The Special Issue brings together seven papers that explore a variety of paradigms, perspectives, and methodologies for visualizing human mobility in the past through the lens of material culture. The contributions discuss different... more
The Special Issue brings together seven papers that explore a variety of paradigms, perspectives, and methodologies for visualizing human mobility in the past through the lens of material culture. The contributions discuss different geographical regions and chronological time frames.
These include:
- Astrid J. Nyland, Daniela Hofmann and Rune Iversen's paper on "The Blurry Third Millennium. 'Neolithisation' in a Norwegian Context",
- Silvina Scharl's "Human Mobility and the Spread of Innovations – Case Studies from Neolithic Central and Southeast Europe",
- Sarah Trabert, Matthew E. Hill and Margaret E. Beck's paper on "Movement or Diaspora? Understanding a Multigenerational Puebloan and Ndee Community on the Central Great Plains",
- "The Thule Migration: A Culture in a Hurry?" by Robert W. Park
- David Laguna-Palma and Pablo Barruezo-Vaquero's paper on "Landscapes of Movement along the (Pre)historical Libyan Sea: Keys for a Socio-Ecological History",
- "The Transformation of Domes in Medieval Chinese Mosques: From Immigrant Muslims to Local Followers" by Shunhua Jin, and
- my own paper on "Arab Migration during Early Islam: The 7th-8th Centuries AD from an Archaeological Perspective".
https://www.degruyter.com/journal/key/opar/9/1/html
These include:
- Astrid J. Nyland, Daniela Hofmann and Rune Iversen's paper on "The Blurry Third Millennium. 'Neolithisation' in a Norwegian Context",
- Silvina Scharl's "Human Mobility and the Spread of Innovations – Case Studies from Neolithic Central and Southeast Europe",
- Sarah Trabert, Matthew E. Hill and Margaret E. Beck's paper on "Movement or Diaspora? Understanding a Multigenerational Puebloan and Ndee Community on the Central Great Plains",
- "The Thule Migration: A Culture in a Hurry?" by Robert W. Park
- David Laguna-Palma and Pablo Barruezo-Vaquero's paper on "Landscapes of Movement along the (Pre)historical Libyan Sea: Keys for a Socio-Ecological History",
- "The Transformation of Domes in Medieval Chinese Mosques: From Immigrant Muslims to Local Followers" by Shunhua Jin, and
- my own paper on "Arab Migration during Early Islam: The 7th-8th Centuries AD from an Archaeological Perspective".
https://www.degruyter.com/journal/key/opar/9/1/html
Research Interests: Archaeology, Landscape Archaeology, Migration, Islam in China, Theoretical Archaeology, and 11 moreMigration Studies, Early Islam, Neolithic Europe, Thule Archaeology, Ancestral Pueblo (Archaeology), Mosque Architecture, Historical Archaeology and Diaspora Studies, Innovation and creativity (Archaeology), Migration and Diaspora Studies, Central Great Plains USA, and Migration and Diaspora In Archaeology
This volume follows the changes that occurred in central Palestine during the longue duree between the 7th to the 11th centuries. That region offers a unique micro-history of the Islamicate world, providing the opportunity for intensive... more
This volume follows the changes that occurred in central Palestine during the longue duree between the 7th to the 11th centuries. That region offers a unique micro-history of the Islamicate world, providing the opportunity for intensive archaeological research and rich primary sources.
Through a careful comparison between the archaeological records and the textual evidence, a new history of Palestine and the Islamicate world emerges – one that is different than that woven from Arabic geographies and chronicles alone. The book highlights the importance of using a variety of sources when possible and examining each type of source in its own context. The volume spans ancient technologies and daily life, ancient agriculture, and the perception of place by ancient authors. It also explores the shift of settlements and harbors in central Palestine, as well as the gradual development of a new metropolis, al-Ramla.
Settlement and Urbanization in Early Islamic Palestine will be of particular interest to students and scholars of the history of Islam or the history of Palestine, or anyone working more generally in the methodology of historical research and integrating texts and archaeology.
Through a careful comparison between the archaeological records and the textual evidence, a new history of Palestine and the Islamicate world emerges – one that is different than that woven from Arabic geographies and chronicles alone. The book highlights the importance of using a variety of sources when possible and examining each type of source in its own context. The volume spans ancient technologies and daily life, ancient agriculture, and the perception of place by ancient authors. It also explores the shift of settlements and harbors in central Palestine, as well as the gradual development of a new metropolis, al-Ramla.
Settlement and Urbanization in Early Islamic Palestine will be of particular interest to students and scholars of the history of Islam or the history of Palestine, or anyone working more generally in the methodology of historical research and integrating texts and archaeology.
