The Pottery Productions from Dūmat al-Jandal. An Outline from the Assyrian to the Islamic Era

Since 2009, the University of Naples L’Orientale has conducted archaeological activities in the historical core of Dūmat al-Jandal, al-Jawf region (Saudi Arabia). Among the various objectives pursued over these years, spanning from prehistory to the Islamic periods, the primary focus has been on defining the historical core of ancient origins, particularly through identifying material evidence of the ancient ‘arab mentioned in Assyrian sources from the 9th to the 7th centuries BC. Between 2009-2017 the excavations focused among the Nabataean settlement (Trench 1) and first test probes outside ‘Umar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb mosque. In this context, the excavation outside the western side of the ‘Umar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb mosque uncovered a collection of late Neo-Assyrian ware from the 8th-7th centuries BC. This discovery, for the first time, confirms the identification of Dūmat al-Jandal as the ancient Adummatu and provides material evidence contemporaneous with the earliest Arabs. Further materials related to later periods were also collected, displaying a continuous stratigraphic sequence in Trench 10, Soundings 1-3. Thus, in light of the 2009-2017 excavation seasons in the historical core of the oasis and having identified its very first historical phase, here it is introduced a first comprehensive chronological sequence based on the material culture emerged, in particular the pottery assemblages identified up to now, stretching from the late Neo-Assyrian period to the Nabataean era and the Islamic centuries. A particular focus is devoted to the definition of the locally made classes, as well as to the identification of the imported items, in order to understand the socio-economic context of the oasis and to plan the future archaeological investigations inside the historical core of Dūmat al-Jandal.