Introduction

ARCHEOLOGIE / ARCHAEOLOGY

Summary

Three excavation seasons were carried out in al-Sinnabra, or better known as the Early Bronze age site of al-karak/Bet Yerah, during February 2018, and February and September of 2019. These renewed excavations were undertaken after the publication of our report, Bet Yeraḥ III: Hellenistic Philoteria and Islamic al-Sinnabra, in which we published the findings of the previous excavations carried in the 1950s. The renewed excavations aimed to touch unexcavated soil in the hope of finding some clear stratigraphy as well as some ceramics and other small finds. A third aim was the exposure of new units. Since remains of a bath and an audience hall were already exposed on site, we thought that there might be a third element that constituted an essential part in any Umayyad place, namely a mosque. Despite the challenges of recent disturbance, undocumented excavation, erosion and landscaping, which often frustrated our attempts to identify the remains of the dismantled palace, preserved only at its foundations, we ultimately succeeded in tracing a significant, completely unexpected annex to the palace situated outside its northern fortification wall.

 

Report on the third season

Introduction

Arab historians name al-Ṣinnabra, located at the southern end of the Sea of Galilee, as the seasonal residence of several Umayyad caliphs, among them the first caliph Muʿāwiya.  Despite many citations, its location long eluded certain identification. In 2002, a brief communication by Donald Whitcomb pinpointed al-Ṣinnabra at the well-known Early Bronze Age mound of Bet Yeraḥ or Khirbat al-Karak, in an area in the north of the mound excavated extensively between 1945 and 1953 (Whitcomb 2002).  Tel Bet Yeraḥ/Khirbat al-Karak is situated six kilometres south of Ṭabariyya, the Umayyad capital of Jund al-Urdunn, the provincial district that replaced Scythopolis (Baysān/Beth Shean) the previous provincial capital of the Byzantine Palaestina Secunda.  Ṣinnabra lies on the southwestern shore of the Sea of Galilee, where the Jordan River exits the lake (see fig.1).  The principal post-Bronze Age structure exposed on the site comprises a fort enclosing a basilical building, with a bathhouse attached to the fort’s southern wall.  The fort was initially dated to the Roman or Byzantine period, while the basilica was identified as a synagogue, due to its southward-facing apse and to the discovery of a column base with a menorah carved on it (Applebaum 1988).  North of this complex another building was excavated in 1952–1953 by Pierre Pinhas Delougaz and Richard C. Haines on behalf of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago.  This was an ‘Arab building’ built above a Byzantine church, about 50 meters north of the fort (Delougaz and Haines 1960).

Daadli 2019 20photo1 1

Fig. 1. Location of al-Ṣinnabra and neighbouring localities

Whitcomb suggested that the building originally identified as a synagogue, and later as a Roman or Byzantine enclosure, is actually the Umayyad palace referred to in historical sources, while the ‘Arab building’ to its north was a manor of the same period.  Based on Whitcomb’s suggestion, the Tel-Aviv University expedition at Tel Bet Yeraḥ set out in 2009 to recover possible palace contexts not compromised by the massive excavations conducted in 1950–1953 by Pesach Bar-Adon and P.L.O. Guy.  Coins discovered in sealed contexts during the 2009 excavations established a seventh-century terminus post quem for the central structure and an eighth-century terminus post quem for the bathhouse (Da‘adli 2017; see fig. 2).  Subsequent research on the earlier excavations corroborated the date for the fortified enclosure, and further Umayyad remains related to the water system and the approaches to the mound from the west were revealed in recent salvage excavations (Alexandre 2013; 2014), thus adding decisive weight to Whitcomb’s identification.

According to the medieval geographer Yāqūt al-Hamawī (1179–1229), al-Ṣinnabra was ‘a place in the Jordan district, opposite ‘Aqabat Afīq, at a distance of three miles from Ṭabariyyah. Mu‘āwiya spent the winters there’ (Yāqūt, Mu‘jam III: 482).  Afīq/Fīq is identified on the eastern side of the southern part of the Sea of Galilee.  Therefore al-Ṣinnabra should be located on the opposite, southwestern side of the lake, as suggested by Whitcomb (Whitcomb 2002:1-6).  Furthermore, it seems that the main road which once connected between the district capital, Tiberias (Ṭabariyyah), and the main capital of the Umayyad dynasty, Damascus, went around the southern tip of the Sea of Galilee, ascended to ‘Aqabat Fīq on the eastern side of the lake and continued to the north, to Damascus (Elad 1999: 78-79).  Caliph Mu‘āwiya ibn Abī Sufyān (r. 660–680 C.E.), referred to by Yāqūt, succeeded his brother Yazīd b. Abī Sufyān in his dual role as military commander of the Muslims and governor of the province of Damascus after the latter’s death in the plague of ‘Amwās (Humphreys 2006: 45-50).  Thus, ‘the place where Mu‘āwiya used to spend the winter’ was built either prior to his appointment as caliph, when he was governor, or during his caliphate.  The royal residence at al-Ṣinnabra could therefore have been built any time between the years 639 and 680 CE.

Mu‘āwiya established his palace on what was probably a largely abandoned and secluded mound (marked only by the ruins of the tri-apsidal church), at a pleasant spot, with fresh water on hand, a short distance away from what would become the provincial capital, Ṭabariyya.  The style of the architecture was formal and imperial, with deep foundations and levelling operations that completely disregarded ancient construction, creating an imposing platform with an excellent view in every direction.  Although the palatial complex stood by the lake-shore, Mu‘āwiya and his successors invested considerable effort in delivering spring water to the palace, tapping the main aqueduct to Tiberias and conveying the water through channels, siphons, and pipes (Alexandre 2017) to the palace and baths.  ‘Abd al-Malik seems to be responsible for completing the main components of the complex, including the fortifications and baths.  In view of his extensive regional building projects, including, among many others, the grading of the mountain pass at Fīq and the paving of the highway from Jerusalem to Damascus, it is reasonable to attribute the construction of the basalt siphon to his rule as well; the more so, as it appears to have been constituted from blocks of the dismantled Sussita-Hippos siphon, transported across the lake in what must have been a major engineering project.

 

Remains

The three excavation seasons concentrated on revealing the remains of an edifice to the north of the fortifications.  The remains of the structure revealed consist of three west-east rows of circular bases, each containing six bases, an eastern boundary wall (w1) and the northern fortification wall serving also as the southern boundary of the structure.  On the same lines as the bases, three west-east walls were also exposed (fig.2, w2-4), emerging from a north-south wall (fig.2. w1) that extended from the northern tower of the qasr.  A fifth wall, running from east to west, was also exposed (fig.2, w5), damaged at three points at the column bases; this wall probably predates the hall or at least the column bases.  Marble column bases are inserted in three of the six bases of the southern row and one in the western edge of the middle row.  As the northern part was damaged through erosion and modern interventions, we do not have any evidence from this side.  As related to the western area, traces of gravel pavement were exposed with pitches of white plaster.

Daadli 2019 20 photo 2

Fig.2. The remains revealed in the three excavation seasons.

 The remains raise some challenging questions.  The southern row differs from the two rows further to the north; and the nature of wall 5, running through the whole width of the structure, is not yet clear.  The bases of the southern row are built out of rubble forming the base and supporting marble bases.  We assume that there were also marble bases inserted in the other rubble bases.  The two northern rows are built out of solid moulded mortar mixed with fieldstones.  A similar method of mixed mortar and fieldstone forms the core of walls 1–5.  It appears that there were some changes in plan and the southern base row was added.  Perhaps wall 5 meant to support a row of bases or columns, and then some changes were made and it was cancelled and the southern row was built.

 

Hypostyle hall

In either case, the reconstruction of the remains can be shaped to a hypostyle hall composed out of, at least, three aisles parallel to the northern wall of the qasir.  Wall 1 can stand as the eastern border of this hall.  Fifteen bays are enclosed in this hall supported by eighteen columns and paved by plaster laid on gravel.  This hall lacks the essential niche situated in the middle of the southern wall that may be used as the mihrab of the mosque.  However, the order of the construction, 4-m-bays, and the open facades may support the assumption that it was used as a mosque.

Whatever the use of the building may have been, huge efforts were made to level the whole northern area of the qasir.  After levelling, gravel pavement was laid, which probably supported a plaster floor and perhaps some stone slabs, forming a courtyard to the west of the hypostyle hall that probably served as a mosque.  Access to the levelled courtyard from the west was made by a staircase that was attached to the north-western qasir tower.  A door situated in the middle of the northern wall provided access to the mosque from the qasir.

 

Dating

The main dating finds are several copper coins found in the gravel layer.  The date as Arabo-Byzantine indicates that the levelling, paving and construction were made during the early Umayyad period.

 

Stratigraphy

The bases were cutting walls and domestic insulations from the Hellenistic and Early Bronze eras.  At least one Hellenistic structure can be reconstructed on the western side (fig.3, yellow).  This enclosed at least two terra cotta ovens.  Some remains of the Early Bronze era were found in between the bases in the eastern side (fig.3, red).  All stratigraphy, gravel floor with the bases, Hellenistic domestic remains and Early Bronze walls and plaster floor, were revealed in less than half a meter of stratified soil (fig.4).

