ARCHEOLOGIE / ARCHAEOLOGY
INSOLL Timothy

Summary

             Excavations were continued at the Harlaa site near Dire Dawa in eastern Ethiopia in October 2016.  Unfortunately, these had to be abruptly suspended because of the declaration of a State of Emergency by the Ethiopian Government.  Prior to this, archaeological survey recorded an area of stone tombs, a cemetery, and a new area of Harlaa (medieval) housing.  The stone tombs were formed of slabs of coralline limestone, potentially indicating Red Sea and/or East African coastal influences.  The excavation unit begun in 2015 was expanded exposing sections of wall, a possible furnace, and an earth floor inset with a stone anvil or working platform.  A wide range of bead types were recovered from this structural complex along with cowry and other shells, crucibles, mould fragments, local ceramics, and imported Chinese Celadon and glazed Middle Eastern pottery including Yemeni Mustard wares.  The interpretation that this was a series of craft workshops, probably associated with jewellery production, was developed, and this was confirmed by further fieldwork completed at Harlaa in January to March 2017 funded by an ERC Advanced Grant.

            The 2016 results have to be considered in conjunction with those from 2017 to indicate what has been achieved in totality.  Five primary results that are of fundamental importance to understanding Islamic archaeology and medieval Islamic history in eastern Ethiopia (and the wider region) were achieved:

  1. The occupation chronology at Harlaa, previously unknown, has been partially reconstructed based on secure AMS dates as covering the period from the third quarter of the first millennium AD to the late 13th-early 15th centuries AD.
  2. The first date of Islamisation, based on the archaeological and epigraphic evidence, can be placed in perhaps the mid-11th, but more likely the mid-12th centuries AD.
  3. The importance of long distance trade in the Red Sea and the Western Indian Ocean for the inhabitants of Harlaa was profound as attested by imported ceramics, glass, coins, beads, shells, and fish bones.
  4. The transfer of ideas, beyond religious ones, appears also to have been equally significant (e.g. architecture, beadmaking), but whether this also involved the transfer of foreign craftspeople is as yet unclear.
  5. The relationship between Harlaa and Harar, the pre-eminent Islamic centre in East Africa, is better understood. Based on the available AMS dates, Harar was established after Harlaa. Harlaa was apparently established during the latter half of the first millennium AD, and Harar by the mid-15th century AD.

 

 Detailed report

  •  Introduction.

            Following successful completion of excavations, surveys, and associated C14 dating in Harlaa in 2015 (Insoll 2015; Insoll, MacLean, and Engda 2016) a second field season was planned at the site between 28th September and 27th October 2016.  This took place but, unfortunately, this fieldwork had to be interrupted because of the declaration of a State of Emergency by the Ethiopian Government on 12th October 2016.  Subsequently, although the State of Emergency remained in place, the normalisation of conditions in Ethiopia, meant that fieldwork in Ethiopia, including excavations in Harlaa, was again completed between 25th January and 8th March 2017.  The latter was funded by a 4-year Advanced Research Grant received by Professor Insoll from the European Research Council (694254 ERC-2015-AdG BM).

            This report describes the results achieved during the curtailed field season in October 2016 that was funded by the van Berchem Foundation.  A short summary of the further results from early 2017 is appended to indicate what has been subsequently achieved and how the van Berchem Foundation funding has facilitated this. Significant data in relation to understanding settlement chronology, Islamisation, and international trade was obtained cumulatively from both the 2016 and 2017 fieldwork.

  • Harlaa – Background and 2016 Survey. (N09.48870˚ E041.90938˚).

            Harlaa is a large ruined settlement located approximately 35 km northwest of Harar and 15 km southeast of Dire Dawa (Figure 1).  Excavations in 2015 funded by the van Berchem Foundation, the first at the site, indicated its potential.  These exposed part of a stone built mosque and a settlement area AMS dated to between the mid-12th to mid-13th centuries AD.  Architectural parallels with the Red Sea and East African coast were apparent and trade goods recovered included Chinese porcelains, Islamic glazed wares and glass fragments, beads in various materials, and cowry shells (Insoll 2015; Insoll, MacLean, and Engda 2016).

