Books published by BAR Publishing

Experimental Archaeology as an hypothesis contrast method, focusing on technological studies, is not new in archaeological research procedures. Since the early 1970s, as a consequence of the application of châine-operatoire/reduction sequence concepts within the framework of Palaeoethnological investigation, or within the actualistics studies highly developed in the framework of Processual Archaeology, the experimentation and utilization of artefact replicas have been used in the search for answers regarding technological procedures and their functional aspects. However, since the 1990s the research interface between technology and experimentation, worldwide, has increased, resulting in a renewal of procedures and interest in the incorporation of such studies particularly in the field of techno-functional analysis of prehistoric artefacts. Nevertheless the criticisms on experimental procedures are abundant, questioning its theoretical fundamentals and explanation validity. These remarks result both from the morphotypological approaches to artefact assemblages, but also from a lack of understanding on the range and goals of such studies. Stefano Grimaldi discusses the epistemological implications of experimental approaches. Experimentation on lithics are discussed in the papers of S. Cura, P. Cura, S. Grimaldi and E. Cristiani; G. N. de Souza and Â. P. Lima; B. de S. Barreto and M. P. Cabral; M. J. Rodet, A. Prous, J. Machado and L. F. Bass; G. N. Poplevko. Other papers discuss experimentation in the production of beads (M. Gurova, C. Bonsall, B. Bradley, E. Anastassova and P. Cura), new protocols on ceramics experimentation (J. F. Cerezer), ethnographic ceramic technology (R. T. Bortolin and V. Fróis), bone industry (B. Santander; C. Costa, N. Almeida, H. Gomes, S. Cura and P. Cura) and rock art engravings (N. S. da Rosa, S. Cura, S. Garcês and P. Cura).

The organization of the UISPP XVI world congress in Florianópolis was the occasion to focus a certain number of themes that are preferably dealt with at a transcontinental scale. Several sessions discussed the issue of transition mechanism (technological, social, economic, and their climatic and environmental contexts). Marcel Otte opens the volume, focusing on the specific role of straits, a topic that is also at the foundation of Judith Carlin's et al. paper. Contributions by Fabio Parenti et al., Gustavo Wagner and Mercedes Okumura et al., discuss the human adaptations in different contexts in Brazil, during the early and middle Holocene. First farming societies in Southern America and in Europe are approached in the papers by Marcel Otte and Jorge Oliveira et al., while the transition into more complex societies, bearing metallurgical knowledge, is the focus of papers by Leonor Rocha et al., C¿t¿lin Laz¿r. Finally, classic contexts on both sides of the Atlantic are revisited by Erika Gómez andby Carolina Dias.

Proceedings of the XVI World Congress of the International Union of Prehistoric and Protohistoric Sciences (Florianopolis, Brazil, 4-10 September 2011) Volume 11This volume brings together several papers delivered in different sessions that, for various reasons, were not completely published. Four major themes are involved: cultural interactions, rock art, theory and heritage. Papers by A. Meza and F. Vergara discuss intercultural issues in archaeological and ethnoarchaeological contexts. The paper by Albuquerque and Almeida on cognitive archaeology opens a sequence of five papers dedicated to rock art issues, including pigments studies (Gomes, Rosina and Santos), landscape analysis (Oliveira and Oliveira; Basille and Ratto) and methodology (G. Muñoz). The relations between New Archaeology and modern Russian research are the focus of discussion by I. Shucteleva. Urban and modern archaeology in the context of heritage management of contact are discussed in the papers by D. Costa, F. Borba and D. Bandeira, D. Pereiosta and R. Godoy.

Proceedings of the XVI World Congress of the International Union of Prehistoric and Protohistoric Sciences (Florianopolis, Brazil, 4-10 September 2011), Volume 7, Session XVIAfrican Prehistory is at the core of UISPP concerns, namely due to its crucial role to understand the origins and evolution of humans, but also for the complexity of its cultural diversity, in all major issues that are focused by the Union: cultures, economy and environments; specific environmental contexts like deserts or coastal areas, artistic expressions, prehistoric technologies, related methods and theories, history of research or the interaction between archaeology and current society. This volume presents eight papers that cover some of the major debates in African contexts: the lower Palaeolithic of Western Africa (A. Camara), the interaction between human cultures and environment in the late Holocene (S. Ozainne), the rock art in western central and austral Africa (C. Martins, L. Oosterbeek and G. Heimlich), metallurgy (H. Kienon Kaboret and K.S. Kouassi), pottery (M. Sall) and archaeological knowledge socialization (S. Fonseca and E. Gil).

