Copyright © 1988 by
THE JOINT MADABA PLAINS PROJECT
A PRELIMINARY REPORT ON
THE SECOND SEASON
AT TELL EL-‘UMEIRI AND VICINITY
(JUNE 18 TO AUGUST 6,
1987)
OYSTEIN
S. LABIANCA
During the summer of 1987
second archaeological expedition to Tell el-'Umeiri and its vicinity
in
this second season of excavation (see Plates 2, 3),
soundings, and
survey was jointly sponsored by
berta), and
1 The authors of this report are
indebted to each member of the staff who helped
to make possible these results. In addition to the
financial support of the consortium
institutions, other funds were
raised from private donations and volunteer participa-
tion fees. Individuals who
contributed generously to the general dig fund include
William
Berecz, Jr., James M. Byers III, Ronald and Sheila Geraty, Thomas and
Hazel
Geraty, Robert Ibach, Salim
Japas, Enid and John Leung, Gloria G. and
John
T. Martin, Charles A. Platt, Elizabeth Platt, C. Murray Robinson, Barbara
Russell,
Zorka Sandic,
Waldron, and Ernest S. and Dorothy L. Zaire. We gratefully
acknowledge the
support offered by each of these friends of the
project.
Special
thanks are due to Director-General of Antiquities Dr. Adrian Hadich,
who eased several major problems during the course
of the season; Amman Antiqui-
ties Inspector Hefzi
Haddad, who went out of his way numerous times to make our
project a success; Department of Antiquities
representative Nazmieh Rida,
who
served as a Square Supervisor and helped solve
problems with workers: and business-
man/scholar Raouf Abujaber, landowner of Tell el-‘Umeiri,
who was again gener-
ous in allowing our
research to proceed unhindered. The officers and staff of the
American
Schools of Oriental Research and its local affiliate, the
217
218 GERATY,
HERR, AND LABIANCA
Plate 1. Map of
SECOND SEASON AT TELL EL-‘UMEIRI 219
Plate 2. Aerial view of Tell
el-`Umeiri.
TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI
Plate 3. Topographic map of Tell el-‘Umeiri with Fields
of excavation.
220 GERATY, HERR, AND LABIANCA
follows is a general preliminary report of the
results achieved by
the 100-member project team (see Plate 4). It
should be read in the
context of the first season's report, which also
appeared in AUSS.2
There
the overall goals of the project, a description of the site of
Tell
el- Umeiri, and the evidence for 'possible
identifications are all
documented.
Once again the objectives of the
project focused on cycles of
intensification and abatement in
settlement and land use in this
frontier region: the Ammonite foothills on the
northern edge of the
Madaba
Plains.
Central to this focus was the study of the food
systems employed by the inhabitants t1hrough
time.3
The implementation of these
objectives was refined during the
1987
season by enlarging the regional survey to three teams, each
with its own primary objectives; by conducting
excavations at three
hinterland sites, most notably Rujm
Selim (a small agricultural
settlement some 2 km north of Tell el-‘Umeiri); and by expanding
excavation areas on the central tell itself.
The following report will first
summarize the findings of the
regional survey, next highlight the results of
the most extensive
hinterland excavation, and then discuss the
excavation results on
the central tell, field by field.
of Oriental Research in
David
McC:reerv, administrative
director Glenn Peterman, and Ibtisam Dababneh,
administrative assistant at ACOR, most
be particularly mentioned. Others within
Jordan
without whom the excavation would not have been possible were Prince
Raad ibn Zeid, who has been a constant supporter, and Richard T. Krajczar,
Superintendent
of the
generous logistical support. The Baptist School
near Shmeisani,
its principal, Wilson "Datum, gave virtually
all its very ample facilities to the dig for
headquarters. It offered adequate
space for sleeping, eating, working, meeting, and
recreation.
2 Lawrence T. Geraty,
"A Preliminary Report on the First Season at hell el-
‘Umeiri (June 18 to August 8, 198,1),"
AUSS 23.1 (1985): 85-110._
Our
working definition of "food system'' is that of LaBianca
from his 1987
Brandeis
Ph.D. (issertation, soon to be published by Andrews
University Press
Hesban I--Sedentarization and Nonzadization at Hesban and Vicinity:
A Study of
Food System Transitions
in
unity consisting of all of the purposive, patterned
(institutionalized) and intercon-
nected activities carried out
by a group of individuals in their quest for food.''
SECOND SEASON AT TELL EL-‘UMEIRI 221
222 GERATY,
HERR, AND LABIANCA
1. The
Regional Survey4
In the preliminary report for the
1984 season the appearance,
within the survey region, of a number of round or
rectangular
structures was noted.5 Often constructed
with "megalithic" foun-
dations, these structures were
thought to be "farmsteads." Further
work during the 1987 season enabled the survey team
to classify
these round and rectangular structures into five
basic types: (1)
large agricultural complexes or "estates";
(2) small farmsteads; and
several types which now appear to be best
classified as something
other than farmsteads; (3) field shelters; (4) forts;
and (5) kilns.
Large Agricultural
Complexes
Additional examination during the
1987 season indicated that
many of the larger "megalithic" structures
recorded in 1984 did not
occur as isolated phenomena throughout the
countryside but rather
were regularly associated with a number of the other
features,
including various wall lines (perimeter, field,
and terrace walls),
bedrock winepresses, millstones, caves
(cellars), cisterns, and a wide
variety of cupholes.
Together, these features lend support to the
suggestion that these "megalithic" sites
should be classified, with-
out becoming overly specific, as "agricultural
complexes" (see
Plate 5).
Excellent parallels for these
complexes have been reported in
the hill country around
Khirbet er-Ras, and Ein Yalu.6 The
only real difference between
the "farm-units" reported around
complexes near
was constructed: Near
structed according to the
"four-room" house plan, while the rooms
of those structures near
"megalithic" construction. Rather than reflecting the
function of
4 The regional survey was directed
by Oystein S. LaBianca.
