historians,
and ethnographers have each contributed to our understanding of this site, and
provided a clearer picture of settlement, subsistence, and land use during the
16th through 20th centuries. The 19th century Qasr at Hisban presents an interesting
case study of how settlement and subsistence linked this site to the political
economies of the late Ottoman period. The late 19th century was a time of major
socio-economic change in Trans-Jordan, as Ottoman land tenure systems emphasized
privatization, and large scale fortified farmsteads appeared across the Trans-Jordan
landscape. Although the Qasr at Hisban was a relatively small fortified farmstead,
it provides potential example of how this Qasr related to both local and widespread
changes that occurred during the Late Ottoman period. 132)
Adam Fenner, Andrews University, and Øystein LaBianca, Andrews University
'Throne villages' have been discussed by Suad Amiry and others, and through their
work an outline for determining the requirements for a 'throne village' can be
ascertained. As such villages typically were ruled by a 'strongman,' they provide
an empirical context for studying the nature of supra-tribal social organization
during Ottoman times in the Southern Levant. Aaron Brody, Pacific School of Religion, and Ezra Marcus, University of Haifa, Presiding 133)
Jana Owen, Ozarks Technical Community College Archaeological
survey in the southern Sultanate of Oman has illuminated a potential maritime
interaction pattern linking a number of natural harbors found both along the southern
coastline as well as a number of island groups. This study will concentrate on
examining these cultural patterns from the late Classical and early Medieval Islamic
periods, focusing on the settlements at Mahalla, Hasik and As Sawda. 134)
Elizabeth Greene, Wellesley College In the summers of 2002 and 2003, the Institute of Nautical Archaeology excavated a Greek shipwreck of the late sixth century B.C. off Pabuç Burnu, Turkey, about 25 km southeast of Bodrum, or ancient Halicarnassus. More than 250 intact and broken amphoras found on the site present parallels to East Greek types from Ephesus, Miletus, and Cnidus. Sieved contents of the amphoras yielded grape seeds, olive pits, and fragments of bark stoppers; pitch lining in some amphoras suggests a primary cargo of wine. Ceramics from the ship's galley include large bowls or mortaria, smaller bowls, and several oinochoai and olpai. A stone anchor stock, approximately 1.7 m in length, speaks for a moderate-sized vessel. Excavation also revealed evidence for the ship itself; four planks with ligature holes on their preserved edges indicate "sewn" or laced construction. This construction technique stands in contrast to the mortise-and-tenon joinery more commonly found in the East, but is frequently found on Archaic wrecks in the Western Mediterranean (such as those at Bon Porté, Place Jules Verne, and Giglio). Along with these western vessels, the modest eastern merchant ship from Pabuç Burnu may offer firsthand evidence for the often-ignored small-scale "low trade" in mixed agricultural goods, which P. Horden and N. Purcell (The Corrupting Sea [Oxford 2000]) propose for a Mediterranean world comprised of microregions and microeconomies, bridged by the sea. Such a model of inconspicuous consumption provides a lens through which to view Greek economic activity in the Archaic period. 135)
Troy Nowak, Texas A&M University The recent discovery and publication of a pair of ship's eyes from the Classical Period shipwreck at Tektash Burnu has prompted both a reassessment of theories concerning the use of an assemblage of large marble eyes discovered at Zea and a reevaluation of the eye motif in Greek art. The present paper will show that the marble eyes from Zea likely adorned the bows of ancient warships and that the eye can be seen as a symbol of consciousness in Greek art. The presence of eyes on the bows of ships is both a complex and dramatic example of this symbolism. It was believed that the eyes on a ship showed that it was endowed with a divine spirit that defended its crew against magic, envy and the evil eye, aided them in navigation, and protected them from the many hidden dangers of the sea. 136)
Shelley Wachsmann, Texas A&M University, John Hale, University of Louisville,
and Robert Hohlfelder, University of Colorado, Boulder
During the Persian War several fleets sank as a result of storms or battles. The
Persian War Shipwreck Survey aims to locate and study remains of these lost ships.
During the first season of exploration, in fall 2003, the expedition focused on
a search for the remains of Darius' 492 B.C. fleet that sank off Mt. Athos. Herodotus
(Histories VI: 44) reports that nearly three hundred vessels sank as a result
of a sudden gale that caught the fleet as it tried to round the cape. 137)
Justin Leidwanger, Texas A&M University
During the summer of 2003, a small team of American and
Cypriot graduate students initiated an underwater survey in the nearly 200 square
kilometer bay just west of Akrotiri Peninsula, along the southern coast of Cyprus.
