Bethlehem in the Bronze and Iron Ages in the light of recent discoveries by the Palestinian MOTA-DACH

The discovery of the necropolis of Khalet al-Jam’a, around 2.2 Km south-east of Bethlehem (Nigro et al. in this volume), provides new data on the Bronze and Iron Age town which controlled the main route connecting Jerusalem to Hebron, and the access to the wadiat crossing the southern Judean desert and leading to the coastal plain. Intermediate Bronze Age/Early Bronze IV, Middle Bronze shaft tombs, and at least two major Iron II burial caves (Tomb A7 and the Barmil’s Tomb) excavated by the Palestinian MOTA-DACH in an Iron Age cemetery allow to draw up a renewed picture of Bethlehem and its environs and give the opportunity to re-appraise its long history

Tell es-Sultan 2015. A pilot project for archaeology in Palestine

The eleventh season (April–June 2015) of the archaeological investigation and site protection as well as valorization of the site of Tell es-Sultan was carried out by the University of Rome “La Sapienza” (under the direction of the present writer) and the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities – Department of Archaeology and Cultural Heritage (directed by Jehad Yasine) with the aims to: (1) re-examine several of the historical archaeological highlights of this longstanding site and (2) make the site accessible and appealing to the public through restorations and a large set of illustrative and explanatory devices set up with the help of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Jericho Municipality, and to make the site an inclusive part of the Jericho Oasis Archaeological Park (JOAP: www.lasapienzatojericho.it/JOAP)

Khirbet al-Batrawy ceramics. A systematic mineralogical and petrographic study for investigating the material culture

The present paper reports the results of a mineralogical and petrographic study focused on the archaeometric characterization of Early Bronze Age pottery from the archaeological site of Khirbet al-Batrawy (Jordan), dated between 3000 and 2000 BC. Optical microscopy (OM) and X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) analyses are used to define the nature of the raw material, the technology of the ceramic production and their developing during the centuries. The results allow us to identify 12 petrographic fabrics in which the nature of the inclusions is consistent with the geological surrounding of Khirbet al-Batrawy. The variability observed in the fabrics suggests a technological evolution during the centuries, characterized by a first start-up phase in the ceramic production, followed by a diffuse experimentation in the choice of the starting raw material and a last standardization phase. The co-occurrence of primary calcite, illite, gehlenite and diopside allows hypothesizing a firing temperature lower than 950 °C. A moderate increasing in the firing temperature is observed in the last phases of Batrawy history, suggesting a development of knowledge connected to the firing process

Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) from Motya and its deepest oriental roots

Pomegranate remains and representations found in the Phoenician site of Motya in Western Sicily give the cue for a summary study of this plant and its fortune in the Near East and the Mediterranean. Fruits offered in wells, a terracotta relief depicting a pomegranate held by a goddess found in the Sacred Area of the Kothon at Motya, and, especially, a pottery vase in the shape of a pomegranate retrieved inside the Temple of Astarte in the same compound, witness the symbolic transcultural role of this fruit and of the pomegranate tree in ancient Mediterranean, from its farthest oriental origins to modern art and religio

Jamaan at the pass of Bi’rein. An Iron Age IIB-C Ammonite stronghold in central Jordan

In years 2015-2016 the Zarqa Directorate of the Department of Antiquities of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan carried out a rescue excavation at the site of Jamaan, an Iron Age IIB-C Ammonite stronghold 16 Km north of ‘Amman. The site survey and limited soundings allow to plot a plan of the structure, comprising an outer enclosure with a casemate wall, two cisterns, and a square podium tower, and to collect ceramic material dating from Iron Age IIB-C (c. 840-580 BC), as well as the head of a soft limestone statue, possibly depicting a local chief or an official. The latter adds to the relatively conspicuous number of statues from the Kingdom of Ammon, possibly illustrating the production of a non-royal commission

