Scientific article
English

Reconstructing the late Prehistoric occupations in North Jordan: Irbid as a case study for settlements and funerary patterns

Published inBulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, vol. 12, no. 391, p. 34
First online date2024-09-12
Abstract

The region of Irbid (Jordan) in the southern Levant has been known for its megalithic structures since the end of the 19th century. But despite hundreds of dolmens inventoried, it has never been the subject of an in-depth study. This article contributes to a better understanding of human occupation in the area during the 4th and 3rd millennium b.c.e., based on unpublished data collected in September 2005 by a co-directed Jordanian and French mission (University of Yarmouk and the French Institute of the Middle East–Institut français du Proche-Orient Damascus). Data acquisition analysis was realized thanks to a Geographic Information System (GIS) allowing the authors to map and study the spatial relationships between the various elements, with an emphasis on the relationship between the funerary and domestic spheres. By placing the dolmen necropoleis and settlement sites (both double-apsed and rectangular houses) of the north Jordanian Plateau within the general context of the southern Levant, the authors question the “classic” model linking nomadism and megalithism, and bring forward a more sedentary perspective.

Keywords
  • Bronze age
  • Levant
  • Sedentarity
  • Nomadic lifestyle
  • Megalithism
  • Dolmen
  • Standing stone
  • Wall
  • Shaft tomb Bronze age
Citation (ISO format)
CAMINADA, Antoine et al. Reconstructing the late Prehistoric occupations in North Jordan: Irbid as a case study for settlements and funerary patterns. In: Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 2024, vol. 12, n° 391, p. 34.
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Article (Published version)
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Identifiers
  • PID : unige:180798
Journal ISSN0003-097X
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