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Jawf/Tabuk Archaeological Project (JTAP) A Brief Report of the Third Field Season, 2013
Sumio Fujii
College of Human and Social Sciences, Kanazawa University
Kakuma-machi, Kanazawa, 920-1192, Japan
Research Objective and History
Our research project, JTAP (Jawf/Tabuk Archaeological Project), aims to trace the
process of pastoral nomadization in the northern half of the Arabian Peninsula. A key to
the issue is the socio-cultural movement in the five millennia spanning from the
Pre-Pottery Neolithic (when sheep and goats were first domesticated) to the Early
Bronze Age (when full-fledged nomadic society backed with a tribal system is supposed
to have been established).
Our comprehensive research started in December of 2012 with a reconnaissance
survey in the northern half of the Tabuk Province (Fujii 2012). The survey located
several promising sites, which served as targets for subsequent research (Fig. 1). The
second field season, conducted from 23 September until 9 October in 2013, focused on
the Gurayya Basin ca. 60 km north of Tabuk and attested to the existence of
Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age burial fields along Wadi Ghubai and Wadi Moharek
(Fujii 2013). We test-sounded a tower tomb (Feature 3045) in preparation of future
investigation.
This report summarizes the research outcome of the third field season taken place for
two weeks from December 14 until 28 of the same year. We conducted a limited
excavation of Wadi Sharma 1 along the Red Sea coast, which proved to be a small
settlement dated to the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B.
The Site and Site-setting Wadi Sharma is a small drainage system ca. 70 km in total length that rises in the
western slope of Harrat al Uwayrid, a basalt plateau running in the center of the Tabuk
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Province in the NW-SE direction, and flows westward into the Red Sea. The site of
Wadi Sharma 1 is located ca. 25 km upper of the mouth of the wadi, occupying a
tongue-shaped gentle slope protruding southward toward the sandy wadi bed (Figs.
2-3). This site was first found in 1980 during the Comprehensive Archaeological Survey
Program. The preliminary report refers to it as Site 200-47, one of the two Neolithic
sites located at the foot of Jebel Arrayig al-Yusri (Ingraham et al. 1981: 67). We visited
the site in the course of the first and second survey seasons and confirmed anew its
importance. This is the reason why we embarked on a full-fledged investigation.
The site is covered with stones and sand, and a number of masonry wall alignments
are exposed on the present ground surface. Overall, they develop southwestward along
the rocky ridgeline of the slope, suggesting a site area of ca.1.2 ha (= 60 m NS by 20 m
SE). Given this, it would follow that the site represents a hamlet-size settlement. Our
portable GPS receiver set on the benchmark indicated the coordinates of latitude
28.05.463N, longitude 035.28. 561E, and an elevation of ca. 264 m.
With a background of a chain of rocky foothills, the site faces a wide wadi bed where
acacia and tamarisk trees are dotted (Figs. 4-5). Nowadays no perennial natural water
source is available around the site, but the existence of palm tree gardens along the wadi
bank is suggestive of the abundance of subsoil water. It is highly likely that the
Neolithic local population enjoyed a more favorable condition of water supply.
Another focal point when we discuss the site location of Wadi Sharma 1 is the
convenience for local transportation. The drainage basin of Wadi Sharma is fringed with
steep slopes at both sides, but a small gap exists immediately to the west of the site,
making it possible to traverse the rocky foothills in the north-south direction (Fig. 2). In
this sense, we can argue that the site occupies a strategic point of the local traffic.
Another likely inducement is the availability of various construction material including
sandstone, slate, and granite, all of which are easily procured around the foothill on
which the site is located. The site location of Wadi Sharma 1 can be understood in these
contexts.
Excavation The excavation took place following the standard 5m by 5m grid and locus system.
Since no reliable triangular point was available, a benchmark was set up arbitrarily at
the northern part of the site. Due to time constraints, our operation in this field season
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focused on Area 1 extending over a total of eleven squares around the benchmark (Fig.
6). The excavated area total 245 square meters, and the volume of excavated soil
amounts ca. 20 cubic meters.
We dag down until the middle level of Layer 2 and revealed the top course of wall
alignments of masonry structures (Figs. 7-9). Due to the long spell of strong sandstorm,
the excavation was interrupted at this stage and has not yet reached their foundation
course. The only exception to this is a small trench (Trench I) opened along the northern
edge of Square B8, where we confirmed that the preserved wall segment (ca. 0.4 m
high) was constructed on a bed rock layer underlying ca. 30-40 cm below the present
ground surface (Fig. 10).
Structural Remains
The excavation has revealed a cluster of stone-built structures, most of which were
constructed with a double-faced, dry masonry technique. As for construction material,
sandstone, slate, and granite cobbles ca. 20-30 cm long were used without any
substantial processing. In addition, small rubble was used as adjusters for masonry
walls. In view of the volume of fallen stones around the walls, the original wall height
of the structures is estimated at more than 1 m.