The book focuses on the conservation of iron and copper objects that mostly belong to the Iron Age sites of K2 and Mapungubwe (AD 825-1290), the two most prominent archaeological settlements in the middle Limpopo valley area of northern South Africa. For the purpose of conservation three main objectives were considered: revealing the material and methods of fabrication; evaluating physical and chemical stability; and preservation. Chapter 1 provides a short introduction to the study and presents its objectives. Chapter 2 then sets out the analytical methods and principles used in gathering and managing the data obtained. Next, Chapters 3 and 4 discuss the methods of manufacture of the selected artefacts as well as their physical stability. In these chapters the artefacts were respectively studied by the use of non-destructive methods such as neutron tomography and microscopy. Here, a new quantitative technique for estimating the corrosion percentage by using neutron tomograms and IMAGEJ software was introduced. Some of the objects with ambiguities as to their fabrication, were sampled destructively for metallographical examination and further chemical analyses. The native objects were manufactured by hot forging or cold working followed by annealing only in the case of copper, strip twisting and casting of molten copper in one piece mould. Meanwhile, new light was shed regarding signs of a new technique used in the production of some types of round wire on Mapungubwe Hill (strip-drawing). Chapter 5 examines the chemical stability of the artefacts and the deterioration processes affecting them, considering both the composition of corrosion products and the effects of environmental conditions on their formation. This information was gathered using analytical techniques such as Raman spectroscopy, XRD and SEM-EDS. Chapter 6 then presents suitable and practical conservation methods for the objects in question. These methods consist of both interventive and preventive conservation. The thesis concludes (in Chapter 7) with a summary of the results obtained.

Written by Finbar McCormick, Thomas R. Kerr, Meriel McClatchie and Aidan O'SullivanThis book describes, collates and analyses the archaeological, zooarchaeological and palaeobotanical evidence for agriculture, livestock and cereal production in early medieval Ireland, AD 400-1100, particularly as revealed through archaeological excavations in Ireland since 1930. It is based on the research of the Heritage Council-funded Early Medieval Archaeology Project (EMAP), a collaborative research project between University College Dublin and Queens University Belfast, supported by the Irish government Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. Providing a range of insights into farmsteads and field enclosures, livestock management (particularly of cattle) and crop cultivation, along with a series of datasets presented in tables and gazetteer descriptions, it is arguably amongst the most detailed, focused and comprehensive analyses of early agricultural practice in its social and economic contexts in Europe, and the wider world.

This volume focuses on the beginning and development of the Neolithic in the territories near the final section of the Vinalopó river, and deals with the following matters through several chapters. The book presents in detail new information generated in the final section of the Vinalopó river. It studies the Neolithic materials from La Alcudia (Elche), their location, and makes a comparative analysis about the catchment area. This study shows that, both in this case and in Limoneros II and Cova de les Aranyes, the location was chosen according to the way of life of these first farmers. Regarding Limoneros II, it presents an initial preview of the urgent excavation carried out by the company Alebus Patrimonio Histórico S.L., which has allowed the documentation of a new settlement from the Early Neolithic. The book also presents the results of the excavation carried out in Cova de les Aranyes by M.S. Hernández Pérez and A. Guilabert Mas in the first years of the 21st century, and the study of the documented materials in this excavation and some previous ones. Next, it presents the information collected from El Alterón, a site that was discovered as the result of an urgent excavation, made of different negative structures that suggest a settlement in the 5th millennium cal BC at the foot of the sierra of Crevillente. On the other hand, the surveys carried out in the sierra of Santa Pola discovered several sites and excavated activity areas located near the coastline, linked to the use of marine resources. Finally, also as the result of an urgent excavation campaign, it was possible to document in Galanet a wide amount of negative structures. The palynological and carpological studies, the datings, and the analysis of the materiality of artefacts, suggest a site similar to a field of silos dating from the beginning of the 3rd millennium cal BC, located in the Barranco of San Antón, which runs parallel to the Vinalopó river.