The el-Atan Tomb: an Early Bronze IVB female burial in the heart of Bethlehem

An Early Bronze IVB tomb was discovered by the MOTA-DACH on June 2009 in the city of Bethlehem, nearby the Milk Grotto. Its architectural features, burials and associated funerary equipment are here considered and compared with those of other Early Bronze IV cemeteries and necropoleis of Southern Levant to grasp the historical-archaeological meaning of this discovery

3D scanning, modelling and printing of ultra-thin nacreous shells from Jericho: a case study of small finds documentation in archaeology

This paper springs out from a collaborative project jointly carried out by the FabLab Saperi&Co and the Museum of Near East, Egypt and Mediterranean of Sapienza University of Rome focused at producing replicas of ultra-thin archeological finds with a sub-millimetric precision. The main technological challenge of this project was to produce models through 3D optical scanning (photogrammetry) and to print faithful replicas with additive manufacturing. The objects chosen for the trial were five extremely fragile and ultra-thin nacreous shells retrieved in Tell es-Sultan/ancient Jericho by the Italian-Palestinian Expedition in spring 2017, temporarily on exhibit in the Museum. The experiment proved to be successful, and the scanning, modeling and printing of the shells also allowed some observations on their possible uses in research and museum activities

Il nuovo allestimento del Museo del Vicino Oriente, Egitto e Mediterraneo della Sapienza

On March 19th 2015 the Museum of Near East, Egypt and Mediterranean was officially opened by our Magnificus Rector Prof. Eugenio Gaudio in a completely renewed exhibit in the magnificent seat of the Crescent Hall of Marcello Piacentini within the Palace of the Rectorate of Sapienza University. Works of art and archaeological items collected by expeditions working all over the Near East and the Mediterranean were displayed illustrating interconnections and differences among several cultures enlightening the long and rich history of these regions. The article explains the concept which inspired the renewed exhibit and illustrates the main highlights of the Near Eastern, Egyptian and Mediterranean collections

Da Gerico a Betlemme. La missione della Sapienza a Gerico e l’archeologia italiana in Palestina (1997-2017) con il contributo del Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale

When after the Oslo and Madrid agreements the Palestinian National Authority was established it was also provided of a Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities – Dept. of Archaeology and Cultural Heritage (MOTA-DACH). At that time, Sapienza University of Rome was chosen as ideal partner to start a new deal in the archaeology of Palestine. By contrast with an enduring colonial tradition, which foresaw a full demission of responsibility by means of the “excavation permit” given by the Host Country to the European or American digging institutions, a new project was set up at Tell es-Sultan, ancient Jericho, one of the most long-lived human settlement in the ancient Near East, based upon an “Agreement on cooperation”, with which responsibilities and commitment to investigate, protect and rehabilitate the site were shared. The new project started in 1997 and is still continuing (13 seasons on the field have been carried out), the joint team works together as a unique team, and it has been engaged in transforming what was an almost unintelligible ruin into a prominent archaeological site, concealing the memory of some major steps of the Humankind, from the beginning of agriculture and animal breeding in the Neolithic (10,500-6000 BC), to the invention of modular architecture, the rise of the earliest city with the establishment of an urban model in the 3rd millennium BC. No other Institution or Country can boast such a continuous and successful cooperation as Sapienza and Italy in Palestine. The Jericho joint Italian-Palestinian Expedition has produced more than 100 scientific publication, has fully rehabilitated the archaeological site providing also a correct historical interpretation of its finds, free from any pre-conceiving and political or religious distortion. After two decades, the cooperation has become a model, and it has been expanded especially for the safeguard and protection of a heavy threatened Archaeological Heritage. With the publication of the Catalogue of the Archaeological sites of the Jericho Oasis (Rosapat 07, Rome 2011) a new step was accomplished involving the Municipality of Ariha and starting the Jericho Oasis Archaeological Park Project, which has rehabilitated and made suitable to tourist exploitation 13 main sites. In 2015 a rescue project, again founded upon an “Agreement of Cooperation” between the MOTA-DACH and Sapienza, started in Bethlehem to protect the many necropolis inside and around this city, and to reconstruct its early history. Four reports about the necropolis of Khalet al-Jama’ and Jebel Daher and Bethelehem in antiquity have already been published. Moreover, a new joint research Project was also started on the site of Tell Abu Zarad, in the Province of Salfeet, which was a major city of Palestine during the Bronze and the Iron Ages, also known from ancient sources with the name of Teffah. Two seasons have already been carried out at Abu Zarad and a preliminary report was published in 2016. This last project aims at rescuing and valorizing another piece of the ancient history of the Country