The exposed structural remains fall into two in terms of typology: a large square
structure ca. 8-10 m on a side and several oval or rectangular features ca. 2-3 m in a
longer axis. It appears that the former has a tripartite layout consisting of a central hall
and several side rooms. The location of an entrance to this large structure is still
unknown, but there is a high possibility that it existed at the southeastern part where
illicit digging pits leave their scars. Meanwhile, most of the smaller features clustered
along the northern and eastern walls of the key structure. Both components were
combined to form a large complex, but further scrutiny is required to grasp its overall
picture.
Small Finds The limited excavation yielded a small number of artifacts. Flint artifacts included
single-platform pyramidal cores, a crested blade, unmodified blades and flakes, Amuq
type points, a scraper, a serrated blade with silica sheen, scrapers, a retouched blade,
and a digging tool (Fig. 11). The contents of the tool kit suggest that the inhabitants
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were engaged in both hunting and agriculture. Of significance is the occurrence of the
diagnostic points, which, together with the existence of the large, multi-roomed, square
structure, enables us to tentatively date the settlement to the PPNB (Pre-Pottery
Neolithic B), especially the Late PPNB.
Grinding implements made of slightly reddish sandstone also occurred in a small
number. They contained a basin quern and several palm-size grinding slabs, both of
which attest to the importance of cereal cultivation at the settlement (Fig. 12).
Miscellaneous finds included a snail bead and several unworked snail and shell
fragments, suggesting that the inhabitant was engaged in the exploitation of marine
products of the Red Sea as well.
Concluding Remarks The limited excavation has made it clearer that the site of Wadi Sharma 1 is the second
PPNB settlement in Saudi following al-Aynah (Site 200-104) located again in the
Tabuk Province (Ingraham et al. op. cit.: 67-68, Al-Asmari 2012). This means that the
Neolithic northwestern Arabia was incorporated into the cultural sphere of the southern
Levant, and that the initial stage of pastoral nomadization in the area should be
discussed in this context. However, our excavation still remains halfway and has just
caught a glimpse of the site. The next field season scheduled in September of 2014 is
expected to provide further insights into the archaeological implications of the unique
site.
Acknowlegements:
We would like to appreciate the staff member of the Saudi team organized by Mr.
Abdulrahman al-Mansour (Riayd), Mr. Harifa al-Harifa (Riyad), Mr. Abdulfadi
al-‘Onaize (Duba), Mr. Salem Musa al-‘Oqbi (Tabuk), and Mr. Yarob al-‘Ali (Tabuk).
Their kind cooperation was essential to the success of this field season. It is needless to
say that the careful support of the SCTA main office headed by His Royal Highness
Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Adul Aziz lay behind it. Our thanks also go to Dr. Ali I.
al-Ghabban and Mr. Jamar S. Omar, both of whom kindly understood the peculiarity of
our research interest and allowed us to conduct a comprehensive investigation not
confined to a specific site.
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References
Fujii, S.
2012 Jawf/Tabuk Archaeological Project (JTAP), 2012: A brief report of the joint
survey in December, 2102. Field report submitted to the SCTA.
2013a Jawf/Tabuk Archaeological Project (JTAP), 2013: A brief report of the second
field season, 2013. Field report submitted to the SCTA.
2013b Chronology of the Jafr pastoral prehistory and protohistory: A key to the
process of pastoral nomadization in the southern Levant. In: Abu-Azizeh, W.
and Tarawneh, M. (eds.), Syria 90 (Current Research on Protohistoric
Settlement in Desert Areas of Jordan): 47-123.
Al-Asmari, K. F.
2012 Oyaynah Archaeological Site: The Study of Neolithic Period Northwest of
Saudi Arabia. Riyad: King Abdulaziz Publication, University. Thesis Series
No 279.
Ingraham, M. L., Johnson, T. D., Rihani, B., and Shatla, I.
1981 Comprehensive archaeological survey program: Preliminary report on a
reconnaissance survey of the northwestern province (with a note on a brief
survey of the northern province). Atlal 5: 59-84.
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Fig. 1 Wadi Sharma 1: site location.
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Fig. 2 Wadi Shrama 1: surrounding topography.
Fig. 3 Wadi Shrama 1: aerial photo (N above).
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Fig. 4 Wadi Shrama 1: distant view (looking E).
Fig. 5 Wadi Shrama 1: general view (looking S).
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Fig. 6 Wadi Shrama 1: site plan.
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Fig. 7 Wadi Shrama 1: Area 1 (looking N).
Fig. 8 Wadi Shrama 1: Area 1 (looking NW).
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Fig. 9 Wadi Shrama 1: Area 1 (looking NE).
Fig. 10 Wadi Shrama 1: Square B8, Trench I (looking NW).
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Fig. 11 Wadi Shrama 1: flint artifacts.
Fig. 12 Wadi Shrama 1: grinding slabs.