Insoll plan 1

Figure 1. The location of Harlaa (map by N. Khalaf)

 

            In 2016, archaeological survey allowed further delimitation of the extent of the Harlaa site and its various components (Figure 2).  A new area of medieval ‘Harlaa’ housing was recorded (N09.48658º E041.90999º), formed of the corner of a house built of stone blocks laid in regular courses.

 

Insoll plan site 2

Figure 2. Plan of Harlaa (drawn by N. Khalaf)

 

            The second result of survey was the identification of an area of stone tombs (N09.49078º E041.91149º) and a cemetery (N09.49060º E041.91092º) situated on the opposite eastern side of the main Dire Dawa road (Figure 2).  These were first noted in 2015 but the co-ordinates and details of the sites were then unrecorded.  The stone structures were formed of shaped coralline limestone slabs laid to form rectangular enclosures within a massive stone building constructed from partially shaped boulders.  The use of coralline limestone is of interest as it was also recorded used in a precise context, the mihrab of a mosque previously excavated at Harlaa in 2015 (HAR 15 [A]) (Insoll 2015; Insoll, MacLean, and Engda 2016).  The selective utilization of this material is further indicative of possible Red Sea and/or East African coastal influences where parallels for its use have been found in mosque contexts (cf. Fauvelle-Aymar et al 2011; Pradines and Blanchard 2016).

 

  • Harlaa – 2016 Excavations.

            The unit begun in 2015, HAR 15 (B) was expanded in 2016 and given the code HAR 16 (A).  The previous HAR 15 (B) unit boundaries of 2m x 2.5cm formed the northeast corner of HAR 16 (A) and the unit was extended to cover an area of 5m on the eastern axis, 5m on the southern, 3m on the western, and 4m on the northern axis.  The available feasible area for excavation in the landowner’s garden dictated this unusual shape.  Initially, the backfill of HAR 15 (B) was removed down to the level of the plastic sheeting inserted in August 2015 to protect the remaining archaeological layers (see Insoll 2015).

            Attention was then focused on excavating the remainder of the area in the unit down to the same level as the base of HAR 15 (B).  Arbitrary levels were used, as it was generally impossible to define the stratigraphy.  All deposits were sieved through a 3mm sieve mesh, and soil samples were taken from each level.  After clearing the surface plant cover, stones, and modern detritus, excavation began with the removal of the top 20cm of mid-brown soil (HAR 16 [A] 1).  This was contaminated with some modern rubbish.  The next 20cm of the same mid brown soil (HAR 16 [A] 2) again contained some modern material and exposed part of a stone built wall running diagonally northeast to southwest across the unit (*1).  An area of rubble was exposed in the next 20cm layer (HAR 16 [A] 3).  It was also evident that the modern contaminated garden soil had ended and there was a difference in the deposits north and south of the diagonal wall seemingly correlating with the respective interior and exterior of the building, with a lighter brown sandy matrix constituting the latter, and a mid to dark brown soil the former. 

            20cm of the mid-brown internal deposits were then excavated (HAR 16 [A] 4) which were significantly dustier in consistency than the previous level.  The finds frequency increased with, for example, whole cowry shells, many backs from cowry shells, Chinese Celadon sherds, part of a mould, a crucible fragment, and carnelian and wound glass beads recovered (Table 1).  The rubble noted in the previous level continued and was found to be a stone structure associated with a small area of burnt charcoal, possibly a furnace.  Two small lengths of wall (*2, 3), one L-shaped were also recorded in the southwest of the unit running northwest to southeast (Figure 3), and another section of wall (4) running adjacent to *1.

