Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya: A New Early Islamic Compound in Central

Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya: A New Early Islamic Compound in Central Jordan M u’tah University’s Department of Archaeology and Tourism has discovered a new early Islamic building at Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya in south- central Jordan. The large administrative building was constructed during the Umayyad and Abbasid periods in the seventh through ninth centuries CE . The fortified building’s design, its well-preserved mosaic floor, and marble architectural features recall the prestigious attributes of early Islamic architecture built throughout the Levant in places such as Qasr al-Kharaneh and Khirbat al-Mafjar. Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya was built on a commanding position overlooking the Wadi al-Hasa, about twenty-five kilometers southeast of modern Karak. Nineteenth and twentieth century explorers first identified the site’s ruins, recording its name as Naqb al-Qusba or Khirbat al-Qusba (e.g., Musil 1907–1908: 20; Glueck 1939: 63, site no. 75). Why and when the site’s name changed to Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya is difficult to determine. Local tradition suggests that the name Shuqayra, Arabic for “little blond girl,” reflects the nearby red and yellow terra rossa soils that make the area so agriculturally rich. During his survey in the late 1970s, Miller found enough ceramic evidence to suggest that Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya was an important early Islamic site worth further investigation (Miller 1991: 161–62, site no. 432). Since 2002, six seasons of excavation at Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya in Areas A through D have revealed that a large building was constructed with ashlar limestone blocks. Visitors first entered the building through a 3.5-meter-wide gateway on the complex’s east side, descending two stone steps into a 4.2-square-meter ante-vestibule paved with flagstones. The preserved height of the walls varies from 1.7 to 2.1 meters. Plastered benches approximately 1.7 meters high were built on either side of the room. Three well-preserved recesses (1.6 meters high) were set into the north side. Similar recesses were likely constructed on the room’s south side, but erosion has heavily damaged this area. Two hemispherical towers built of well- This plan shows the excavated architecture at Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya. NEAR EASTERN ARCHAEOLOGY 71:3 (2008) 185 dressed limestone blocks guard either side of the antevestibule. The north tower has preserved five of its courses, measuring 1.5 meters high, while the south tower has only preserved two. A 1.8-meter-wide door separated the ante-vestibule from a rectangular vestibule measuring 10 by 4.5 meters. The room was paved with flagstones similar in design to the ante-vestibule. On the north and south side of the room are 0.6-meter-high benches. Stone pillows divided the north side into three sections and the south side into four. Nine chambers similar in size and design were discovered on either side of the vestibule. Walls were constructed in two rows and had multiple courses. Unlike the exterior wall’s ashlar masonry, the internal ones were constructed with unhewn medium-sized boulders covered with white plaster and decorated with chevron motifs. Neither features nor artifacts suggest a specific function for these rooms, although they may have served a domestic purpose. Visitors walked across a large flagstone pavement when moving from the vestibule to the Building C reception hall. While only sixty-five square meters have been excavated, it has already been determined that the southern half was open to the sky and that the pavement sloped from south to north. Three bases associated with fallen columns were discovered in the higher southern part of the pavement strongly suggesting a roof covered this part. On the pavement’s northern half, no associated features have been discovered. Whether or not this variation in the pavement’s features is due to architectural function or later rearrangements requires further investigation. Entry into Building C was possible through a 1.2-meter-wide door on the eastern side of the northern wall. This door connected Building C with a northern room was partially excavated during the 2007 season. Further excavations in this area are necessary to establish the architectural relationship between the features exposed in Areas A and D, and Building C. Additionally, stairs descending from Building C towards the Wadi al-Hasa are visible on the surface and await excavation. A large room with a well-preserved mosaic floor was partly excavated in Building C. Its design and features 186 NEAR EASTERN ARCHAEOLOGY 71:3 (2008) suggests this room functioned as a reception hall. The room measures 22 meters long and 8 meters wide, and is divided lengthwise into three parts by two rows of columns. It stops just before the terrain slopes sharply downward toward the Wadi al-Hasa. The mosaic pavement is typical of early Islamic craft traditions. Only floral and geometric subjects are portrayed; animals and humans are completely absent. The central medallion faces south and is adorned with a footed vase from which two leafy branches extend. Surrounding this vase are various fruits such as dates, grapes, and pomelos. This pavement is well preserved, and because it is the first mosaic floor to be excavated on the Karak Plateau, its prompt conservation and protection was essential. Water was an important concern for the building’s inhabitants and evidence for a water collection and storage system was found throughout the complex. A channel built into the flagstone pavement carried precipitation into what was likely a cistern.1 A similar channel covered by stone slabs was built further south, although its destination has not yet been identified.2 A pool lined with stones sits approximately 250 meters below the complex on a slope leading to the Wadi al-Hasa; it may be associated with the building’s water system. More investigation is necessary before this relationship can be confirmed. The mosaic floor of Building C, perhaps a reception hall, is typical of early Islamic craft traditions. The central medallion displays a footed vase from which two leafy branches extend. Floral