Research Interests:
This book offers new and innovative perspectives on long-distance trade between Europe, the Mediterranean area, the Middle East, Africa, India and China during the Early Medieval period. The archaeological data and historical insights... more
This book offers new and innovative perspectives on long-distance trade between Europe, the Mediterranean area, the Middle East, Africa, India and China during the Early Medieval period. The archaeological data and historical insights presented in this volume are always of great interest, often exciting, and more than once outright astonishing. The goods which travelled between the continents in the timespan under discussion (ca. 6th to 12th centuries) include pottery in all shapes and forms, textiles, coins, metal, lava millstones, glass, marble columns, rock-crystal beads, and also plants used for incense. The scope of the contributions includes the wide-ranging economic contacts of a Viking community, the changing patterns of long-distance trade in the Byzantine Empire over the centuries, the spread of Chinese pottery to Africa, the Near East and Europe, the invaluable information on trade and maritime routes provided by shipwrecks in the Java Sea, the reconstruction on the basis of botanical data of a incense trade network, and the production and distribution of textiles as well as stone objects in the Middle East and beyond. The varied approaches in this volume underline that the movement of objects in Early Medieval times over vast distances not only reflect mechanisms of exchange, but also imply social networks and the transfer of ideas. Thus, Riches Beyond the Horizon sheds compelling light on a world which was much more complex and much more interconnected than has often been assumed, which makes it essential reading for scholars and a larger audience alike.
See more at: http://www.brepols.net/pages/ShowProduct.aspx?prod_id=IS-9782503599816-1
See more at: http://www.brepols.net/pages/ShowProduct.aspx?prod_id=IS-9782503599816-1
Research Interests: Economic History, Maritime Archaeology, Islamic Archaeology, Early Medieval Archaeology, Early Medieval History, and 9 moreMedieval Archaeology, Byzantine Studies, Chinese archaeology, Mobility (Archaeology), Ancient Trade & Commerce (Archaeology), Medieval Economy, Early Islamic History, African Archaeology, and Medieval Economic and Social History
The topic of Arab migration during the medieval period has occupied many modern historians. The evidence for migration in chronicles and geographies, however, is quite thin. This article looks at these texts as well as at contemporary... more
The topic of Arab migration during the medieval period has occupied many modern historians. The evidence for migration in chronicles and geographies, however, is quite thin. This article looks at these texts as well as at contemporary "archaeological texts" (inscriptions and papyri documents) and archaeology. Each of these sources provides different information under different limitations which sometimes correlates with another. One main focus of the article is the ability of archaeology to answeralonethe question about Arab migration. For that purpose, two archaeological models are proposed. One model highlights the link between the material culture of two regions (origin and destination) in two sequent times and its evolvement in the destination. The other model points to continuous links between origin and destination and the evolvement of material culture in the origin. The models are compared to a number of case studies from the early Islamic period (seventh to tenth century AD) in the Levant, Spain, and additional regions. The case studies present innovations which might reflect migrants: irrigation methods, specific forms of architecture, production techniques of portable artifacts, and evidence for a new confession-Islam. While the archaeological records of early Islam are often too limited to answer most of the models' criteria, two case studies seem promising: soapstone pots/bowls and early Muslim burials. Both cases imply the migration of people from the Arabian Peninsula elsewhere in the eighth or even the seventh century.
Research Interests:
Many winepresses from archaeological contexts in Israel are dated to the Byzantine Period. Their use is dated as late as the 8th century AD. Archaeologists relate the ending the winepresses use to the Arab conquest of Palestine in the 7th... more
Many winepresses from archaeological contexts in Israel are dated to the Byzantine Period. Their use is dated as late as the 8th century AD. Archaeologists relate the ending the winepresses use to the Arab conquest of Palestine in the 7th century AD. First, Islam prohibits the consumption of alcohol, so that most of the society allegedly does not consume it. Moreover, the purported termination of the relations with Byzantium led to the cessation of wine exportation. However, texts from the early centuries of Islam point to production, distribution and consumption of alcohol by various groups in the society and by members of different religions (including Muslims). In addition, dating anew winepresses and similar installations from central Israel, based on construction techniques, postpones the date of most. The dating results indicate changes in the installations typology from the 7th to the 10th century AD and imply a geographical expansion of vine farming. In the 10th century, three types of installations existed in the same regions, designated perhaps for the production of different grape-juice products. One type plausibly produced a not-fermented juice which was then fermented in jars, or was cooked. The other types of installations during early Islam were winepresses - producing wine.
