DOCSLIB.ORG

Modeling Early Bronze Age Economies and the Cultural Landscape of the Faynan District, Southern Jordan

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Modeling Early Bronze Age Economies and the Cultural Landscape of the Faynan District, Southern Jordan UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO FEEDING THE PERIPHERY: Modeling Early Bronze Age Economies and the Cultural Landscape of the Faynan District, Southern Jordan A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology by Adolfo A. Muniz Committee in charge: Professor Thomas E. Levy, Chair Professor Guillermo Algaze Professor Øystein LaBianca Professor William Propp Professor Margaret Schoeninger 2007 Copyright Adolfo A. Muniz, 2007 All rights reserved. SIGNATURE PAGE The dissertation of Adolfo A. Muniz is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication on microfilm: _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ Chair University of California, San Diego 2007 iii DEDICATON For my grandparents- Roman and Manuela Muniz iv TABLE OF CONTENTS SIGNATURE PAGE .....................................................................................................iii DEDICATON ................................................................................................................ iv TABLE OF CONTENTS................................................................................................ v LIST OF FIGURES .....................................................................................................xiii LIST OF TABLES....................................................................................................... xvi LIST OF APPENDICES............................................................................................... xx LIST OF SUPPLEMENTAL TABLES....................................................................... xxi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .......................................................................................... xxii CURRICULUM VITAE............................................................................................. xxv ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION .................................................................. xxix CHAPTER 1: SUBSISTENCE STRATEGIES AND URBAN-RURAL PASTORAL SOCIETIES AS AN ASPECT OF SOCIO-CULTURAL CHANGE ................................ 1 1.0. Conceptualizing Socio-cultural Change .................................................................. 1 1.1. Protohistoric Socio-Cycling and Subsistence Strategies ......................................... 2 1.2. Urban-rural Societies and Subsistence Strategies.................................................... 5 1.3. The Research Thrust and Case Studies.................................................................... 7 1.4. Organization of the Study ...................................................................................... 12 CHAPTER 2: MODELING SOCIO-CULTURAL CHANGE IN THE FAYNAN REGION: A FOOD SYSTEMS APPROACH ................................................................. 17 2.0. Introduction............................................................................................................ 17 2.1. Food Systems: Previous Research ........................................................................ 18 2.2. Modeling the Food System of the Faynan Region ................................................ 22 2.2.1. Communities of Exchange.......................................................................... 25 2.2.2. Quadrants of Exchange............................................................................... 25 v 2.2.2.1. Trade .................................................................................................... 26 2.2.2.2. Social Status......................................................................................... 26 2.2.2.3. Ethnicity............................................................................................... 27 2.3. Emergence of Specialists/Increased Stratification............................................. 27 2.2.3. Procurement Strategies ................................................................................... 28 2.2.3.1. Production................................................................................................ 29 2.2.3.2. Consumption............................................................................................ 30 2.2.3.3. Distribution .............................................................................................. 30 2.3. Agency and Structure............................................................................................. 31 2.3.1. Agency and Individuals .................................................................................. 33 2.3.2. Agency and Networks..................................................................................... 34 2.4.3. Agency and Corporate Groups........................................................................ 35 2.3.4. Cultural Transmission in Socio-cultural Change............................................ 35 2.4. Linking the Components of the SSFS Model .................................................... 37 2.5. Zooarchaeological Correlates of the Social Systems Food Model ........................ 40 2.5.1. Relative Frequencies................................................................................... 41 2.5.2. Kill-off patterns........................................................................................... 42 2.5.3. Body Part Distribution ................................................................................ 