            Removal of 20cm of the exterior deposit (HAR 16 [A] 5) indicated this differed with a yellow sandy matrix revealed.  This continued down in a second 20cm level excavated in the same area (HAR 16 [A] 6) and a distinct lens of charcoal was encountered and sampled for C14 dating.  A short section of stone wall (*5) was also found running north south and continuing into the eastern trench wall.  Excavation was then continued inside the building with a further 20cm of mid brown dusty matrix removed (HAR 16 [A] 7).  Large quantities of faunal remains were present in this context, a characteristic also noted in HAR 15 (B) 6, a comparable stratigraphic layer recorded in 2015 (see Insoll 2015).  The rubble comprising the putative furnace was removed and a C14 charcoal sample was taken from directly below this feature.  Another small length of stone wall (*6) running on the same northwest to southeast orientation as *2 and *3 was found.

            The space between walls *2, *3, and *6 was then excavated with 20cm of a different yellow grey sandy soil removed (HAR 16 [A] 8).  Wall *6 was found to continue for approximately 200cm across the unit.  The final layer removed before the excavations had to be suspended was of the same yellow grey sandy deposits in the same area (HAR 16 [A] 9).  Fragments of a floor formed of more compacted earth deposits and largely visible in the section was found at the top of this layer at approximately 103cm from surface level.  A charcoal sample for C14 dating was taken from below the floor.  A stone anvil or working platform was also found set into this floor (Figure 3), and a bronze coin, identification pending cleaning, was recovered from this level.  The excavation was then suspended for reasons already described.

 

Insoll fouilles 3

Figure 3. HAR 16 (A) with numbered and/or named structural features

 

  • Archaeological Material from HAR 16 (A)

            The quantities of archaeological material recovered from HAR 16 (A) are listed in Table 1.

Material

Quantity

Glass fragments

68

Beads

310

Slag pieces

4

Glazed pottery sherds

27

Modified potsherds

2

Shells (whole and pieces)

146

Cowry shell backs

278

Shell ring

1

Metal fragments

24

Bronze/copper coins

1

Crucible fragments

12

Lithic artifacts

11

Grinding stones

7

Obsidian flakes

31

Stone vessel fragments

1

Worked bone

1

Glass bracelet fragments

2

Mould fragments

1

Plaster fragments

1

Yellow ochre pieces

7

Human tooth

1

Unidentified objects

2

Bone

28 bags

Locally made pottery sherds

2530

 Table 1. Archaeological material from HAR 16 (A)

 

            The range of archaeological material recovered is significant.  A wide range of bead types is present in both stone and glass and there is evidence for bead making through, for example, a piece of glass rod (raw material) and a mis-shapen black glass sphere (HAR 16 [A] 4), and partly worked quartz pebbles (HAR 16 [A] 9).  Shell working is also attested though whole and half cowries and numerous cowry backs that have been cut off to allow the cowry shell to be sewn, strung, or otherwise attached to an object (Figure 4).  Other as yet unidentified marine shells and shell fragments were also recovered which, along with part of a shell ring with a flat bezel, further indicate on site shell working.  Whilst metal artifacts were not numerous, the slag, mould fragments and crucibles, including an almost complete example in coarse grey clay (Figure 4), along with charcoal deposits and the possible furnace structure suggest metalworking on a small scale perhaps in relation to fine detailed work connected with jewellery production.

 

Insoll objets 4

Figure 4. Crucible, cowry shells, and modified Celadon sherd from HAR 16 (A)

 

            The glazed ceramics, glass vessel fragments and some of the beads (for example faceted red carnelians of probable Gujarati provenance) indicate participation in international trade through Red Sea and Indian Ocean routes, as also evident in 2015 (Insoll 2015; Insoll, MacLean, and Engda 2016).  Glazed ceramics include both Chinese Celadon and Yemeni Mustard wares and other as yet unidentified Islamic glazed wares.  Some of the Celadon sherds appear to have been repurposed, as with an example from HAR 16 (A) 3 where a sherd was seemingly intentionally squared, perhaps to make a bead or ring inset (Figure 4).  A piece of long bone with a circular section cut from it (HAR 16 [A] 3) indicates another industrial or craft activity.  The quantity of faunal remains recovered, some burnt, particularly from HAR 16 (A) 7, may also link to industrial or craft processes as an source of fuel.  At Al-Basra in Morocco unmodified bone was used as a forging fuel in medieval Islamic contexts (Benco et al 2002: 455).