Field Supervisors for
the three major survey operations (as described in
the text) were Gary Christopherson,
Jon
Cole, and Randall Younker. They were assisted by
Dorothy Irvin, ethnographer;
Howard
Krug, tomb surveyor; John Lee, lithicist; Doug Schnurrenberger, geologist;
and Judy Christiansen, Raymond Pelto,
John Podgore, Rhonda Sandic,
and Tony
Squier, volunteers. Translator for the survey team was
Naji Tannous.
5 Geraty,
pp. 106-108.
6 G. Edelstein and S. Gibson,
"Ancient
8/4
(1982): 46-54.
SECOND SEASON AT TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI 223
Plate 5. Central building at Rujm
Selim, a large agricultural com-
plex near ‘Umeiri.
the building, this latter construction technique
may simply reflect
what was locally available in terms of raw materials
as well as what
was absent in terms of skilled workers and
financial resources.
Small Farmsteads
Many of the same features mentioned
above may also be present
at the small farmsteads, but they are usually
smaller in number as
well as in scale. Thus, size is the main determining
factor in this
analysis.
Field Shelters
Many smaller, more-isolated stone
structures were found in the
fields, away from the main agricultural complexes and
their associ-
ated features. They appear
to be intended to provide shelter for
families, farmers, or watchmen while they cared
for the crops,
particularly grapes, at critical
times of the year. In the Bible, these
structures were probably included by the term migdalim,7 which
can be divided into two groups: signal towers built
by the state and
7 O. Borowski,
Agriculture in Iron Age
1987),
p. 106.
224 GERATY,
HERR, AND LAIBIANCA
those, such as ours, built by private individuals.
Few, if any, of the
structures found within the ‘Umeiri
regional survey could be classi-
fied as military or
state-run signal towers. In general, our structures
were not built on high hilltops and did not command
strategic
views of the surrounding region, at least from a
military point of
view, but were usually located on spurs of hills
overlooking specific
agricultural fields, often in
association with terraces and field walls.
In
short, they appear to be small (albeit frequently of “megalithic”
construction), privately-built
agricultural watchtowers intended for
long-term use associated with intensive
agricultural production.
Forts
There was at least one site that
could properly be classified as a
fort in the sense of the biblical biraniyot.8 This site was
located on
the summit of a high hill (see Plate 6).9
It was not only strategically
located, providing an excellent view in any
direction, but it also
appeared more than adequate in both size and
design to house a
military garrison. The interior was divided into
several rooms of
varying site, undoubtedly serving different
purposes such as storage,
food preparation, and living. Caves and a large
cistern were located
nearby; but field walls, terraces, winepresses, and
other features
generally associated with the farmhouses appeared
to be missing.
All
sherds collected by the survey were exclusively Iron
I and II.
Kilns
Virtually all of the structures
described above-large and small
farmsteads, field shelters, and forts-were
rectangular in shape.
However,
as noted in the 1984 preliminary report, a large number
of the structures were circular in shape.
Additional examination in
1987
led to the realization that there was remarkable uniformity in
size (5 m in diameter) and construction components
(small field
stones) for virtually all the circular structures.
Initially it was
thought that these structures represented
variant forms of either
farmsteads or field towers. However, the thick
walls (1 m) and lack
of any obvious entrance and the discovery of
plaster oil the interior
walls of the structures suggested some other
function. Excavation
of one of these circular structures revealed a
large amount of
intramural ceramic slag, suggesting that they were
originally con-
structed as lime kilns (see
Plate 7).
8 A.Mazar,
"Iron Age Fortresses in the Judean Hills'', PEQ July-December
1982, p. 106.
9 Coordinates 2328.1398; Ibach’s Site 135: Fohrer’s Site
D.
SECOND SEASON AT TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI 225
Plate 6. Remains of an Iron Age military fort as
found by the regional survey.
Plate 7. Lime Kiln located at ‘Umeiri Site 50.
226 GERATY,
HERR, ANTI LABIANCA
2. Rujm Selim10
Regional Survey Site 34, Rujm Selim, was chosen for a
sound-
ing because of its several
"agricultural'' characteristics identified
during the 1984 survey. These included two cisterns, a
“tower”-like
structure, and several cup holes and quarry marks
in the vicinity.
Furthermore,
the pottery identified during the survey revealed a
predominance of Iron Age sherds. Together these characteristics
suggested an agricultural settlement of the Iron
Age (see Plate 8).
Excavation
in five Squares during the 1987 season revealed six,
apparent phases of occupation. Although there
were no clear occu-
pation loci from the earliest
phase, Phase 6, the late Iron II period
was evidenced by the main "tower" structure,
with its four rooms,
as well as the plastering of the structure and
perhaps the cutting
and plastering of the lower cistern.
Phase 5, apparently late Iron II/early
Persian in date, produced
a trilobate (Scythian)
arrowhead found outside what appeared to be
a perimeter wall. Inside this wall, a courtyard
was discovered to
have been leveled with fill dirt and then possibly
cobbled and
provided with a plaster installation. Inside the
"tower" structure
itself were found several interesting household
remains, Including
two ceramic loom weights, a spindle whorl, and sherds from a
Persian water jug.
Most of the evidence for Phase 4 came
from the interior of the
square structure. Late Hellenistic in date, it also
provided the
majority of the objects found at the site: a
well-preserved coin of
Ptolemy
II (ca. 280-213 B.C.) (see
spindle whorls in situ, as well as a whole lamp.
The interior of the
"tower" structure appeared to have been remodeled at
this time by
collapsing the four original rooms of Phase 5 into
two.