43 2.5.4. Butchery Traces .......................................................................................... 43 2.6. Summary................................................................................................................ 44 CHAPTER 3: CHARACTERIZING SOCIO-CULTURAL CHANGE DURING THE EARLY BRONZE AGE IN THE SOUTHERN LEVANT.............................................. 46 3.0. Introduction............................................................................................................ 46 3.1. Early Bronze Age Chronology (ca. 3600-2000 BCE) ........................................... 47 3.2. Early Bronze Age I Period (ca. 3600-3000 BCE).................................................. 49 3.4. Early Bronze II (3000 – 2700 BCE) ...................................................................... 53 3.5. Early Bronze III (ca. 2700 - 2300 BCE)................................................................ 54 3.6. Early Bronze IV (ca. 2300 – 2000 BCE) ............................................................... 55 3.7. Cultural-Historical Issues....................................................................................... 58 vi 3.8. Early Bronze Age Subsistence Economies............................................................ 59 3.9. Discussion and Summary....................................................................................... 62 CHAPTER 4: SOCIO-CULTURAL CHANGE DURING THE EARLY BRONZE AGE IN THE FAYNAN REGION............................................................................................ 66 4.0. Introduction to the Faynan Region ........................................................................ 66 4.1. The Natural Environment of the Faynan Region................................................... 67 4.2. Paleoenvironmental Data in the Faynan Region.................................................... 68 4.3. Previous Archaaeological Research in the Faynan Region ................................... 72 4.4. Early Bronze Age Archaeological and Cultural Issues in the Faynan Region ...... 75 4.4.1. The Fidan Early Bronze Age I........................................................................ 77 4.4.5. The Faynan Early Bronze Age II-III............................................................... 81 4.5. Fidan Early Bronze Age Subsistence Strategies.................................................... 85 4.6. Summary................................................................................................................ 86 CHAPTER 5: THE EARLY BRONZE AGE SITES OF WADI FIDAN 4 (WFD4) AND KHIRBAT HAMRA IFDAN (KHI120)........................................................................... 89 5.0. Introduction............................................................................................................ 89 5.1. Wadi Fidan 4 Village (ca. 3600-3000 BCE).......................................................... 89 5.1.1. Research Background and Chronology .......................................................... 90 5.1.2. Site Description............................................................................................... 93 5.1.4. Excavations at WFD4 ..................................................................................... 94 5.2. Khirbat Hamra Ifdan (EARLY BRONZE II-IV ca. 3000-2000 BCE) ............... 103 5.2.1. Site Description............................................................................................. 103 5.2.2. Background and Chronology ........................................................................ 103 5.2.3. Excavations at KHI........................................................................................... 106 5.2.3.1. Background and Test Probes: The Wadi Fidan Project 1990 and 1992 .... 106 vii 5.2.3.2. JHF Project 1999 and 2000........................................................................ 107 5.2.3.3. Area Y...................................................................................................
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Gen Man Pnotestant Institute of Anchaeologp in Amman
    Gen man Pnotestant Institute of Anchaeologp in Amman The Institute: HfsCowy, Actfoftfes, Facilities In the late seventies the German Prot­ Amman are funded by the Lutheran estant Institute of Archaeology in Church of Germany. Amman was founded as a branch of the German Protestant Institute for Ar­ The institute in Amman has chaeology of the Holy Land in Jerusa­ its own building which is situated at Vol.1. No. 1 June 1996 lem, which had been founded at the the north west edge of Amman, in end of the last century after a CONTENTS visit of Emperor Wilhelm II to • The Institute 1 Jerusalem. The Jerusalem in­ • Preliminary report stitute started work in 1903 on Gadara 2 and has been based since • New hope for 1982 on the Mount of Olives Petra facades 4 in East Jerusalem. The main • Water supplies of research topics of the German Early Bronze Age Protestant Institute of Archae­ towns 6 ology during the first 60 years • Fellows in residence 6 of this century were historical • Excavations at and biblical-topographical Abu Snesleh 7 The German Protestant Institute staff in front of the questions. The directors of the • jerash cathedral institute building in Amman. institute during this period project 8 were Gustaf Dalman, Albrecht • Something unusual 8 Alt and Martin Noth, all well known dose vicinity to the University of Jor­ • The prehistory of scholars of Old Testament theology. dan and the American Center for Ori­ Jordan 9 The subsequent directors were Ute ental Research (ACOR). The building • Donors to the library 10 • Petra church project.