Daadli 2019 20 photo 3

Fig. 3. Schematic plan of the different layers, blue Early Islamic, yellow Hellenistic and red Early Bronze.

Daadli 2019 20 photo 4

Fig.4. 1.Northern wall of the qasir, Early Islamic, 2. Hellenistic walls, 3. Early Islamic wall, 4. Early Bronze wall, 5. Early Islamic column base.

 

 Conclusion

The first phase of the palace is dated by historical sources to the reign of Muʿāwiya who served as the governor of the province before he became caliph.  The primary analyses of the finds date the hypostyle hall or the mosque to Muʿāwiya or at least before Abd al-Malik’s days.  This unit and the scale of the works on the northern part of the qasir clarify the nature of the palace that may be described more as a complex since a further unit to the north, the dar, was previously revealed (fig.5).  Although few small finds were found, they added further confirmation regarding the date of the palace complex.

This unit standing to the north emphasizes the place of the northern entrance.  Here we were facing a major problem regarding the southern entrance. T hat entrance is bordered by two square towers; although it leads to the ground surrounding the basilica, it does not face the main façade.  This mean that visitors approaching the qasir from the south were not able to enter the main hall from the main entrance that probably was situated in the northern part parallel to the apse.  Hence, when visitors entered the qasir from the relatively narrow entrance in the north they faced the main façade of the main hall or the throne hall.  When approaching the qasir from the north, visitors could also enter the mosque situated on the same entrance.  On the opposite side of the qasir the bath was situated behind the rear wall of the basilical throne hall.  It could be due to the early date of this palace that it follows few of the expected ‘blueprints’ for Umayyad palace construction.

Daadli 2019 20 photo 5

Fig.5. The palace complex

We may conclude that by the end of the third season we reached the limit of an excavation of such scale.  To further explore the northern part of the qasir, at least the area border to the north of the church, on which the dar unit was established, there will be need for serious earth removal and an overall change in the park shape and plan.  The same can be said about the area extending to the west.

Tawfiq Daʿadli
Dept. of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies and Art History
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

 

Bibliography

Alexandre Y.

2013 Tel Bet Yerah, the Inverted Siphon Pipeline. HA–ESI 125.

2014 Tel Bet Yerah: The Bridge to el-Ṣinnabra. HA-ESI 126.

2017 The Inverted Siphon Pipeline to al-Ṣinnabra,” Bet Yerah, Vol. III: Hellenistic Philoteria and Islamic al-Ṣinnabra. R. Greenberg, O. Tal and T. Da‘adli, eds. Jerusalem, IAA Reports 61.

Applebaum, S.

1988 The Synagogue at Beth-Yerah: Its Character and function, Synagogues in Antiquity. Kasher, et al., eds. Jerusalem. 181-84.

Da'adli T.

2017 Stratigraphy and Architecture of the Fortified palace, Bet Yerah, Vol. III: Hellenistic Philoteria and Islamic al-Ṣinnabra. R. Greenberg, O. Tal and T. Da‘adli, eds. Jerusalem, IAA Reports 61.

Delougaz, P., and R. C. Haines.

1960 A Byzantine Church at Khirbet al-Karak. Chicago, OIP 85.

Elad A.

1999 The Southern Golan in the Early Muslim Period: The Significance of Two Newly Discovered Milestones of ‘Abd al-Malik.” Der Islam 76: 33-88.

Humphreys S.

2006 Mu‘awiya ibn Abi Sufyan: from Arabia to Empire. Oxford. Yāqūt.

1990 Mu’jam al-Buldān. Ed. F. ‘Abd al-‘Azīz al-Jundī. vol. III. Beirut. Whitcomb D.

2002 Khirbet al-Karak Identified with Sinnabra.” al-‘Usur al-Wusta: The Bulletin of Middle East Medievalists 14/1:1-6.

Yāqūt.

1990 Mu’jam al-Buldān. Ed. F. ‘Abd al-‘Azīz al-Jundī. vol. III. Beirut.

Whitcomb D.

2002 Khirbet al-Karak Identified with Sinnabra.” al-‘Usur al-Wusta: The Bulletin of Middle East Medievalists 14/1:1-6.

ARCHEOLOGIE / ARCHAEOLOGY

Summary

Access to water is one of the greatest global challenges of the 21st century. Scholars from different fields of research around the world are dealing with the ever-growing demand for, and with the severe supply constraints of water. Ancient societies dealt with similar problems.

Within these constraints, a massive transformation in the organisation of water resources, agricultural systems and settlement patterns as well as communication networks allowed for an active exploitation of the Udhruḥ region, 12 km east of Petra (Southern Jordan), turning the steppe into green oases. After five years of prospective archaeological fieldwork (2011-2015) we could conclude that the research area around the town of Udhruḥ is one of the most complete and best preserved field ‘laboratories’ in the south of Jordan to study the long-term development of innovative water management and agricultural systems from Nabataean to Mamluk periods (1st century BCE – 15th century CE). We thus can distinguish three ancient agro-hydrological systems in the Udhruḥ region (figure 1). Systems that extract water from different sources and for different purposes, whereby agricultural use seems to be the prevailing aim. This research program focuses on the diachronic reconstruction of one of these antique agro-hydrological techniques – a subterranean qanat system with its associated surface structures and fields (figure 2-3) – which was employed to cultivate this arid landscape and the societal conditions that contextualised them. An international and interdisciplinary research team examines what the key to this water management and agricultural success was in ancient times.

From December 21, 2022 to April 9, 2023 takes place a photographic exhibition on the Udhruh Archaeological Project in the Netherlands National Museum of Antiquities. For more information, you can click on the following link: Living on the edge of the desert | Rijksmuseum van Oudheden (rmo.nl)

Driessen2020 Fig1 2

Figure 1

Driessen2020 Fig2

Figure 2

Driessen2020 Fig3

For the 2019 field season we worked on the excavation and 3D-reconstructing several of the subterranean and surface structures of the Udhruh qanat system in the Wādī al-Fiqai. The monitoring of natural degradation processes of such structures retrieved in erosion gullies in this wādī by current flash floods is also part of our work and will be for the coming years. 35 scientific dating samples were taken of several parts of the system, of which a selection of twelve samples was made which were send for AMS/14C dating. Soil and water samples were extracted from the northern field systems connected to northern reservoir 1 in Wādī al-Fiqai. These samples are tested on fertility, biodiversity and remediation capacities for agricultural potential by soil scientists at Wageningen University (Department of Soil Quality - Chemical and Biological Soil Laboratory). The results show inter alia that these fields have been used for irrigated agriculture over a long period of time, and what the effects were for the involved soils.


Report

Introduction

Rapid population growths and changing climatological conditions, especially in some of the most water-scarce regions of the world, result in increasing pressures on already overexploited water resources. Such is especially the case for the arid and semi-arid parts of the Middle East, Northern and Sub-Sahara Africa, whereby the overwhelming majority of water is used for agricultural needs.[1] The annual precipitation in such regions is not only low and poorly distributed over crop-growing seasons, but a large part gets lost before becoming available for agricultural use. Different methods and techniques of water harvesting are employed to increase the availability of fresh water to agricultural crops in arid and semi-arid regions.[2]

Archaeological research makes clear that ancient societies were dealing with similar problems. In ancient times land-use systems and resource management, particularly elaborated water-harvesting schemes, were employed to prevent this loss.

The Udhruḥ Archaeological Project tries to shed insights on how people practised water procurement for agricultural purposes in the hinterland of Petra (South Jordan) in ancient times. After several years of archaeological field work we can already conclude that the research area around the village of Udhruḥ, 12 km to the east of Petra, is one of the most complete and best preserved field ‘laboratories’ to study the long-term development of innovative water management and agricultural systems from Nabataean till Mamluk times (1st century BCE – 15th century CE) in southern Jordan.

 

Archaeological research of ancient water harvesting and agricultural schemes

Three ancient agro-hydrological systems can be distinguished in the Udhruḥ region (figure 1). Systems that extract water from different sources and for different purposes, whereby agricultural use seems to be the prevailing aim.

These are:

  1. A perennial source in Udhruḥ was used to irrigate a patchwork of compound gardens, with retrieved ceramics that dates from the Nabataean period and onwards.
  2. In the hilly area northwest of Udhruḥ (Jabal ash-Sharah) a combination of ancient rainwater-catchment and run-off water harvesting techniques is observed, with surface finds and associated settlements dating from Nabataean and Byzantine times. These water harvesting schemes were employed to hold and direct run-off water that would otherwise get lost.
  3. An impressive network of well-preserved ancient subterranean and surface-water conservation measures and connected irrigated fields – a qanat-system - was recorded in a large flood plain largely covered by alluvial deposits southeast of Udhruḥ (Wādī al-Fiqai). The Udhruḥ qanat (figure 2-3) made use of the extraction of deep percolation water, whereby also solutions were applied to prevent loss through evaporation. This system seems to have been in use for longer periods of time. Intensive surveys on and around the fields provided us with a broad spectrum of material culture ranging from Nabataean, Roman, Byzantine, Umayyad and Ayyubid pottery to fragments of Mamluk glass bracelets. 

