Publications- Bulletins

Bit of a catch up on some bulletins from the last few months:


Bob Bewley with David Kennedy, Mat Dalton & Rebecca Banks, 'Aerial Archaeology in Jordan: 2010-2012', Aerial Archaeology Research Group News, Vol. 45, September 2012: 74-81.
Available to members from their website.

Fiona Baker & David L. Kennedy 'Jarash Hinterland Survey' in: Keller, Porter & Tuttle, 'Newsletter: Archaeology in Jordan, 2010 and 2011 Seasons', American Journal of Archaeology, Vol. 116, No. 4, October 2012: 702-703.

David Kennedy & Bob Bewley, 'The Harret al-Shaam, from Air and Space' in: 'Long-term Landscape Environment and Climate Change Studies, from the Past through to Predictive Models for  Future Developments', Bulletin of the Council for British Research in the Levant, Vol. 7, No. 1, October 2012: 60-62.
Available through IngentaConnect.

Publications - APAAME photo in December issue Antiquity

APAAME_20120522_DLK-0096. Photograph: David L. Kennedy

Featuring in the latest issue of Antiquity is this photograph taken by David Kennedy on the 22 May 2012 during our last season of flying in Jordan. You can read more about the photograph and its features in the journal's Editorial:
Editorial, Antiquity, Vol 86 No 334 December 2012: 966. http://antiquity.ac.uk/journal.html#editorial

Workshop - GIS and Near Eastern Archaeology

A Methodology for the Future? The role of GIS technologies within 21st century Near Eastern Archaeology

CBRL November 30^th to December 2^nd 2012 at the CBRL Institute in Amman, Jordan.

Congratulations to all the organisers of this intimate, perfectly formed workshop as it brought together a small but interested (and interesting) grouping.

An interesting group of workshop attendees - British Institute Director Carol Palmer (front far right); workshop organiser Jennie Bradbury of Durham University (front left of middle); and the author of this blog Bob Bewley (front centre) (Photograph: BI Amman Facebook page).

There were 22 people from wide range of places and backgrounds – a small group but a very useful event for two reasons. The first is the opportunity to share ideas, understand each other’s needs and work on ways of better and more useful collaboration.  For the APAAME project this will involve a closer working relationship between the MEGA-J (national online archaeological database for Jordan) and ourselves.

The second was a more general one of meeting and talking to people who one either wanted to talk to but never managed to find the time, or people one didn’t know and was glad to meet. The ‘regional’ nature of the archaeology was highlighted by the use of GIS – showing the longer terms trends when the masses of data are analysed to show the changing distribution patterns; be it in the prehistoric Roman or medieval periods.

Publications: Kites–new discoveries and a new type

The discovery of an unusual specimen of kite with a limited distribution between Palmyra and Damascus in Syria led to the formulation of this journal article by David L. Kennedy.




David L. Kennedy (2012) 'Kites–new discoveries and a new type', Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy 23.2:145-155. You can find it at Wiley Online Library.




The 'sock' kite, fondly at first referred to as a 'Hockey Stick' kite, then (as we were feeling seasonal) a 'Christmas stocking' kite, with its narrow elongated 'shaft' and 'head' off to one side, forms the basis of this article. The discussion encompasses the form, distribution and geography of the new Kite type.

We also cover the extent of our current research on Kites in Arabia, and the article is generously accompanied by useful maps and distribution diagrams of Syria, Jordan and Saudi Arabia, and diagrams of the new Kite type.

Guest blog: Gary Rollefson and the Eastern Desert of Jordan

Research in the Eastern Desert of Jordan

2011 and 2012 

Prof. Garry Rollefson, Whitman College

Man made structures in the vicinity of Wisad Pools. Structure W-66 indicated. APAAME_20080909_DLK-0361. Photographer: David L Kennedy. Click to enlarge.

In 2007, when Alex Wasse and I revisited Wisad Pools in Jordan’s panhandle, we were stunned at the density of man-made structures at what appeared to be an enormous necropolis situated around a number of natural pools in a short wadi that collected rainfall during the rainy season. In the same summer we visited M-4 (“Maitland’s Mesa”) in the Wadi al-Qattafi, where there were clear pastoral structures on the top of this mesa as well as a tower tomb and a string of more than 50 rectilinear chambers extending from it along the southern edge of the mesa. In addition, there were numerous structures along the southern, western, and northern slopes, several of which showed striking parallels with nawamis tombs that had been reported from the Sinai and Yemen deserts. Since these two sites are currently characterized by hyperarid climatic condition, conventional wisdom and our own inclinations considered all of the basalt structures to be ritual in nature due to the effort necessary to construct them and to the ephemeral nature of most pastoral architecture. In our mind, these structures were permanent monuments to the dead, whether tumuli or cenotaphs. This interpretation proved to be incorrect, and although there are clear ritual structures at Wadi al-Qattafi and at Wisad Pools, many of the permanent structures are, in fact, domestic dwellings that imply some degree of permanence in occupation.

APAAME in the Biblical Archaeological Review

Machaerus. APAAME_20060910_DLK-0005. Photographer: David L. Kennedy

Győző Vörös' article in the Biblical Archaeological Review this month explains some fantastic progress since 2009 at the site of Machaerus in Jordan being conducted by the Hungarian Academy of Arts, in collaboration with the Jordanian Department of Antiquities. The article features some of APAAME's images from the region of Machaerus, as well as some stunning shots by Jane Taylor. You can find the article here: Machaerus: Where Salome Danced and John the Baptist Was Beheaded.

If you would like to see more images of the site of Machaerus, please visit our Flickr Archive.

Free Lecture: Roman Archaeology Group of Perth

Upcoming free lectures run by the Roman Archaeology Group of Perth:

2 Illustrated Lectures

Baths and Bathing in the Roman World

Dr. Sandra Ottley

2012 field trip to Jarash, Jordan
Don Boyer

Saturday 25 August

1:30pm

Social Sciences Lecture Theatre

University of Western Australia

1:30pm - Baths and Bathing in the Roman World
2:30pm - tea break ($7 for RAG Members $10 for non-members)
3:00pm - Annual General Meeting, Roman Archaeology Group of Perth, Inc.
3:30pm - 2012 field trip to Jarash, Jordan

Please let us know of your interest by emailing Norah Cooper (please see flier below).
Next lecture: Summer Lecture Series program coming soon!

To learn more about the Roman Archaeology Group of Perth please visit their webpage.