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Jordan Times
19-04-2025
- Science
- Jordan Times
Study highlights Neolithic seasonal habitation patterns at Wisad Pools
AMMAN — Between 2008 and 2022, the Eastern Badia Archaeological Project continued to study the area around Wisad Pools, a site in the Black Desert. The architecture at Wisad Pools stretched over ca. 1.5 km2, and it is estimated that in that expanse there were more than 400 small buildings that were inhabited seasonally for many years by pastoral groups that may also have been associated with the large 'kite' traps that permitted 'industrial hunting' of gazelle, noted Professor Emeritus Gary Rollefson from Whitman College and San Diego State University. "The dwellings were not distributed randomly over the landscape: instead, they clustered together in relatively small numbers [from 6 to 25 structures], each cluster very close to others, although it is unlikely that many of these clusters were absolutely contemporaneous, although some of the clusters might have been occupied simultaneously by kinship-related groups,' Rollefson continued. The professor added that the clusters might be considered as 'neighbourhoods' that the inhabitants returned to several years in a row but then abandoned for a time before returning again a few years later for another term of temporary residence. Although no absolute dates have been obtained for any of the clusters, they probably span the entire range of the Late Neolithic period (ca. 6,900-5,000 BCE), although there is abroad and dispersed series of very large structures that range from the Early Bronze to at least the first part of the Iron Age (3,400-700 BCE), but the later structures are not associated with long-term habitation. "The structures in the clusters share a general design pattern: Small circular shelters with basalt stone walls are the most common forms, although some buildings had external extensions of stone-walled enclosures that may have been workspaces during the stay," Rollefson explained. The professor added that the dwellings were probably roofed with organic material that deteriorated relatively soon after each habitation period. Some pollen samples from the Black Desert settlements produced pollen from palm trees, the fronds of which might have provided roofing as well as mats for flooring. Not all structures were dwellings: some clusters also include stone enclosures that were probably corrals for small herds of goats and/or sheep. The images show three groups of clusters in the north-western parts of Wisad Pools, Rollefson continued, saying that in Panel a, there are two clusters (Numbers 201-209 and Numbers 210-222a). "They clearly have different opinions on how a neighbourhood is prepared: The buildings in the smaller cluster [ca. 9 families]were constructed on ground that was covered by relatively dense basalt rubble, while the residents of the larger neighbourhood [ca. 13 families]prepared the ground by removing much of the basalt ground cover," Rollefson underlined. Notably, there are three circular enclosures in the smaller neighbourhood possibly used as corrals, while this kind of construction is absent in the larger neighbourhood. "The are also two other clusters within Panel A: BC-1 [Burial Cemetery-1] consists of small piles of basalt, probably burial cairns of people who were related to the 201-209 neighbourhood, a view based on the presence of basalt rubble of somewhat reduced density in the process of building the burial cairns.' 'Nearby BC-2 has a small number of burial cairns on a meticulously cleaned ground surface [as in Cluster 210-222a] partly set off by a stone wall; BC-2 is also in the centre of a cleared roughly circular ceremonial [?] pathway, a strong indication that the residents of both clusters were not culturally related," Rollefson highlighted. The clusters in Panel B differ from each other, particularly in terms of size and in the apparent absence of an associated Burial Cemetery in the smaller of the two, the professor said. The larger neighbourhood (ca. 25 families)shares many aspects of the larger neighbourhood in Panel A, including a small burial cairn area (BC-3), although in Panel B there are seven or eight circular enclosures absent in the large neighbourhood in Panel A, Rollefson said. The smaller neighbourhood(c. 5 families) has a structure that stands out from the rest: A cairn surrounded by a circular stone wall, with a curious U-shaped appendage extending outwards. "Panel C shows clusters at the very western edge absent [W] of Wisad Pools, and the loose grouping of more dispersed structures suggests a less integrated group of pastoral people who remained in the apparently more arid area with little indications of water resources to extend a stay beyond a few days," Rollefson explained. There are many more neighbourhoods at Wisad that reflect recurrent returns to the same place on a seasonal basis, even if interrupted for a few years. The other major prehistoric site in the Black Desert is Wadi Al Qattafi, where each of the more than 20 mesas has it own variety of multiple structure clusters. "And beyond Wisad Pools and Wadi Qattafi, even more very large settlements [mostly Late Neolithic?] in the Black Desert are now under consideration for an extended series of archaeological projects," Rollefson underscored.