In Phase 3, probably Roman in elate,
the "tower" structure,
which measured 9 x 9 m, was remodeled. One of the rooms con-
tained the remains of a
cobbled surface which was covered with
smashed pottery of the Hellenistic/Roman
periods.
During Phase 2, tentatively dated to
the Ottoman period, there
was evidence that the upper cistern was used as a
dwelling, steps
having been cut down into the cistern on the south
side.
10 Field Supervisor for Rujm Selim was Lorita Hubbard, assisted by Square
Supervisors
James Miller, Todd Sanders, and Lloyd Willis; volunteers included
Kristy Hansen, Tamara Hoffer,
Julio Juarez, Doris Strawn, and Ronda Westman.
SECOND SEASON AT TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI 227
Plate 8. Aerial view of Rujm Selim, a large agricultural
complex.
Obverse
(A)
Reverse (B):
Plate 9 (A and B). Coin of Ptolemy II
found at Rujm Selim.
228 GERATY
HERR AND LABIANCA
Phase
1 evidenced seasonal occupation by modern nomads:
campfire remains, tent pegs, nails, and
soda-bottle fragments.
It would appear that Rujm Selim, with its rather
lengthy
occupational history (it was
abandoned in the late Persian to early
Hellenistic
centuries), fits the first category of structures analyzed
above, that of the large agricultural complex. Only
some two
kilometers from Tell el-‘Umeiri,
it probably served the latter as a
"daughter" agricultural site during the Iron Age and
early Persian
period, but was independently resettled in the
Hellenistic period,
when major sites in the region do not seem to have
existed.
3. Stratigraphic Excavations at Tell el-‘Umeiri
Previous work by the Madaba Plains Project, during five
seasons of excavation at Tell Hesban in the 1960s and 1970s and
one at Tell el-‘Umeiri in
1984, has suggested the hypothesis that a
series of five broad cycles of settlement intensification
and abate-
ment took place in the
frontier region of central
Cycle
1: Prior to the Early Bronze Age a coherent picture of
general regional intensification and abatement
in settlement pat-
terns is not available. From time to time specific
sites were settled
intensively, but broad regional settlement patterns
have not yet
been documented. Beginning with the Early Bronze
Age, however,
surveys have shown large increases in inhabited
sites.11 EB III
seems to have been the period when Tell el-‘Umeiri was most
extensively settled. In EB IV, however, the cycle
seems to have
begun the abatement process, with inhabited sites
decreasing in
quantity and quality until, by the Middle Bronze
Age, very few
sites have been located. Tell el-‘Umeiri
was, however, a glaring
exception with regard to the Middle Bronze Age.
Cycle
2: The period of abatement continued through the Late
Bronze
Age, although Tell el-‘Umeiri was still occupied,
until the
Iron
I period, when settlements began to increase again. Intensi-
fication continued through the
Iron II period, when a climax seems
11 See especially the Hesban survey, forthcoming as Hesban 5 and authored by
Robert
lbach, Jr.; also our 1984 survey in Geraty, et al., "Madaba
Plains Project: A
Prelirninary
Report of the 1981 Season at Tell el-Umeiri and
Vicinity.''
BASOR
Supplement
24 (1986):125; and, among others, J. M. Miller, "Archaeological Survey of
Central
and Previous Archaeological Work in
SECOND SEASON AT TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI 229
to have been reached during the seventh and sixth
centuries B.C., a
time when many major and minor sites have been
located in the
region.
Cycle
3: Little is known of the late Persian and early Hellen-
istic periods, but, beginning
with small late-Hellenistic settlements,
during a time when Rujm Selim seems to have been flourishing,
the process of intensification began again, building
slowly through
the Roman centuries and reaching its zenith in the
Byzantine era,
when, except for the Modern Period, the region seems
to have been
the most heavily populated. Tell el-‘Umeiri (East) was occupied
during these periods, rather than the earlier Tell el-‘Umeiri (West).
The
evidence is very strong that there was only a slight abatement
during the initial years of Islamic rule, but when the
caliphate
moved to
been only lightly inhabited.
Cycle
4: Perhaps due to the region's importance to the Islamic
reconquest of the
increased during the Ayyubid
and Mamluk periods, from which
large numbers of sites, including Tell el-‘Umeiri (North), have
been found. But with Turkish control,
intensification ceased and
another period of abatement began.
Cycle
5: Few settlements seem to have existed in the region
until late Ottoman times, when cave villages, such as
Tell el-
‘Umeiri (North), and fortified
farmsteads began the fifth cycle of
intensification--a cycle which has
carried on unabated until the
present.
Excavations of the site had two
goals related to this under-
standing of cyclic intensification and abatement:
(1) The hypothesis
needed to be tested by excavation. This had been done
initially by
the Madaba Plains Project
for Cycles 3-5 and, to a lesser extent,
Cycle
2 at Hesban, but Tell el-‘Umeiri with its Bronze- and Iron-
Age
occupation allowed much more detailed testing from the earlier
cycles. How did a major site reflect the cycles of
intensification and
abatement? (2) Exceptions to the hypothesis needed
to be examined
to understand how sites, occupied during periods
of abatement,
functioned. Indeed, this was a major reason for the
choice of Tell
el-‘Umeiri for excavation, for
preliminary surveys had suggested
occupation during the abated Middle and Late Bronze
Ages. How
did a major site function during periods when
sedentary regional
support systems were not in evidence?
230 GERATY,
HERR, AND LABIANCA
In 1984, four fields of excavation
had been opened on the site
to examine these questions-Fields A, B, C, and D.
In 1987, three
of the four-A, B, and D-were expanded, while
one-Field C-
was diminished. In addition, two new fields were
opened-Fields E
and F. (Again see Plates 2, 3.)