    [Show full text]
  • The Ancient Mediterranean Environment Between Science and History Columbia Studies in the Classical Tradition
    The Ancient Mediterranean Environment between Science and History Columbia Studies in the Classical Tradition Editorial Board William V. Harris (editor) Alan Cameron, Suzanne Said, Kathy H. Eden, Gareth D. Williams, Holger A. Klein VOLUME 39 The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/csct The Ancient Mediterranean Environment between Science and History Edited by W.V. Harris LEIDEN • BOSTON 2013 Cover illustration: Fresco from the Casa del Bracciale d’Oro, Insula Occidentalis 42, Pompeii. Photograph © Stefano Bolognini. Courtesy of the Soprintendenza Archeologica di Pompei. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data The ancient Mediterranean environment between science and history / edited by W.V. Harris. pages cm. – (Columbia studies in the classical tradition, ISSN 0166-1302 ; volume 39) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-90-04-25343-8 (hardback : alk. paper) – ISBN 978-90-04-25405-3 (e-book) 1. Human ecology–Mediterranean Region–History. 2. Mediterranean Region–Environmental conditions–History. 3. Nature–Effect of human beings on–Mediterranean Region–History. I. Harris, William V. (William Vernon) author, editor of compilation. GF541.A64 2013 550.937–dc23 2013021551 This publication has been typeset in the multilingual “Brill” typeface. With over 5,100 characters covering Latin, IPA, Greek, and Cyrillic, this typeface is especially suitable for use in the humanities. For more information, please see www.brill.com/brill-typeface. ISSN 0166-1302 ISBN 978-90-04-25343-8 (hardback) ISBN 978-90-04-25405-3 (e-book) Copyright 2013 by The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York. Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Global Oriental, Hotei Publishing, IDC Publishers and Martinus Nijhoff Publishers.
    [Show full text]
  • Archaeology of Faynan: a Celebration and Guide
    Archaeology of Faynan: A celebration and Guide Book Published Version Creative Commons: Attribution 4.0 (CC-BY) Open Access Mithen, S., Najjar, M. and Finlayson, B. (2019) Archaeology of Faynan: A celebration and Guide. Faynan Hertage. University of Reading, Reading, UK, pp147. ISBN 9780704915916 doi: https://doi.org/10.17864/1926.79395 Available at http://centaur.reading.ac.uk/79395/ It is advisable to refer to the publisher’s version if you intend to cite from the work. See Guidance on citing . Identification Number/DOI: https://doi.org/10.17864/1926.79395 <https://doi.org/10.17864/1926.79395> Publisher: University of Reading All outputs in CentAUR are protected by Intellectual Property Rights law, including copyright law. Copyright and IPR is retained by the creators or other copyright holders. Terms and conditions for use of this material are defined in the End User Agreement . www.reading.ac.uk/centaur CentAUR Central Archive at the University of Reading Reading’s research outputs online ARCHAEOLOGY OF FAYNAN منطقة فينان جميلة وهادئة وتشعرك بأنها أزلية ومعزولة عن Faynan is beautiful, calm and quiet. It feels ARCHAEOLOGY OF FAYNAN العامل الحديث. والصخور التي شكلت تضاريسها الدراماتيكية .timeless and isolated from the modern world التي تراها اآلن كانت الطبيعة قد بدأت بنحتها منذ ماليني The rocks which shape its dramatic landscape have been faulted and eroded over many millions A CELEBRATION AND GUIDE A CELEBRATION AND GUIDE السنني. وعىل العموم فإن عدد السكان يف املنطقة قليل، حيث البعض منهم يعيش يف قرية القريقرة، والبعض االخر كعشرية of years. People are few in number. Some live in the الرشايدة يف قرية فينان.
    [Show full text]
  • Paper Abstracts
    PAPER ABSTRACTS Plenary Address Eric H. Cline (The George Washington University), “Dirt, Digging, Dreams, and Drama: Why Presenting Proper Archaeology to the Public is Crucial for the Future of Our Field” We seem to have forgotten that previous generations of Near Eastern archaeologists knew full well the need to bring their work before the eyes of the general public; think especially of V. Gordon Childe, Sir Leonard Woolley, Gertrude Bell, James Henry Breasted, Yigael Yadin, Dame Kathleen Kenyon, and a whole host of others who lectured widely and wrote prolifically. Breasted even created a movie on the exploits of the Oriental Institute, which debuted at Carnegie Hall and then played around the country in the 1930s. The public was hungry for accurate information back then and is still hungry for it today. And yet, with a few exceptions, we have lost sight of this, sacrificed to the goal of achieving tenure and other perceived institutional norms, and have left it to others to tell our stories for us, not always to our satisfaction. I believe that it is time for us all— not just a few, but as many as possible—to once again begin telling our own stories about our findings and presenting our archaeological work in ways that make it relevant, interesting, and engaging to a broader audience. We need to deliver our findings and our thoughts about the ancient world in a way that will not only attract but excite our audiences. Our livelihoods, and the future of the field, depend upon it, for this is true not only for our lectures and writings for the general public but also in our classrooms.
