Books in the British Archaeological Reports International Series series

In addition to feminist studies, this work uses epigraphy, archaeology and classical sources, as well as recent developments in historiography, to understand Nabataean society and Nabataean women in particular. The author has highlighted to main study areas. The first is to investigate whether Nabataean women enjoyed a high status that was particular to their society and history. The second related enquiry is to investigate what made it possible for Nabataean women in the first century BCE-CE to become visible in inscriptions and numismatics (i.e. prominent in that period, place and time)? In other words what are the factors that allowed women such status? And were they factors particular to Nabataean women, their society or history? A further interesting objective of this book is to question the assumption of subordination of women in pre-Islamic Arabia.

Papers presented at EMAC '05, 8th European Meeting on Ancient Ceramics, Lyon 2005This volume presents a selection of papers delivered at the 8th European Meeting on Ancient Ceramics (EMAC) which took place in Lyon (France) in 2005. The EMAC series of conferences, initiated in Rome in 1991, meets every two years in a European city andbrings together specialists carrying out research on ancient ceramics using archaeological sciences. EMAC provides the opportunity to present and debate recent advances in this field of research, from methodological aspects to archaeological studies withfully integrated laboratory approaches.

Proceedings of the IX Symposium on Mediterranean Archaeology, Chieti (Italy), 24-26 February 200584 papers.Introduction by S. Trinchese.Preliminary editing by L. Cherstich.Castel Manfrino excavation edited by S. Antonelli.

A volume of 26 contributions related to: The ancient world and modern perceptions: the invention of antiquity in modern times; Ancient economy, politic and society: evidences and interpretive models; Ancient representations: subjectivities and identities in interpreting gender, ethnicity, religion, literature and arts. The result is an innovative collection of chapters, from different standpoints, revealing how classics in general, and classical archaeology in particular, has reacted to the challenges of the recent past in forging a socially relevant study of the ancient world.

This volume deals with the prehistoric human groups and their environments that occurred during the early and middle Holocene (roughly 10 - 6 thousand years before present) in a huge segment of the Eurasian continent forming the East European Plain, which predated the early manifestations of food-producing economies: agriculture and stock-rearing. In archaeological terms widely accepted in the West, this period corresponds to the Mesolithic, panoply of hunter-gathering communities that evolved in the aftermath of the Last Ice Age.

The Upper Tisza Project. Studies in Hungarian Land.Book 4 in the reports series on the Upper Tisza Project, north-eastern Hungary. This volume covers the summer 1995 excavations at the Neolithic site of Polgár-10.Written by John Chapman, Mark Gillings, Robert Shiel, Bisserka Gaydarska and Chris Bond.Contributions by Eniko Magyari, David Passmore, Eniko Félegyháza, Ian Lumley, Rhodri Jones, Jerome Edwards, Karen Hardy, Denise Telford, David Brighton, Keith Dobney, Ferenc Gyulai, Edina Rudner, Beth Rega, Keri Brown and Tom Higham.Illustrations by Sandra Rowntree, Chris Bond and Yvonne Beadnell.

The Upper Tisza Project. Studies in Hungarian Landscape Archaeology.Book 5 in the reports series on the Upper Tisza Project, north-eastern Hungary. This volume covers the summer 1995 excavations at the multi-period site of Regéc 95, located in an upland basin in the South Zemplén Mountains.Written by John Chapman, Magdolna Vicze, Robert Shiel, Steve Cousins, Bisserka Gaydarska and Chris Bond.Contributions by Eniko Magyari, David Passmore, Denise Telford, Ferenc Gyulai, Edina Rudner, Keri Brown and Alan Biggins.Illustrations by Sandra Rowntree and Chris Bond.

Ancient Maya ceramic economy during the Late to Terminal Classic Period (800-900 A.D.) is the focus of this book. The author employed ceramic thin section petrology, raw materials sourcing, and contextual archaeological analyses and samples from a variety of excavated sites in the Belize River Valley region were included: Pacbitun, Cahal Pech, Baking Pot, El Pilar, Xunantunich, Blackman Eddy, Floral Park, and Ontario Village. Standardized petrofabric descriptions enabled the definition of distribution spheres for the ceramics and the study uses intersite comparison of distributional patterning to explore issues such as the scale, integration and disposition of the ceramic economy. A number of economic models were used heuristically to examine the possible meaning of the distributional patterning observed.

Proceedings of the XV World Congress UISPP (Lisbon, 4-9 September 2006) Volume 32This book includes papers from Session WS28 'Defining a Methodological Approach to Interpret Structural Evidence' edited by Fabio Cavulli and papers from Sessions C69, C70 and C71 'Archaeometry' edited by Maria Isabel Prudêncio and Maria Isabel Dias.

