Gaetano Palumbo

Egalitarian or "Stratified" Society? Some Notes on Mortuary Practices and Social Structure at Jericho in EB IV

The concepts of egalitarian and stratified society are derived from theories of cultural evolutionism, whose application to archaeological cases is often unsatisfactory because the outline of the ancient society is often simplistic. The review of several articles concerning burial practices in Palestine and in Jericho is the basis on which new interpretations of Jerichos archaeological evidence and inferences on its social structure are made. Kenyons hypothesis of different ethnic groups using the cemetery is maintained, but the idea of social differentiation within these groups is presented here, based on the presence of three different kinds of body treatment (primary extended, primary crouched, secondary disarticulated), and on the variation of grave assemblages among and inside tomb groups. The model of pastoral nomadism is accepted as the basis of discussion to explain Jericho society, and in a wider perspective the Palestinian social landscape during EB IV. To this model, very popular today and supported by many scholars, a variant has been added, that is, social stratification in a pastoral society. Ethnographic and theoretical studies confirm the tendency towards social stratification in many pastoral societies: this theory, and the hypothesis of the existence of small, sedentary communities, could be used to outline in a more satisfactory way the social organization in Palestine during the EB IV period and the origins of the MB I urban culture.

Early Bronze Age IV Ceramic Regionalism in Central Jordan

The ceramic assemblages from tombs and excavations in Transjordan show typological and stylistic features that confirm the regional character of the Early Bronze IV culture. The relationships between established ceramic groups indicate that EB IV material culture in the upper Zerqa basin should be considered typologically distinct, comprising a new ceramic family, designated here as Amman-Zerqa (AZ).

Sheltering an archaeological structure in Petra A case-study of criteria, concepts, and implementation

Abstract In 1993 an architectural competition for the construction of a shelter over a Byzantine church excavated in Petra between 1991 and 1992 was held by the American Center of Oriental Research in Amman, Jordan. While a prize was awarded, none of the concepts presented were translated into a construction project. A contract was instead awarded to architect Robert Shutler, who worked in close cooperation with Jordanian and international archaeologists and heritage managers, and a reversible space-frame shelter was built. This paper examines the issue of defining criteria for shelter construction, and stresses the need for cooperation among stakeholders and specialists as part of the conservation process from the decision to shelter to the implementation of the project.

The GCI-WMF Iraq Cultural Heritage Conservation Initiative: Building Professional Capacity for Cultural Heritage Conservation and Management

Abstract One consequence of years of dictatorial regime, international embargo and war was isolation of the professional community responsible for the protection of cultural heritage in Iraq. This community was cut off from international debate concerning the development of methodologies and theories on the conservation and management of archaeological sites, historic monuments and districts. The Iraq State Board of Antiquities and Heritage (SBAH), the governmental body responsible for the nations cultural heritage, was also depleted of resources. Professionals could not access information, new technologies, such as the Internet and digital photography, and could not follow the international literature or discussions reflecting advances in practice. The Getty Conservation Institute and the World Monuments Fund partnered in late 2003 to form the Iraq Cultural Heritage Conservation Initiative (hereafter called the Initiative), to assist the SBAH to redevelop its professional and managerial capabilities. In meetings with the directors of departments of the SBAH in 2004, a plan was conceived to address the problems. A series of training courses was developed aimed at various categories of SBAHs staff, from directors of regional offices to archaeologists, engineers and surveyors. The training programmes covered technical topics such as the use of computers, geographic information systems (GIS), satellite imagery, digital photography, survey equipment (with equipment purchased by the Initiative and organisations such as UNESCO), and other issues related to the documentation, assessment of condition, and management of cultural heritage sites. A parallel activity is developing a GIS for the SBAH to maintain a national inventory of the archaeological and historic sites and monuments of Iraq — a tool that will also enable SBAH to record damage and threats to sites and to plan protective and conservation interventions. Due to the security situation in Iraq, development of the GIS has been reconfigured to be web-based since locating it in Baghdad was not practicable. The web-based GIS, dubbed MEGA (Middle East Geodatabase for Antiquities) has first been developed for Jordan given ready access to the country. The Jordanian Department of Antiquities (DOA) has been of great assistance in mounting training activities for Iraqi colleagues and has opened sites in Jordan for field exercises. This paper illustrates the activities of the Initiative and advocates similar projects not only in post-conflict areas, but as a matter of standard practice generally, since trained personnel and inventories can reduce the damage that war and civil strife so often inflict on cultural heritage.

Protecting the Invisible: Site-Management Planning at Small Archaeological Sites in al-Ain, Abu Dhabi

Abstract Protection, conservation, and site-management planning are normally financed and conducted on major archaeological sites only, where there are expectations for visitor access and economic returns. Many smaller sites with lesser visible remains are then virtually abandoned, despite the value of their physical remains and archaeological, historical, and scientific potential. A pilot project by Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (now Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority) was conducted at Rumeilah, an Iron Age site excavated over the past forty-five years. The project consisted of a full-scale site-management planning process including documentation and assessment of the site conditions and of its administrative context to demonstrate the benefits of applying value and community-based site-management planning processes to ‘invisible’ heritage. The process resulted in the development of a management plan which identifies continued explorations at the site and in the involvement of local schools and universities the activities that will be able to sustain its long-term preservation.

Images of Piety or Power? Conserving the Umayyad Royal Narrative in Qusayr ʿAmra

This chapter focuses on the work of conservation at the site of Qusayr ‘Amra, a bathhouse located 80 km east of Amman, in Jordan. The site was built by the Umayyad prince Walid b. Yazid during the caliphate of his uncle Hisham, probably between 730 and 743 AD (111–125 H.), and its interior walls are covered by mural paintings. I explore how archaeology and conservation have contributed or interfered with the understanding of the monument, and how authenticity can be defined in a site that has seen at least three major conservation interventions. It will also discuss whether the paintings can really be defined as “Islamic Art,” fitting a narrative of royal power that uses symbols and iconographies that are borrowed from the cultures that preceded the arrival of Islam in the region.