Research Interests:
Mosques are one main type of evidence to represent early Islam in the archaeological record. Dating mosques is crucial for pinpointing the earliest presence of the Muslim faith in a region and to test certain historical narratives known... more
Mosques are one main type of evidence to represent early Islam in the archaeological record. Dating mosques is crucial for pinpointing the earliest presence of the Muslim faith in a region and to test certain historical narratives known from the literary sources. Scholars, however, sometimes date medieval mosques in excavations and surveys relying on literary sources. Following these texts has led to dating several mosque remains to the seventh or eighth century. In contrast, archaeologically independent dating tools support only later or indefinite dates for these ancient structures. This article presents four sites which consist of a mosque each that has been dated to the seventh or eighth century: Fusṭāṭ, Jerusalem, Wāsiṭ, and Ramla. Through these case studies, supplemented by similar examples, I demonstrate the gap between the literary sources and the material evidence. Interpreting relevant epigraphical data, as well as excavation results from many more sites, suggests that the spread of mosques beyond the Arabian Peninsula and Greater Syria occurred only in the ninth century. The literary sources, therefore, cannot be read at face value and can certainly not form the basis for interpreting and dating physical remains.
Research Interests: Islamic Archaeology, Islamic Studies, Umayyads (Islamic History), Early Islam, Early Islamic Archaeology, and 12 moreEarly and Medieval Islamic Art and Architecture, Arabic Epigraphy, Early Islamic History, Mosque Architecture, Early Islamic Historiography, Islamic art history, Umayyad and Abbasid History, Islamic art and architecture, Islamic art and archaeology, Jerusalem Archaeology, Islamization, and Koran and Early-Islam
Legible copper coins from excavations of Early Islamic sites are scarcer than in other periods. They contain, however, valuable information for understanding economic operations. The focus of this paper is the mint-toponyms inscribed on... more
Legible copper coins from excavations of Early Islamic sites are scarcer than in other periods. They contain, however, valuable information for understanding economic operations. The focus of this paper is the mint-toponyms inscribed on coins which point to their production place. This identification enables network inquiries and economic interpretations on a level that is rarely possible with archaeological finds. The following study utilizes coins of the seventh-ninth centuries from excavations in one area in Israel, Palestine and Jordan. It looks at mint names and the exact location of the coin’s discovery, map these data with GIS, cross-reference characteristics in the data, and detect possible correlations. The paper emphasizes two results. The first is a calculation of the distance that copper coins traveled – locally, regionally or farther. This result challenges the view that copper coins were only circulated locally. The second result is the identification of sites with coins from four or more mints as marketplaces. Some of these sites are located at the center of big sites, such as Ramla or Beth Shean, but others are their neighboring small sites which acted in parallel. This result disputes the Central Place theory and similar paradigms.
Research Interests: Economic History, Islamic Archaeology, Medieval History, Landscape Archaeology, Archaeology of Ancient Israel, and 8 moreEarly Medieval Archaeology, Byzantine Archaeology, Ancient numismatics (Archaeology), Remote sensing and GIS applications in Landscape Research, Coins finds as archaeological artefacts, Archaeology of Jordan, Big Data Analytics, and Archaeology of the Levant
Research Interests: Economic History, Maritime Archaeology, Islamic Archaeology, Early Medieval Archaeology, Ancient economies (Archaeology), and 9 moreViking Age Archaeology, Travel Literature, Chinese archaeology, Ancient Trade & Commerce (Archaeology), Mediterranean Underwater Archaeology, Early medieval numismatics, Medieval Mediterranean, Chinese Ceramics, and Classical' Arabic and Persian Geographical and Travel Literature
Research Interests:
Differentiating urban places from rural is often obscure. This paper advances some clarification based on the analysis of settlements from the seventh to the eleventh centuries in Israel/ Palestine. In this case study, archaeological... more
Differentiating urban places from rural is often obscure. This paper advances some clarification based on the analysis of settlements from the seventh to the eleventh centuries in Israel/ Palestine. In this case study, archaeological sites in central Israel are classified into types based on their finds, settlement types are identified through terminology in texts from or about Palestine, and the results of the two analyses are compared. The main category for distinguishing one settlement type from another is the amount of services it provides, with the greatest range of services in cities. However, cities in this study are not big, not spatially central, and not very industrial; the only entity to answer such criteria is the metropolis. The paper thus highlights the importance of a contextual inquiry, a regional overview, and a bottom-up perspective.