Research at the Northeast Group explores how the malleability of commoner identity is crucial to interpretations of ancient Maya society. This volume has two main aims: first to demonstrate how residents of the Northeast Group used materials and architecture to distinguish themselves from others in the neighborhood, and second to examine the implications of commoners as agents of history. Fundamental to this is the deconstruction of what archaeologists mean by commoner and the theoretical and methodological assumptions built into these definitions. Regardless of extensive research in settlement and household studies, interpretations of ancient Maya society continued to be framed with reference to elites. As elites are defined as the motor of change within civilization, commoners, in contrast, are characterized as static and passive. This books seeks to demonstrate that these models do not accurately reflect who commoners were and their impact in the construction of ancient Maya society as a whole.

This book synthesizes the last 25 years of research on the prehistoric inhabitants of an intermontane basin located at elevations above 11,000 ft. This research is centered in the region of Antofagasta de la Sierra, which has yielded stimulating data on human occupations and paleoenvironmental conditions during the Pleistocene/Holocene boundary and continuously throughout the Holocene, including the very arid Middle Holocene -a time when the Atacama Desert to the west and the North Puna witnessed low intensity human occupations. The archaeological studies presented in this volume take on different aspects of human adaptation, from the earliest hunter-gatherers in the region to the transition toward food producing societies. Authors examine animal bones and fleece fibres, macro and micro-botanical remains, chipped and ground stone tools, and human burials from exceptionally well-preserved contexts in remarkable stratigraphic sequences from several rock-shelters, and discuss the relevance of their resultsin relation to hunter-gatherer settlement, subsistence and mobility strategies. This book aims at presenting the research to non-Spanish speaking audiences and at promoting a dialogue between archaeologists who study hunter-gatherers in deserts around the world. It is hoped that the research will contribute to a better understanding of the wide array of human adaptations in South America as well as to high altitude environments.

Notebooks on Military Archaeology and Architecture 9The presence of the British Army in Sicily during the years of the Napoleonic Wars has deeply marked the history of the island. There are many fortifications still visible, testifying to the British effort to defend Sicily against any possible military aggression. The present work is the result of various studies and research, with the specific objective of documenting and cataloguing the large fortified heritage of the city of Messina, currently undervalued and usable. In particular, the focus is on 1810, an important year for the central project of building fortifications around the Piazza of Messina, as well as the vain attempt to make an amphibious landing on the coast of Sicily, organised by Joachim Murat. The Martello Towers still exist, perhaps the most visible evidence of the work done in that time from the body of the Royal Engineers. A series of surveys on the territory, in conjunction with documentary evidence, have identified other military structures from that period, as well as tracing the precise location of those fortifications that no longer exist. This research therefore sets the stage for a more in-depth study about the interventions of the British for the fortification of the square of Messina.

Dehesas, espacios irrigados, torres, cigarrales y trincherasThe need to protect the physical and cultural environment in which we operate is the logical consequence of the dramatic transformations witnessed in recent years due to rapid urban development. This book seeks new ways to understand the natural and historic patrimony, increasing the evidences that we use to define our cultural heritage.

Notebooks on Military Archaeology and Architecture 8This volume is dedicated to the study of the field-fortifications on the Finestre and Fattières hills located in Piedmont on the Italian Occidental Alps; being the unique easily passable transit between the Chisone valley and the fortress of Susa, they had a special strategic meaning and importance. The first part of the book focuses on the historical documentary study of the fortification existence phases from the first half of the XVII century up to 1799 and on the change from French dominion to the House of Savoy control. The second part pertains to the archeological researches carried out between 2007 and 2012 on the sites where the remains of the field-buildings are still evident. Great attention is dedicated to territorial recognition added to the intensified study of the most important defensive components. The essay is supplied with archeological remarks and photographic material. They aim at presenting the real extension of the whole defensive system as well as the still visible consistency of the archeological remains.

Paris Monographs in American Archaeology 35One of the most interesting issues in the study of Olmec-style art, especially in the southern Gulf Coast lowlands, has been the debate surrounding the significance of the pits and grooves which appear on many of the Olmec-style monuments in this region. This study catalogs 58 Olmec-style monuments with documented instances of pit and groove work and evaluates previous interpretations of these enigmatic features based on the morphology of the pit and groove marks, the positioning of the markings on the monuments, and the contextual associations of the monuments vis-à-vis the local landscape. In light of this evidence, a model is proposed which places pit and groove work on Olmec-style monuments within a framework of cultural practices linked to rituals of rulership, termination rituals, and charging rituals.