 

The Udhruḥ qanat and connecting fields[3]

The last system – the Udhruḥ qanat – will be our research focus for the involved program, because of the ingenuity and investments made on its construction and reworking, its long durée usage throughout several classical and Islamic periods, and its completeness in preservation. The antique agro-hydrological systems that transformed these parts of the steppe into green oases still seem to be largely intact and are (partly) buried by alluvial deposits (figure 3). Through a combination of contextual small-scale excavations and non-destructive ground-based methods (ground-penetrating radar, magnetometry, (aerial)photogrammetry, 3D-scanning) obtainable data will be retrieved on the position, dimensions and interconnections of these and other structures in this geologically diverse archaeological landscape. The comparative OSL and 14C dating will provide a solid chronological framework for inter alia the construction, maintenance and disuse of the Udhruḥ qanat-system and to the study of antique qanat-systems in general, but will also contribute to the refinement of these dating methodologies.

Trying to unravel the exact modus operandi of this qanat scheme and the continuity in use will be a great challenge for our research project in the coming years. Only by practicing an interdisciplinary approach can this be accomplished whereby archaeological research is integrated with historical, geophysical, water resources, bio-scientific and biogeochemical soil studies. On the one hand we think that this approach will help us to reconstruct the agro-hydrological landscape and the longe durée-development of this for the Udhruḥ region. On the other hand we hope that the interdisciplinary approach – applicant is both an archaeologist as an agronomist – will not only result in the comprehension of the antique semi-arid landscape management from a diachronic perspective, but will also lead to translational and innovative thinking which can contribute to possible sustainable agricultural and water management solutions for future use in these regions.

 

Report Antique Green Desert in the Udhruḥ Region Field Campaign 2019

The following activities have been employed at the qanat-system southeast of Udhruḥ in the Wādī al-Fiqai (figure 4) during the 2019 field campaign:

  1. Excavating two qanat shafts which will probably lead to the (ancient) water resources of the system.
  2. Cleaning and excavating SW corner of southern large antique water reservoir 2 in Wādī al-Fiqai, of which looting destruction with a bulldozer was observed during 2018 field campaign.
  3. Excavating several parts of the surface water management system in the Wādī al-Fiqai, measuring these with RTK GNSS GPS-Rover and making 3D-reconstructions of these.
  4. Collecting samples for 14C and OSL-dating. These are carried out by laboratories of University Groningen (Centre for Isotope Research) and Wageningen University (Netherlands Centre for Luminescence Dating).
  5. Collecting soil and water samples from the northern field systems connected to northern reservoir 1 in Wādī al-Fiqai. These samples are tested on fertility, biodiversity and remediation capacities for agricultural potential by soil scientists at Wageningen University (Department of Soil Quality - Chemical and Biological Soil Laboratory).

Driessen2020 Fig4

Figure 4. Scheme of 2019 field work in the Wādī al-Fiqai, southeast of Udhruḥ.

 

1. Excavating two qanat shafts.

These will probably lead to the (ancient) water resources of the system and provide us information on the layout and depth of the qanat shafts and horizontal channels, dating of its construction, maintenances. This will also provide knowledge on the getting out of use of the qanat system, and the possible aquiferous capacities of the geological layers it was constructed in. We started with excavating the most western qanat shaft near the ‘mother well’ (ground water level or aquiferous layer). After getting through a thick desert pavement the shaft was excavated for approximately 3m till the bedrock was reached where the qanat shaft was further cut out. Because of security reasons it was decided to make safety precautions. We hired a mechanical excavator to remove parts of the desert pavement and prepare the location – by removing part of the 3m thick Pleistone gravel layer on top of the bedrock – for safe excavation this qanat shaft during future field campaigns (figure 5). The formed trench has been demarcated by a fence and warning signs carried out by our team in order to prevent local shepherds from falling in.

Driessen2020 Fig5

Figure 5. Preparing the location of the most western qanat shaft by means of mechanical excavator.

We also started to excavate the most eastern qanat shaft near the outlet of the system. The location was based on the external characteristics of observed 231 qanat shafts in the area southeast of Udhruḥ. The excavation trench was excavated till 4m deep (figure 6). We will continue working with this in coming field season. No security preparations needed to be made here as the natural layers of Pleisocene gravel and old alluvial deposits are very hard and stable at this location. A fence with warning signs has been made here as well.

Driessen2020 Fig6

Figure 6. Excavating the most eastern qanat shaft.

2. Southern Reservoir 2: cleaning and excavating after looting damage.

The cleaning and excavating the southwestern corner of a large antique water reservoir (reservoir 2) was executed in the Wādī al-Fiqai, because of serious destruction with bulldozer by looters/treasure hunters as was observed during the 2018 field campaign. This work has been carried out and resulted in important information on the construction of this most southern reservoir, which has been laid out on Muwaqqar Chalk Marl bedrock (Maastrichtian Paleocene) and was partially carved out through a Pleistocene Gravel formation. The side wall of the reservoir consisted in a more than 2m wide ashlar wall, see figure 7.

Driessen2020 Fig7

Figure 7. The looted SW corner of southern reservoir 2 after cleaning.

This most southern reservoir (no. 2) had a capacity – measuring 33 x 34 x 2.7m – of at least 2,7 million liters of water. The mortar/concrete lining of the reservoir is 3cm thick from which we extracted charred remains for dating purposes (see point 4). It is expected that a coverage was employed to prevent it from serious evaporation, although no remains of such a structure has been discovered as yet. However also other means as covering the water surface with for instance organic mats of braided thatch or large leaves could prevent from such evaporation.[4] Everything was measured by means of RTK GNSS GPS-Rover. 3D reconstructions are made of all excavated parts of the system by means of photogrammetry and 3D-scanning, for the preliminary 3D reconstruction of this part of reservoir 2 see figure 8.

Driessen20 Fig8 2

Figure 8. Preliminary 3D reconstruction of SW corner of reservoir 2, which was looted in 2017/18.

3. Surface structures water management system Wad el-Fiqay.

The third operation employed during the 2019 field work was excavating several parts of the surface water management system in the Wādī al-Fiqai, measuring them with RTK GNSS GPS-Rover and making 3D-reconstructions of these. The interior southeast corner of northern reservoir 1 (connected to fields 1-2 sampled for soil fertility, see point 4) was excavated and cleaned as were parts of interior floor of reservoir (figure 9). This provided us with important information on the construction and use of this 50x50m reservoir with a capacity of at least 3.3 million liters of water. The differences in height between the western and eastern side of the reservoir were approx. 0.5m, enabling the reservoir to drain towards the agricultural fields in event of low water levels. Samples of charred remains of the applied mortar of this corner of reservoir 1, but also of other parts were taken in order to 14C date the construction of this reservoir, see also point 4. All features of the reservoir were measured with RTK GNSS GPS-Rover and 3D reconstructions of this corner have been made.

Driessen2020 Fig9

Figure 9. Excavation of SE corner of northern reservoir 1

We have also made a trial trench on the channel providing the northern reservoir 1 with water. In the field this could only be observed by a long line of piled stones. The trial trench made clear that this was a solid walled structure, made of a dry-stack wall, which has collapsed throughout time. On the lateral sides of this walled structure antique applied mortar could still be observed. Most probably the interior of this walled structure was composed of so-called adobe (pisé/Stamphlehm/daub) technique. Remnants of the water channel on top of this wall – made of mortar – could be observed in trial tranches on both sides of the dry-stack wall (figure 10).

Driessen2020 Fig10

Figure 10. Excavation of channel providing northern reservoir 1 with water.

Our hypothesis is that when the system went out of use the upper mortared part degenerated and the elements got hold on the structure which resulted finally in its collapse. Samples of charred remains of the applied mortar of this walled structure were taken in order to 14C date the construction of this channel, see also point 4. As with other remnants also a 3D reconstruction of this channel has been made. This technique of building with dry-stack walls and daub core with on top mortar-lined channels can be observed in the low-risk flooding zones of the system.

Another more durable technique of solid concrete based ashlar walls with on top mortar-lined channels has been applied in wadis and high-risk flooding zones (figure 11).

Driessen2020 Fig11

Figure 11. Solid water channel in high risk flooding zone of Wādī al-Fiqai.

We have also excavated, GPS measured and photographed all exposed water conduit structures in a very large erosion gully (> 10m wide, > 3m high and more than a kilometer long) observed in the Wādī al-Fiqai in 2011. According to dr. Fawzi Abudanah this erosion gully was not here during his PhD-research in 2004/6. We have made 3D reconstructions (figure 12) of this erosion gully. This has been done for direct research purposes, but also – from archaeological research and heritage management perspectives – to monitor future natural formation processes and possible natural degradations of the structures retrieved in this gully.