Research Interests: Urban Geography, Archaeology, Near Eastern Archaeology, Islamic Archaeology, Landscape Archaeology, and 8 moreMedieval Studies, Rural History, Urban Studies, Medieval Islamic History, Early Islamic Archaeology, Early and Medieval Islamic Art and Architecture, Early Islamic History, and Historic cities
Different societies have various definitions and names to their units of residences, such as 'cities' or 'villages'. This paper examines the categories people had for settlements in Palestine from the seventh to the thirteenth century. A... more
Different societies have various definitions and names to their units of residences, such as 'cities' or 'villages'. This paper examines the categories people had for settlements in Palestine from the seventh to the thirteenth century. A rich corpus of textual sources is used for that purpose, comprising chronicles, geographies, letters and epigraphy, in Arabic, Hebrew, Latin and Greek. The paper presents a coherent set of five contemporary settlement types until the eleventh century, including city (madīna), town (qarya), village (kafr or ḍayʿa), fortress (ḥiṣn) and monastery (dayr), and introduces the changes that occurred in the twelfth-thirteenth centuries in that terminology. The results of such analysis help to reconstruct - through texts alone - the relations between neighboring places and changes in these regional systems over time. The paper discusses the meaning of these terms, as well as ribāṭ and metropolis (e.g. qaṣaba), and calls for a more refined interpretation of the terms in modern research.
Research Interests: Medieval History, Papyrology, Arabic Language and Linguistics, Landscape Archaeology, Medieval Archaeology, and 9 moreByzantine Studies, Islamic Studies, Islamic History, Early Islam, Social Network Analysis (Social Sciences), Medieval Epigraphy, History of Palestine and Israel, Cities, and Cairo Genizah
Ovens, hearths and furnaces were used by early Islamic societies for baking, cooking, and the production of various artefacts. The archaeological evidence from one research area in central Israel, from the seventh-eleventh centuries,... more
Ovens, hearths and furnaces were used by early Islamic societies for baking, cooking, and the production of various artefacts. The archaeological evidence from one research area in central Israel, from the seventh-eleventh centuries, accordingly presents a variety of fire installations. This paper offers an interpretation of their function through the analyses of terminology in contemporary texts, ethno-archaeological data, and spatial relations in the archaeological record. The paper suggests that domestic baking and cooking left almost no remains in the archaeological context. Instead, fire installations in the research area were almost exclusively related to crafts.
Research Interests: Ethnohistory, Near Eastern Archaeology, Ethnoarchaeology, Pottery (Archaeology), Arabic Language and Linguistics, and 9 moreEarly Medieval History, Islamic Studies, Social History, Early Islam, Rabbinic Literature, Ancient Technology (Archaeology), Spatial archaeology, Cooking and Food Preparation (archaeology), and Pottery technology and function
The development of the chronology of the Early Islamic period (7th-11th centuries) has largely been based on coins and pottery, but both have pitfalls. In addition to the problem of mobility, both coins and pottery were used for extended... more
The development of the chronology of the Early Islamic period (7th-11th centuries) has largely been based on coins and pottery, but both have pitfalls. In addition to the problem of mobility, both coins and pottery were used for extended periods of time. As a result, the dating of pottery can seldom be refined to less than a 200-300-year range, while coins in Israel are often found in contexts hundreds of years after the initial production of the coin itself. This article explores an alternative method for dating based on construction techniques and installation designs. To that end, this paper analyzes one research area in central Israel between Tel-Aviv, Ashdod and Ramla. The data used in the study is from excavations and surveys of early Islamic remains. Installation and construction techniques were categorized by type and then ordered chronologically through a common stratigraphy from related sites. The results were mapped to determine possible phases of change at the site, with six phases being established and dated. This analysis led to the re-dating of the Pool of the Arches in Ramla from 172 AH/789 CE to 272 AH/886 CE, which is different from the date that appears on the building inscription. The attempted reconstruction of Ramla involved several scattered sites attributed to the 7th and the 8th centuries which grew into clusters by the 9th century and unified into one main cluster with the White Mosque at its center by the 10th-11th centuries. The main contribution of this dating method is differentiating between the 9th and 10th centuries. This article emphasizes the potential of archaeology as an alternative to written sources in the dating of sites and offers a fresh perspective on the history of this region.
Research Interests:
The Arava is an arid region in the Southern Levant. Archaeological excavations and surveys in the area revealed dense settlement and sophisticated technologies from the 8th-9th centuries AD – qanat water technology and copper production.... more
The Arava is an arid region in the Southern Levant. Archaeological excavations and surveys in the area revealed dense settlement and sophisticated technologies from the 8th-9th centuries AD – qanat water technology and copper production. Differences between the data of the middle and southern Arava suggest two separated economic systems. While the Southern Arava seems to be primarily an industrial area of copper that delivered the raw material to Ayla, the middle Arava was mainly agricultural and may be connected to trade routes. Studying the farming conditions of this arid area points to date palms as the main crop of the agricultural settlement. However, it is not yet clear where the Arava's produce was exported.