The Ammonite Citadel:
Field A12
Examination of the last major period
of occupation at the site
was continued at the western edge of the acropolis,
where four
squares had been opened in 1984. Four new
squares were laid out
north of the 1984 excavation in order to outline the
northern limits
of the Ammonite Citadel discovered in 1984 and to
connect with
the expansion of Field B, the western defense
system (see Plate 10).
It
was hoped that the detailed study of this major building in one
of the most important parts of the summit would
help answer the
questions regarding the processes of abatement at
the end of Cycle
2.
How did the remains reflect the abatement processr
When did it
occur? Did it
occur suddenly or over a length of time? Whereas the
1984
excavations had been inconclusive regarding these questions,
the finds in 1987 suggested at least tentative
answers.
The two major phases discovered
during the previous season
were again encountered, but additional information
was also dis-
covered regarding: (1) the initial construction
of the citadel; (2) the
citadel's western and northern limits; and (3)
occupation of the
area after the citadel went into disuse,
Although little is vet known of the
Iron I settlement, excava-
tions at the western edge of
Field A; uncovered fragmentary Iron I
walls (for a house%) and a deep debris deposit
immediately to the
west of the citadel and retained by one of the
foundation walls that
had been in use with the earliest please of the
citadel. No other
Iron
I remains were found at similar levels inside the citadel.
12 The staff was divided into
four sections, responsible for excavation, regional
survey, laboratories, anal camp logistics. In charge
of planning and overall execution
of the project were Lawrence T. Geraty, Lairy G. Herr, and Oystein S. LaBianca,
co-directors of the project.
The excavation stall, supervised by Herr,
included six fields of excavation on
the tell, and also one at Rujm
Selim (a small agricultural site described above).
Each
field utilized one local workman per square. Field
Supervisor for Field A, the
Ammonitc Citadel, was John Lawlor,
assisted by Square Supervisors Nicholas
Kronwall, Desmond Pons.
Thomas Potts, and Nazmieh Rida: volunteers included
James
Beers, Chant's Castleberg, Monique Escamilla. Sharon Pertley, Malcolm
Putts, Steven Russell, Junes Sawtell,
and Dena Zook.
SECOND SEASON AT TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI 231
Plate
10. Aerial view of Fields A and B
232 GERATY, HERR, AND LABIANCA
Plate 11. Foundation walls of the Ammonite citadel
in Field A.
Likewise, no foundation trenches
have been found for any of
the walls of the citadel. It would seem that the
builders dug a large
foundation area into the Iron I settlement in order
to construct the
foundations of the citadel (see Plate 11). Just how
deep this founda-
tion was dug is still
unknown, because the bottoms of the citadel
walls have not yet been found: but the lowest floors
so far en-
countered were ca. 1.4 m below the top of the Iron
I walls. The
lack of foundation trenches indicated that this was
a large-scale
excavation intended to clear a large area for a
series of basement
rooms. It was thus a major alteration of the plan of
the Iron-I
settlement. It is here suggested that this
construction was part of
the overall intensification process taking place at
Tell el-‘Umeiri
and its region, III which a large public structure
was built to meet
the needs of a strengthening economic and social
order.
Only two of the exterior limits of
the citadel have been un-
covered: the west (where the foundation cut was
discovered) and the
north (where a pillared structure, possibly a house,
has been found).
Neither
exterior wall was found to be specially strengthened, sug-
gesting that the citadel may
have been a complex of buildings with
an outer fortification wall. But the latter has
yet to be discovered.
SECOND SEASON AT TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI 233
Unfortunately, no other data were
found beyond those dis-
covered in 1984 that would lend information
concerning the specific
function of the building: the thick walls and
large size of the
complex do not fit a domestic interpretation.
The work of the 1987
season confirmed the monumental nature of the complex,
which
measured at least 17 m north to south and 12 m
east to west, with
no signs of the southern and eastern limits.
Precisely when the citadel was
constructed is not yet known,
because excavations have not reached founding
levels. The pottery
from the earlier of the two phases so far isolated
reflected the
corpus typical to central Transjordanian
plateau sites in the late
Iron
II period.
More can be said, however, about the
citadel's end: Within one
of the debris layers sealed below the surface of
the upper phase of
the citadel was an Attic sherd
possibly dating to the fifth century
B.C. In the rest of the earth layers and surfaces of
the upper phase,
other sherds of
early-Persian date appeared together with those of
the late Iron II corpus. It would thus appear that
the citadel was in
use well into the Persian period. The ceramic rhyton (see Plate 12)
and pot found on the upper surface would support
this conclusion.
Plate 12 (A and
B). Ceramic rhyton from
Field A.
234 GERATY,
HERR, AND LABANCA
The abatement process does not seem
to have been sudden. No
signs of destruction were found in the upper levels
of the last
citadel. Instead, after the citadel had gone out
of use, builders
constructed two large semi-underground installations
into the area
north of the citadel, destroying much of a possible
pillared house
which seems to have been contemporary with the
citadel.
The first installation was a small
plastered pool whose interior
measured 2 x 2.75 to and was ca. 2 m deep (see
Plate 13). The
installation was buttressed strongly
on all four sides by over a
meter of well-laid stones. Five steps descended
steeply into the pool
from the north (the bottom two were narrower than
the upper
three), but the buttressing stones indicated that
most likely one,
and possibly two, others existed originally. The
interior was covered
with two layers of plaster, suggesting that it had
been repaired and
thus used over a period of time.
The superstructure of the pool
probably was constructed of
finely-hewn ashlar blocks,
because about fifteen such stones, not in
evidence anywhere else on the site, were found in
the fill inside the
pool and in its immediate vicinity. Associated with
this installation
were two fragmentary surfaces that contained pottery
from the late
Iron
II and early Persian periods, similar to the pottery found in
the fill inside the pool.
Plate 13. Plastered pool in
Field A.