Driessen2020 Fig12

Figure 12. Preliminary 3D reconstruction of part of the erosion gully with retrieved antique water conduit structures

 

4. Collecting samples for 14C and OSL-dating.

In previous years (2014-2016) several samples were already analyzed (figure 16) by the laboratories of the Centre for Isotope Research (University Groningen – NL) and the Netherlands Centre for Luminescence Dating (Wageningen University – NL). During last year field work 35 new samples were collected for 14C dating purposes. These were extracted with specialized tools under non-organic contamination conditions from especially the interior mortar cores of different surface water management structures from Wādī al-Fiqai (see table 2). It was decided to extract predominantly charred twigs – most probably from the lime burning process for mortar production – from these mortars. This choice was made – and no samples of larger chunks of charcoals were taken – to avoid earlier dating as result of possible reuse or extended use of e.g. larger wooden architectural elements. At each location several samples were taken, sometimes of different structures and/or elements. A selection of 12 samples (find numbers 2624, 2649, 2661, 2674, 2676, 2678, 2679, 2684, 2685, 2686, 2688 and 2689, see table 2) was made and send for 14C dating by means of AMS to the Centre for Isotope Research (University Groningen). In December 2019 I received a message from dr. Sanne Palstra that due to the long waiting lists for 14C analysis, and the special preparation and arrangements for our small samples for AMS it will take another few months processing time before we can expect the final results of all samples. We will inform once the results of these have arrived.

The dating of the structures is an ongoing process which can only be secured when more dating samples have been analysed in order to obtain a more robust diachronic framework. This most probably will take some more years of research.

Driessen2020 table2

Table 2. 2019 dating samples for 14C from structures in Wādī al-Fiqai.

Driessen2020 Fig16

Figure 16. Earlier dating results of structures in Wādī al-Fiqai, plus locations of samples extracted in 2019 (last ones indicated by arrows and number of samples in red).


5. Collecting soil and water samples for soil capacity testing.

Twelve trial trenches were dug to collect soil samples as well inside the perimeters of ancient fields 1-2 connected to northern reservoir 1 (6 trenches), as well outside these fields for referencing (6 trenches; see figure 13). These samples were tested on fertility, biodiversity and remediation capacities for agricultural potential by soil scientists at Wageningen University (Department of Soil Quality - Chemical and Biological Soil Laboratory). We have taken 104 samples (63 soil samples in plastic bags, plus 41 soil samples in metal rings) which were analysed and processed by Ángel Velasco Sánchez MSc under surveillance of dr.ir. Marcel Hoosbeek at the Soil Chemistry and Chemical Soil Quality Centre of Wageningen University and Research Centre (Netherlands) for soil chemistry, physics and water carrying capacities. Water samples were collected, to be extracted from the infield soil samples, as well from a borehole pump near the ancient mother well of the qanat system. This was draining water from the current ground water level at -155m below surface level.

Driessen2020 Fig13

Figure 13. Soil samples were collected from 6 trenches inside the field system (blue) plus 6 trenches outside the field system (red).

The research questions for the antique agricultural activities by the soil science approach were twofold:

  1. Are the signs of ancient agriculture still measurable today?
  2. What kind of agricultural potential did these fields have?

For this the following lab analyses were executed on the soil samples:

  • Preparation (plus determination dry bulk density and water holding capicity) of each soil sample
  • Electrical Conductivity (EC = indirect way of measuring salt concentrations in the soil) and pH determination per soil sample
  • Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC = a measure of soil fertility, as it indicates the capacity of the soil to retain several nutrients (e.g. K+, NH4+, Ca2+) in plant-available form.
  • Available phosphorous (P) measuring, by the P-Olsen method.
  • Organic carbon content measuring by
  1. A) Loss on ignition method (LOI)
  2. B) Kurmies Method: Organic carbon content was measured by colorimetry on a spectrophotometer (Thermo Spectronic Aquamate).
  • Granulometry (particle size) measurements were carried out by laser diffraction on all samples
  • Multi trace element analysis primarily on water samples with an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) → resulting in peaks of isotopic forms of Lanthanum (La), Boron (B), Antimony (Sb), Uranium (U), Scandium (Sc), Lithium (Li), Titanium (Ti), Vanadium (V), Chromium (Cr), Manganese (Mn), Nickel (Ni), Molybdenum (Mo), Barium (Ba), Tungsten (W), Palladium (Pd), Cesium (Cs), Cobalt (Co), Copper (Cu), Tin (Sn), Indium (In), Germanium (Ge), Gallium (Ga), Strontium (Sr), Iodine (Y) and Rhodium (Rh).
  • The soil samples are also analysed and measured for these trace elements.

January 2020 the results came through.

For answering the first research question – are the signs of ancient agriculture still measurable today? – the first focus was on determining the effects of antique irrigation inside the fields. Irrigation will lead to the leaching out of mobile salts. There is evidence that this took place: there are significant differences in EC, Na and SAR (Sodium Adsorption Ratio) between samples from inside and outside the antique fields (see figure 14).

Lower amounts of LOI (organic C) are aIso indicative for potential salt leaching by irrigation water use (figure 14).

Significant differences in concentrations of mobile trace elements as e.g. Boron (B), Lithium (Li) and Strontium (Sr) are indicative as well for leaching by irrigation water use (figure 15).

Driessen2020 Fig14 1

Driessen2020 Fig14 2

Figure 14. Results of soil chemical and physical parameters analyses across the complete soil profile.

Driessen2020 Fig15

Figure 15. Increase of EC and second component / mobile trace element concentrations with increasing depth. EC (μS/cm) and trace elements (μg/kg).

Driessen2020 tab1

Table 1. Electrical conductivity, pH and trace elements measured on water samples. EC (μS/cm) and trace elements (μg/L).

Irrigation water – when not saline – can wash nutrients as trace elements from soil. The analysed water samples had a very low EC → very low salt concentration (table 1). This water contained relative high concentrations of immobile trace elements like Scandium (Sc) and Germanium (Ge). These were also found inside the fields – not outside the fields – resulting in the hypothesis that these ended up in the fields via the irrigation water.

Secondly also the plant uptake of the grown crops could result in the lower concentrations of the mobile trace elements as Lithium, Boron and Strontium inside the fields versus the surroundings. Thirdly also the practised tillage could contribute to the depletion of these elements in soils of ancient fields as well. Altogether it however it becomes clear that the ancient fields have been used intensively for agricultural purposesif compared to the surrounding areas.

In order to answer the second research question – which kind of agricultural potential did these fields have? – we need many more samples to be taken from other antique fields and their surroundings, but also from other soils from the region. This will be executed throughout the 2021-2022 field campaigns. What already becomes clear is that the soils are alkaloid and have a rather high pH (figure 14). This makes them not very suitable for cereal and vegetable growing, but such soils can be quite appropriate for special vines and other fruits.

Dr. Mark Driessen
Faculty of Archaeology
Leiden University

Dr. Fawzi Abudanah
Al-Hussein Bin Talal University
Petra College for Tourism and Archaeology

 

 

 

 

[1] See Gleick 2014, 227-235; Data Table 2: Freshwater Withdrawal by Country and Sector.

[2] Oweis et al. 2012, 31-71.

[3] See Driessen/Abudanah 2018 for the composition and details of the Udhruḥ qanat gathered through earlier years of research.

[4] Driessen/Abudanah 2018, 145 and footnote 9.

 
ARCHEOLOGIE / ARCHAEOLOGY

Summary

Madīnat al-Zahrā’ was founded in 940 CE near Córdoba, Spain as the capital of the Umayyad caliphate. The aim of a five-year project of the German Archaeological Institute and the Junta de Andalucía is the investigation of the so called Plaza de Armas, the central public square of the city, an area of the site that has not been well studied before. This season the eastern limit of the plaza was investigated, providing new insight into the development of the plaza. Originally two separate building complexes stood across from each other, the palace of the caliph to the west and a second palace to the east, possibly inhabited by the crown prince. In a second phase a monumental plaza was constructed between the two existing buildings. Two porticos now faced each other across the plaza. This season a part of the newly discovered eastern portico was excavated, providing information on its design. In the central axis of the portico the main gate leading to the eastern palace was discovered. The gate was flanked by niches and highly decorated. At the onset of the civil war (fitna), in November 1010 CE, the portico and the gate were destroyed by fire. From the destruction debris, elements of the gate were recovered, among them fragments of an arcade that had been located above the gate. Of particular interest are also fragments of a decoration painted in red and black. Metal elements of the gate were found, including iron nails of different sizes and segments of an iron clad door leaf of the upper arcade.

