Early Islamic Syria: an archaeological assessment (TOC, Preface & Index) (original) (raw)
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The growth and development of the discipline of Syro-Palestinian Archaeology in a general survey of exploration, excavation and scholarly research; and an examination of the archaeological evidence from prehistoric times to the end of the Iron Age.
Archaeological Explorations in Syria 2000-2011. Proceedings of ISCACH-Beirut 2015
2018
Syria has been a major crossroads of civilizations in the ancient Near East since the dawn of human kind. Until the current crisis began in 2011, Syria was one of the foremost pioneers in the investigation of past human knowledge, diversity, and identity. However, due to the ongoing war, archaeological excavations came to an abrupt halt. Since then, there have been countless alarming reports of damage or destruction inflicted on archaeological, historical, and museum sites. The International Syrian Congress on Archaeology and Cultural Heritage (ISCACH), held December 3-5, 2015 in Beirut, Lebanon, was designed to bring together international scholars who have directed or participated in archaeological expeditions in Syria, and colleagues from Syria. By doing so, not only could the results of years of archaeological investigations and cultural heritage management in Syria be shared and discussed, but also a spirit of friendship and collaboration could be fostered and strengthened during this turbulent period. The Congress focussed on the scientific aspects of each explored site and region allowing researchers to examine in detail each heritage site, its characteristics and identity. Archaeological Explorations in Syria 2000-2011: Proceedings of ISCACH-Beirut 2015 consists of two parts. The first part presents the results of archaeological investigations conducted between 2000 and 2010. The second part comprises abstracts of papers and posters presented during the Congress. It is hoped that this book will represent an important contribution to the scientific dialogue between international and Syrian scholars, and will appeal to the general public interested in the culture and history of Syria.
This Handbook aims to serve as a research guide to the archaeology of the Levant, an area situated at the crossroads of the ancient world that linked the eastern Mediterranean, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, and Egypt. The Levant as used here is a historical geographical term referring to a large area which today comprises the modern states of Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, western Syria, and Cyprus, as well as the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and the Sinai Peninsula. Unique in its treatment of the entire region, it offers a comprehensive overview and analysis of the current state of the archaeology of the Levant within its larger cultural, historical, and socio-economic contexts. The Handbook also attempts to bridge the modern scholarly and political divide between archaeologists working in this highly contested region. Written by leading international scholars in the field, it focuses chronologically on the Neolithic through Persian periods - a time span during which the Levant was often in close contact with the imperial powers of Egypt, Anatolia, Assyria, Babylon, and Persia. This volume will serve as an invaluable reference work for those interested in a contextualised archaeological account of this region, beginning with the 'agricultural revolution' until the conquest of Alexander the Great that marked the end of the Persian period.
The Contribution of “Light” Archaeology to theStudy of Fortified Sites in Northern Syria
2016
A new archaeological project has been recently started by a joint team from the University of Florence and the University of London, entitled Islamic Syria and Latin Kingdoms: a Mediaeval frontier. Settlements and interaction in the 12th and 13th centuries A.D. 1 This project aims at analysing settlements, territories and fortified systems on both sides of the frontier in the coastal plain of Syria and in the Orontes valley. In this context, the frontier acquires the significance of an "observatory" on the interaction (for example, in relation to settlement modes, control of territory, exploitation of natural sources, and exchange of technology) between west European feudal society and Islamic society in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries (Figure 1). 2 In the Near East, research topics such as the transformation of settlement in the period under consideration and the origin of fortifications do not seem to have been adequately developed. To date, the archaeological study of this period has mainly concerned standing 1. The Italian team was funded by grants from the Ministero dell'Università e della Ricerca Scientifica e Tecnologica and from the Ministero degli Affari Esteri. The Italian Embassy in Damascus provided in many ways advice, help and assistance, in particular H. E. the Ambassador Antonio Romano Napolitano. The Syrian Embassy in Rome kindly gave the team complimentary entry visas. The team wishes to thank the Directorate General of Antiquities for providing the assistance of Architect Asmahan al-Wazza during this phase of fieldwork. The team also wishes to thank the Institut Français d'Etudes Arabes de Damas and its Director, Professor Mallet, for the hospitality they provided. The results presented here relate to the campaign conducted in May 1999. The team consisted of the two authors, Professor Guido Vannini (GV) and Dr Cristina Tonghini (CT); Dr. Eugenio Donato, who also played a very important role in the analysis of the wall typology; Architect Asmahan al-Wazza, from the Department of the Antiquities. A first preliminary survey had also been conducted in November 1998. During that campaign the team also included, together with the present writers, Professor Hugo Blake (Royal Holloway, University of London) and Professor Franco Niccolucci (Università di Firenze). 2. Islamic culture can be considered the heir of Late Antique urban Mediterranean society in terms of social and territorial organization, although with well-known variations. In this setting, especially in the case of marginal areas (part of or close to the original desert environment), there are occasional swings towards the re-emergence of the nomadic or seminomadic way of life. This situation seems to characterize the Islamic side of the frontier in the two regions considered by our Mission: in southern Transjordan, and in the current project in Syria between the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. See, in general, Lombard 1980; Lapidus 1993.
Journal of Islamic Archaeology 5.2, 2018
This article concentrates on the outlining of major settlement forms and land uses in Early Islamic Palestine and some of the social and demographic dynamics related to their physical, functional and hierarchic evolution throughout the 7th to 11th centuries. It provides a fresh and at times revised viewpoint concerning these themes and others, by using historical and mainly archaeological data related to a wide selection of urban, rural and other site forms throughout the country. These data show that the various natural and human agents that induced change between the 630s and the eve of the Crusades affected, either positively or negatively, the structural and hierarchic development of virtually every settlement, and that the best way to describe settlement and demographic dynamics in Early Islamic Palestine is as multifaceted continuity in a rapidly changing world.