- My main academic interests concern the cultural and socio-economic processes associated with the rise and expansion o... moreMy main academic interests concern the cultural and socio-economic processes associated with the rise and expansion of Islamic society. My focus is particularly on the eastern Mediterranean, Red Sea and Indian Ocean as flexible and dynamic ‘cultural continents’. This includes the formulation of cultural concepts and identities in material culture, but also addresses aspects such as trade and mercantilism as important factors in the gradual formation of a globalised mindset in the early Middle Ages (650-1100 CE).edit
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The early mosque at Jarash is reconstructed by archaeological excavation and survey and attributed to a wave of urban renewal in the reign of caliph Hisham (AD 724-743).
Research Interests: History, Archaeology, Islamic Archaeology, Urban History, Late Antique Archaeology, and 13 moreUrbanism, Islamic History, Umayyads (Islamic History), Early Islamic Archaeology, Town planning, Antiquity, Early Islamic History, Mosque Architecture, Islamic architecture, Excavation, Cambridge University, Islamic Architecture, and Islamic
The following is a short summation of the results of 7 weeks of excavation (21 January – 6 March 2008) at the archaeological site of Ayla, located in Aqaba in southern Jordan. The excavations constitute a part of a larger archaeological... more
The following is a short summation of the results of 7 weeks of excavation (21 January – 6 March 2008) at the archaeological site of Ayla, located in Aqaba in southern Jordan. The excavations constitute a part of a larger archaeological venture, the Islamic Aqaba Project, which is funded by the University of Gent and directed by Prof. Dr. Johnny De Meulemeester. Among the central scientific aims of the project is the mapping of settlement patterns in Islamic Aqaba (650-1922 CE) in order to achieve an understanding of the site’s occupational morphology. Previous seasons have centered on Aqaba Castle and its immediate surroundings, however, this season the archaeological work conducted in Aqaba was expanded to include the early Islamic (c.650-1100 CE) urban core – the site known as Ayla – as well. Due to the preliminary nature of this season’s investigation of Ayla, our main ambition for this season was to lay out two diagnostic excavation units in order to establish an indicative str...
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This article investigates the nature of usage, as well as the geographical origin, of a small group of ivory artifacts recently discovered in the earliest exposed cultural depositions at the Early Islamic (650–1100 C.E.) port of Aylah... more
This article investigates the nature of usage, as well as the geographical origin, of a small group of ivory artifacts recently discovered in the earliest exposed cultural depositions at the Early Islamic (650–1100 C.E.) port of Aylah (Aqaba, Jordan). In addition to explaining the finds and the significance of their context for interpreting possible historical implications, the article uses a range of techniques to learn more about the raw material. In combining archaeological, visual, and biomolecular analyses on these ivories, fresh perspectives are provided that shed new light on the infrastructure and geographical scope of late antique and early medieval trade systems. Moreover, it informs us about the economic and commercial roles played by Red Sea ports in this period and highlights the potential of analyzing organic artifacts from sites in the region to reveal new details and characteristics of historical Indian Ocean trade networks.
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This article investigates the nature of usage, as well as the geographical origin, of a small group of ivory artifacts recently discovered in the earliest exposed cultural depositions at the Early Islamic (650–1100 C.E.) port of Aylah... more
This article investigates the nature of usage, as well as the geographical origin, of a small group of ivory artifacts recently discovered in the earliest exposed cultural depositions at the Early Islamic (650–1100 C.E.) port of Aylah (Aqaba, Jordan). In addition to explaining the finds and the significance of their context for interpreting possible historical implications, the article uses a range of techniques to learn more about the raw material. In combining archaeological, visual, and biomolecular analyses on these ivories, fresh perspectives are provided that shed new light on the infrastructure and geographical scope of late antique and early medieval trade systems. Moreover, it informs us about the economic and commercial roles played by Red Sea ports in this period and highlights the potential of analyzing organic artifacts from sites in the region to reveal new details and characteristics of historical Indian Ocean trade networks.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
The early mosque at Jarash is reconstructed by archaeological excavation and survey and attributed to a wave of urban renewal in the reign of caliph Hisham (AD 724-743).
Research Interests:
The large Umayyad-period congregational mosque at Jarash, first definitively identified by excavation in the summer of 2002, seriously questions the way past scholarship has interpreted the structure and role of towns in Early Islamic... more
The large Umayyad-period congregational mosque at Jarash, first definitively identified by excavation in the summer of 2002, seriously questions the way past scholarship has interpreted the structure and role of towns in Early Islamic Bilad ash-Sham. Often erroneously regarded as insignificant when compared with their predecessors dating to the age of Roman (lst-3rd centuries AD) and Byzantine (4th-6th centuries AD) control, the recent work at Jarash - when combined with other recent discoveries at other sites such as Pella, 'Amman and Madaba- now demonstrates conclusively that the early Islamic towns of Jordan prospered as social, political and economic centres of: regional importance, and served a crucial role in the maintenance of administrative systems under Umayyad hegemony.
The discovery at Jarash o f a sizable Friday mosque belonging to the standard early 'courtyard' (' Arab') s ty le shows that the Roman and early Christian town was also a primary Islamic centre and hence, in addition to the mosque, other important buildings can be expected. The shortage o f re liable data and the misleading conclusions deduced from earlier, erratic, archaeological discoveries have created a generally negative impression of urban life at Jarash in the early Islamic period.
The discovery at Jarash o f a sizable Friday mosque belonging to the standard early 'courtyard' (' Arab') s ty le shows that the Roman and early Christian town was also a primary Islamic centre and hence, in addition to the mosque, other important buildings can be expected. The shortage o f re liable data and the misleading conclusions deduced from earlier, erratic, archaeological discoveries have created a generally negative impression of urban life at Jarash in the early Islamic period.
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Following the report on the Islamic Jarash Project in ADAJ 50 (Barnes et al. 2006), this article accounts for the two seasons of the project conducted during the summers of 2005 and 2006