South American Archaeology Series No 20This book discusses the relationship between mobility and / or archaeological sites functionality and lithic artifacts. The problems encountered when dealing with such issues are presented from different theoretical and / or methodological perspectives and from different spatial and temporal scales. There is a consensus that, from techno-typological analysis, it is possible to infer differential mobility strategies and site functionality. In this regard, the various case studies that are included in the book allow a tour of different ways to approach these issues from lithic artifacts in Argentina, so this book is a reference contribution for both specialists and general public.

The ninth volume of Notebooks on Medieval Topography (Documentary and field research), gives much input into research about Cultural Landscape. Latium (Monte Romano; Viterbo), and Basilicata (provinces of Potenza and Matera) are the Italian lands chosen to which methods, instruments and analyses, have been applied. Research from geology, archaeology, history, agronomy, history of art, engineering, architecture, literature, photography and cinema have all been used to contribute to a better analysis of Cultural Landcsape, i.e. the Space affected by Time and Human action. The whole area of Basilicata has been studied, especially the northern, central and eastern side (artistic and architectural heritage). In Latium the primary area of interest has been the village of Monte Romano and its county. The landscape evolution has been examined from the Roman period (III cent. B. C.) until the contemporary one. The last part discusses thoroughly the economic condition of the lands along the river Marta, between Tuscania and Corneto (Tarquinia) in XV and XVI cent. During this period there was organized cattle breeding and an ancient bovine race (the Maremmana). Combining survey, bibliographic and archival recovery of unpublished documents, without neglecting any aspect (such as the cataloguing of springs), the Cultural Landscape has been examined from different perspectives, even those that seem less relevant (cattle-breeding, agricultural and food), but are still an economic resource. Thus they are very important to a cultural development. The research, exploring a fairly wide range of possibilities, wants to be a stimulus to those who want to study a complex and articulate reality like Cultural Landscape.

This volume details the excavation of a Roman temple complex in northern Galilee. The site is known as Omrit, although the origin of the name is uncertain. Found between the Druze holy site of Nebi Yehuda and the well-known hill, Tel Azaziyat, the Omrit temple is a remarkable discovery. The temple foundations are very-well preserved and many of the original architectural features are still on the site. Along with on-going excavations and preservation of the site, the long-range plans for the expedition include a partial reconstruction of the temple. The finds, data, history of the excavations, and the architectural complexity of the temple are presented in this volume in the form of an interim report.

This book provides an exciting foray into the use of emerging Mixed Reality techniques for examining and analysing archaeological landscapes. Mixed Reality provides an opportunity to merge the real world with virtual elements of relevance to the past, including 3D models, soundscapes, smellscapes and other immersive data. By using Mixed Reality, the results of sophisticated desk-based GIS analyses can be experienced directly within the field and combined with body-centered phenomenological analysis to create an embodied GIS. The book explores the potential of this methodology by applying it in the Bronze Age landscape of Leskernick Hill, Bodmin Moor, UK. Since Leskernick Hill has (famously) already been the subject of intensive phenomenological investigation, it is possible to compare the insights gained from 'traditional' landscape phenomenology with those obtained from the use of Mixed Reality, and effectively combine quantitative GIS analysis and phenomenological fieldwork into one embodied experience. This mixing of approaches leads to the production of a new innovative method which not only provides new interpretations of the settlement on Leskernick Hill but also suggests avenues for the future of archaeological landscape research more generally. The book will be of interest to anyone studying or working in the fields of landscape archaeology, digital techniques in archaeology, archaeological theory or GIS.

Huddersfield and District Archaeological Society: Excavations in the vicus of Slack Roman fort 2007, 2008 and 2010Work on the vicus of the Roman fort at Slack, Huddersfield, by the Huddersfield and District Archaeological Society during three seasons of excavation in 2007, 2008 and 2010, covered in this volume, has led to a reconsideration of the dates of Roman occupation, taking it well into the 3rd and possibly 4th centuries AD. As on many other Roman military sites, the vicus area has had little attention and the possible continuation of the civilian area as a place of note on the Roman road has not previously been fully investigated. Radiocarbon dating and pottery analysis show convincingly that there was considerable late activity in the vicus area adjacent to the fort and the Roman road from Chester to York.