 

  • Harlaa 2016 in Context: Harlaa 2017 Excavation Summary and Update

            The 2016 results have to be considered in conjunction with those from 2017 to indicate what has been achieved in totality.  Building upon the curtailed 2016 fieldwork, comprehensive survey was completed and excavation was focused on 2 sites in 2017; the HAR 15 (B)/HAR 16 (A) structural complex and the area of tombs identified in 2016.

 

  • Topographic Survey.

            Dr Nadia Khalaf completed a full topographic survey of Harlaa using a differential GPS (Figure 2).

 

  • Excavation of Structural Complex.

            The excavations were extended to encompass an area of c.7 x 6 x 8 x 4m.  New features that were exposed including a stone floor, further stone walls, a deep pit where excavation was terminated for safety reasons at 2.5m below ground level (with additional archaeological deposits remaining that will be excavated in 2018), and post holes and hearths (Figure 5).  The function of the complex was confirmed as a series of craft workshops, almost certainly associated with jewellery production, which were superimposed one upon another.  Five further AMS dates were obtained from this unit ranging between the third quarter of the first millennium AD through to the mid-13th century AD. A significant assemblage of material was again recovered.

 

Insoll excavations 5

Figure 5. View of the HAR 17 (B) excavations.

 

  • Excavation of Tombs and Cemetery.

            A double burial in the tomb complex identified in 2016 was excavated.  This was formed of two skeletons buried one above the other within a rectangular structure made of slabs of coralline limestone (Figure 6).  Both burials, based on the absence of grave goods, their position, lying on their sides, and orientation, east to west, were Muslim.  The lower burial predated the upper with their respective AMS dates being the mid-13th century AD (lower) and mid-14th to mid-15th centuries AD (upper).  A third burial was excavated in a cemetery that was suffering from erosion, leading to the exposure of the human remains.  This was oriented in the same way and was AMS dated to the mid-12th to mid-13th centuries AD. Objective 2 was achieved.

Insoll double burial 6

Figure 6. The double burial (HAR 17 [C])

  • Post-Excavation Analysis.

            The recording of the 2017 ceramics is complete, and the analysis of the 2015/2016 ceramics is in progress as part of a PhD project by Mr Nicholas Tait.  The faunal and archaeobotanical remains have been transferred to their respective analytical specialists, Dr Veerle Linseele and Dr Alemseged Beldados.  Dr Linseele will be completing further analysis of the faunal remains at the ARCCH laboratories in Addis Ababa in late 2017.  Professor Insoll has inventoried all small finds in an Excel database and analysis of these is proceeding. Objectives 5 and 6 were achieved.

 

  • Conclusions

            Although the 2016 fieldwork had to be terminated abruptly due to unforeseen circumstances, the results achieved have contributed significantly to the cumulative total of knowledge.  Since research began at Harlaa in August 2015, five primary results have been achieved that are of fundamental importance to understanding Islamic archaeology and medieval Islamic history in eastern Ethiopia (and the wider region):