SECOND SEASON AT TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI 235
Plate
14. Stone-lined silo in Field A.
The second installation was a
narrow, stone-lined silo, measur-
ing ca. 1.25 m in diameter
at the lip and narrowing slightly as it
descended to its bottom 2.80 m deep (see Plate
14). The fill from the
silo contained nothing that suggested its function,
but it may have
served to hold jars which were lifted by means of rope
or a hooked
stick.
It would thus seem that after the
citadel went out of use the
site continued to be occupied, probably on a less
intensive level
than before; that is, the public structure of the
citadel was appar-
ently judged unnecessary, and
no more large structures with walls
sufficiently large to thwart
destruction by farming activities were
built. In this abated state, however, the site lasted
long enough for
the pool to receive a second coat of plaster. No
evidence of further
building activity was found in Field A.
The Western Defensive
System: Field B13
A significant indicator for the
processes of intensification and
abatement at a settlement is the presence or absence
of fortifications.
13 Field Supervisor for
Field B, the Western Defensive System, was
and Gotthard Reinhold;
volunteers included Hans-Dieter Bienert, Caroline
Cameron,
Rafael
Figueroa, Vanessa Martin, Kevin Nelson, Nora Peppers, Erwin Syphers,
and
Janelle
Willis.
236 GERATY,
HERR, AND LABIANCA
The
objectives for Field B on the western slope of the summit were
to examine the changes which took place in the
defenses of the site
through time. For this reason, four squares and
part of another had
been excavated in 1984, and in 1987 the field was
expanded to seven
squares. In this way, the complete slope was
excavated and con-
nected with the northern squares
of Field A.
In one small area, a probe uncovered
ashy destruction debris
with pottery dating to the Late Bronze and early
Iron Ages, includ-
ing a Late Bronze biconical painted jug with handle on the
shoulder. However, not enough is yet known of the
Late Bronze
settlement to be able to answer the question of
just how much
abatement had occurred between Cycles 1 and 2 at ‘Umeiri in the
Middle Bronze Age and Late Bronze Age.
By the late Iron I period (or
earlier) it seems that the site was
surrounded by a casemate wall and beaten-earth
rampart system.
Such
a development suggested that the intensification process for
Cycle
2 was already well under way. An addition to this system,
discovered in 1987, was a revetment wall, made of a
single line of
large boulders, at the bottom of the rampart (see
Plate 15).
Just inside the casemate wall, which seems to have continued
through the Iron II period, were two phases of
fragmentary walls
and surfaces dating to the early Iron II Period.
Farther to the east,
in the two squares immediately to the north of
Field A, two phases
of fragmentary domestic architecture included
stone walls; cobble,
plaster, and beaten-earth surfaces; hearths; and
pits. Unfortunately,
not enough remained for a clear plan to emerge.
Excavation of the
foundation trench for the plastered pool, mostly in
Field A, cut
through these occupation levels, leaving
portions of late Iron II
holemouth pithoi
in situ. One pithos
base was sliced vertically
through the middle. Activity patterns for these
domestic areas thus
included storage.
A corner of the Field A plastered pool extended into Field B,
where it seems to have been in use with the uppermost
walls and
surfaces in the northern part of the field, as
evidenced from both
the 1984 and the 1987 excavations. All walls and
surfaces were,
however, fragmentary and were difficult to
interpret beyond obvious
non-monumental characteristics. The
masonry of the walls in-
cluded a wide variety of stone
cutting, suggesting that the occupants
did not have the leisure and/or resources to
construct fine structures.
This
confirmed the suggestion for Field A that this phase repre-
sented the abatement process
at the site, when, perhaps, the settle-
ment was forced to adopt
new, less-intensive strategies to exist.
SECOND SEASON AT TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI 237
Plate 15. Revetment wall and rampart in Field B
(RW, revetment
wall; CW, casemate wall).
238 GERATY, HERR, AND LABIANCA
The Northern Terrace:
Field C14
Five of the six squares in Field C
were completed in 1984 (see
Plate 16). In many of the earth layers, Middle
Bronze Age pottery
had been found, but none of it associated with
in-situ remains. All
debris above the Early Bronze Age levels had been
disturbed during
the late Iron II period. But the uncompleted square
(8L82) had
reached undisturbed Middle Bronze Age levels
(see Plate 17). Because
the random surface survey of 1984 produced
significant numbers of
Middle
Bronze Age sherds from this area, it was decided to
complete
excavation of Field C in order to examine this
period of occupation,
a time when the rest of the region was
experiencing a distinctive lack
of settlement.
As in the rest of the squares in
Field C, EB III remains were
found above bedrock and included fragments of walls
that remained
one course high. Isolated pockets of ash above the
surfaces sug-
gested burning activities
associated with the final occupation, but
the remains were not extensive enough to suggest
destruction. No
EB
IV remains were uncovered.
Above the EB III remains were two
phases of fragmentary
Middle
Bronze Age walls and surfaces, in one of which a small
sherd of punctured Tell el-Yahudiyeh ware was discovered. Domes-
tic Middle Bronze II pottery and objects were
found, including a
complete bronze needle, and an obsidian fragment
that suggested
trade with
While central
period, Tell el-‘Umeiri was
a significant exception, seemingly pros-
pering with extensive trade
and fine domestic tools. Too little was
excavated to be able to describe in detail the
economic state of the
settlement at this time, but it seems to have been
a major city, isolated
and apparently lacking a rural support system. Much
more work on
this exception to the above hypothesis needs to be
done in the future.