This book, based on the author's doctoral thesis, is focused on understanding social and economic aspects of the medieval rural world on the basis of the zooarchaeological analysis of seven different assemblages of animal remains located in the north and centre of the Iberian Peninsula. Multiple lines of analysis are utilized and combined in order to understand animal husbandry practices, subsistence strategies, the use of animal bones and antler as raw material, and site formation processes. The main contributions of this work are understanding the economic system of medieval peasant communities and changes over time, as well as understanding the ways of social differentiation through diet in medieval Iberia. Also, worked bone and antler and butchery practices are analysed. Other aspects related to the social dimension of the use of animals are discussed, such as the presence of companion animals, the introduction of species, and the veterinary knowledge of the peasant communities. The use of animals in possible ritual or symbolic contexts is also analysed. This book is a substantial contribution towards understanding animal use in the medieval Iberian Peninsula.

The nature of disputes related to the in situ conservation of archaeological remains into the basements of contemporary buildings are explored in this study. Through a novel, interdisciplinary approach negotiation theories and models with heritage management practices are merged, and the concept of in situ museums (structures that conserve in situ archaeological remains) is introduced. The author discusses examples of in situ conservation of archaeological remains in contemporary private and public buildings including museums. Special emphasis is given on the Acropolis Museum which is linked with a wide range of conflicts at local, national and international level. The book concludes with a proposed strategy for managing disputes in the heritage sector.

The papers included in this volume were presented at the 2011 international academic conference 'Continuity and Destruction in Alexander's East: the transformation of monumental space from the Hellenistic period to Late Antiquity', which took place at the University of Oxford. The conference and publication theme - the region commonly known as the Hellenistic East - follows the long-term research interests of the editors and brings together scholars and specialists doing work in the region. It follows in the footsteps of a previous conference of 2009, From Pella to Gandhara: Hybridisation and Identity in the Art and Architecture of the Hellenistic East, which resulted in an edited volume of 2011 published by Archaeopress. While 'Pella to Gandhara' looked into the Hellenistic East as a whole, 'Continuity and Destruction' narrows the focus onto the Near East, with its greater wealth of archaeological research and publication. At the same time, the focus of the current topic carries over ontoan extended time frame spanning the aftermath of the Macedonian campaign, thus tracing steady, smooth or abrupt changes of defining spaces in ancient societies as these were moulded and shaped by the events of the day.

The image of Cleopatra VII Philopator, often a cause of controversy and debate, has long been of particular interest among collectors of classical antiquities and academics. Starting from the controversial identification of the Capitoline Cleopatra and critical reading of the iconographic and literary documentation available, the author discusses iconographic and methodological issues and offers new interpretations and identifications of royal female statuary in Egyptian style. This volume offers a wide panorama of the Lagid figurative culture (Egyptian and Greek) and includes a catalogue of the monuments. The author's Egyptological and semiotic analysis of the sardonyx agate phiale, better known as the "Farnese Cup", reveals what may be considered the most evident and effective result of the concept of 'bilingual' expression through iconography. The historical, cultural, political and religious aspects of the Ptolemaic dynasty are discussed, and special attention is given to the religious politics of the Lagid sovereigns in Egyptian territory and particularly to the deification of the Ptolemaic queens.

In 1992, in the context of the Archaeological Project Teotihuacan 92-94 under the direction of Eduardo Matos Montezuma , two caves in the southeast of the Pyramid of the Sun were excavated. The undertaken research demonstrated the use of these caves by teotihuacanos in a ceremonial context but also by the cultures after the collapse of this great metropolis. This book provides a new interpretation of the research done in the nineties using a wider understanding of the use and function of this underground ceremonial complex. Chronological periods have been updated, and the social models are more adapted to the current interpretations of teotihuacan society and the meaning an function of their rulers from classic to postclassic periods. Also this book is a contribution to the study and understanding of the symbolism of caves in the Mesoamerica cultural area.

