Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
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To understand southern Levantine funerary practices and the related cult of the dead within the territories of Israel, Palestine and Jordan, archaeology has long relied on biblical sources. This...Show moreTo understand southern Levantine funerary practices and the related cult of the dead within the territories of Israel, Palestine and Jordan, archaeology has long relied on biblical sources. This tendency has led to oversimplified comparative methodologies, in which the ancient Israelite cultural distinctiveness, between the Iron Age and the rise of the Roman power, has been stressed by opposing it to the neighbouring regions. Those elements of funerary rituals, not fitting biblical narratives have often been interpreted as ‘foreign’ and as such, neglected. However, dying is a complex social process through which the personhood of the deceased is reconstructed as a new identity, as well as its relationship with the living. Multiple overlapping factors affect this process: geographical, historical, socio-economic, ethnic and kinship components, and lastly personal attachments. This thesis aims to re-evaluate the southern Levantine old archaeological data sets and the complexity of death in terms of 'social process' by both putting aside the biblical reconstructions and introducing the methods deriving from funerary taphonomy. By combining both archaeological and osteological analyses regarding four case studies – Tell es-Saʿidiyeh, Tell Mazar, Lachish and Jerusalem – it attempts to reconstruct the progression of the funerary process through four main phases: the choice of the tomb-type, the preparation of the body, the deposition and the manipulation of the remains. The sequential process results in a multi-faceted experience embodying both deeply rooted rituals/beliefs and local variations due to groups and/or individual choices. In this context, the concept of foreign is re-defined as contamination and reflection of personal interests.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
under embargo until 2025-03-31
2025-03-31T00:00:00Z
The aim of this thesis was to study how patterns of pre-oil globalization in the Late Islamic Gulf region (1500-1950) manifested in the coastal towns of this region, whether these patterns was also...Show moreThe aim of this thesis was to study how patterns of pre-oil globalization in the Late Islamic Gulf region (1500-1950) manifested in the coastal towns of this region, whether these patterns was also present in the Ṣuḥār region, and if so, how far the arms of pre-oil globalization reached. In the same time period, there was an increase in agricultural settlements in Oman. Whether this increase in agricultural activity was related to the patterns of pre-oil globalization which was testified at the coastal towns (Carter 2009; Carter 2012) is the main focus of this study.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
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The research presented in this thesis investigated the pottery assemblage of the Jebel Qurma region in the Black Desert (harra), north-eastern Jordan. The main reason for studying the pottery of...Show moreThe research presented in this thesis investigated the pottery assemblage of the Jebel Qurma region in the Black Desert (harra), north-eastern Jordan. The main reason for studying the pottery of this region was that no pottery studies of this region and the harra as a whole existed. Therefore, there existed a significant gap in the knowledge of this region. This was problematic for several reasons. First of all, pottery was one of the best ways of dating occupation in this area, since stratigraphic sequences are nearly absent. Additionally, pottery research in this region had the potential of illuminating the ties of this region, and the harra as a whole, to developments on its fringes and beyond. Four main aspects of the pottery were researched: technology, morphology, date and distribution. The technology and morphology were analysed following fabrics groups in which further variation was investigated. The dates of the pottery was researched using published literature on the dated pottery of other sites, in order to find parallels. The distribution was analysed according to numerous variables, including amounts (and weight), fabric, distance to water, visual prominence, Hillslope Point Classification, accessibility and chronology. The analyses of these aspects have led to the following conclusions: (1) The Jebel Qurma pottery assemblage is characterized by a large variety in both technological and morphological aspects, but mainly features rather coarse and simply-shaped vessels; (2) pottery was introduced in the region during the Early to Middle Bronze Age, disappears after this period and reappears in the Roman period, after which it continues to be in use up until the present; (3) the majority of the pottery was most likely used for domestic purposes, i.e. cooking, serving and short-term storage and (4) the pottery was used throughout the entire research area, but was concentrated on a few sites with favourable locations for settling that saw a lot of reuse through time. Furthermore, the research has shown that long-distance (trade) networks must have existed for pottery to appear in the harra, since most pottery came from sites located far away from the Jebel Qurma region. All in all, the research presented in this paper has increased our understanding of the pottery of the harra, as well as shown that the harra was not an isolated region, but incorporated into networks of exchange which lead to the spread of pottery to and throughout this region.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
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Figurines are a common find on many Near Eastern Neolithic sites. As figurines have been interpreted as the material manifestation of changing perceptions and interactions between people and the...Show moreFigurines are a common find on many Near Eastern Neolithic sites. As figurines have been interpreted as the material manifestation of changing perceptions and interactions between people and the environment, they were deemed instrumental for our understanding of Neolithic societies. Traditionally researched through visual approaches, the focus has predominantly been on anthropomorphic figurines and their perceived femaleness. Through these approaches figurines have been studied as ritual objects, art and symbolic expressions and were linked to concepts of fertility, child-birth and divinity and as such have been also labelled as ‘mother goddesses’. These approaches have been generalising, glossing over variability and offering generalising interpretations. Furthermore, they neglected a large corpus of zoomorphic figurines, more ambiguous shapes and fragmented objects. This thesis takes another approach, positing that, in order to understand how figurines operated in society, we need to understand how figurines were made, used and deposited. Two research aims were formulated. Firstly, to carry out a case-study in which figurines were studied as a cohesive set, with no bias towards a certain type or only complete objects. Second, to ascertain whether or not categories established by visual analysis are recognisable in the archaeological record when looking at figurine materiality and aspects of production, use and deposition. The data set of this thesis consists of the 280 figurines from one part of the excavations at Tell Sabi Abyad (Syria), named Operation III, spanning four levels of habitation and dating from ca. 6455 to 6225 BC. This thesis starts by offering a detailed argumentation detailing the problems inherent in three main ways figurines have been studied, namely: as art, symbolic expressions and ritual objects. Subsequently it offers new avenues for figurine research, highlighting the necessity to engage with the materiality of figurines, combining discursive and non-discursive knowledge and stating that the ‘meaning’ of figurines is not solely constituted by their visual imagery but is also inherent in the processes of production, use and deposition.It continues with an overview of the site of Tell Sabi Abyad; its excavation history, the nature of settlement in Operation III and detailed contextual and depositional information for the figurines used in this case-study. It also takes a broader perspective, contextualising Tell Sabi Abyad in the broader perspective of Late Neolithic Upper Mesopotamia. The next chapter is dedicated to a detailed analysis of the data set starting with establishing a typology. Subsequently, it examines the contextual settings of figurines and related finds, figurine materiality, markings, fragmentation and finally spatial patterning and patterns through time. The analysis showed that figurine making is a highly idiosyncratic practice. There is much variety in the form of figurines within types, Furthermore, types of figurines can be very restricted in time; sometimes almost restricted to a single settlement level. There is variety in figurine use as evidenced by their use wear. Sometimes they seem to have been intentionally cached, but mostly they were discarded after use. This idiosyncrasy has implications that reach beyond the site under study. The over-arching and generalising statements made about figurines do not hold up to close scrutiny at this site, which either makes Tell Abi Abyad an exception, or it means that this type of research will reveal that in fact these generalising statements are false for other sites as well. This will mean we need to drastically alter the current perceptions of how figurines functioned in specific communities and what they ‘meant’ to the people making and using them.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
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In this thesis I have done research on expressions of ethnic identity in Athens and Ephesos in the Archaic and Classical period. This concept has mostly been researched by means of sociological and...Show moreIn this thesis I have done research on expressions of ethnic identity in Athens and Ephesos in the Archaic and Classical period. This concept has mostly been researched by means of sociological and anthropological studies. However, I utilized coinage as an archaeological proxy to further contribute to its understanding. In the context of these two cities were ethnic proclamations used to conceal true purposes of achieving social, political and economic goals. Identities were effortlessly constructed, discarded, replaced or reactivated in a new form. In Athens ethnic identities were expressed in three phases which ultimately led to a dominant position in the eastern Mediterranean. In Ephesos an Ionian descent was expressed to root their ancestry deep in the history of the Greek mainland for political and military support. The implementation of coinage has shown how deeply embedded the expressed ethnic identities were in the social and political landscape of Athens and Ephesos in the Archaic and Classical period. Furthermore I have suggested an alternative view to symbolism on early Greek coins. In this thesis I have suggested that from the fifth century BC onwards, when coinage trade networks expanded beyond local spheres, message broadcasting became a part of coinage. This study therefore has subsequently made way for a better understanding of early coinage in the Greek world.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
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While methodological examinations and evaluations on post-depositional processes, sampling, surface collection, the definition of ‘site’ and other phenomena in intensive and extensive surveys...Show moreWhile methodological examinations and evaluations on post-depositional processes, sampling, surface collection, the definition of ‘site’ and other phenomena in intensive and extensive surveys already came to the fore in the 1980s, less theoretical and methodological attention seems to be given to the archaeological process that takes place from the collection of the finds on the surface to the modes of archaeological interpretation. Although ceramological analyses often play a large role in reconstructing the past, especially in survey archaeology, the capabilities of the ceramologist in the ascription of chronology, function and provenance are often limited, resulting in a dataset that consists of data on various resolutions. In this light, a certain tension between our aim, providing a detailed reconstruction of the past, and our actual capabilities has to be acknowledged. These data, however, are the data we have to work with. This thesis explores the limits of our capabilities and dataset by applying a wide range of distributive and quantitative methods from a chronological and functional point of view. Although the survey data appear to be often biased to some extent, each of the applied methods is also fundamentally biased and is giving its own character to the dataset under examination. In this light, it should be stressed that the ‘source criticism’, which is often argued for in research, should be accompanied by a certain ‘instrumental criticism’. What seems to be apparent on the basis of the methodological exercises that are carried out in this thesis is a clear need to examine the archaeological record on the surface in its own right and context, as some of the methods applied clearly gave a different character to our own dataset when compared to the datasets of, for instance, the Eastern Korinthia Archaeological Survey and Sagalassos. In this light, the complexity of the formation of the archaeological record and even our own datasets should be acknowledged and a wide range of quantitative and distributive methods should be carried out in further research to comparatively examine and evaluate the complexity we encounter from the ‘raw’ data revealed by archaeology.Show less