    [Show full text]
  • Settlement, Urbanization, and Population
    OXFORD STUDIES ON THE ROMAN ECONOMY General Editors Alan Bowman Andrew Wilson OXFORD STUDIES ON THE ROMAN ECONOMY This innovative monograph series reflects a vigorous revival of inter- est in the ancient economy, focusing on the Mediterranean world under Roman rule (c. 100 bc to ad 350). Carefully quantified archaeological and documentary data will be integrated to help ancient historians, economic historians, and archaeologists think about economic behaviour collectively rather than from separate perspectives. The volumes will include a substantial comparative element and thus be of interest to historians of other periods and places. Settlement, Urbanization, and Population Edited by ALAN BOWMAN and ANDREW WILSON 1 3 Great Clarendon Street, Oxford ox2 6dp Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide in Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offices in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University Press in the UK and in certain other countries Published in the United States by Oxford University Press Inc., New York # Oxford University Press 2011 The moral rights of the authors have been asserted Database right Oxford University Press (maker) First published 2011 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, or under terms agreed with the appropriate reprographics rights organization.
    [Show full text]
  • Environmental Impacts of Ancient Copper Mining and Metallurgy: Multi-Proxy Investigation of Human-Landscape Dynamics in the Faynan Valley, Southern Jordan
    Journal of Archaeological Science 74 (2016) 85e101 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Archaeological Science journal homepage: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jas Environmental impacts of ancient copper mining and metallurgy: Multi-proxy investigation of human-landscape dynamics in the Faynan valley, southern Jordan * Kyle A. Knabb a, b, , Yigal Erel c,Ofir Tirosh c, Tammy Rittenour d,Sofia Laparidou e, Mohammad Najjar f, Thomas E. Levy b, f a Archaeology Division, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Israel b Department of Anthropology and Levantine Archaeology Laboratory, University of California, San Diego, USA c The Fredy and Nadine Herrmann Institute of Earth Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel d Department of Geology, Luminescence Laboratory, Utah State University, USA e Department of Anthropology, The University of Texas at Austin, USA f Center for Cyber-Archaeology and Sustainability, Qualcomm Institute, University of California, San Diego, USA article info abstract Article history: The environmental impact of mining and metallurgy is an issue that has affected societies in the ancient Received 8 June 2016 Near East over the past 8000 years. We present the results of a multidisciplinary project using agri- Received in revised form cultural sediments from ancient terraces as a cultural archive of environmental pollution and land use in 15 August 2016 the copper ore-rich Faynan valley of southern Jordan. Due to the simultaneous production of agricultural Accepted 3 September 2016 goods and copper metallurgy throughout the last 6000 years in the valley, environmental pollution and its consequences for human health have been considered as a factor in settlement abatement.