The Late Chalcolithic is a period of far-reaching changes in many aspects of life in Mesopotamia. On the southern alluvial plain (present day Iraq) the first city states appear, among them the city of Uruk, which grows to become the largest of the citiesin the south. The growth of cities coincides with evidence for elaborate ritual building complexes, an increasingly class-stratified society, industrial specialisation, and multi-tiered administration, which includes the invention of writing. The present volume focuses on the agricultural developments in Late Chalcolithic northern Mesopotamia from the perspective of a major settlement in the region, Tell Brak in modern northeast Syria. Agriculture formed the basis of the economy of ancient Near Eastern communities; a study of the crop husbandry practices of Tell Brak can potentially identify the plant economy of the site, including the crops present in the settlement, and methods of crop processsing and use. Any agricultural responses to changes in the socio-political system, known from the archaeological evidence to have taken place during the Late Chalcolithic, can also be assessed. These responses may be able to give us an indication of the wider economic responses to societal change during the Late Chalcolithic.

Archaeological excavations were carried out at al-Qisha, located on the Wadi Masila in the Mahra region of the Republic of Yemen. Situated along the Northern Indian Ocean coast, the Wadi Masila is an integral part of the Hadramaut drainage system located within the geological Hadramaut Arch. Regional surveys were carried out between 1997-2000, defining Bronze and Iron Age and Islamic period sites. Al-Qisha is an Islamic period settlement site that spans over 1 km and includes an extensive village (part of which is still inhabited), a cemetery, and a mosque. Al-Qisha as an archaeological site is enmeshed in an historical and ethnographic landscape of trade and mediation. This volume has three goals. The main objective is to present the data collected from excavations at al-Qisha, the first excavated Islamic period settlement site in the Mahra region of Yemen to date. The second goal is to examine this site in its greater cultural and physical landscape. And third, getting to the "route" of the matter, al-Qisha serves as a gateway community linked with the Ba'Abbad of Qabr Hud, the tomb of the pre-Islamic prophet Hud. This study is unique in that it presents a first attempt to integrate archaeology with the scant history and sparse ethnography of the Mahraand Hadramaut regions.

Proceedings of the 6th Annual Conference of the British Association for Biological Anthropology and Osteoarchaeology, University of BristolThis volume presents 10 papers from the 6th Annual Conference of the British Association for Biological Anthropology and Osteoarchaeology, held at the University of Bristol in September 2004.

Proceedings of the International Conference October 2000, Taman, Russia.28 papers from an international conference held in Taman, Russia, in 2000.

In this second volume dedicated to the study of African edged weapons (see BAR 1098, 2003 for volume 1), the author focuses on short-knives, cutlasses, chopping-knives,machetes, and sabres. These weapons are characterized by a blade with a convex or eventually a straight single edge and sometimes a limited false edge. Also included in this study are weapons with a curved double cutting edge. The typology presents five main categories, the distinctions between them being established according to morphological and metrical evidence based on the observation of 275 weapons. These weapons, collected during the colonial era (mainly at the end of the 19th century and the early 20th century), are held by various European museums and private collections. Several areas in Africa are represented in this study: Northern Africa (from Morocco to Tunisia), Western Africa (countries from the Gulf of Guinea and Sahara), Central Africa (mainly the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighbouring countries), Eastern Africa (the Great Lakes area up to Djibouti, Sudan as a northern limit and Kenya as a southern limit). The categories studied are: short knives, cutlasses, chopping knives, 'machetes', and sabers. The work is illustrated with the author's own highly-detailed drawings.

This monograph focuses on the Aceramic Neolithic of Cyprus, and addresses three key theoretical topics; memory, death and landscape. Sites dating from the initial colonisation of the island (the Akrotiri phase) through to Khirokitia and its contemporaries, are contextualised within their spatial and temporal settings, and are presented here taking into consideration recent theoretical developments in archaeology and anthropology. This monograph covers what have traditionally been seen as three distinctive periods: the Akrotiri phase, the Early Aceramic Neolithic and the Late Aceramic Neolithic (sometimes referred to as the Khirokitian).