  1. The occupation chronology at Harlaa, previously unknown, has been reconstructed based on secure AMS dates as covering the period from from the third quarter of the first millennium AD to the late 13th-early 15th centuries AD. A chronology apparently encompassing both the pre-Islamic and Islamic periods.
  2. The first date of Islamisation, or at least the presence of Muslims at Harlaa, based on the AMS dates of the mosque (mid-12th to mid-13th centuries AD), the AMS dates of the Muslim burials (mid-12th to mid-15th centuries AD), and one previously recorded dated funerary inscription, possibly bearing a date equivalent to c.AD 1048-57 (Schneider 1969: 340; Zekaria 2003: 21; Chekroun 2011: 79 ; Bauden 2011) can be placed in perhaps the mid-11th, but more likely the mid-12th centuries AD.
  3. The importance of long distance trade in the Red Sea and the Western Indian Ocean for the inhabitants of Harlaa was profound. This is attested by imported ceramics, glass, coins, beads, shells, and fish bones.
  4. The transfer of ideas, beyond religious ones, appears also to have been equally significant. Technological transfer is manifest by aspects of architecture, notably the use of coralline limestone in the mihrab and tombs, and heat-altered carnelian, rock crystal, and glass bead-making. Whether this also involved the transfer of foreign craftspeople will be an aspect of future research through isotopic analysis of samples of human remains recovered.
  5. The relationship between Harlaa and Harar, the pre-eminent Islamic centre in East Africa is better understood. The chronological differences between the two sites suggest that Harar was established after Harlaa. Harlaa was Harlaa was apparently established during the latter half of the first millennium AD, and Harar by the mid-15th century AD as indicated by the earliest of the AMS dates (PAL 14 [A] 7) previously obtained from the city (Insoll, Tesfaye, and Mahmoud 2014).

 

 

References

 Bauden, F. 2011. Inscriptions Arabes d’Éthiopie. Annales Islamologiques 45: 285-306.

Benco, N.L. et al. 2002. Worked Bone Tools: Linking Metal Artisans and Animal Processors in Medieval Islamic Morocco. Antiquity 76: 447-57.

Chekroun, A., Fauvelle-Aymar, F-X., Hirsch, B., Ayenachew, D., Zeleke, H., Onezime, O., and Shewangizaw, A. 2011. Les Harla: Archéologie de Mémoire des Géants d’Ethiopie. (In), Fauvelle-Aymar, F-X., and Hirsch, B., (eds.), Espaces Musulmans de la Corne de l’Afrique au Moyen Âge. Paris: De Boccard, pp. 75-102.

Fauvelle-Aymar, F-X., Hirsch, B., Bernard, R., and Champagne, F. 2011. Le Port de Zeyla et son Arrière-pays au Moyen Âge. (In), Fauvelle-Aymar, F-X., and Hirsch, B., (eds.), Espaces Musulmans de la Corne de l’Afrique au Moyen Âge. Paris: De Boccard, pp. 27-74.

Insoll, T. 2015. Archaeological Survey and Test Excavations, Harlaa, Dire Dawa, and Sofi, Harari Regional State, Ethiopia, August 2015. Fieldwork Report. University of Manchester (for the Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritage, Ethiopia).

Insoll, T., MacLean, R., and Engda, B. 2016. Archaeological Survey and Test Excavations, Harlaa, Dire Dawa, and Sofi, Harari Regional State, Ethiopia. A Preliminary Fieldwork Report. Nyame Akuma 85: 23-32.

Insoll, T. Tesfaye, H., and Mahmoud, M. S. 2014. Archaeological Survey and Test Excavations, Harari Regional State, Ethiopia, July-August 2014. A Preliminary Fieldwork Report. Nyame Akuma 82: 100-109.

Pradines, S., and Blanchard, P. 2016. Songo Mnara. Étude Architecturale d’une Ville Swahilie Médiévale. Taarifa 5: 9-33.

Schneider, M. 1969. Stèles Funéraires de la Région de Harar et Dahlak (Éthiopie). Revue des Études Islamiques 37: 339-43.

Zekaria, A. 2003. Some Remarks on the Shrines of Harar. (In), Hirsch, B., and Krupp, M. (eds.), Saints, Biographies and History in Africa. Frankfurt AM: Peter Lang, pp. 19-29.