Research Interests:
The archaeological data from the Arava (Southern Israel/Jordan) suggests massive settlement during the eighth and ninth centuries (the Early Islamic Period), which the literary sources do not mention. The material evidence includes copper... more
The archaeological data from the Arava (Southern Israel/Jordan) suggests massive settlement during the eighth and ninth centuries (the Early Islamic Period), which the literary sources do not mention. The material evidence includes copper industry, a developed agriculture with qanats, and specific architecture. In this study, data from the excavations and surveys in both Jordan and Israel was gathered, and settlement patterns were identified. The Arava patterns of settlement suggest the possibility of the intervention of ruling authorities. First, Early Islamic settlement in the Arava is a one-time phenomenon; Second, advanced technologies were used to exploit the area’s natural resources, and third, the city of Ayla and the courtyard houses are expressions of an administrative architecture. However, this study cannot determine whether the involvement was that of the central government or of local authorities only.
Research Interests:
The archaeology of the medieval world, and of historical periods in general, often has an ambivalent relationship with pasts derived from other available sources. On the one hand, interpreting the archaeological record requires external... more
The archaeology of the medieval world, and of historical periods in general, often has an ambivalent relationship with pasts derived from other available sources. On the one hand, interpreting the archaeological record requires external evidence, thus texts and oral traditions may become important anchors. On the other hand, archaeologists frequently struggle to integrate their findings with those of history and anthropology, and the latter usually dominate in discourses on the past.
This seminar's primary aim is to discuss various approaches to this challenge in different archaeological sub-disciplines. With a particular focus on ‘cities’, the seminar will introduce case studies in which a gap can be found between archaeology and other sources. The second aim of the seminar is to broaden students' contexts and allow them to get acquainted with other regions and with additional research traditions. Therefore, the meetings will present different studies from Asia, Africa and Europe which are conducted by scholars from African, Islamic, Byzantine, Indian, and medieval European archaeologies. This wide geographical spread will allow for the comparison and contrast of key issues in the 9th-14th century.
This seminar's primary aim is to discuss various approaches to this challenge in different archaeological sub-disciplines. With a particular focus on ‘cities’, the seminar will introduce case studies in which a gap can be found between archaeology and other sources. The second aim of the seminar is to broaden students' contexts and allow them to get acquainted with other regions and with additional research traditions. Therefore, the meetings will present different studies from Asia, Africa and Europe which are conducted by scholars from African, Islamic, Byzantine, Indian, and medieval European archaeologies. This wide geographical spread will allow for the comparison and contrast of key issues in the 9th-14th century.
Research Interests:
The conference aims at allowing a direct dialogue between the various semi-disciplines of early Islamic history (the 7th to 9th century). For that purpose, it brings together scholars who study early Islam either through contemporary... more
The conference aims at allowing a direct dialogue between the various semi-disciplines of early Islamic history (the 7th to 9th century). For that purpose, it brings together scholars who study early Islam either through contemporary sources or through a critical reading of later texts. One objective is to introduce the different methodologies and discuss their merits and flaws. As part of the first objective, we hope to advance the use of both archaeological methods and archaeological theory in Islamic history in general and in discussions about early Islam in particular. The second objective is to examine which kind of historical questions can be answered by contemporary sources – fragmentary and local as they are. The third objective is to encourage students to use contemporary sources and critical methods by highlighting their advantages and slightly breaking the central position of the later narrative texts.
Research Interests: Economic History, Islamic Archaeology, Medieval History, Arabic Poetry, Papyrology, and 15 moreQur'anic Studies, Early Islam, Ancient numismatics (Archaeology), Medieval Islamic History, Early Islamic Archaeology, Arabic Epigraphy, Medieval Islamic Numismatics, Syriac literature, Early medieval numismatics, Early Islamic History, Arabic Manuscripts, Arabic Papyrology, Early Islamic Historiography, Quranic and Islamic Studies, and Syriac manuscripts
More about Hajar and our events: https://hajar.hypotheses.org/
Research Interests: Islamic Archaeology, Medieval History, Medieval Islam, Medieval Islamic History, Islamic History and Muslim Civilization, and 7 moreBaths and bathing culture, Islamic art and architecture, Islamic art and archaeology, Ritual Purity, Medieval Economic and Social History, Soap manufacturing, and medieval soap
Research Interests: Game studies, Islamic Archaeology, Medieval History, Medieval Studies, Medieval Islam, and 11 moreMedieval Archaeology, Islamic Studies, History of Toys and Play, History of Daily Life, Islamic History, Early and Medieval Islamic Art and Architecture, Games (History), History of Games, Islamic History and Muslim Civilization, Games, and Islamic art and architecture
This seminar series (2021-2) examines different types of ancient and modern migration through a material lens. It aims to explore a variety of theoretical paradigms, perspectives, and methodologies for visualizing the movement and... more
This seminar series (2021-2) examines different types of ancient and modern migration through a material lens. It aims to explore a variety of theoretical paradigms, perspectives, and methodologies for visualizing the movement and settling of migrants. To that end, scholars were invited to present archaeological or ethnographic case studies on a broad geographical, chronological, and thematic range of topics related to migration and mobility.