The project was conducted under the auspices of the University of Cincinnati excavations
at the Late Bronze Age site of Episkopi-Bamboula, with support from the Institute
of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University. The overall aim of this multi-season
survey is to determine the extent and nature of maritime contacts at Episkopi-Bamboula
and its Greco-Roman successor, Kourion, from the Late Bronze Age through the Byzantine
period.
Theme: Petra and Mada'in Salih John W. Eadie, Michigan State University, Presiding 138)
David F. Graf, University of Miami Since Jaussen and Savignac's monumental Mission archéologique en Arabie, the publication of Nabataean Aramaic inscriptions from the Hijaz virtually ceased, leaving the impression the majority had been recorded. But in the past several decades scholars in Saudi Arabia have recorded hundreds of new texts. Many of these contribute to the history of the Nabataeans in the area and come from the environs of Mada'in Salih. The more important of these texts will be singled out for discussion, and the need for a thorough and comprehensive survey of the region will be emphasized. 139)
Bjorn Anderson, University of Michigan In strictly historical terms, there are many similarities between the Negev and Hejaz regions during the first centuries BCE and CE. Both were important links along the caravan route that bridged South Arabia to the Mediterranean, and both saw considerable development after their incorporation into the Nabataean kingdom. However, in many respects, the similarities are overshadowed by striking differences. In the Negev, there is evidence of royal investment in infrastructure, such as the monumental staircase at Nessana and the temples at Oboda. The Hejaz shows a wider elite interest, seen especially in the monumental tombs of Meda'in Saleh. Literary accounts paint the regions in different terms, which I will suggest reflect the divergent nature of these communities, and illuminate our understanding of Nabataean cultural identity. According to onomastic and dedicatory evidence, the inhabitants of both areas considered themselves 'Nabataean' in some sense. The rock-cut tombs at Meda'in Saleh are surely indicative of the site's ideological significance and its linkages to Petraean practice. The absence of such monuments in the west raises questions about how the Negev figured into the imagination of both the local inhabitants and the central authorities at Petra. Through examination of archaeological, epigraphic, and literary evidence, this paper will explore the negotiations of identity that characterize the Nabataean period in the respective regions. 140)
Zbigniew T. Fiema, University of Helsinki Recent investigations at Petra in southern Jordan have provided substantial information on the Byzantine-Early Islamic periods there. In this context, Jabal Haroun (the mountain of Prophet Aaron) near Petra is particularly important. According to the Jewish, Christian and Muslim tradition, the mountain is the place of burial of Moses' brother Aaron. The early explorers' accounts and the information provided by the Petra Papyri implied the existence of a Byzantine monastery there. In 1997, the Finnish Jabal Harûn Project began the comprehensive and interdisciplinary investigation of the site, uncovering a large basilica, a baptismal chapel with two fonts, and other structures. The site provides a unique opportunity to study and interpret an Early Christian monastery in terms of its architecture, phases of development, daily life and economy. In addition to its monastic function, the site also served as a pilgrimage center dedicated to the veneration of St. Aaron, between the later 5th and the early 8th century A.D., and possibly continuing up to the Crusader times. Among the issues to be presented are the possible transformation of a pagan cultic place into a sacred Christian place, the economic viability and demise of the monastery, including an evaluation of the Crusader sources, which indicate a limited monastic presence on the mountain in the 12th-13th centuries. Theme: Issues in Archaeology and History Benjamin Saidel, AIAR, Presiding 141)
Emily Miller, California State University Fullerton Despite the growing body of material evidence for the diversity of the Bronze Age Cretan populations, investigations of the so-called Neo-palatial civilization on the island tend to assume or at least accept an as yet to be demonstrated diachronic ethnic identity and consequent cultural isomorphism stretching back to the Neolithic. Persistence of "Minoans" as the collective reference for over two millennia of occupation is only one aspect of this holistic approach. This paper argues that failure to problematize the ethnicity of the Cretan peoples obscures the content of Neo-palatial symbolic discourse by incompletely examining the formation of discursive meaning. I suggest that people's perception of themselves as ideationally linked helped effect Neo-palatial social and political cohesion. I contend that the gradual displacement of the multivocality of Early Bronze Age societies by a broadly shared system of symbols contributed to this Neo-palatial sense of shared ethnicity. I further argue that to understand the emergence of an ethnic identity in the Neo-palatial period we must first rigorously specify and map in space and time the differences in the material culture of the Early Bronze Age communities on the understanding that they may have been ethnically distinct. I then propose a system for tracking the subsequent history of those symbolic systems and their transformations in form and in content regionally and in Crete as a whole leading to the Neo-palatial period. I conclude, by way of example, by offering preliminary conclusions about the way in which this dynamic appears to have proceeded with reference to the Mesara. 142)
