Ongoing excavations at San Giuliano in central Italy are providing detailed evidence for testing ... more Ongoing excavations at San Giuliano in central Italy are providing detailed evidence for testing explanatory models of cyclical shifts in settlements and socio-economic organisation from the Etruscan to medieval periods (c. 800 BC–AD 1300).
Studies of dog remains focused on the Iron Age southern Levant generally highlight their unique n... more Studies of dog remains focused on the Iron Age southern Levant generally highlight their unique nature in the archaeological context, specifically in relation to their post-mortem exploitation. Here we review the published archaeological and textual data to evaluate the current understanding of dogs' roles in their Iron Age settings. The analysis reveals that dogs are relatively common in the archaeological record, having been reported at 66% of sites. This study further contextualizes this presence in light of their co-occurrence with caprine and wild taxa. The significant number of dog remains indicates that they were part of the social matrix of a village. While dogs have been viewed as 'unclean' or pariah, based on certain textual references in the Hebrew Bible, we assert, on the basis of the archaeological record, that they were part of the life of the village, functioning as herders, guards and occasionally hunters.
Bulletin of the American Society of Overseas Research
The Early Bronze Age is considered to be the period when complex and hierarchical societies first... more The Early Bronze Age is considered to be the period when complex and hierarchical societies first developed in the southern Levant. The appearance of specialization and social complexity is manifested through different aspects of the production stages of animal economy. In this paper, we examine faunal assemblages from two interconnected contemporaneous neighboring sites of differing characters in the Jezreel Valley, Israel: Megiddo, a cult site, and Tel Megiddo East, a town site. Both assemblages are dated to the Early Bronze Age IB (EB IB; 3090–2950 b.c.e.), at the dawn of urbanization in the Near East. The connection between sites, revealed in previous studies of other aspects, is supported by the analysis of faunal remains that reveals intriguing overlaps and divergences. The results of the current study show that the control of resources by the Great Temple in Megiddo also included access to animals and their products, and that it impacted the animal economy in settlements in its hinterland. The impact of this system demonstrates the Great Temple at the center of a larger regional economic organization in the late EB IB that would presage the urban developments of the EB II–III.
Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 2015
In 2008, a large number of vessels, animal bones, and figurines were uncovered in a Late Iron Age... more In 2008, a large number of vessels, animal bones, and figurines were uncovered in a Late Iron Age II deposit at Ramat Raḥel. The ceramic and faunal remains indicate the presence of a ritual deposit that was intentionally placed below the floor of the central courtyard of the palatial administrative structure. During Aharoni's excavations at the site (1954, 1959–1962), another ritual pit with even larger numbers of pottery vessels and figurines was uncovered but misinterpreted; we interpret both as favissae. These favissae are evidence of diacritical feasting that took place at the administrative center of Ramat Raḥel. The feasting events are significant because they are the only examples of elite feasting found in a palace or administrative context in Iron Age Judah.
Ongoing excavations at San Giuliano in central Italy are providing detailed evidence for testing ... more Ongoing excavations at San Giuliano in central Italy are providing detailed evidence for testing explanatory models of cyclical shifts in settlements and socio-economic organisation from the Etruscan to medieval periods (c. 800 BC–AD 1300).
Studies of dog remains focused on the Iron Age southern Levant generally highlight their unique n... more Studies of dog remains focused on the Iron Age southern Levant generally highlight their unique nature in the archaeological context, specifically in relation to their post-mortem exploitation. Here we review the published archaeological and textual data to evaluate the current understanding of dogs' roles in their Iron Age settings. The analysis reveals that dogs are relatively common in the archaeological record, having been reported at 66% of sites. This study further contextualizes this presence in light of their co-occurrence with caprine and wild taxa. The significant number of dog remains indicates that they were part of the social matrix of a village. While dogs have been viewed as 'unclean' or pariah, based on certain textual references in the Hebrew Bible, we assert, on the basis of the archaeological record, that they were part of the life of the village, functioning as herders, guards and occasionally hunters.
Bulletin of the American Society of Overseas Research
The Early Bronze Age is considered to be the period when complex and hierarchical societies first... more The Early Bronze Age is considered to be the period when complex and hierarchical societies first developed in the southern Levant. The appearance of specialization and social complexity is manifested through different aspects of the production stages of animal economy. In this paper, we examine faunal assemblages from two interconnected contemporaneous neighboring sites of differing characters in the Jezreel Valley, Israel: Megiddo, a cult site, and Tel Megiddo East, a town site. Both assemblages are dated to the Early Bronze Age IB (EB IB; 3090–2950 b.c.e.), at the dawn of urbanization in the Near East. The connection between sites, revealed in previous studies of other aspects, is supported by the analysis of faunal remains that reveals intriguing overlaps and divergences. The results of the current study show that the control of resources by the Great Temple in Megiddo also included access to animals and their products, and that it impacted the animal economy in settlements in its hinterland. The impact of this system demonstrates the Great Temple at the center of a larger regional economic organization in the late EB IB that would presage the urban developments of the EB II–III.
Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 2015
In 2008, a large number of vessels, animal bones, and figurines were uncovered in a Late Iron Age... more In 2008, a large number of vessels, animal bones, and figurines were uncovered in a Late Iron Age II deposit at Ramat Raḥel. The ceramic and faunal remains indicate the presence of a ritual deposit that was intentionally placed below the floor of the central courtyard of the palatial administrative structure. During Aharoni's excavations at the site (1954, 1959–1962), another ritual pit with even larger numbers of pottery vessels and figurines was uncovered but misinterpreted; we interpret both as favissae. These favissae are evidence of diacritical feasting that took place at the administrative center of Ramat Raḥel. The feasting events are significant because they are the only examples of elite feasting found in a palace or administrative context in Iron Age Judah.
Bulletin of the American Society of Overseas Research, 2022
The Early Bronze Age is considered to be the period when complex and hierarchical societies first... more The Early Bronze Age is considered to be the period when complex and hierarchical societies first developed in the southern Levant. The appearance of specialization and social complexity is manifested through different aspects of the production stages of animal economy. In this paper, we examine faunal assemblages from two interconnected contemporaneous neighboring sites of differing characters in the Jezreel Valley, Israel: Megiddo, a cult site, and Tel Megiddo East, a town site. Both assemblages are dated to the Early Bronze Age IB (EB IB; 3090–2950 B.C.E.), at the dawn of urbanization in the Near East. The connection between sites, revealed in previous studies of other aspects, is supported by the analysis of faunal remains that reveal intriguing overlaps and divergences. The results of the current study show that the control of resources by the Great Temple in Megiddo also included access to animals and their products, and that it impacted the animal economy in settlements in its hinterland. The impact of this system demonstrates the Great Temple at the center of a larger regional economic organization in the late EB IB that would presage the urban developments of the EB II–III.
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