Archaeobotanical data is used as the basis for the investigations of the subsistence economy at the Early Bronze Age settlement Küllüoba in west-central Anatolia. This work introduces new evidence from this EBA settlement located on a flat mound in the upper Sakarya Valley. For the investigation of crops and animal husbandry, evidence of the weed taxa and their ecological meaning in the archaeobotanical records are considered as the main sources of information in order to understand husbandry practices such as cropping sequences, intensity of the crop cultivation, harvesting methods and long or short-term cultivation of the fields. Examining the archaeobotanical and zooarchaeological evidence together, the author argues that small-scale intensive crop and animal husbandry was the subsistence strategy for the inhabitants of EBA Küllüoba. Strong evidence is also found to suggest that Early Bronze Age Küllüoba functioned as an egalitarian farming community organized around extended families.

This tribute volume to Oliver Dickinson marks the occasion of his retirement from his post at the University of Durham. It is a tribute by only a few (unavoidably) of his friends, colleagues and former students, marking the formal cessation of Oliver's teaching responsibilities. Oliver's ongoing participation in major projects (e.g. Lefkandi, Argolid) makes it clear that his contributions to Aegean Bronze Age studies will not end with his retirement. This Festschrift was assembled merely as a token of its contributors' appreciation of his achievements hitherto, and in anticipation of many more still to come. The title of the volume, Autochthon, highlights the central notion in his classic synthesis, namely that "[...] the history of Mycenaean development can be understood as that of progressive assimilation of the mainland societies to the earlier Aegean civilisations, artistically and politically". Indeed, one of Oliver's main contributions in Aegean prehistory has been to depict the emergence of Mycenaean 'civilisation' as a multi-linear and dynamic process, associated with Cretan influence yet not entirely dependent on it; it was also informed, he has suggested, by indigenous Helladic cultures and heralded by the emergence of MH 'shadowy aristocracies' in various regions of the mainland.

In this study of Late Roman Republican coin hoards (157-2 BC), the author, rather than taking a specific testable hypothesis such as 'hoards from Spain have more coins of type A than hoards in Italy', prefers to tackle the question: 'what patterning is there in the hoard data?' Just as there are schools of archaeological thought there are schools of statistical thought. It is not uncommon for statistics to be viewed as a way of testing a quite specific hypothesis which is accepted or rejected on the basis of the results. An alternative approach is to view statistics as a method for exploring data. With the development of computers, the application of more complex multivariate tools has grown, but the aim of 'exploring' the data is similar. The methods chosen by the author in this study are mainly Correspondence Analysis and Cluster Analysis; these were selected as those most likely to answer his initial question. What those patterns mean take us from the realm of statistics into the realm of numismatic and archaeological interpretation. Archaeologically and historically, the principal aim is to examine the reasons for the differences between hoards such as the pattern of supply of coinage, or differences in the use of coinage.

The purpose of this study is to explore, through a variety of approaches, the extent to which the stereotype of the 'obese medieval monk' is founded in truth. The work aims to determine the 'antiquity' of that stereotype, by exploring the image of the monk throughout the medieval period (defined as AD 1066-c.1540), and the contribution of the medieval accusations and criticisms of monks to the evolution of the modern stereotype. Chapters focus on archaeological and historical evidence pertaining to monastic diet, and an osteological study comparing the physique and the prevalence of obesity-related joint disease in medieval monks from London with their secular counterparts. Ultimately, the evidence presented in each chapter is drawn together and considered to give a holistic perspective on the 'obese medieval monk'.

This book explores the theory of landscape and the possibility of conscious inclusion of landscape features in the architecture of rural sanctuaries in the Roman Near East.

*Funta place-names, epitomize the complex network of linguistic and historical intersections in post-Roman Britain. It was a Latin term originally, but adopted and adapted by non-Romans, and used to describe liminal spaces where British and Germanic peoples met. Despite their relevance to a number of key questions about interactions between these cultures, they have never been systematically catalogued and studied before. This research, combining linguistic and archaeological analysis, remedies this. The book provides a detailed gazetteer of sites, extensive analysis and interpretation and, finally, an explanation of language usage and development in the fifth century. It precisely defines the *funta element in place names for the first time. It also discusses the development of British to Old English culture, and provides an insight into peaceful interactions between the different cultures that made up early Anglo-Saxon England, to temper the more traditional characterization of this period as a Dark Age.

Fifteen papers, eight from a session at the SAA meeting in Denver in 2002 on Natufian cultures and the others invited papers, examine various issues associated with the cultures of the late Pleistocene in the Near East.