The walls and surfaces on the Middle
Bronze terrace were trun-
cated in the north by a
substantial terrace wall built in two parts. The
first section, in the west, contained pottery from
the end of the Late
Bronze
Age, while the second, in the east, produced early Iron I
sherds. No other remains were
found, suggesting that the northern
slope was now, extramural. Although the strong
abatement processes
reflected in the region around ‘Umeiri were thus again not in
14 Fieid
Supervisor for Field C. the Northern Slope, was James Battenfield,
assisted by Square Supervisor Taleh
Smadi and volunteers Linda Pautian
and
Sandra
Smith.
SECOND SEASON AT TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI 239
Plate 16. Aerial view of Field C.
Plate 17.
Early and Middle Bronze Age remains in Field C.
240 GERATY,
HERR, AND LABIANCA
Plate
18. Aerial view of Field D.
SECOND
SEASON AT TELL EL-‘UMEIRI 241
Plate 19. EB III domestic complex in Field D.
evidence for the Late Bronze period, the
settlement appears to have
declined in size. Although the data base is
small, the information
suggests no radical change or destruction between
the Late Bronze
and Iron I settlement, but rather only the
extension of a terrace wall.
The Lower Southern
Terrace: Field D15
The 1984 excavations on the lower
southern terrace uncovered
two fragmentary phases from the EB IV period which
yielded
information regarding the abatement process of Cycle
1. The field
was expanded in 1987 to intercept potentially
better-preserved re-
mains beneath what appeared to be deeper debris to
the north (see
Plate 18). Instead, four phases of an EB III
domestic complex were
found north of a terrace wall uncovered in 1984, but
whose func-
tion had not been known
prior to 1987. No EB IV remains appeared
in Field D in 1987. There is thus new information
regarding only
the height of the intensification process during
Cycle 1.
The EB III domestic complex was
built on a bedrock terrace
that seems to have been carved back in places (see
Plate 19). All
15 Field Supervisor For
Field D, the Lower Southern Terrace, was Michele Daviau,
assisted by Square Supervisors Timothy Harrison,
George McCourt, Marilyn Murray,
and Katrina Rounsefell:
volunteers included Wallace Amundson. Bonnie Battenfield.
Randall
Clark, L.vnda DuPreez, Ron DuPreez, John Giddings, Carla Jones, Zlatko
Kanacki,
Kimberly Murray, Warren Ruf, Lynn Smith, and Charles Urquhart.
242 GERATY, HERR, AND LABIANCA
four phases of the complex reused the Major walls,
constructing
and dismantling other minor walls as house plans
changed. At
least two of the rooms were long rooms, with doors
through their
short sides. No benches were found, but plaster with
reed impres-
sions from roof and or wall
coating was found in a yellow matrix
that was probably the earth topping of the roof. In
one room,
eleven thin surfaces had been laid one on top of the
other, indicat-
ing constant occupation and
reuse of the area. The surfaces were
not compact, suggesting that they had been laid
rapidly during
intensive use. Although they were difficult to
discern in vertical
section, broken ceramic vessels and other
objects were frequently
found lying on them. The finds associated with these
surfaces
reflected common domestic activities, such as food
preparation
(mortars, grinders, bones from meat animals, and cooking
pots),
food storage (a bin built into a wall and many large
pithoi with
flaring, thickened rims and rope molding at the
base of the neck
[one
jar contained about 4000 chick peas],), and tool-making (thou-
sands of flint flakes and a few tools). Embedded in
the surfaces were
mortars, sockets, hearths, and pillar bases. One
of the surfaces,
perhaps a courtyard, was made of thinly
laminated plaster.
Field D best represented the apex of
intensification of Cycle 1,
although located on the periphery of the site and
thus most likely
not representing its most prosperous expression.
Still, its archi-
tecture and domestic material
culture reflected an economic and
social order that was organized and reasonably
prosperous. Al-
though the abatement process for the Early Bronze
settlement could
not be shown from data collected this season, a
comparison of the
remains described above with those of the EB IV
phases discovered
in 1984 shows that prosperity declined in the
following period.
The
EB IV houses were much smaller, with poorly constructed
walls, while the individual housing units were
farther removed
from each other, reflecting a reduced population
density. The abate-
ment process had already
begun.
The Water System: Field
F16
Ever since Tell el-‘Umeiri was rediscovered in 1976, it has
been assumed that the reason it was occupied-and
indeed re-
16 Field Supervisor for Field F,
the water System, was James Battenfield, assisted
by Square Supervisors Gums Chef and Bryce Cole:
volunteers included Bogu-
slav Dabrowski,
Jeff Fisher, Jonathan Wishet, Tracy Wilmott, Kim Wilhite, and
Nathaniel
Yen.
SECOND
SEASON AT TELL EL-`UMEIRI 243
mained settled throughout the
abatement years between Cycles 1
and 2--was the presence of the only spring between
Madaba. The tell itself was not
the highest and most easily fortified
hill in the region; its views to the north, west,
and south were
limited by higher hills immediately adjacent.
The availability of
water thus seems to have overcome strategic
weaknesses in the
decision regarding where to settle. Even after
the site was abandoned,
other settlements arose nearby which could still
utilize the water
source.
Located at the foot of the northern
slope of the site, immedi-
ately outside the convergence
of the V-shaped walls of the northern
suburb, the source is presently dry. Raouf Abujaber, whose family
has owned the land on which the water source is
located since late
Ottoman
times, reported that the source had produced water until
the 1930s. When it became dry, his family capped
the installation
with reinforced concrete (see Plate 20).
At present, a hole has been opened
in the capping by vandals.
This
hole allowed the excavators to study the interior to a depth of
ca.
5 m. Ashlar blocks made up the four walls of a large
shaft ca.
2.5 x 3.5 m in size. The bottom was filled
with rubble and recent
garbage. Two architectural phases could be
discerned in the ashlars,
with the top two courses being clearly much more
recent than the
Plate
20. Aerial view of Field E.
244 GERATY,
HERR, AND LABIANCA
lower courses. The top course of the lower phase
included the
springstone of an arch. At the
bottom, an arched channel or tunnel
led to the west but ended after ca. 1 m.