 

Report of the 2019-2020 season of work at Madīnat al-Zahrā’

Madīnat al-Zahrā’ was founded in 329 AH/940 CE by ʿAbd al-Raḥmān III as the capital of the western Umayyad caliphate. The city with its palaces, gardens, mosques and workshops quickly became the cultural center of the West, rivaling cities like Bagdad and Cairo in the East. Because of its importance and state of preservation, the archaeological site was inscribed in 2018 in the UNESCO World Heritage list. The site has since received increased media attention, and a significant rise in tourism.

At Madīnat al-Zahrā’ archaeological work has been conducted for more than a century. R. Velázquez Bosco (from 1911 to 1923), F. Hernández Jiménez (from 1923 to 1975) and others brought to light the central area of the caliphal palace, including the famous Salón Rico. Comprehensive restauration work was carried out thereafter by R. Manzano Martos from 1975 to 1985. A. Vallejo Triano, director of the site from 1985 to 2013, lead a thorough reinvestigation and restauration of several building complexes, oversaw the construction of a well-equipped site museum and published a monumental book on the site.

Unlike the central palace area, little is known so far of the city and the subsidiary palaces of Madīnat al-Zahrā’. The aim of the current project is the study of the so called Plaza de Armas, a large public square to the east of the zone excavated to date (Fig. 1). The plaza served as the main intersection between the palace and the city, comparable to the mašwar in palace cities of Morocco or the maidān of Middle Eastern cities. To the west of the square lies the palace, to the south the congregational mosque of the city, to the east a so-far unknown building. The investigation of the plaza and its surrounding buildings offers new insights on how the caliph interacted with society and how this interaction developed over time.

Arnold2020 photo1

Fig. 1: Map of Madīnat az-Zahrāʾ. The Plaza de Armas is marked in red (Lidar scan: Instituto Geográfico Nacional).

Work at Madīnat al-Zahrā’ is currently conducted within the framework of an agreement signed between the Junta de Andalucía and the German Archaeological Institute in 2015. In May 2017 a five-year project (“Proyecto General de Investigación”) was approved by the Junta de Andalucía, with the aim of investigating the Plaza de Armas. A. Montejo Córdoba, co-director of the project since 2017, was replaced in January 2020 by A. Vallejo Triano, as the new director of Madīnat al-Zahrā’ and co-director of the project.

The aim of the first season of field work (in June and July 2017) was the study of the portico on the western side of the plaza (Fig. 2). The aim of the second season (in June and July 2018) was the investigation of the building complex located on the opposite, eastern side of the plaza. The third season of field work – which is the subject of this report – was carried out in June and July 2019, again in collaboration with A. Canto García of the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. Participants were the archaeologists R. Clapés Salmoral (Córdoba), R. Coleman (Llanes), K. Czarnitzki (Berlin), M. González Virseda (Córdoba), W. Jablonska (Madrid), M. Osman Abdollah (Berlin), T. Perkins (Boston), I. O. Roibu (Madrid), R. Stolle (Leipzig) and A. Ugolini Sánchez-Barroso (Madrid), the architects H. Lehmann (Cologne), R. Michaelis (Braunschweig) and Y. Yasuoka (Tokyo) as well as the restorers I. Muñoz Matute (Córdoba), M. Muñoz Mora (Ciudad Real) and A. del Pino Campos (Córdoba).

Arnold2020 photo2 2

Fig. 2: Plan of the Plaza de Armas. Areas excavated in 217, 2018 and 2019 are indicated in red.

 The project has increasingly become the platform for a number of other undertakings. The aim of these projects is to place the investigation of the site on an international footing and thus intensify the study of Madīnat al-Zahrā’ in all its aspects. Regular meetings of the project members foster the exchange of information and ideas. The second meeting took place on July 12 and 13, 2019. Currently studies of glass objects (N. Schibille and A. Zamorano, funded by the ERC), metal objects (A. Ugolini Sánchez-Barroso), pottery (A. Martín and O. Roibu) and architectural elements (Y. Yasuoka, funded by the Japanese Academy of Science) are under way. A project aimed at a reinvestigation of the so called Salón Basilical has been approved by the German Research Foundation (H. Lehmann, now Technical University of Berlin). Independently, C. Duckworth from the University of Newcastle has been conducting a geophysical survey of the site, initially aimed at identifying workshop areas in the city. Taken together, these projects greatly increase our understanding of Madīnat al-Zahrā’ and its development.

 

Excavation work conducted in 2019

In 2018, an excavation was carried out for the first time on the eastern side of the Plaza de Armas. This revealed the remains of an extensive building complex (here referred to as the "Eastern Palace"), including a T-shaped reception hall on a 3 m high platform. In this year's campaign, the relationship of this building complex to the plaza was investigated, and the design of the eastern side of the plaza was clarified. A geomagnetic survey had already provided indications of a second portico in this area. An excavation in the central axis of the portico could now confirm the existence of this 115 m wide portico (Fig. 2 and 3). In addition, the main entrance gate of the Eastern Palace was discovered and the structural development of the area was investigated. In total, seven phases of construction, use and destruction can now be distinguished (Fig. 4).

Arnold2020 photo3 2

Fig. 3: Excavation work in the area of the eastern portico, with the western portico in the background (photo: F. Arnold).

 

Arnold2020 photo4

Fig. 4: Reconstruction of the building phases of the Plaza de Armas. a: Phase 1; b: Phase 2; c: Phase 3.

 

 Phase 1: Eastern building complex

The building complex on the east side of the square was initially built as an independent enclosure (Fig. 4a). The remains of a perimeter wall and a 3 m wide gate are preserved in the excavated area. The gate was located directly opposite the entrance gate of the caliphal palace (alcázar) on the western side of the plaza. Originally, the plaza was an open space between two large building complexes, the caliphal palace in the west and the newly discovered Palace in the east. This second complex may have had an administrative purpose and possibly served as a residence of the crown prince. The later caliph al-Ḥakam II acted as the head of the administration of the caliphate since 941 CE, shortly after the foundation of Madīnat al-Zahrā'. Maybe it is no coincidence that the crown prince also appears as the builder of the nearby Friday mosque of Madīnat al-Zahrā' in a foundation inscription dated to 333AH/944–945 CE.

Phase 2: Portico and gate

A portico was subsequently added in front of the Eastern Palace (Fig. 4b). In terms of size and overall layout, it is similar to the portico on the western side of the plaza and was part of a new conception of the open space as a monumentally designed plaza on a terrace (Fig. 5). In detail, however, the newly discovered portico differs from the well-known complex on the west side of the Plaza de Armas. For example, the pillars do not have a cruciform cross-section as in the western portico, but have a simple rectangular cross-section. Apparently, arches in the transverse direction of the portico were omitted here, and consequently also buttresses in the façade. Collapsed remains of the roof construction including roof tiles and iron nails show that the roof of the eastern portico was covered with a sloping roof and was therefore not accessible like the roof of the western portico. Above the central nave there also seems to have been no pavilion like the one on the western side. The entrance gate was highlighted in the façade only by a somewhat larger horseshoe arch supported by columns. Fragments of the column shafts made of reddish breccia as well as an impost made of grey marble and a fragment of the alfiz were found in the debris (Fig. 6).

Arnold2020 photo5

Fig. 5: Reconstruction of the Plaza de Armas, with the two porticos facing each other (drawing: F. Arnold).

 

Arnold2020 photo6

Fig. 6: Decorative panel from the central nave of the eastern portico (photo: M. Latova).

 The entrance gate of the Eastern Palace was lavishly decorated in this phase (Fig. 7 and 8). An entrance corridor was added to the inside of the gate, with an access way that is bent twice. As in the entrance area of the caliphal palace, benches were arranged along the walls, on which guards and waiting guests could sit. In the façade the gate was now flanked by two niches. Such niches can also be found at the gates of the Great Mosque of Cordoba, following the tradition of Roman triumphal arches. An arcade was apparently located above the doorway. In the debris fallen remains of this arcade were found, including fragments of column shafts of grey marble, decorated capitals of white marble, key stones and remains of a frieze decorated with relief ornamentation. Unusual are fragments of a decoration painted in black and dark red color (Fig. 9).

At the bottom of the gate, 18–21 cm long nails of the wooden gate wings were found in the debris, as well as the retaining rings of a bolt (Figs. 10 and 11). In addition, an ornamental fitting has been preserved. Outside the doorway the remains of another door leaf were discovered. It was fully covered with iron bands, like the gates of the mosque of Córdoba. The leaf must have come from the arcade located above the gate, which therefore could not have been a blind arcade but the window opening of an upper floor. As in many other gate buildings of Islamic times, a reception room may have been located on the upper level.

 

Arnold2020 photo7

Fig. 7: Remains of the entrance gate of the Eastern Palace (photo: F. Arnold).

Arnold2020 photo8

Fig. 8: Reconstruction of the gate (drawing: F. Arnold).

Arnold2020 photo9

Fig. 9: Decoration in red and black paint (photo: M. Latova).

Arnold2020 photo10

Fig. 10: Iron nails found under the collapsed archway (photo: F. Arnold).

Arnold2020 photo11

Fig. 11: Iron nails of the gate (photo: M. Latova).

