Weekly reports from the field
(week of June 24 – July 1)
The second week of fieldwork at Tall Hisban was labor-intensive and productive, resulting in extensive architectural clearance and many surprises at afternoon pottery reading. We made marked progress towards this season’s objectives of clarifying stratigraphic sequences of the Roman, Byzantine, and Mamluk periods and understanding the nature of the many phases of fortification on the summit. Visits by large groups of Korean tourists and Israeli archaeologists and public school teachers from Jerusalem enlivened our work site on Monday. The work week was cut short a day to accommodate our three-day Petra excursion, a project tradition.
Three of the four squares of Field Q, flanking the southern, principal entrance to the citadel, produced evidence, often unexpected, for phases of fortification of the summit and the nature of reuse of Byzantine and Roman constructions in the medieval era. Excavations in Q.2, a square adjacent to the west side of the entrance staircase, identified a Mamluk-period tower that had been filled with small boulders and soil. Lower courses of the construction appear to have been built on a foundation of large blocks, including one elaborately carved relief panel, which suggests they were reused from a monumental Byzantine building. The tower appears to have been a solid construction, possibly a component of the 14th-century entrance gate. The adjacent square, Q.1, produced three courses of plastered walls of typical Mamluk construction, an extension of the south wall of the storeroom of the “governor’s palace,” and a fragment of an Ayyubid/Mamluk coin. The physical and functional relationship of the walls identified in this square with the upper steps of the entrance staircase will be investigated next week. To the northwest of this square, a probe (Q.3) was started. Its goals are: to investigate the space between the south wall of the bathhouse and north wall of the storeroom, with the ultimate objective of exploring the architectural relationship of the bathhouse, Byzantine basilica, and monumental Roman building (often referred to as a temple); and to date the original construction of the bathhouse (which may be Umayyad or earlier, rather than Mamluk). Excavation of this area came to an early end in 1976, when a medieval flagstone pavement was reached. Wall collapse has allowed us to excavate in parts of this square where pavement is missing and in areas previously inaccessible to the Andrews University team. The small cushion capital recovered from architectural collapse may be a remnant of the bathhouse portico first identified nearly 40 years ago. Exploring an apparent water installation under the bath will be one goal of next week’s fieldwork.
The three large squares of Field M, located at the northeast corner tower of the enceinte and in the northern slope below it, were selected this season with the goals of dating the tower and fortification wall, as well as its phasing, and to further investigate the Byzantine and Roman strata of M.4 on the northern slope, partially excavated in 2004. This field has consistently produced the most pottery. Square M.5 (below the tower on the northeast face) apparently served as a dump for medieval inhabitants of the summit. The tower itself is a massive one, with two phases of megalithic, hard limestone construction and large to medium-sized boulders built against its interior corner, perhaps in a later phase. Much of the week in this square (M.6) was consumed with the removal of rocks of different sizes. The hearth discovered in M.4 at the end of the week may potentially yield data on the nature of Byzantine occupation of the slopes.
Located at the bottom of the steepest slopes on the west side of the tall, Field C has been a difficult area for excavation because of the extensive tumble of boulders and erosion of both soil and architecture from the summit. After identifying and recording large architectural members (such as capitals, bases, and architraves – Roman and Byzantine in date), large tumble stones were removed to clear the outlines of in situ structures. Large walls of pier-and-rubble construction, which potentially belong to a monumental building, appeared this week in three of the squares of this field. A post-reform Byzantine falus and numerous Byzantine and Roman sherds, though largely from erosional contexts, suggest the chronology of this structure.
Excavation in the four large (5 x 5 meter) squares of Field O, at the base of the southwest slope below the tall, uncovered the broad outline of what appears to be a late Ottoman or Mandate-period farmhouse, identical in construction and layout to the heavily-walled, stone-vaulted, single-room house excavated nearby in 2004. Next week will be devoted to clarifying its plan and date. The latest pottery thus far is late 19th and early 20th century, although from largely erosional contexts.
The widest range of medieval and post-medieval pottery identified at Tall Hisban in 40 years was read at afternoon pottery sessions this week. Larger numbers of Abbasid glazed wares, including the characteristic turquoise blue jars of the period (some with partial profiles) and the tri-colored splash glazes often associated with Nishapur (but here more probably produced in Iraq), suggest occupation well into the 10th century and affluence at the site through the early Abbasid period. Walker was quite surprised to identify 14th-century Egyptian sgraffito at pottery readings this week. This ware is associated with the Mamluk army and generally limited in distribution to Egypt. A wide range of Ottoman glazed and handmade wares were also identified, pointing to trade contacts with Istanbul and the eastern Mediterranean (possibly Cyprus or Italy) in the 16th century, perhaps Syria in the 17th and 18th centuries, and Palestine in the 19th. Dolinka identified a large number of Roman and Nabatean sherds of Petra manufacture. Iron II sherds, though identified in small quantities from erosional contexts, are promising for identifying further Iron Age occupation on the summit.
The academic program this week included two presentations in the project lecture series. Chief Archaeologist Bethany Walker spoke on her research of Mamluk Jordan and Field Supervisor Ben Dolinka presented his research on the Roman annexation of Nabatea. This weekend’s excursion was a three-day tour of the Nabatean capital and “Rose Red City” of Petra. This trip has traditionally marked the mid-way point of excavation at Tall Hisban each season.
The media team, whose ultimate goal is to produce several publications for the general public featuring aspects of the Tall Hisban story unearthed during its 40 years of excavations, has been busy capturing images this week. They began by documenting work at the site -- excavation procedures, routines, surrounding village, and of course ruins at the site itself. They then moved on to photograph regional evidences of some of the Great Traditions which impacted Hisban’s Little Traditions throughout its history, at the museums in Amman, the Roman amphitheater, etc. While in Petra this weekend, they were privileged to document several local traditional families’ way of life, capturing images of their cave and tent homes, their preparation of food, their source of water, and many other aspects impacting the Little Traditions which have sustained the region’s residents for millennia.. The hospitality of these people is remarkable and much appreciated.
Plans are being finalized for the 40th anniversary celebration July 5. The team looks forward to welcoming and sharing hospitality with the many guests that are expected.
Report submitted July 1 by
Bethany Walker and Asta Sakala LaBianca