The aim of this work is to determine to what extent the exploitation of cockles changed across the Mesolithic/Neolithic transition in Denmark. This is an important question for three main reasons: The Mesolithic/Neolithic transition is a key topic in archaeological research; the exploitation of shellfish has been much discussed in terms of environmental and dietary changes over the transition period; wider issues of marine exploitation and human diets have been recently debated for the transition. This research examines these issues through a detailed study of cockles and addresses the following research questions: To what extent did shellfish consumption change through time? What evidence is there for changing cockle exploitation through time? Are there any patterns in the seasonality of cockle exploitation? After the introductory chapter, the first part of chapter 2 briefly explores the relationship between people and sea shells in prehistory and historic times. This is followed by information on the morphology, physiology, habitat and habits of the common cockle. The chapter closes with a review of past mollusc growth line research. Chapters 3 and 4 lays out the methodology followed in the selection and preparation of both the modern and archaeological cockle shells. Chapter 5 introduces background information on the two archaeological sites of Norsminde and Krabbesholm. The archaeological cockle analysis results are presented in chapter 6. Chapter 7 discusses the archaeological results in the context of the questions raised in chapter 1 and chapter 8 draws conclusions and suggests further avenues of research.

Slovakia is a convergent zone of three interrelated spheres of study in Roman history and archaeology. These three spheres are the frontier, Romanization, and cultural identity. The aim of the project that forms the core of this book is a greater understanding of how identity functions, as reflected in a culture's material remains, and what affect outside agents have on identity, if any. The primary focus of this project is cultural identity and Part I outlines the ancient German culture along the Middle Danube River using ancient literary evidence and archaeological material. Part II is an account of the archaeological project conducted at Urbárske Sedliská, along with detailed descriptions of specific artifact groups, such as pottery, seen in southwest Slovakia. The final section, Part III, is a synthesis of parts I and II, bringing together the known archaeological data of the region and the theoretical discussions with the new data recovered from the excavations.

A detailed study of mosaics from the Roman city of Italica now just north of Santiponce in the province of Seville. Romero surveys the history of their excavation, before treating the mosaics themtically, looking at first figurative, then geometric decoration, before considering manufacture and issues of conservation and restoration.

Paris Monographs in American Archaeology 25This study presents a motif classification, quantification, and regional comparisons for engraved rock art from the Maderas Volcano on Ometepe Island, Nicaragua. Maderas has the largest concentration of petroglyphs thus far reported in Central America. A formal analysis was conducted, which included construction of a typology for, then quantitative analysis of motifs found on over 700 boulders - only a portion of that known to exist on the island.

Proceedings of the XV World Congress UISPP (Lisbon, 4-9 September 2006). Volume 46. Session C75.This book includes papers from Session C75, Archaeologists without Boundaries: Towards a History of International Archaeological Congresses (1866-2006) presented at the XV UISPP World Congress (Lisbon, 4-9 September 2006) / Actes du XV Congrès Mondial (Lisbonne, 4-9 Septembre 2006).

The Nansa Valley, in many ways the westernmost drainage basin in Cantabria (N Spain), has traditionally been a blank page in archaeological terms, an area where only a few particular sites were known. The archaeological surveying carried out by the CAEAPgroup, both at cave sites and in the open air, has succeeded in showing that its archaeological record is comparable with that of the central valleys in the region. The results of the study of this record, presented in this book, suggest the existence of more or less subtle differences with the eastern part of the region. These divergences vary greatly in the different prehistoric and historic periods. Thus, at some times this valley is seen to form part of a wider area, while at others it displays traits belonging to its own character and appears to be occupied by a single human group. Otherwise, it can be included within the processes of change that affected the rest of the central part of northern Spain, with the diffusion of ideas coming from the south and west, and a powerful influence from the area of the Marina of Cantabria. This volume, a kind of "corpus" of sites, presents a full catalogue of all known sites in the valley, together with a study of the evolution of human settlement in the area. It is the starting point for future, more detailed, studies examining in depth the cultural adaptations developed by the human groups who lived along this river.

This book is the third in a series prepared by the author on traditional weapons from the African Continent. The first volume focuses on weapons with a straight symmetrical blade and double cutting edges such as daggers, various types of swords, and peculiar cutting side arms with divergent edges. In the second volume the author looks at weapons with straight or curved blades and a main convex cutting edge. In this third volume the author examines a group of unusual edged weapons showing analogies to agricultural implements. These weapons are characterized by a bent or curved blade with a main concave cutting edge. They can be compared to billhooks, sickles and scythes. Mostly originating from Central Africa these objects were produced during the 19th century and early 20th century. Their use was mainly linked with status, parade and dance, however very large examples or plain blades were also practical fighting weapons. See also BAR S1764 2008: Du couteau au sabre / From Knife to Sabre Armes traditionnelles d'Afrique 2 / Traditional Arms of Africa 2 (ISBN 9781407302539) and BAR S1098 2003: Armes traditionnelles d'Afrique (dagues, poignards, glaives, épées, tranchets et couperets Approche régionale et classification technique, morphologique et esthétique (ISBN 1841714763).