Phase 3: Reuse as stables

The Eastern Palace was later converted for a use by horses (Fig. 4c). Thus, troughs were built into the pavilion building found in 2018 and ramps were constructed in the surrounding area. In addition, the slab pavement was replaced by a cobblestone pavement. Selective adjustments were also made in the gate area, including the addition of door leaves to close the exit also towards the east. The palace had probably been empty since the accession to the throne of al-Ḥakam II in October 961 CE. Unlike his father, the crown prince al-Hišām, who was born in 966 CE, resided inside the palace, in the Dār al-Mulk. The Plaza de Armas was increasingly used for public receptions, but also for exercises and equestrian games of the cavalry from North Africa, which from 972 CE onward played an increasingly important role in the military of the caliphate. The empty Eastern Palace may have been used to shelter the horses of these military units, or horses of participants in large-scale festivities. Historical sources mention the existence of a nearby caliphal mews (Dār al-Ḫayl).

Phase 4: Destruction by fire

In the portico and the gate of the eastern palace extensive evidence of fire destruction was found. For example, a layer of burnt roof beams, roof tiles and iron nails has been preserved on the floors, above which are blocks of stone from the upper wall sections, which have been discolored red by the effects of fire. The gate also seems to have collapsed, including the arcade located above. In the debris, the aforementioned nails and metal fittings of the gate as well as the remains of the iron-fitted leaf of the arcade were found in this layer. The fire probably occurred at the beginning of the civil war (fitna), during the looting of Madīnat al-Zahrā' by North African troops on November 14th and 15th, 1010 CE. A coin minted in Fez (Morocco) in 389 AH/998–999 CE that was found in the debris may have been lost during this event. Significantly, there is no evidence of destruction by fire within the Eastern Palace. As in other areas of the city, the destruction by fire was apparently limited to ideologically significant areas.

In addition to more than a thousand metal objects, extensive ceramic material was also recovered in the fire layer during this year's excavation. Some of these could be ceramic vessels from the last phase of the use of the gate. In addition to the palace ware ("verde y manganeso") characteristic of Madīnat al-Zahrā', the fragment of a white-glazed bowl was found, which may have been imported from Iraq. Remarkable is also a piece of Roman terra sigilata as well as some fragments of green glazed ceramics of the late 9th century CE.

Phase 5-7: Dismantling and destruction

After the destruction by fire in 1010 CE, the ruins served as a source of raw material. In the 11th century CE, lead pipes and movable metal parts were dismantled first, followed by individual sections of the walls (Phase 5). In the 15th century CE, the walls were systematically dismantled in order to extract building material, including for the construction of the nearby monastery of San Jerónimo de Valparaíso (Phase 6). This was confirmed in 2018 by the discovery of a coin from the time when the monastery was founded, with the name of Juan II of Castile (1406–1454). Since the 18th century CE, the area was mainly used as pasture (Phase 7).

Restauration work

During the excavation of this season more than a thousand objects of metal were recovered. The majority are iron nails of different sizes, deriving from the roof construction and other building elements (Fig. 11). The most important find is the cladding of a door leaf, which had probably belonged to the arcade located above the gate. During the excavation work in July 2019 the remains of the door leaf were recovered in large sections and transported to the magazine of the site museum for restauration.

In the fall of 2019, x-ray images of most metal objects recovered this season were made, by the help of a transportable x-ray machine. The images reveal the dense agglomeration of nails and metal bands within the remains of the door leaf (Fig. 12). In addition they provide crucial evidence for the further treatment and conservation of the material. An archaeologist and a restorer have begun the meticulous work of cleaning and recovering the material. The work is still on-going and will hopefully be completed by the end of 2020.

The conservation and study of the remains will furnish for the first time detailed information on how a door leaf of this size was constructed. In the future the piece could be prepared for an exposition, in the site museum or elsewhere.

mini Arnold2020 Fig12

Fig. 12: X-ray of a fragment of the door leaf (image: Clínica Veterinaria Virgen de Fátima, Córdoba)

Dr. Felix Arnold
German Archaeological Institute, Madrid, Spain

ARCHEOLOGIE / ARCHAEOLOGY

Summary

The project A Survey of the Great Mosque-Palace Complex of Kufa aims at collecting and reassessing all the available information concerning the material data related to the Mosque-Palace Complex of Kufa, which is considered to be the earliest evidence, archaeologically documented, of an architectural solution characterising the early Islamic city up to the foundation of Madīnat al-Salām in Baghdad in 762. The project is pursued in cooperation with the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage of the Republic of Iraq and the Department of Sciences of Antiquity of Sapienza University of Rome. Its strategies consist in the study of the documentation – both published and unpublished – produced during the excavations and a topographical survey of the area.

The results and extent of the excavations, carried out by the then Directorate-General of Antiquities of Iraq between 1938 and 1967 in seven seasons, are mainly known through the report of the third season, which only regarded the Palace. This report was published in Arabic 1956 and in English in 1963, and its results were canonised by Creswell in 1969, along with the most up-dated available plan of the Palace. The recent history and current state of the two components of the original Mosque-Palace Complex of Kufa have never been documented since the last century.

The activities carried out during the first year of the project (2019) consisted in the collection and study of all the published reports of the excavations and related publications, and a topographical survey and inspection of the remains of the Palace. The study of the published material allowed us to acquire information on the features of the earliest phases of the Mosque and on the structural and chronological relationships of the three layers detected in the Palace. The ground survey of the area, along with the aerial survey of the Palace, allowed us to re-construct the recent history of the two components of the Mosque-Palace Complex and the layout of the Palace as it appeared after the last excavation season in 1967.

 

Report

Background

The centre of ancient Kufa is located in Najaf, 1.5 km west of the Euphrates, 9 km east of Imām ʿAlī’s Shrine and 6 km north of the archaeological site of al-Ḥīra. It consists of the Great Mosque of Kufa, a building completely renovated at the beginning of this century, and the Qaṣr al-Imāra, the archaeological remains of a palatial structure adjacent to the southern side of the Mosque. According to historical sources, the Great Mosque and the Qaṣr al-Imāra originally formed an architectural complex, which was built at the centre of the town upon the suggestion of ʿUmar b. al-Khaṭṭāb a few years after the foundation of Kufa in 638 CE (Ṭabarī, Taʾrīkh s. 1, 2491-2492). Consequently, the remains of the Mosque-Palace Complex of Kufa would be the earliest evidence, archaeologically documented, of an architectural solution characterising the early Islamic city up to the foundation of Madīnat al-Salām in Baghdad in 762 (Bacharach 1991). Considering that Kufa is the second settlement ever planned and built ex novo by Muslims during their advance into the lands outside Arabia, and into the Sasanian empire in particular, the case of its Mosque-Palace Complex plays a pivotal role in reconstructing the history of early Islamic urbanism, architecture, (self-)representation of power, and their relationships to previous traditions. And yet, the history of the Mosque-Palace Complex of Kufa, especially in its earlier phases, is still unclear and continues to be an object of debate among archaeologists and historians of architecture (Grabar 1958; Creswell 1969, 9; Creswell – Allan 1989; Antun 2016; Santi 2018). Indeed, it appears difficult to reconcile the historical accounts to the archaeological data. However, the latter are only partially known: the results of the excavations carried out from 1938 to 1967 by the then Directorate-General of Antiquities of Iraq have never been published in a final report; only the reports of the second and third seasons are quite detailed and accompanied by plans and sections; the provisional conclusions reached after the third season, and later revised by the Iraqi archaeologists themselves, had a wider diffusion through an English translation and crystallised in the reasoned synthesis realised by Creswell thereafter. In addition, the recent history and current state of the two components of the original Mosque-Palace Complex of Kufa have never been documented since the last century.

Therefore, the project A Survey of the Great Mosque-Palace Complex of Kufa aims at collecting and reassessing all the available information concerning the archaeological evidence through the study of the documentation – both published and unpublished – produced during the excavations, a topographical survey of the area, the inspection of the structures. The project is pursued in cooperation with the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage of the Republic of Iraq and the Department of Sciences of Antiquity of Sapienza University of Rome[1].

We are most grateful to the van Berchem Foundation for its generous support, which allowed us to spend the first year of the project (2019) in examining the published reports of the excavations and related publications and to carry out a topographical survey of the area, and the inspection of the Qaṣr al-Imāra in particular. The results of this investigation are illustrated in the following paragraphs.

 

Results of the study of all published materials concerning the excavations

The remains of the Mosque-Palace Complex of Kufa have been investigated by the Directorate-General of Antiquities of Iraq during seven excavation seasons: the first took place in 1938 (Masjid al-Kūfa 1940; see also Janābī 1963; 1966; 2014), the second in 1953 (Muṣṭafā 1954), the third in 1955-1956 (Muṣṭafā 1956; 1963), the fourth in 1957 (Muṣṭafā 1957; Taba 1971), the fifth in 1964-1965 (Janābī 1963; 1966; Janābī 1978), the sixth in 1966 and the seventh in 1967 (Janābī 1983).