Jordan Times
16-02-2025
- Science
- Jordan Times
Khirbet Al Lehun excavations reveal Iron Age village, fortress
AMMAN — Khirbet Al Lehun is located in the central Jordanian massive, north of Wadi Mujib. The Belgium archaeological team was active between 1978 and 2000, excavating a walled Iron I village with a later (possibly Iron Age II) fortress. The pottery of area D was studied in Leiden as part of a larger programme, analysing the Iron Age pottery of Moab. 'The plateau between the Wadi Mujib [ancient Arnon] in the south and the Wadi Wala / Wadi Thamad in the north is considered to be the heartland of ancient Moab,' said Margreet Steiner who received her PhD in archaeology from Leiden University. Steiner added that Lehun is a large site of 1,100 metres by 600 metres and is divided in different natural sectors. Prehistoric flints were found, an Early Bronze fortified town in area C1, and a walled Iron Age I village with a later (possibly Iron Age II) square fortress in area D. Traces were also found of the Nabataean and Roman occupation as well as remains from the Islamic period, Steiner continued, adding that the excavation of Area D started in 1980 with the opening up of several trenches inside the square fortress. The pottery found by the archaeological team comes from houses of the Iron I village. This village, provisionally dated by the excavators to the 12th and 11th centuries BC, is enclosed by a precinct wall surrounding an elliptical area of 17,000 sq m. The settlement was also characterised by a peripheral belt of houses along the protection wall and a large central open space, partially filled in with houses. A total of twenty-four structures were completely or partly excavated. 'Additional structures were located below the square fortress but these could not be adequately examined. Only four houses were excavated down to bedrock: houses 1, 2, 11 and 12. Of the others only the outlines were uncovered and some rooms excavated,' Steiner explained, noting that the pottery excavated in the village is a mixed lot. According to a scholar, there are some (restored) complete pots, large vessel fragments, smaller fragments and very small pieces. As the precise layer in which the pottery fragments were found was not noted during the excavation, it is assumed here that the large fragments and complete pots were retrieved from the floors and occupation layers in the houses and the courtyards, and from the roofs. Smaller fragments may have been excavated from the later debris and wash layers which covered the ruins. 'However, one should not assume that all pottery in use during the occupation of the settlement has been retrieved. Most of the pottery found inside the houses was very heavy: Large kraters, storage jars and larger bowls," Steiner said. "It is worth noticing that only very few small finds were found in the village: some flints, stone pounders, a bronze needle, several spindle whorls made of stone and bone, a bronze arrowhead, a bronze dagger, a fragment of a cosmetic palette and a scarab seal ,' Steiner elaborated. The professor noted that the combination of the presence of mostly large vessels and the virtual absence of small finds seems to indicate that the inhabitants have left the settlement peacefully. They took most of their belongings with them and left behind only what was too heavy to carry: Large and heavy vessels, together with heavy stone tools as grinders and pestles, and unmovable objects as bread ovens and troughs. No traces were found of a sudden destruction by enemies or earthquakes. Some door openings were found blocked with heavy stones, so the inhabitants were probably expecting to come back at some point. 'The pottery repertoire of the Iron I village of Lehun shows several interesting characteristics. The large vessels [storage jars and large kraters and bowls] were turned on a slowly-rotating potter's wheel, and smaller vessels were thrown on a faster wheel. The bases of cooking pots were mould-made, while the upper parts were thrown,' said Steiner. The professor pointed out that several fabrics were used, one for cooking pots, one for large kraters, and one for most other vessels. The clays used for these fabrics come from deposits in the Wadi Mujib or further away from the site. The Iron Age potters used different clays that the potters from the Early Bronze Age because they needed plastic clays from throwing, the scholar concluded.