    [Show full text]
  • 'Not Found in the Order of History
    From West to East Current Approaches to Medieval Archaeology Edited by Scott D. Stull From West to East: Current Approaches to Medieval Archaeology Edited by Scott D. Stull This book first published 2014 Cambridge Scholars Publishing Lady Stephenson Library, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2PA, UK British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Copyright © 2014 by Scott D. Stull and contributors All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. ISBN (10): 1-4438-6753-5 ISBN (13): 978-1-4438-6753-5 TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Illustrations ..................................................................................... ix List of Tables ............................................................................................ xiii Introduction ................................................................................................. 1 Chapter One ................................................................................................. 6 Visualizing an Integrated Landscape using Archaeogeophysical and 3D Laser Surveying Michael Rogers Chapter Two .............................................................................................. 20 Rethinking Ethnicity in Early Medieval Archaeology: Social Identity, Technological Choice, and Communities
    [Show full text]
  • Geophysical Surveys at Khirbat Faynan, an Ancient Mound Site in Southern Jordan
    Hindawi Publishing Corporation International Journal of Geophysics Volume 2012, Article ID 432823, 8 pages doi:10.1155/2012/432823 Research Article Geophysical Surveys at Khirbat Faynan, an Ancient Mound Site in Southern Jordan Alexandre Novo,1 Matthew L. Vincent,2 and Thomas E. Levy2 1 Geostudi Astier, via A. Nicolodi 48, 57121 Livorno, Italy 2 Department of Anthropology & California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (Calit2), University of California, San Diego, CA 92093, USA Correspondence should be addressed to Alexandre Novo, [email protected] Received 16 April 2012; Accepted 4 July 2012 Academic Editor: Nicola Masini Copyright © 2012 Alexandre Novo et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Faynan in Jordan contains the largest copper ore resource zone in the southern Levant (Israel, Jordan, Palestinian territories, Lebanon, Syria, and the Sinai Peninsula). Located 50 km southeast of the Dead Sea, it is home to one of the world’s best-preserved ancient mining and metallurgy districts encompassing an area of ca. 400 km2. During the past three decades, archaeologists have carried out numerous excavations and surveys recording hundreds of mines and sites related to metallurgical activities that span the past 10 millennia. Khirbat Faynan (Biblical Punon), is situated in the main Faynan Valley and is the largest (ca. 15 ha) settlement site in the region and has remained unexcavated until 2011. As Jordan’s most southern mound site with indications of widespread ancient architecture, we employed a suite of noninvasive geophysical survey methods to identify areas suitable for excavation.
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter 6 Archaeology and the Shasu Nomads: Recent Excavations in the Jabal Hamrat Fidan, Jordan
    Chapter 6 Archaeology and the Shasu Nomads: Recent Excavations in the Jabal Hamrat Fidan, Jordan Thomas E. Levy, Russell B. Adams, and Adolfo Muniz Introduction Biblical scholars view the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron as the period during which the tribes of Israel settled in Canaan, as described at length in the books of Joshua and Judges in the Hebrew Bible. Neighboring southern Jordan, the geographic area known as “Edom,” witnessed the emergence of the first historically-recorded state or kingdom level of social organization.1 Thus, when considering the dynamics of social change in Israel/Palestine, scholars must consider developments and historical trajectories in the entire region (including Transjordan). The settlement of the tribes in Canaan has been a contentious issue, stimulating a number of distinctive models that at- tempt to meld the differing biblical accounts portrayed in these two books, the extrabiblical “historical” data, and archaeology to weave together the most likely model to describe what happened during the Late Bronze–Early Iron Age in the southern Levant. These “settlement” models have been described at length as the “Conquest Model,”2 the “Peaceful Infiltration Model,”3 the 1. Ø. S. LaBianca and R. W. Younker, “The Kingdoms of Ammon, Moab and Edom: The Archaeology of Society in Late Bronze/Iron Age Transjordan (ca. 1400–500 bce),” The Archaeology of Society in the Holy Land (ed. T. E. Levy; London: Leicester University Press, 1998) 399–415. 2. W. F. Albright, “The Israelite Conquest of Canaan in the Light of Archaeology,” BASOR 74 (1932) 11–23. 3. Y. Aharoni, “New Aspects of the Israelite Occupation in the North,” Near Eastern Archaeology in the Twentieth Century (ed.
    [Show full text]
  • A Preliminary Study of the Role of Ground Stone Tools at Khirbat En-Nahas, Jordan
    UC San Diego UC San Diego Previously Published Works Title The Iron Age copper industrial complex: A preliminary study of the role of ground stone tools at Khirbat en-Nahas, Jordan Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1fb140r0 Journal Journal of Lithic Studies, 3(3) ISSN 2055-0472 Authors Levy, Thomas E Bettilyon, Megan Burton, Margie M Publication Date 2016-10-31 DOI 10.2218/jls.v3i3.1648 Peer reviewed eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California The Iron Age copper industrial complex: A preliminary study of the role of ground stone tools at Khirbat en- Nahas, Jordan Thomas E. Levy, Megan Bettilyon, Margie M. Burton UC San Diego Levantine and Cyber-Archaeology Laboratory, Department of Anthropology, University of California, San Diego. 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, California 92093-0532, U.S.A. Email: Levy: [email protected]; Bettilyon: [email protected]; Burton: [email protected] Abstract: The first industrial revolution in the southern Levant crystallized during the Iron Age when copper production reached scales never before seen in this part of the Middle East. Ever since copper ore was first smelted during the Chalcolithic period, the Arabah valley, and its widespread distribution of copper mineralization, was the main source for copper ore in the region. The main ore deposits are located in Timna (Israel) in the southern part of the valley, and some 105 km to the north, in the Faynan region (Jordan). Faynan is the largest copper ore resource zone in the southern Levant. Excavations at the Iron Age Faynan site of Khirbat en-Nahas and the recent final publication of that project have revealed peaks in industrial-scale production during the 10th and 9th centuries BCE.