Gideon Avni, Israel Antiquities Authority, Yoav Avni, Geological Survey of Israel,
and Naomi Porat, Geological Survey of Israel The
large-scale research of the ancient agriculture in the Negev conducted in the
1960's dated the beginning of the extensive agricultural systems to the 1st century
CE. A. Negev connected it to the decline of the Nabatean kingdom, which forced
the local population of the Negev to adopt agriculture as an alternative economical
source. The extensive Negev Emergency Survey (1979-1989) dated the apex of settlements
and agricultural system in the Negev Highlands to the Byzantine and Early-Islamic
periods, but did not solve the problem of its early beginnings. 143)
Sarah Kansa, The Alexandria Archive Institute and Stanford University This paper presents results of zooarchaeological analyses on two sites in the Petra region. The assemblage from Khirbet et-Tannur provides a unique view on animal use in a religious setting. Analysis of this small assemblage raises some interesting research questions regarding the ritual use of animals. However, given the small size of the assemblage and the limited availability of comparative studies, additional assemblage are sought to better understand the range of Nabataean food ways. Initial results from ten years of excavation at the Great Temple in Petra provide an excellent comparison with the Khirbet et-Tannur assemblage. This assemblage includes animal bones from secondary deposits that shed light on domestic food ways. Animal bones from other deposits at the Great Temple may be more relevant to understanding the role of animals in Nabataean ritual contexts. What are the key features of these assemblages that indicate ritual use of animals? How does the zooarchaeological evidence correlate with iconographic evidence? Can we detect a pattern of Nabataean animal use, both for economy and for ritual, in the remains from these two sites? 144)
Laura Mazow, University of Arizona Material culture studies of Philistine settlements in the Iron Age have focused more on ethnic identification and less on the formation and expression of ethnic identity. My research examines both the local and non-local characteristics of the ceramic assemblage from the Iron I levels at Tel Miqne-Ekron, Israel, in order to investigate the dynamic role of material culture consumption within an enduring architectural tradition. By taking a diachronic perspective, this paper proposes that recurring spatial patterns in artifact relationships can be viewed as evidence for both the maintenance and adaptiveness of the expression of group identity and interaction. 145)
Theodore Burgh, University of North Carolina at Wilmington Music and religion are essential components of cultures past and present. For example, examination of how groups use music in daily life reveals elements about the culture from which the music derives. For instance, the study of a culture's music can shed light on areas such as social hierarchies, ideologies, sex/gender roles, and attitudes towards foreign and domestic instruments. In turn, study of a culture's religious practices often reveals many of the same perspectives and expresses how some people understand and navigate the world around them; thus, it should not be a surprise that music and religion go together like hand in glove. Religious activity in particular, often utilizes specific musical instruments, select personnel, and designated areas for performance, all of which express many of the above-mentioned elements. Several of these aspects are present in the work of the Chronicler. By looking through the lens of music and religious activity presented by the Chronicler in conjunction with musical artifacts and other archaeological elements, this paper will discuss how the Chronicler possibly understood this unique mode of human expression in the religious practices of ancient Israel/Palestine. It will also explore how the various uses of music described by the writer may further explain dimensions of religious musical performance and its connections with the larger socio-culture. 146)
Seth Sanders, University of Chicago
Discussions of the relationship between Israelite literature and ancient Near
Eastern history often boil down to differing presuppositions as to how, and when,
the first Biblical texts were produced. Positions as different as those of R.
Hendel and P. Davies concur in treating contexts of production of these texts
as something that must be imaginatively reconstructed. Their results connect the
production of Israelite literature with radically different periods and groups.
But this debate can be put on a more empirical footing via epigraphic evidence. Theme: Recent Archaeological Approaches S. Rebecca Martin, University of California, Berkeley, Presiding 147)
Charles Gates, Bilkent University
Kinet Höyük, located on the seacoast near Dörtyol, Turkey, in the
extreme northeast corner of the Mediterranean, has proved to be one of the most
important sources of information about the Achaemenid Persian period in Cilicia.