Dominating the river: Khirbet al-Batrawy, an EB II-III city in North-central Jordan

Les fouilles conduites par l’Université La Sapienza à Khirbet al-Batrawy ont mis au jour, sur le haut Wadi az-Zarqa (au centre/nord de la Jordanie), un site urbain du Bronze ancien. Un système de défense important, élaboré entre les années 2900-2300 av. J.-C., a notamment été révélé. Ainsi la prospection l’a démontré, le secteur du Wadi az-Zarqa a connu, au début du Bronze ancien II, un phénomène de synœcisme qui a conduit au développement de Khirbet al-Batrawy, devenue une cité fortifiée et un centre caravanier, et à son contrôle sur le passage à gué du wadi, vers les pistes du désert syro-arabe et vers la vallée. Les éléments de culture matérielle démontrent des échanges intenses, à la fois avec les abords immédiats du wadi et l’intérieur des terres, et avec les axes commerciaux. Des bâtiments publics, le temple (Broad Room) et, surtout, le palais daté du Bronze ancien IIIB (2700-2200 av. J.-C.), trouvé dans un état de conservation étonnant, donnent un éclairage intéressant sur l’urbanisme du IIIe millénaire av. J.-C. en Syrie du Sud et en Jordanie.Excavations by Rome ‘La Sapienza’ University at Khirbet al-Batrawy brought to light an Early Bronze Age urban centre in Upper Wadi az-Zarqa (north-central Jordan) with an imposing defensive system, growing from EB II to EB IIIB (2900-2300 bc). As a cantonal survey demonstrated, at the beginning of EB II, the Zarqa district witnessed a synecistic process which led Batrawy to become a strongly fortified city and a caravans centre, which controlled the ford through the wadi, as well as the tracks crossing the Syro-Arabian Desert and leading into the Jordan Valley. Its material culture points to intense exchanges with both the surrounding river and countryside, and long-trade routes. Public buildings, such as the Broad-Room Temple and especially the Palace of the EB IIIB city, found in an extraordinary preservation state, provide interesting insights into early urbanism of 3rd millennium bc South Syria and Jordan.خلاصة – كشفت الحفريات التي أجرتها جامعة لاسابينزا (روما) في خربة البتراوي أعلى وادي الزرقاء (وسط/شمال الأردن)، مركزا حضريا يعود إلى العصر البرونزي القديم. وتم الكشف على وجه الخصوص عن نظام دفاعي هام تم انجازه بين سنة 2900 و2300 قبل الميلاد. وأظهر المسح الأثري، كذلك، أن منطقة وادي الزرقاء قد شهدت في بداية العصر البرونزي القديم 2، ظاهرة «  سينوسيسمية » (تأسيس منطقة معمارية) قادت إلى إنماء خربة البتراوي، التي أصبحت مدينة محصنة ومركزا للقافلات ونقطة مراقبة عبور الوادي باتجاه طرف الصحراء السورية العربية والوادي. وتظهر عناصر الحضارة المادية تبادلات كثيفة مع المناطق المجاورة للوادي وداخل الأراضي على حد سواء، ومع الطرق التجارية. تبين المباني العمومية والمعبد (ذات الغرفة الضيقة) وخاصة القصر الذي يعود تاريخه إلى العصر البرونزي القديم (2700 – 2200 قبل الميلاد)، الذي وُجد في حالة هائلة من المحافظة، أهمية التخطيط المدني خلال الألفية الثالثة قبل الميلاد في سوريا الجنوبية والأردن