Research Interests:
This workshop investigates the archaeology of technology and innovation. It aims to explore the methodologies used by archaeologists to detect and interpret technological change in the past and how we use these innovations to better... more
This workshop investigates the archaeology of technology and innovation. It aims to explore the methodologies used by archaeologists to detect and interpret technological change in the past and how we use these innovations to better understand the societies that implemented them. The workshop focuses on case studies from several regions and time periods in order to promote cross-disciplinary discussion and engagement.
Research Interests: Cultural History, Archaeology, Islamic Archaeology, Cultural Heritage, History of Technology, and 7 moreCultural Heritage Conservation, Heritage Conservation, World Cultural Heritage, History of Medieval Technology, African Archaeology, Indian Archaeology and History of Art, and ARCHAEOLOGY AND WORLD HERITAGE
Second Ḥajar Workshop ONLINE
https://hajar.hypotheses.org/hajar-online-conferences
https://hajar.hypotheses.org/hajar-online-conferences
Research Interests: Economic History, Islamic Archaeology, Medieval History, Landscape Archaeology, Rural History, and 10 moreEarly Medieval Archaeology, Social History, Early Islam, Agricultural History, Early Islamic Archaeology, Irrigation Water Management (Archaeology), Early Islamic History, Field Crops, Islamic art and archaeology, and History of Agriculture
Archaeologists use different methods for visualizing their data – for analysis and for presentation. The lectures (which form part of CReA's international spring school) will discuss successful ways to visualize these data and challenges... more
Archaeologists use different methods for visualizing their data – for analysis and for presentation. The lectures (which form part of CReA's international spring school) will discuss successful ways to visualize these data and challenges and successes in the application of both GIS and network analysis (NA).
Research Interests: Landscape Archaeology, Social Network Analysis (SNA), Social Networking Sites (SNS), Remote sensing and GIS applications in Landscape Research, Geo-spatial analysis with GIS and GPS, and 5 moreSpatial archaeology, GIS and Landscape Archaeology, Surveying and Mapping, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and Geographic Information Systems GIS)
Archaeologists use different methods for visualizing their data – for analysis and for presentation. The international spring school will discuss successful ways to visualize these data and challenges and successes in the application of... more
Archaeologists use different methods for visualizing their data – for analysis and for presentation. The international spring school will discuss successful ways to visualize these data and challenges and successes in the application of both GIS and network analysis (NA). Through an integration between theory, studies, and tutored practice, we aim to access the two learnt methods to each participant for independent use.
Research Interests:
Mosques are one of the physical representations of Islam and of Muslim communities in the archaeological record. Archaeological excavations of ancient mosques as well as archaeologically-oriented surveys reveal the spatial contexts of... more
Mosques are one of the physical representations of Islam and of Muslim communities in the archaeological record. Archaeological excavations of ancient mosques as well as archaeologically-oriented surveys reveal the spatial contexts of these structures in their close domain, inside neighborhoods and settlements, and across lands and continents. These studies point to various practices linked to mosques or to the communities who maintained them, to changes over time, and to similarities and dissimilarities between places. The results of these inquiries provide a better understanding of the social practices of different communities as well as the possible networks and the diffusion of knowledge between them. It also highlights the unique contribution of archaeology to the corpus of historical sources. The workshop will present a number of archaeological case studies in the Levant, the Arabian Peninsula, Africa, and Spain between the seventh and the thirteenth centuries. Mosques will be introduced in relation to water systems and burials, to earlier and later structures, and to specific types of settlements. In particular, the workshop will treat the question of Islamization, the definitions of the term, and its validity. The event will also include launching a database for excavated mosques until the 9th century in OpenContext.org and discuss methods and approaches for open data in archaeology.
Research Interests: Islamic Archaeology, Early Medieval History, Ayyubid history, Islamic Studies, Abbasid History, and 7 moreEarly Islamic Archaeology, Spatial archaeology, Early and Medieval Islamic Art and Architecture, Early Islamic History, Mosque Architecture, African Archaeology, and Islamic art and architecture
The main aim of this workshop is to present varied approaches to the distribution of goods and the distance they traveled. For that purpose it brings together archaeologists who investigate the 9th-12th centuries in Asia, in the Levant... more
The main aim of this workshop is to present varied approaches to the distribution of goods and the distance they traveled. For that purpose it brings together archaeologists who investigate the 9th-12th centuries in Asia, in the Levant and Africa, and in Europe. Archaeological remains reflect networks, trade routes, centers and production sites, and thus the economic history of sites, regions and mega-regions. Whereas research areas in world archaeology are often defined by the imagined territories of empires or religions, in reality people and commodities traveled within and between the spatial and social dimensions that scholarly disciplines perceived. Through this workshop and the scholarly networks it promotes, we hope to advance a better historical understanding of the period’s economy and networks, the different methods of goods exchange, and the similarities and differences between the regions.
Research Interests: Economic History, African Studies, Archaeology, Islamic Archaeology, Landscape Archaeology, and 13 moreMedieval Studies, Indian Ocean History, Early Medieval Archaeology, Islamic Studies, Viking Studies, Viking Age Archaeology, Chinese archaeology, Chinese history (History), Indian Ocean Trade, Early and Medieval Islamic Art and Architecture, Mediterranean archaeology, African Archaeology, and Material Culture of the Viking age
A two-day workshop organised by Helen Dawson and Francesco Iacono. For info, see: https://www.topoi.org/event/32715/ and https://www.facebook.com/events/1068539153234390/ Networks represent a broad umbrella for a number of approaches to... more
A two-day workshop organised by Helen Dawson and Francesco Iacono. For info, see: https://www.topoi.org/event/32715/
and
https://www.facebook.com/events/1068539153234390/
Networks represent a broad umbrella for a number of approaches to the study of interaction, having acquired considerable importance in recent times. They are a powerful metaphor for understanding social interaction even when not explored through formal methods. Among the latter, two main types of approaches stand out: quantitative spatial modelling and social network analyses. The former refers to notions of geographic space as intended by a variety of disciplines including Landscape Archaeology and Geography, e.g. through GIS-based approaches; the latter relates to the analysis of social relations and their patterning with an emphasis on topology rather than physical space.
In this workshop, invited speakers will discuss and highlight the potential for integrating these research directions, with an aim to identify common grounds for developing new interdisciplinary insights. In particular, presentations will address the following points:
-Conceptualisation of space, through the use of networks, both as a rigorous methodology and as a broader metaphor of human activity
-Applications of Social Network Analysis
-Examples of the use of geographic networks
and
https://www.facebook.com/events/1068539153234390/
Networks represent a broad umbrella for a number of approaches to the study of interaction, having acquired considerable importance in recent times. They are a powerful metaphor for understanding social interaction even when not explored through formal methods. Among the latter, two main types of approaches stand out: quantitative spatial modelling and social network analyses. The former refers to notions of geographic space as intended by a variety of disciplines including Landscape Archaeology and Geography, e.g. through GIS-based approaches; the latter relates to the analysis of social relations and their patterning with an emphasis on topology rather than physical space.
In this workshop, invited speakers will discuss and highlight the potential for integrating these research directions, with an aim to identify common grounds for developing new interdisciplinary insights. In particular, presentations will address the following points:
-Conceptualisation of space, through the use of networks, both as a rigorous methodology and as a broader metaphor of human activity
-Applications of Social Network Analysis
-Examples of the use of geographic networks
Research Interests: History, Social Theory, Geography, Archaeology, Classical Archaeology, and 11 morePrehistoric Archaeology, Roman History, Historical Linguistics, Landscape Archaeology, Archaeological Method & Theory, Medieval Archaeology, Social Network Analysis (SNA), Linguistics, Social Network Analysis (Social Sciences), Mediterranean archaeology, and Roman Archaeology
Research Interests: Islamic Archaeology, Medieval Islam, Early Medieval Archaeology, Medieval Archaeology, Islamic Art, and 11 moreIslamic Studies, Islamic History, Early and Medieval Islamic Art and Architecture, Syria (Archaeology), Mosque Architecture, Archeologia medievale, Levant, Islamic art and architecture, Mosques, Archaeology of the Levant, and Mosque
Research Interests:
PETERSEN, ANDREW/DENYS PRINGLE (ed.), Ramla. City of Muslim Palestine, 715 –1917. Studies in History, Archaeology and Architecture. Archaeopress Archaeology. Oxford: Archaeopress Publishing, 2021. XIII + 323 Seiten, 320... more
PETERSEN, ANDREW/DENYS PRINGLE (ed.), Ramla. City of Muslim Palestine, 715 –1917. Studies in History, Archaeology and Architecture. Archaeopress Archaeology. Oxford: Archaeopress Publishing, 2021. XIII + 323 Seiten, 320 Schwarz-Weiß-Abbildungen, 8 Tabellen, 3 Appendizes. Lex. 8°. Paperback. £ 48,--. ISBN: 978-1-78969-776-6.