The first season was carried out in conjunction with the rebuilding of the Mosque and the adjacent Rawḍa, containing the tombs of Muslim b. ʿAqīl, Hānīʾ b. ʿUrwa and al-Mukhtār. The Mosque consisted of a quadrangular structure (110 x 112 x 109 x 112 m). Its perimeter presented three-quarter-round corner towers and semi-round lateral towers, and a minaret. Along the northern wall the excavators detected the square foundations of previously built semi-round towers, whose remains had been incorporated in the towers appearing on the surface. The shaft of a column standing next to the maqam al-Nabī, located in the courtyard, and two capitals, decorated with acanthus leaves re-employed at the sides of a door, seemed to be related to this earlier phase. They were consequently ascribed to Ziyād b. Abīhi who, according to the sources, rebuilt the Mosque in monumental forms in 670 CE. The structures at the interior of the perimetral walls of both the Mosque and Rawḍa dated to much later periods. Along the qiblī wall, at the exterior of the Mosque, the excavators found remains of a perpendicular wall adjoining the latter and belonging to a quadrangular enclosure (168.20 x 169.98 m). Its northern limit consisted of the easternmost section of the qiblī wall of the Mosque and a wall running towards the east, with two semi-round lateral towers and a three-quarter-round corner tower; between this wall and that of the Mosque an entrance was found. Also the other walls seemed to feature lateral and corner towers. This enclosure was recognised as the Palace of Saʿd b. Abī Waqqāṣ which, according to historical sources, was built in conjunction to the Mosque, upon the suggestion of ʿUmar b. al-Khaṭṭāb, a few years after the foundation of Kufa in 638 CE (fig. 1).

DiCesare20 Fig1

Fig. 1. Plan of the Mosque-Palace Compex of Kufa after the first excavation season in 1938 (Masjid Kūfa 1940).

The second and third seasons revealed that the Palace consisted of two concentric square enclosures (fig. 2).

DiCesare20 Fig2

Fig. 2. Plan of the Mosque-Palace Complex of Kufa after the third excavation season in 1955-1956 (Muṣṭafā 1956; © Sumer).

The inner enclosure (ca 110 by 110 m) featured, at the exterior, lateral semi-round towers and three-quarter-round corner towers; at the interior, rooms and courtyards arranged according to an axial tripartite plan. Remains of dwelling units were detected between the two enclosures. Three main layers and related structural phases were identified. The lowest layer was discovered along the perimeter of the inner enclosure. It consisted of the foundations of a square building (114 x 114 m), with a projecting entrance at the centre of the northern side and square bases of side and corner towers. The second layer consisted of the remains of the inner enclosure, built within the earlier foundations. It featured semi-round lateral and three-quarter-round corner towers resting on the first layer, and an entrance at the centre of the northern wall, flanked by two semi-round towers and two mastabas. A corridor led into a wide square court. On each side of it was a triple-arch; the southern arch was wider and introduced to a long three aisled-hall. A door at the back of the central aisle, whose jambs were decorated with stucco ornament, opened into a square room – probably domed – flanked by two small rooms. A courtyard at the back of this ceremonial complex led to rooms abutting the southern wall of the enclosure and to the western and eastern partitions, where a “Syrian bayt” and a “Persian bayt” were found. The outer enclosure appeared to be related to this second layer. The third layer was realised in two subsequent periods. During the first period some changes occurred in the layout of the north-eastern and north-western sections, including a courtyard leading to a vaulted hall with a triple entrance and flanked by small rooms, and a sirdāb. During the second period of the third layer the entrance to the outer enclosure was reconstructed and the entrance block and two-third of the northern wall of the inner enclosure were pulled down.

After examining the construction material and techniques, architectural and decorative features, coins, ceramic shards, and other small finds, the archaeologists dated the first layer to the pre-Islamic period or the time of the foundation of Kufa, thus inclining to ascribe it to Saʿd; the second layer to the Umayyad period ; the third layer to the early ʿAbbasid period (up to al-Mahdī’s reign). The uppermost layer revealed traces of a later occupation ascribable to the Ilkhanid period.

During the fourth season, the southern quadrant of the inner enclosure was completely unearthed. Traces of the first layer were found at the interior of the building, along with significant finds, among which a wall painting. This material led the excavators to revise the previous interpretation of the structures and its chronology: they ascribed both the first layer and the first period of the second layer to Saʿd’s Palace. Another important discovery was made during this season: a door was found in the qiblī wall of the mosque, partially obstructed by the western wall of the outer enclosure. This door was interpreted as the Bāb al-Imām, which usually provided a direct connection between the residential units and the prayer hall in Mosque-Palace complexes.

During the fifth season, remains of a dwelling dating to the Ilkhanid period and built over Saljuk foundations were unearthed along the qiblī wall of the mosque. The dwelling was connected to the mosque by a door and included a funerary bath.

During the sixth season, the dependencies along the western wall of the outer enclosure were investigated and several objects dating to the Umayyad and ʿAbbasid periods recovered.

During the seventh season, the excavation of the structures abutting the qiblī wall of the Mosque brought to light a marble capital and fragments of two marble columns which were ascribed to Ziyād’s mosque. Kufic inscriptions and drawings datable to the 7th century were also found. The season ended with consolidation and restoration works.

A full report of the seven excavation seasons and the study of the small finds have never been published, as well as a plan of all the excavated areas. Indeed, the most updated plan currently available is the one included in the third report and its re-drawing by Creswell, therefore rendering the situation as it was in 1956. Two plans consisting of the re-constructions of the layout the building had during the Rāshidūn period and during the Umayyad and ʿAbbasid periods were published in 1983 by Khaḍīr (1983: figs. 10 and 15), possibly after an in situ inspection[2].

 

Results of the topographical survey of the Qaṣr al-Imāra

The Qaṣr al-Imāra lies in a wide fenced area where police facilities are located. To the north, it is delimited by the qiblī wall of the Great Mosque and the adjacent Rawḍa. The complex appears as a splendid example of contemporary Islamic architecture, mixing and harmonising architectural elements from different traditions. While the Rawḍa is still being enlarged, the lavish reconstruction of the Mosque has been carried out between 1998 and 2010 under the Dawudi Bohora’s patronage (fig. 3)[3].

DiCesare20 Fig3

Fig. 3. Courtyard of the Great Mosque of Kufa as seen from the south-east (Photograph by Mohammed Hasan Abbas Waleed, 2019).

To the west of the Qaṣr al-Imāra is the Raḥabat ʿAlī, encompassing Imām ʿAlī’s House, a building renovated at the end of the last century, and Imām ʿAlī’s Garden. A path through the latter leads from the House to a small door known as Bāb al-Sudda, opening into the qiblī wall of the Great Mosque, between the minbar and the miḥrāb amīr al-muʾminīn (fig. 4).

DiCesare20 Fig4 2

Fig. 4. Bāb al-Sudda as seen from Imām ʿAlī’s Garden and western wall of the outer enclosure of the Qaṣr al-Imāra, to the right (Photograph by Michelina Di Cesare, 2019).

The Qaṣr al-Imāra is not usually accessible to visitors for security reasons. Some times after the restoration occurred in 1967, most of the structures of the Palace, especially those in the inner enclosure related to the first and second layer, were gradually submerged by water. This water flowed to the surface from an aquifer located in the north-eastern area of the site and caused the growth of a thick and impenetrable vegetation. In 2011 the local Inspector of the State Board of Antiquity and Heritage of Iraq tried to contrast the damage by spreading layers of sand and pebbles and restoring the surfacing structures[4]. However, since then, underground water has re-surfaced and the vegetation has grown again, also becoming infested by snakes.

On the other hand, despite the efforts made by the local Inspector of the State Board of Antiquity and Heritage of Iraq to valorise the site, the local Shīʿī community does not seem very interested in preserving it. The Qaṣr al-Imāra appears to them as an unpleasant memorial of the hatred Umayyads – usurpers of ʿAlī’s rights and persecutors and killers of al-Ḥusayn and his followers – which stands too close to the Great Mosque, the place of ʿAlī’s martyrdom and sacred destination of Shīʿī pilgrimage. A local tradition, possibly at the origin of the identification of Imām ʿAlī’s House in the Raḥabat to the west of the Qaṣr al-Imāra, reports that when he became amīr al-muʾminīn and moved from Medina to Kufa, he refused to reside in the Palace, and built for his family a modest house connected to the Mosque through a door in the qiblī wall (Bāb al-Sudda).

Given the conditions of the site, the ground survey regarded the areas which were cleared from vegetation and not submerged by water, namely the western, south-western and north-eastern strips void of structures between the outer and inner enclosure, and a path formed in the south-eastern and eastern strips void of structures between the outer and inner enclosure[5]. However, the aerial survey allowed us to integrate the partial data so obtained (fig. 5)[6].

