ISAW Participates in Archaeological Survey of Tayma, Northwest-Arabia

By ah173@nyu.edu
06/29/2016

The Saudi-German expedition to the oasis of Tayma, Northwest-Arabia, carried out a survey in one of the cemetery areas south of the ancient and modern oasis during the last two and a half weeks of May 2016. This short season was made possible by ISAW and the project's funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG). Furthermore, ISAW graduate student Alice Wang’s application for a travel grant of ISAW was approved by the faculty, facilitating her participation as assistant anthropologist to the expedition. Altogether, six team members from Europe and the U.S. stayed at Tayma, and we returned just before the month of Ramadan started.

The aim of the season was the investigation of the cemetery area of Rujum Sa’sa’, where selected and limited excavations have been carried out since 2002 by Saudi archaeologists. Built graves of both circular and rectangular structures have been discovered by these excavations. In the context of the rapidly expanding modern settlement of Tayma, and of exceptional findings during salvage excavations in 2014 and 2015 from an area north of the present survey area, it is important to estimate the archaeological potential of the area before it is too late. 

Fragments of human bones collected during the survey at Rujum Sa’sa’ (Photograph I. Wagner)

By means of surface survey, altogether 109 further structures were identified in a 100 m x 700 m-large transect. Pottery, artifacts, and bones – most of them human – were collected from the surface and recorded. In the field, the structures were described by archaeologists and then subsequently recorded by Structure from Motion (SFM). The derived 3D-models were integrated into the geodetic grid of the Tayma excavations. Whereas the processing of the 1,727 pottery sherds consisted of the recording of technological, morphological and quantitative features, it was Alice’s job to have a look at the very fragmentary human remains. She used the well-equipped lab of the Tayma Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography for her work.

On the occasion of a visit of a female student from King Saud University (KSU), Riyadh, at Tayma, we discussed possibilities of future participation of Saudi female students in international archaeological research projects. Already in 2009 the DAI launched a training program in archaeological conservation for female employees (and subsequently also male participants) of both SCTNH’s National Museum, Riyadh, and students of KSU.

Now that we have returned to New York, we have started to prepare a preliminary report for the journal ATLAL which adds to the reports submitted to the SCTNH on a weekly basis. 

Interdisciplinary research at Tayma started in 2004 and is based on a collaboration agreement between the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTNH), Riyadh, and the German Archaeological Institute’s (DAI) Orient Department, Berlin (www.dainst.org).