Findings complement results from earlier excavations at, notably, Al Mina, to
the south, and Meydancýkkale (Gülnar), to the west. Identified with Classical
Issos, Kinet Höyük was an ancient harbor town with a long and continuous
occupation, from at least the Early Chalcolithic through the Hellenistic, and
again, after a long gap, in the late 12th-early 14th centuries AD. Excavations
have been conducted since 1992 by Bilkent University, under the direction of Marie-Henriette
Gates. 148)
Marc Vander Linden, Université Libre de Bruxelles
The Hemma basaltic plateau, in north-eastern Syria, is located some 60 km from
the Turkish border and 80 km from the Iraqi one. The recent field seasons, carried
out by a Syrian-Belgian mission led by the General Directorate of Antiquities
and Museums of the Syrian Arab Republic and the Université Libre de Bruxelles,
have demonstrated the existence of a unique combination of rock art and archaeological
features. Of particular interest is the area IV of the Khishâm-2 site. This
area, settled between two wadis, covers about 1/2 ha and has yielded the well-preserved
remains of an architectural complex, assigned to the Achaemenid period (5th-4th
century BC) by the finding of an 'Astarté plate'. The site is divided into
a lower part, located alongside one of the wadis, and an upper part settled on
the crest. The upper part is subdivided in 5 successive terraces, one of them
being occupied by a large open space around which several rooms are disposed.
The ceramic assemblage comprises some post-neo-Assyrian types, although imported
and locally imitated Greek forms are absent. 149)
Samuel Wolff, Israel Antiquities Authority Tel Megadim, excavated by M. Broshi in 1967-1969 and by S. Wolff in 1994, is a multiperiod site located on the coastal Carmel plain, Israel. The Persian period occupation will be briefly reviewed, followed by a discussion of the imported amphora assemblage which includes exemplars from Chios, the southern Aegean, Miletus, Erythrae, Corinth (A and B) and the northern Aegean. This assemblage will be compared to those from additional southern Levantine sites. A preliminary explanation will be offered regarding operative trade mechanisms for the period (nationality of ships employed, routes, etc.) based upon the archaeological evidence discussed here and a contemporary papyrus (475 BCE) from Elephantine (opposite Aswan, Egypt) that deals with maritime trade. 150)
Jeffrey Blakely, University of Wisconsin, Madison
The Joint Archaeological Expedition to Tell el-Hesi excavated at that site from
1970 to 1983. During Phase 1 of this work, from 1970 to 1975, emphasis was placed
on the excavation of the Persian-Period levels, Strata IV and V. It was at this
time that Dorothea W. Brooks sampled about 320 of these sherds as part of her
pioneering NAA study of Eastern Mediterranean ceramics. While Brooks completed
her NAA work to the standards of 1975 and she published much of the geochemical
data, these sources are not generally accessible. In none of these works did Brooks
fully identify the type of ceramic sampled nor did she publish a drawing of the
form. 151)
Christin Engstrom, Pacific School of Religion Recent revisions of the morphological, typological, and geochemical classifications of the pottery used in Dorothea W. Brooks's Neutron Activation Analysis of pottery from Tell el-Hesi have made it possible to apply Brooks's unique data set to questions surrounding provenance, classification and groupings of pottery at Tell el-Hesi. With the revamped geochemical data, it is possible to distinguish between local and imported wares, to identify difference in fabric type in cooking pots, to distinguish different loci within import groups, and to assign typology where the identity of a sherd was in question. Optical petrology of the ceramic sherds provided some refinement to the geochemical data, prepared both in SPSS-derived statistical hierarchical cluster dendrograms and elemental scattergrams in certain areas where statistical cluster overlapping occurs. 152)
Maury Morgenstein, Geosciences Management, Inc.
The chemical data from Dorothea W. Brooks's Neutron Activation
Analysis study at Tell el-Hesi have been calibrated to rectify the original omission
of detection limits by the authors. This was accomplished by having new geochemical
analysis completed by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) on
a selection of Brooks's available original samples and calibrating the original
data with the new numbers. The geochemical data were treated using two different
methods: SPSS hierarchical dendrograms for statistical cluster analysis and simple
elemental scattergrams for pottery groupings.
Theme: Archaeology and the Silver Screen Lawrence T. Geraty, La Sierra University, Presiding 153)
William Fulco, Loyola Marymount University
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