It was decided not to excavate the
interior, because fill debris
inside a water installation seldom provides evidence
either for the
construction date or for associated
use patterns. Instead, two squares
were opened on the western side of the installation
in order to
examine (1) foundational features of the present
structure: (2) any
previous structures that may have been preserved;
and (3) the in-
tensity, quality (architectural
features), and chronology of use; as
well as (4) the question of whether the source was a
spring or a well.
The excavations encountered several
earth layers which must
have been dump debris from periods when the water
system was
cleaned out. The earliest such material
contained secondarily-de-
posited EB III low-necked water jars, virtually
to the exclusion of
other forms. There were also several pockets of
dumped debris from
episodes of cleaning activity which contained
1026 diagnostic sherds
from the late Iron Age II, at least 90% of which
were water jars and
jugs. Above the late Iron II remains were several
deposits of dumped
cleanup debris which contained almost
exclusively early Roman
water jars and jugs. It would thus seem that the area
was used for
water resources, at least through the early Roman
period. No
significant later remains have been found until
comparatively
modern times.
The Eastern Shelf: Field
F17
During the 1984 random surface
survey, the eastern shelf pro-
duced the most balanced
series of ceramic readings anywhere on
the site; that is, pottery quantities from all
major periods of settle-
ment at the site were
represented in more-or-less equal percentages.
It
thus seemed likely that excavation in 1987 would produce re-
mains from these periods without a major disruption
and that the
living strategies of each settlement could be examined
in detail in
teiins of the project's
overall questions concerning intensification
and abatement. There were also surface indications
that the southern
city wall ended here in a tower. North of the
"tower" was a slight
17 Field Supervisor for Field F,
the Eastern Spelt, was Russanne Low, assisted by
Square
Supervisors Wendcll Buck, James Fisber,
Denise Herr, and Katarina Manty-
niemi; volunteers included Jim
Asgieirsson, Nina Asgeirsson,
Alessandro Bruno,
Ann Fisher, Brent Geraty,
Thomas Wehtje, and Wiley Young.
SECOND SEASON AT TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI 245
Plate 21. One side of an outer gate bastion in Field F.
depression running up the slope from the east,
flanked by another
rubble pile on the north, thus suggesting the
existence of a gateway
at the eastern summit. It has been hypothesized
that the Kings'
Highway
ran just to the east of the site, roughly where the modern
most likely location for the gate to the city would
be on the eastern
side. Four squares were initially laid out to
intersect the eastern
side of the northern "tower" of the proposed
gateway and to
examine the eastern shelf as it approached the
structure. A fifth
square was added later.
The earliest levels were reached in
a 1-m-square sounding at
the end of the season. Here several hard earth
layers containing
pottery of the early Iron II and Iron I horizons
were excavated.
These
lay immediately beneath what appeared to have been a
bastion, perhaps an outer gate complex, running
perpendicular to
the slope (see Plate 21). Three short piers
extended from this thick
(ca. 1.5 m) north-south wall.
The most interesting feature of this
structure was a standing
stone near one of the piers, accompanied by the
bottom half of a
18 D. B. Redford,
"Bronze Age Itinerary in
for the Study of Egyptian Archaeology 12 (1982):
55-74.
246 GERATY, HERR, AND LABIANCA
large pithos embedded in
the associated surface and a boulder with
a hole carved in one end as if it were intended
to tether an animal.
This
suggested the kind of activity patterns that would be typical
of gates--such as tethering a beast of burden
while the owner did
business inside the summit wall, and
public-ceremonial activities
associated with a pithos
next to a standing stone. A similar stand-
ing stone with associated
basin has been found at Tell el-Farrah
(N)
in the gate of Niveau VIIb (10th century).19
The interpretation is that the
approach to the acropolis tra-
versed the slope from north to south through the outer
bastion and
then turned west for the final approach. However,
the wall had
very shallow foundations, resting on a compact and
stable earth
layer. Indeed, a foundation trench was found only on
the upslope
side of the wall. An ashy layer immediately above
the beaten-earth
surface that was in use with this wall may
reflect the destruction of
the wall. Late Iron II and early Persian pottery
were found in the
associated surface and earth layers.
The area does not seem to have been
occupied after its destruc-
tion. A series of weak
terrace walls and irregular pits can be related
to activities of a considerably abated settlement
dated to early
Persian
times, probably contemporary with the plastered pool in
Field
A. Still later, there is evidence that this area of the mound
was used for farming. Although the tell itself was
not occupied at
this time, the farm on its slopes reflected the
intensified nature of
settlement in the region during the Byzantine
period, from which
many such settlements have been found by surveys.
The very latest
evidence in Field F was an Islamic period burial
containing an
intact male skeleton with a javelin blade in its
pelvis (see Plate 22).
4. Epigraphic Finds
The range and variety of small finds
in 1987 was comparable
to those of 1984, so the list need not be repeated
except to mention,
perhaps, some fine examples of Iron-Age
figurines, both human
(see Plates 23, 24) and zoomorphic (see Plates 25, 26).
Again, the most interesting finds
were epigraphic. Although
two small ostraca with
very fragmentary signs of script were dis-
covered, the most important inscriptions were
ones from Fields F
and B.
19 A. Chambon, Tell el-Far’ah
I (
SECOND SEASON AT TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI 247
Plate 22. Burial of adult male
with javelin blade in the pelvis.
248 GERATY,
HERR, AND LABIANCA
Plate 23. Head of a human
figurine fragment with head-dress.
Plate 24. Head of a human
figurine fragment without head-dress.
SECOND SEASON AT TELL.
EL-‘IIMEIRI 249
Plate
25. Zoomorphic figurine fragment.
Plate 26.