The aim of this study is to process a group of problems related to the building of residential houses in Roman Age Gaul (Tres Galliae: first century BC and the second part of the first century AD). The houses are summarized in the Catalogue that concludes the volume and provides a collection of floor plans with a brief description.

Sanjan Reports Volume 1This report on the Sanjan ceramic assemblage is the first in the series of reports on the Sanjan excavations conducted between 2002-2004. The Sanjan excavations have not only succeeded in providing a fresh perspective to Parsi / Zoroastrian history, but have also provided evidence for a prominent, multi-cultural, commercially active port settlement which formed an important component of the Indian Ocean trade network of the Early Medieval period. The ceramic assemblage at Sanjan is one of the most important collections of the Early Medieval period to be found in India to date. This body of material, comprising of West Asian, Chinese and Indigenous wares, was completely unknown in the Indian context, although scholars abroad had long been working on similar collections. The lack of corroborative material from India was regarded as an impediment in the understanding of Indian Ocean maritime trade and cultural interactions. Dr. Nanji has produced the first fully documented, researched and analysed work on Early Medieval ceramics in India. In many ways, this report is path-breaking. No other Early Medieval ceramic collection from India has been catalogued and studied in such detail, including in its methodology, fabric analysis, petrographic analysis and statistical data.

Sudan Archaeological Research Society. Publication Number 18In 1998 and 1999 volumes II and III of the reports on the University of Kentucky excavations at Kulubnarti were published by the Sudan Archaeological Research Society as numbers 2 and 4 in its monograph series. Kulubnarti III was also available through British Archaeological Reports in its International Series no. 814. Volume I had long been and, at the request of the author, the Sudan Archaeological Research Society agreed to republish the first volume. The excavations at Kulubnarti remain the only detailed study of a late medieval and post-medieval landscape in the Sudan. The extensive nature of the work on habitation sites of many differing types, on monumental buildings such as the church and the kourfa, on some of the associated cemeteries as well as of the rock art provided an immense amount of data. The Kulubnarti volumes publish all this material in full and are an invaluable source of information on life in rural settlements during this pivotal period during which Christianity vanished to be replaced by Islam. It thus sheds light on the origins of the present northern Sudanese cultures in an area long inhabited by the Nubians. The text is reproduced as in the first edition with some updating of the bibliographic references.

Paris Monographs in American Archaeology 31The Bajío (West-Central Mexico) has been considered by various authors to be a key region for understanding the processes of interaction and migration among Central, West, and Northern Mesoamerica. Since the late 1990s, our knowledge of the prehispanic societies of the Bajío has benefitted from the development of several new archaeological projects carried out by various Mexican and French institutions. The principal contribution of this research has been an emphasis on extensive excavations, which were previously quite limited in the region. The numerous stratified contexts studied have revealed new data that permit a better definition of ceramic complexes in the Bajío during the Epiclassic, the period of the zone's greatest demographic growth. This volume offers a new overview of the ceramic traditions of this region and their links with those of the neighbouring areas.

Paris Monographs in American Archaeology 32Western values imposed on pre-Columbian practices are obstacles in the understanding of the relationship between the 'skull-rack' (tzompantli) and the 'ball-court'. The impact of a long-held interpretation which stems from the belief that in the ball-game the loser was beheaded is probed, once the activities related to both sacred spaces are surveyed, to examine the genesis of an unfounded proposal. The research shows it is the product of the reminiscence, particular to each epoch, that views the pre-Columbian world from its own conception of rituals and images, those related to games and sports; cannibalism and punishment.

This book represents in-depth analysis of a deposit of pottery recovered on the Palatine Hill that is composed of materials used and discarded in the period 290-315 AD. As there are exceedingly few studies concerned with groups of pottery dated to this period, the book represents an important addition to our evidence of the period in question. Unusually large number of complete or nearly complete vessels made experiments with analytical techniques possible. The book includes detailed catalogue and concludes with the remarks on urban economy of the early Dominate.

New: 2020 preface with links to additional, updated material.This NAA study of Syro-Palestinian pottery types found at Tell el-Dab'a/Avaris is important from the perspective it provides on economic and social developments at what has been identified as the capital of the "Hyksos" in the north eastern Nile Delta during the period from the late Middle Kingdom through the Second Intermediate Period. As well as opening up a new sight-line on the pottery industry at Tell el-Dab'a / Avaris, this study is also extremely important in refining hypotheses and conclusions based on pottery analyses, and, indeed, the author presents his case for a radical rethink in the light of these NAA findings. Illustrated throughout.

With contributions by Patrizia Boccolini, Cristina Chiaramonte Treré, Vincenzo d'Ercole, Luisa Ferrero, Debora Francone, Rossella Mantia, Gianluca Melandri and Cecilia Scotti.