    [Show full text]
  • The Iron Age Copper Industrial Complex: a Preliminary Study of the Role of Ground Stone Tools at Khirbat En- Nahas, Jordan Thomas E
    The Iron Age copper industrial complex: A preliminary study of the role of ground stone tools at Khirbat en- Nahas, Jordan Thomas E. Levy, Megan Bettilyon, Margie M. Burton UC San Diego Levantine and Cyber-Archaeology Laboratory, Department of Anthropology, University of California, San Diego. 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, California 92093-0532, U.S.A. Email: Levy: [email protected]; Bettilyon: [email protected]; Burton: [email protected] Abstract: The first industrial revolution in the southern Levant crystallized during the Iron Age when copper production reached scales never before seen in this part of the Middle East. Ever since copper ore was first smelted during the Chalcolithic period, the Arabah valley, and its widespread distribution of copper mineralization, was the main source for copper ore in the region. The main ore deposits are located in Timna (Israel) in the southern part of the valley, and some 105 km to the north, in the Faynan region (Jordan). Faynan is the largest copper ore resource zone in the southern Levant. Excavations at the Iron Age Faynan site of Khirbat en-Nahas and the recent final publication of that project have revealed peaks in industrial-scale production during the 10th and 9th centuries BCE. However, the role of ground stone tools in the Iron Age copper industry in Faynan has not been systematically presented. This paper presents a preliminary study of the ground stone assemblage from one excavation season at Khirbat en-Nahas, thereby highlighting the great potential for ground stone tools research at the site. Using the chaîne opératoire method of technological study, this paper takes a quantitative approach to the typological, material, and spatial distribution of ground stone artefacts at Khirbat en-Nahas to understand their role in copper production.
    [Show full text]
  • Geophysical Surveys at Khirbat Faynan, an Ancient Mound Site in Southern Jordan
    Hindawi Publishing Corporation International Journal of Geophysics Volume 2012, Article ID 432823, 8 pages doi:10.1155/2012/432823 Research Article Geophysical Surveys at Khirbat Faynan, an Ancient Mound Site in Southern Jordan Alexandre Novo,1 Matthew L. Vincent,2 and Thomas E. Levy2 1 Geostudi Astier, via A. Nicolodi 48, 57121 Livorno, Italy 2 Department of Anthropology & California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (Calit2), University of California, San Diego, CA 92093, USA Correspondence should be addressed to Alexandre Novo, [email protected] Received 16 April 2012; Accepted 4 July 2012 Academic Editor: Nicola Masini Copyright © 2012 Alexandre Novo et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Faynan in Jordan contains the largest copper ore resource zone in the southern Levant (Israel, Jordan, Palestinian territories, Lebanon, Syria, and the Sinai Peninsula). Located 50 km southeast of the Dead Sea, it is home to one of the world’s best-preserved ancient mining and metallurgy districts encompassing an area of ca. 400 km2. During the past three decades, archaeologists have carried out numerous excavations and surveys recording hundreds of mines and sites related to metallurgical activities that span the past 10 millennia. Khirbat Faynan (Biblical Punon), is situated in the main Faynan Valley and is the largest (ca. 15 ha) settlement site in the region and has remained unexcavated until 2011. As Jordan’s most southern mound site with indications of widespread ancient architecture, we employed a suite of noninvasive geophysical survey methods to identify areas suitable for excavation.
    [Show full text]