Research Interests: Ottoman History, Islamic Archaeology, Medieval History, Cultural Heritage, Levantine Archaeology, and 11 moreIsrael/Palestine, Medieval Islam, Numismatics, Architectural History, Medieval Archaeology, Islamic' Architecture, History of Crusades, Ottoman art and architecture, Arabic Epigraphy, Aerial Photographic Interpretation, and Archaeology of the Levant
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Mosques, Islamization, and Arab migration: a critical overview of the 7th to 9th-century Middle East. Fig. credit: Denis Genequand. (2021) "Fig. 112_3 from Asia/Syria/Qaṣr al-Ḥayr al-Sharqī/Mosque ID 112". In Early Islamic Mosques... more
Mosques, Islamization, and Arab migration: a critical overview of the 7th to 9th-century Middle East.
Fig. credit: Denis Genequand. (2021) "Fig. 112_3 from Asia/Syria/Qaṣr al-Ḥayr al-Sharqī/Mosque ID 112". In Early Islamic Mosques Database. Hagit Nol (Ed). Released: 2021-11-14. Open Context. <https://opencontext.org/media/15e5417c-6f9a-4a0d-98c9-8d51a9ae09a8>
Fig. credit: Denis Genequand. (2021) "Fig. 112_3 from Asia/Syria/Qaṣr al-Ḥayr al-Sharqī/Mosque ID 112". In Early Islamic Mosques Database. Hagit Nol (Ed). Released: 2021-11-14. Open Context. <https://opencontext.org/media/15e5417c-6f9a-4a0d-98c9-8d51a9ae09a8>
Research Interests:
Islamic Archaeology Conference 2024 invites scholars, researchers, and professionals worldwide to participate in a comprehensive exploration of the material culture of the Early and Middle Islamic periods (600-1500 AD) and in analyzing... more
Islamic Archaeology Conference 2024 invites scholars, researchers, and professionals worldwide to participate in a comprehensive exploration of the material culture of the Early and Middle Islamic periods (600-1500 AD) and in analyzing historical narratives and syntheses that the discipline contributes to. This conference aims to provide a platform for contributions from diverse groups of people and for exchanging ideas, methodologies, and discoveries in Islamic archaeology.
Research Interests: Islamic Archaeology, Iranian Archaeology, Medieval Archaeology, Byzantine Archaeology, Islamic History, and 11 moreArchaeology of the Iberian Peninsula, Chinese archaeology, Early Islamic Archaeology, Early and Medieval Islamic Art and Architecture, Central Asian Archaeology, African Archaeology, North African Archaeology, Arabian/Persian Gulf Archaeology, Islamic art and archaeology, West African Archaeology, and Archaeology of the Levant
The concept of the/a "usable past" was coined by Van Wyck Brooks in 1918 in an attempt to retrospectively bind together disparate cultural elements in the USA. The instrumentalising of the past to shape collective memory is a feature of... more
The concept of the/a "usable past" was coined by Van Wyck Brooks in 1918 in an attempt to retrospectively bind together disparate cultural elements in the USA. The instrumentalising of the past to shape collective memory is a feature of all human collectivities. Salient examples of this in the politics of the present and the past are to be found in the use of the shared-but-exclusive heritage of perceived golden ages from around the globe-e.g., the Rashidun Caliphate, Roman Empire, Gupta Empire, Tawantinsuyu, Mali Empire or Tang era, among many other points in space and time-to justify contemporary political systems, social stratification and inter-polity relations. However, it would be difficult to argue that the deployment of a usable past by established social groups this is ever totalising, with individuals and groups having complex relationships with the past and narratives associated with it.
This session seeks to take stock of the research being done across the globe on these issues, both in the present and the use of the past in the past. Papers are encouraged in relation to both case-studies where textual and archaeological evidence intersect and contradict, and on areas for which documentary narratives do not survive. Studies treating these processes outside Europe are particularly encouraged, as are comparative treatments of the problematic. Research questions that could be posed include—but are not limited to—why usable pasts are so often linked to military highpoints; the use of the past by groups writing against one another in narrative complexes; gatekeeping and selectivity and the past; the removal of the past in colonial relations; archaeology shaping and being shaped by narrative; and on the past as a socio-political and cultural resource more widely.
This session seeks to take stock of the research being done across the globe on these issues, both in the present and the use of the past in the past. Papers are encouraged in relation to both case-studies where textual and archaeological evidence intersect and contradict, and on areas for which documentary narratives do not survive. Studies treating these processes outside Europe are particularly encouraged, as are comparative treatments of the problematic. Research questions that could be posed include—but are not limited to—why usable pasts are so often linked to military highpoints; the use of the past by groups writing against one another in narrative complexes; gatekeeping and selectivity and the past; the removal of the past in colonial relations; archaeology shaping and being shaped by narrative; and on the past as a socio-political and cultural resource more widely.