DiCesare20 Fig5

Fig. 5. Ortophotoplan of the Qaṣr al-Imāra and qiblī wall of the Great Mosque and Rawḍa (processed by Alessandro M. Jaia and Laura Ebanista, 2019)

The Palace features two concentric square enclosures, the outer of which shares the western section of its northern wall with the qiblī wall of the Great Mosque; a series of walls delimiting dwelling units abut almost all the interior walls of the outer enclosure – except for the northern section of the western wall and the southern section of the eastern wall.

The visible sections of the perimetral walls of the outer enclosure presents lateral semi-round towers and three-quarter-round corner towers, except for those along the northern section of the western wall and qiblī wall of the Rawḍa. The building of the latter and Imām ʿAlī’s Garden evidently obliterated them.

The outer enclosure is accessed through an entrance located at the centre of the southern wall, flanked by semi-elliptical towers and recesses at the exterior and stairways at the interior (fig. 6).

DiCesare20 Fig6

Fig. 6. Monumental entrance in the southern wall of the outer enclosure of the Qaṣr al-Imāra (Photograph by Michelina Di Cesare, 2019).

Though this entrance is present in Khaḍīr’s plan, the reports make no mention of it. Indeed, the main entrance was supposed to be located to the north, between the easternmost corner tower of the Mosque and the wall of the large enclosure. Unfortunately, this monumental entrance, as also the point of junction between the Mosque and the western wall of the Palace, was completely hidden by reeds and the area resulted impenetrable from inside and outside the outer enclosure. The inspection of the part of the qiblī wall enclosed in Imām ʿAlī’s Garden, however, revealed no sign of ancient structures, which evidently were covered up by the recent cladding.

As for the inner enclosure, the perimetral walls and related semi-round lateral towers and three-quarter-round corner towers to the west and south were accessible. In the north-western area, there were not surfacing structures. The remaining areas of the inner enclosure were occupied by large ponds and vegetation and therefore resulted inaccessible.

The series of dwelling units abutting the interior walls of the outer enclosure consisted of a recurring pattern: a smaller room preceded by an antechamber and flanked by two or three rooms. This pattern was especially recognisable along the western wall, the western side of the southern wall and the eastern side of the northern wall. As anticipated, most of these units were brought to light in 1966 and 1967. However, it was possible to ascertain that these dependencies abutting the inner wall of the outer enclosure and the qiblī wall of the Mosque were not found all along the perimeter. The western wall, slightly to the south, was abutted by four dwelling units; the eastern wall by six units; the northern and southern walls by eight units, respectively, four on either sides of the monumental entrances.

From the study of the published photographs, we were able to identify the location of the unit abutting the qiblī wall of the mosque where the capital and columns were found, but the vegetation prevented us to inspect it. We were more fortunate with the unit located along the western wall in correspondence to Imām ʿAlī’s House, where we identified the top of the arched opening of the central room at the back of the antechamber. It appeared heavily restored and was mostly buried in the ground, thus indicating that the threshold of the door, presumably related to the third or second second layer, was at least 1.50 m below the ground.

Also the other visible structures revealed a number of restorations, which consisted of reinforcing them with cladding walls and raising their height. The relatively homogeneous facies of the structures was due to the use of material and techniques similar to the original ones; in particular, the bricks employed in the 1967 and 2011 restorations were especially made of the size described in the reports.

Therefore, it is safe to conclude that the current layout of the Palace renders the situation as it was in 1967, after the complete unearthing of the structures. The restorations occurred in 1967 and 2011 have preserved its main features, thus allowing us to complete the information given in the published reports and related essays. We can add to the plan of the excavated areas the monumental entrance at the centre of the southern side of the outer enclosure and the precise location of the dwelling units abutting the inner wall of the outer enclosure and the qiblī wall of the Mosque.

 

Conclusions and further plans

The survey of the Qaṣr al-Imāra, along with the study of all the published reports, has yielded new data to re-construct the history of the Mosque-Palace Complex of Kufa. The investigation of the unpublished documentation produced during the excavations and a survey of both the Great Mosque and Qaṣr al-Imāra, planned to be pursued in the following years, give reason to expect ground-breaking results in achieving an archaeological and historical re-construction of this emblematic site.

Dr. Michelina Di Cesare
Sapienza Università di Roma
Facoltà di Lettere e Filosofia, Dipartimento di Scienze dell’Antichità
Rome

_______________

 

[1] The team consists of Michelina Di Cesare (Associate Professor of Islamic Archaeology and Art History, Department of Sciences of Antiquity, Sapienza University of Rome), Alessandro Jaia (Associate Professor of Ancient Topography, Department of Sciences of Antiquity, Sapienza University of Rome), Laura Ebanista (Research Associate, Department of Sciences of Antiquity, Sapienza University of Rome), Serenella Mancini (Research Associate, Department of Sciences of Antiquity, Sapienza University of Rome), Aila Santi (A. W. Mellon Fellow, The American University of Beyrut), Amelia Blundo (Architect, Rome), locally assisted by Muhammad Bedin al-Mayali (Inspector of the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage of the Najaf Governatorate) and the archaeologists under his supervision, whose amiable cooperation is highly appreciated. The Project owes much to the support of Dr Abdul Ameer al-Hamadani (Minister of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities of the Republic of Iraq), and the assistance of his collaborators at the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage of Iraq in Baghdad, namely Qays Husayn Rashid, Saba Omari, Luma Juda, Jacob Jawdat. The friendship and commitment to the endeavour of Hassan Nadhem (UNESCO Chair at the University of Kufa) should also be acknowledged, as well as the availability of Saba Sami al-Ali (al-Nahrayn University of Baghdad), Nabeel Abd al-Husayn Rahi, Alaa Husayn Jasim al-Lami, Husayn Musa Husayn (University of Kufa).

[2] We owe the knowledge of this publication to Alastair Northedge, whose kindness in sharing this information was highly appreciated.

[3] See https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Mumbai-Bohras-breathe-new-life-into-Iraq-shrine/articleshow/5707403.cms; see also Tabaa and Mervin 2014.

[4] Personal communication of Mr. Bedin al-Mayali; see also https://www.iraqhurr.org/a/3550152.html.

[5] The ground survey and photographic documentation was carried out by Michelina Di Cesare, Alessandro M. Jaia, Laura Ebanista, Hind Falih Yaseen, Mohammed Hasan Abbas Waleed, Kadhim Mutar, with the cooperation of Muhammad Bedin al-Mayali and the local police force. We were also kindly assisted by Khulud Abdarahman Muhammad, Qasim Bedin al-Mayali and Abdulameer.

[6] The aerial survey and photographic documentation were pursued by Laura Ebanista and Alessandro M. Jaia.

ARCHEOLOGIE / ARCHAEOLOGY

Moshkin Tepe is situated approximately 1.5 km southeast of the city of Parandak, Iran, and was a major pottery production site during the Seljuq period. Excavations undertaken in 2008 by Iranian archaeological teams had revealed an unprecedent amount of workshop materials- nearly 14000 ceramic sherds, in addition to remnants of kiln walls, kiln furniture, production wasters and samples of raw materials. The majority of excavated materials were subsequently reburied in the site due to the lack financial support required to record and preserve the findings.

The purpose of the current project was to conduct fieldwork at Moshkin Tepe, to collect ceramic sherds and technical materials for laboratory analyses, and to study the processes and technologies of production. Upon official permission from the Institute of Cultural Heritage, fieldwork visits were conducted during spring 2018 and three pottery workshop areas were distinguished (Fig. 1). The majority of pottery produced at the site are stonepaste ceramics (i.e. body fabrics composed of approximately ten parts crushed quartz, one part crushed glass and one part white clay), although clay-based ceramics were also found. The bodies of both stonepaste and clay-based ceramics were covered by turquoise, blue or purple glazes. Samples of ceramic sherds as well as technical materials (e.g. kiln rods, kiln walls, raw materials) were collected and sent to the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, Oxford, for chemical and physical examination.

 

Matin fig 1.2

Figure 1: Moshkin Tepe archaeological site; (1): the castle, (2): residential areas, (3), (4), (5): pottery production workshop areas, (6): cemetery.

Samples of four ceramic sherds, four kiln rods and ten wasters have been thus far analysed using a Scanning Electron Microscope with Energy Dispersive Examination (SEM-EDS). The results of chemical analyses showed that the glazes were of the alkali composition and the turquoise, blue and purple glazes were coloured respectively using copper, cobalt and manganese ions.

Matin fig 2.2

Figure 2: Members of research team at Moshkin Tepe (from left to right: Hossein Sedighian, Moujan Matin, Ali Nemati).

The scientific study of findings from Moshkin Tepe provides a unique opportunity to reproduce the processes of production of stonepaste materials. The outcomes of the present research will help transform our views regarding the beginnings, development, and production processes of stonepaste ceramics during the medieval Islamic period. This project would not have been possible without the financial support of the Max van Berchem Foundation and their funding of this project is gratefully appreciated.

Moujan Matin
Wolfson College, University of Oxford

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  4. The Origins of Harar, Ethiopia | 2016