Zoomorphic figurine fragment.
250 GERATY,
HERR, AND LABIANCA
From Field F came a small scaraboid seal made of red lime-
stone found in
situ (see Plate 27). Both the low quality of the stone
and the nature of the inscribed materials on the
seal suggest that it
did not belong to a wealthy person. The first four
letters of the
inscription appear on the top line, with the last
letter on the
second: the rest of the second line is empty. There is
no icon-
ography. The script is typical
of the Ammonite national script of
the early sixth century B.C. and reads lsm’z,
"belonging to Shem’az.”
Especially
distinctive is the zayin,
carved in the shape of a squat Z,
typical of late-Ammonite forms. The name itself,
or elements of it,
are very common to Semitic onomastica--including
those in the
Bible--but
the bearer of the seal is unknown to history.
From Field B, out of a large trenchpit dug after the Persian
period pool went out of use, came an Egyptian seal
impression: On
an Iron I jar handle was found the cartouche of
the 18th-Dynasty
Pharaoh
Thutmose III, typical of copies made in the 12th century,
long after the Pharaoh was gone from the scene (see
Plate 28). It is
not confirmation of D. B. Redford's suggestion that
Thutmose III
actually visited Tell el-‘Umeiri
(biblical Abel-keramim), because
Plate 27. Red limestone seal
from Field F.
Plate 28. Seal impression with the cartouche of
Thutmose
SECOND SEASON AT TELL
EL-‘UMEIRI 151
many similar seals, each with his cartouche, were
made throughout
The importance of the epigraphic
finds from both the 1984
and 1987 seasons at Tell el-‘Umeiri
is remarkable; these finds are of
interest to historians, linguists, and biblical
scholars alike.21 One
20 Cf. Redford, in the title
cited in n. 18, above.
21 To facilitate in-field
identification, documentation, and conservation of pot-
tery objects, flints, human
skeletal remains, animal and plant remains, ethnobotan-
teal samples, geological samples, and other ecofacts, separate processing stations
and procedures were set up at the beginning of the
season in the large gymnasium
at headquarters.
Pottery processing included Stations
where sherds were washed, read, counted.
registered technologically analyzed, mended, drawn,
photographed and further
analyzed as needed. Pottery Registrar was Mary Ellen
Lawlor, assisted by Kathy
Mallak,
Nancy Lawlor, and Renee Lawlor. Ceramic technological
studies were
carried out by Gloria London, assisted by potter
Marlene Sinclair. Pottery washing
was organized by Vanessa Martin.
Processing of small finds, was the
responsibility of the Object Registrar, Elizabeth
Platt, assisted by Karis
Lawlor. This Station included the cleaning,
identification,
registration, drawing,
photographing, and conservation of artifacts such as coins.
cosmetic implements, jewelry, figurines, ostraca, textile tools, and stone utensils.
Drawings
of the objects were made by artist Peter Erlard:
after he left, the job was
carried on by Monique Escamilla and Alessandro
Bruno. Two special studies were
also carried out: one on textile tools and their
associated industries, by Dorothy
Irvin:
and another on stone tools, by John Lee.
The ecology laboratory, supervised
this season by Randall Younker, included
separate processing Stations, each with its own
equipment (Scales and microscopes)
for processing flotation samples: human and animal osteological remains; ethno-
botanical samples; earth and rock samples: flint
chips and artifacts: and a work
station lot the members of the regional survey,
where maps and aerial photographs
could he examined in preparation for the next day's
fieldwork. Raniona Hubbard,
Phyllis
Richards, and Sandra Penley
conducted the Rotation procedure: and pre-
limiuary identifications were
made by Rnsstnne Low. Charles Castleberg
cleaned
the animal bones, and Doug Schnurrenberger
and George McCourt processed the
geological samples.
Field identifications resulting horn
each of these processing operations were
compiled and integrated into the stratigraphic records by a computer system
assembled and programmed by James Brower. He also
entered the field data on a
weekly basis, providing checks to the recording
procedures of each supervisor. No
diagnostic sherds bones,
or flints were discarded. What was not turned over to the
Department
of Antiquities at the end of the season or shipped to
further analysis was stored in stackable crates along
with the rest of the project's
equipment. Of the items .shipped to
housed in the
lishable pottery has been
temporarily housed at
252 GERATY,
HERR, AND LABIANCA
can imagine that this tell on the edge of the Madaba Plains has yet
other treasures waiting to be found during the third
season of the
joint Expedition to the Madaba
Plains, currently scheduled for
June
19 to August 8, 1989.
project is completed, when it will be sent to
the Museum at
Glenn
Johnson supervised the drafting team, which included Ron Haznedl,
and, for a few days, Carlene Johnson. Also located
at headquarters was a makeshift
darkroom for processing and developing filet. The
photography team was headed
by Larry Coyle, assisted by Judy Christiansen,
Tamara Hoffer, Ronda Sandic,
Thor
Storfjell, and Erwin Syphers.
At headquarters the daily logistic
needs of the staff were supervised by
Geraty, and included the camp staff: Bjornar Storfjell, part-time
administrative
director: Wallace Amundson,
part-time administrative director; Erwin Syphers, phy-
sician; James Byers,
physician; Ted Pottle, head cook; Ramona Hubbard, Ann
Syphers, and Mary Zicinke,
assistant cooks (many volunteers also helped with the
kitchen work, especially Sandra Penley, Phyllis Richards, and Doris Straws); and
Raymond Pelto,
handyman.
Lloyd Willis acted as chaplain, and Nora Peppers and
Rafael
Etgueroa produced a series of video presentations
about the dig.
This material is cited with gracious
permission from:
SDA Theological
Berrien Springs
http://www.andrews.edu/SEM/
Please report any errors to Ted
Hildebrandt at: