Advances in UAE Archaeology

New excavations conducted across the United Arab Emirates over the last few years are presented here, revealing a wealth of new data on all periods of UAE archaeology from the Palaeolithic to the recent past. Some of these discoveries fill important gaps in our knowledge, while others have fundamentally revised what we thought we kne

Advances in UAE Archaeology details the results of new excavations conducted across the United Arab Emirates over the last few years. These excavations have revealed a wealth of new data on all periods of UAE archaeology from the Palaeolithic to the recent past. Some of these discoveries have filled in important gaps in our knowledge, while others have fundamentally revised what we thought we knew already. For example, the Marawah Island excavations have added a new facet to our understanding of the Neolithic period by revealing intriguing and hitherto unknown funerary rituals. Excavations in Al Ain in the emirate of Abu Dhabi continue to reveal extraordinary evidence of falaj irrigation, stretching back 3000 years. The ubiquity of this system across this oasis city further validates its status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Of particular importance is the discovery of extensive remains from the Late Pre-Islamic period, a significant time in history that has been best revealed in the excavations at Mleiha in the emirate of Sharjah. The research presented here was conducted by specialists from across the world working alongside an ever-growing cadre of Emirati archaeologists who will take the lead in the coming years in revealing more of this country’s extraordinary archaeology and history.

Foreword - HE Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak Stones in the landscape: Recent discoveries of Palaeolithic sites in the Eastern Region of Abu Dhabi emirate - Marc Handel, Norbert Buchinger, Ali Abdul Rahman Al Meqbali and Peter Magee Filling in the gaps: New evidence for Middle and Upper Palaeolithic occupations in the central region of Sharjah - Knut Bretzke and Sabah Jasim Understanding the late-stage Flandrian Transgression and palaeo-geographic evolution of the Abu Dhabi islands using remote sensing and marine geophysics - Richard Thorburn Howard Cuttler, Noura Al Hameli and Peter Magee Funerary practices within Mortuary Complex F: New insights from recent excavations on Marawah Island - Noura Al Hameli, Richard Thorburn Cuttler, Mark Jonathan Beech, Peter Magee, Kevin Lidour, Baptiste Pradier, Remy Crassard, Howell Magnus Roberts and Aurea Izquierdo Zamora Preliminary comparative lithic analyses from the Neolithic sites of Marawah and Ghagha islands (emirate of Abu Dhabi, UAE) - Remy Crassard, Noura Hamad Al Hameli, Mark Jonathan Beech and Richard Thorburn Howard Cuttler Recent archaeological investigations at Umm an-Nar Island (Sas Al Nakhl) - Ali Abdul Rahman Al Meqbali and Daniel Eddisford with Michel de Vreeze, Diaeddin Tawalbeh, Hamad Fadel, Abdulla Al Yammahi, Hager Hasan Almenhali and Sam Botan Kalba: Main results of the renewed fieldwork during the campaigns of 2019-2022 - Christoph Schwall and Michael Brandl Insights on the Late Bronze Age economy in south-eastern Arabia: Self-sufficiency and exchanges in Masafi-5 - Maria Paola Pellegrino, Julien Charbonnier, Anne Benoist, Delphine Decruyenaere, Kevin Lidour, Michele Degli Esposti and Aurelien Hamel Another side to the story: Preliminary results from the renewed excavations on the eastern flank of Tell Abraq (2021-2022) - Michele Degli Esposti, Federico Borgi, Maria Paola Pellegrino, Rania Hussein Kannouma with Camille Abric and Francesca Barchiesi 'We should build with the stones we have': An assessment of the Al Ain Oasis during the Iron Age based on the soft-stone vessels from the Oman Border Fence - Eric Olijdam Iron Age copper production and the 'ritual economy' of Saruq al-Hadid (Dubai, UAE) - Lloyd Weeks, Tatiana Valente, Kristina Franke, Fernando Contreras, Mansour Boraik Radwan and Hassan Zein Cultures, technologies and environment on the Oman Peninsula: Recent discoveries and some hypotheses about the falaj system in Al Madam, Sharjah, UAE - Carlos Fernandez and Carmen del Cerro Secrets of the shaabiyat: Recent developments in the archaeology of the (urban) oasis landscape of Al Ain - Peter Sheehan, Mohammed Khalifa, Malak Al Ajou and Nour Nasser Al Marzooqi The discovery of a Late Antique and Early Islamic monastery on Siniya Island, Umm Al Quwain - Timothy Power, Michele Degli Esposti, Robert Hoyland and Rania Hussein Kannouma The Early Islamic period in Al Ain in light of recent archaeological discoveries - Diaeddin Tawalbeh Conserving and protecting the Early Islamic Site at Ud al-Tawba in Al Ain - Ola Shaker, Felipe Gutierrez, Diaeddin Tawalbeh and Amel Chabbi New evidence for the Early Islamic landscape of Al Ain: Fieldwalking and surface ceramics from Slemi, Jimi Region - Nour Nasser Al Marzooqi, Peter Sheehan, Timothy Power, Malak Al Ajou with Afnan Zayed Al Zeyoudi, Asma Humaid Al Badi, Aysha Awad Al Neyadi, Hessa Said Al Shamsi, Khuloud Juma Al Nuaimi, Sarah Salem Al Yammahi, Suhaila Salem Al Mansoori, Zainab Sulayman Nehis and Thamer Al Sayah The UNESCO World Heritage Site of Al Ain: Management approaches - Abdulrahman Al Nuaimi Developing a Historic Environment Record system for the management of heritage resources in the emirate of Abu Dhabi - Tariq Yousif Alhammadi, Richard Thorburn Howard Cuttler, Mark Jonathan Beech and Ahmed Abdalla El Faki Historic mosque architecture in Abu Dhabi - Hamdan Rashed Al Rashedi,

Foreword – HE Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak

Stones in the landscape: Recent discoveries of Palaeolithic sites in the Eastern Region of Abu Dhabi emirate – Marc Händel, Norbert Buchinger, Ali Abdul Rahman Al Meqbali and Peter Magee

Filling in the gaps: New evidence for Middle and Upper Palaeolithic occupations in the central region of Sharjah – Knut Bretzke and Sabah Jasim

Understanding the late-stage Flandrian Transgression and palaeo‑geographic evolution of the Abu Dhabi islands using remote sensing and marine geophysics – Richard Thorburn Howard Cuttler, Noura Al Hameli and Peter Magee

Funerary practices within Mortuary Complex F: New insights from recent excavations on Marawah Island – Noura Al Hameli, Richard Thorburn Cuttler, Mark Jonathan Beech, Peter Magee, Kevin Lidour, Baptiste Pradier, Rémy Crassard, Howell Magnus Roberts and Áurea Izquierdo Zamora

Preliminary comparative lithic analyses from the Neolithic sites of Marawah and Ghagha islands (emirate of Abu Dhabi, UAE) – Rémy Crassard, Noura Hamad Al Hameli, Mark Jonathan Beech and Richard Thorburn Howard Cuttler

Recent archaeological investigations at Umm an-Nar Island (Sas Al Nakhl) – Ali Abdul Rahman Al Meqbali and Daniel Eddisford with Michel de Vreeze, Diaeddin Tawalbeh, Hamad Fadel, Abdulla Al Yammahi, Hager Hasan Almenhali and Sam Botan

Kalba: Main results of the renewed fieldwork during the campaigns of 2019-2022 – Christoph Schwall and Michael Brandl

Insights on the Late Bronze Age economy in south-eastern Arabia: Self-sufficiency and exchanges in Masafi-5 – Maria Paola Pellegrino, Julien Charbonnier, Anne Benoist, Delphine Decruyenaere, Kevin Lidour, Michele Degli Esposti and Aurélien Hamel

Another side to the story: Preliminary results from the renewed excavations on the eastern flank of Tell Abraq (2021-2022) – Michele Degli Esposti, Federico Borgi, Maria Paola Pellegrino, Rania Hussein Kannouma with Camille Abric and Francesca Barchiesi

‘We should build with the stones we have’: An assessment of the Al Ain Oasis during the Iron Age based on the soft-stone vessels from the Oman Border Fence – Eric Olijdam

Iron Age copper production and the ‘ritual economy’ of Saruq al-Hadid (Dubai, UAE) – Lloyd Weeks, Tatiana Valente, Kristina Franke, Fernando Contreras, Mansour Boraik Radwan and Hassan Zein

Cultures, technologies and environment on the Oman Peninsula: Recent discoveries and some hypotheses about the falaj system in Al Madam, Sharjah, UAE – Carlos Fernández and Carmen del Cerro

Secrets of the shaabiyat: Recent developments in the archaeology of the (urban) oasis landscape of Al Ain – Peter Sheehan, Mohammed Khalifa, Malak Al Ajou and Nour Nasser Al Marzooqi

The discovery of a Late Antique and Early Islamic monastery on Siniya Island, Umm Al Quwain – Timothy Power, Michele Degli Esposti, Robert Hoyland and Rania Hussein Kannouma

The Early Islamic period in Al Ain in light of recent archaeological discoveries – Diaeddin Tawalbeh

Conserving and protecting the Early Islamic Site at Ūd al-Tawba in Al Ain – Ola Shaker, Felipe Gutierrez, Diaeddin Tawalbeh and Amel Chabbi

New evidence for the Early Islamic landscape of Al Ain: Fieldwalking
and surface ceramics from Slemi, Jimi Region – Nour Nasser Al Marzooqi, Peter Sheehan, Timothy Power, Malak Al Ajou with Afnan Zayed Al Zeyoudi, Asma Humaid Al Badi, Aysha Awad Al Neyadi, Hessa Said Al Shamsi, Khuloud Juma Al Nuaimi, Sarah Salem Al Yammahi, Suhaila Salem Al Mansoori, Zainab Sulayman Nehis and Thamer Al Sayah

The UNESCO World Heritage Site of Al Ain: Management approaches – Abdulrahman Al Nuaimi

Developing a Historic Environment Record system for the management of heritage resources in the emirate of Abu Dhabi – Tariq Yousif Alhammadi, Richard Thorburn Howard Cuttler, Mark Jonathan Beech and Ahmed Abdalla El Faki

Historic mosque architecture in Abu Dhabi – Hamdan Rashed Al Rashedi

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