Art and Archaeology

Since 2011, the Lebanese University has undertaken archaeological research in Carloforte on the Island of San Pietro in Sardinia, in collaboration with the Superintendence for Archaeological Heritage of the provinces of Cagliari and Oristano.
The 2011 archaeological survey laid the groundwork for future excavation campaigns in Carloforte, when the team discovered substantial ruins on the island such as funerary monuments and ancient paved roads. In 2012, the first excavation campaign unearthed two large tombs and two burial pits dug into the tuff. These were however looted.
A preliminary study shows that the two tombs date back to the fifth and fourth century BC. They are part of a necropolis which belonged to one of the early urban centers on the San Pietro’s Island known in ancient times as Enosim.

Cet article présente les résultats de deux campagnes d’études et de sondages archéologiques menées en 2010 et 2011 sur le site de Qasr Swayjani situé sur la commune de Kahlouniyyé, dans la région du Chouf el-Swayjani. Les vestiges de ce site de la haute montagne libanaise daté de l’époque hellénistique se composent d’un édifice principal presque carré, construit en gros blocs assemblés à sec, et d’une construction annexe dont le plan demeure encore incertain. L’étude du bâtiment principal et du matériel découvert montre qu’il s’agit d’un poste fortifié placé sur une position stratégique remontant aux IIIe-Ier s. av. J.-C.

The Phoenicians emerged in the Northern Levant around 1800 BCE and by the 9 th century BCE had spread their culture across the Mediterranean Basin, establishing trading posts, and settlements in various European Mediterranean and North African locations. Despite their widespread influence, what is known of the Phoenicians comes from what was written about them by the Greeks and Egyptians. In this study, we investigate the extent of Phoeni-cian integration with the Sardinian communities they settled. We present 14 new ancient mitogenome sequences from pre-Phoenician (~1800 BCE) and Phoenician (~700–400 BCE) samples from Lebanon (n = 4) and Sardinia (n = 10) and compare these with 87 new complete mitogenomes from modern Lebanese and 21 recently published pre-Phoenician ancient mitogenomes from Sardinia to investigate the population dynamics of the Phoeni-cian (Punic) site of Monte Sirai, in southern Sardinia. Our results indicate evidence of continuity of some lineages from pre-Phoenician populations suggesting integration of indigenous Sardinians in the Monte Sirai Phoenician community. We also find evidence of the arrival of new, unique mitochondrial lineages, indicating the movement of women from sites in the Near East or North Africa to Sardinia, but also possibly from non-Mediterranean populations and the likely movement of women from Europe to Phoenician sites in Lebanon. Combined, this evidence suggests female mobility and genetic diversity in Phoenician communities , reflecting the inclusive and multicultural nature of Phoenician society.

La céramique découverte sur le site de Qasr Swayjani à Kahlouniyyé qui nous a été confiée dans le cadre de cette étude préliminaire, représente un nombre total de 10 000 tessons (il est important de noter que le matériel céramique n’a pas été entièrement prélevé). Ce lot ne pouvant être étudié dans son ensemble, nous avons pratiqué une sélection afin d'en optimiser l'étude et les résultats.

Currently, there are 18 different religious communities living in Lebanon. While evolving primarily within Lebanon, these communities show a level of local isolation as demonstrated previously from their Y-haplogroup distributions. In order to trace the origins and migratory patterns that may have led to the genetic isolation and autosomal clustering in some of these communities we analyzed Y-chromosome STR and SNP sample data from 6327 individuals, in addition to whole genome autosomal sample data from 609 individuals, from Mount Lebanon and other surrounding communities. We observed Y chromosome L1b Levantine STR branching that occurred around 5000 years ago. Autosomal DNA analyses suggest that the North Lebanese Mountain Maronite community possesses an ancestral Fertile Crescent genetic component distinct from other populations in the region. We suggest that the Levantine L1b group split from the Caucasus ancestral group around 7300 years ago and migrated to the Levant. This event was distinct from the earlier expansions from the Caucasus region that contributed to the wider Levantine populations. Differential cultural adaption by populations from the North Lebanese Mountains are clearly aligned with the L1b haplotype STR haplogroup clusters, indicating pre-existing and persistent cultural barriers marked by the transmission of L1b lineages. Our findings highlight the value of uniparental haplogroups and STR haplotype data for elucidating biosocial events among these populations.