and geometric shapes like these are found throughout the pavement. Multiple lines of evidence confirm the early Islamic date of the building’s construction and use. The discovery of an Umayyad fils coin as well as an ostracon bearing what appears to be correspondence written in Kufic calligraphy suggest an early Islamic date.3 The ceramic vessel evidence also confirms this early Islamic date. The Umayyad-period vessels discovered include domestic forms such as tableware, cooking pots, and jars. Fine ware bowls with straight sides and rounded or flattened rims, pink-to-buff in color and red-painted geometric wavy lines were present. Kitchenware included cooking pots with lids bearing knob handles. Red-ware jars and juglets were also common. Abbasid-period vessels included mediumsized jars as well as larger storage jars. A group of moldmade lamps with buff-colored pastes and floral designs were also discovered. This Abbasid period moldmade lamp with buff-colored pastes and floral designs was among several uncovered in the building. The building’s architectural elements also suggest an early Islamic date and reflect the relative wealth of the building’s inhabitants. A number of marble cylindrical drums were discovered with grooves at one end. Some have a hole in the center indicating that they may have been connected with metal rods. A splendid marble capital was also found. The upper half is rectangular and decorated with carved flowers, while the lower half is nearly spheroid and decorated with carved plaited, basket-like patterns. Several of Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya’s features are reminiscent of other early Islamic buildings throughout the Levant. The protruding gate delineated by semicircular towers is known at the palace of Minya near Lake Tiberias and Qasr al-Kharaneh in the Jordanian desert (Creswell 1989: 92–97). Vestibules with benches are known in the qasr of Khirbat al-Mafjar in the northern Jordan Valley (Hamilton 1959) and in the Umayyad palace complex at the Amman Citadel (Almagro and Olavarri 1982). Chevron-incised plaster is documented in the qasr at Muwwaqar, southeast of Amman, and at Hallabat, northeast of Zarqa (Bisheh 1989; Waheeb 1993). Finally, floral and geometric mosaic patterns found in Building C An elaborate marble capital, shown here in situ upside-down, was excavated in the building’s courtyard. The upper half is rectangular and decorated with carved flowers, while the lower half is nearly spheroid and decorated with carved and plaited basket-like patterns. NEAR EASTERN ARCHAEOLOGY 71:3 (2008) 187 are reminiscent of those known at Khirbat al-Mafjar (Hamilton 1959: 326–42). Our research at Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya is shedding light on the southern Karak Plateau’s early Islamic history, an era that archaeologists have largely overlooked in favor of the region’s prehistoric, Bronze, Iron, and Classical periods. The southern plateau saw the first clashes between Arab Muslims and the Byzantine Empire at Mu’tah in 629 CE. In the following centuries, the plateau benefited from its position between political and religious centers in Arabia, Syria, and Palestine. The King’s Highway, a major north–south commercial corridor connecting Syria and the Arabian Peninsula, ran through the region, very close to Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya. The Karak Plateau fell within the Province of Damascus (in Arabic, jund dimashq), which was further divided, into districts with Ma’ab, modern ar-Rabbah, as the plateau’s primary city. Early Islamic chronicles refer to three towns in the southern plateau, Mu’tah, Ibna, and Kathkath (Atwaan 1987). The latter two towns have yet to be identified; currently, there is not enough evidence to link Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya to either toponym. The grandeur of Shuqayra al-Gharbiyya did not last past the ninth century CE . A destruction layer of burned materials covered almost the entire building. Whether this evidence indicates a natural or violent end to the building is a question for further investigation. The complex was occupied again in the thirteenth century, when the Ayyubid and later, the Mamluk Empire dominated the plateau from the nearby fortified city of Karak. During these centuries, clumsy walls built of rough boulders divided the Early Islamic chambers into smaller rooms. Stone bins were built in the vestibule. Charred chaff found in these bins suggests the building was used as an animal stable. The building was occupied once again in the modern period, as the inhabitants lived above the remains of the earlier buildings. Upper stratigraphic levels consisted of wall bases associated with cement floors. Modern pits penetrated lower building levels, disrupting the stratigraphy of earlier strata. So far, only 30 percent of the site has been examined. Therefore, future investigations will focus on the 188 NEAR EASTERN ARCHAEOLOGY 71:3 (2008) site’s western half with the goal of understanding architectural relationships across the settlement. We are especially eager to combine historical sources and archaeological evidence to learn what relationship Shuqayra had with other settlements on the Karak Plateau such as Nakhil and Khirbat Faris. Additional excavations will also help us understand the site’s role in the Early Islamic history of the Near East. Younis M. Shdaifat and Zakariya N. Ben Badhann Mu’tah University Notes 1. Found in Area D, square H2. 2. Found in Area D, square D2. 3. The ostracon was excavated in Area D, square D12, Locus 09, while the coin was found in Area A, square H2, Locus 25. References Almagro, A., and Olavarri, E. 1982 A New Umayyad Palace at the Citadel Mount of Amman. Pp. 305–12 in Studies in the History and Archaeology of Jordan, Vol. 1, ed. A. Hadidi. Amman: Department of Antiquities of Jordan. Atwaan, H. 1987 Historical Geography of the Levant during the Umayyad Period. Beirut: Al-Jeel House. Bisheh, G. 1989 Hallabat (Qasr/ Qasr el). Pp. 245–51 in Archaeology of Jordan II: Field Reports, ed. D. Homès-Fredericq and J. B. Hennessy. Leuven: Peeters. Creswell, K. A. C. 1989 A Short Account of Early Muslim Architecture. Aldershot: Scolar. Glueck, N. 1939 Explorations in Eastern Palestine, III. Annual of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 18–19. New Haven: American Schools of Oriental Research. Hamilton, R. W. 1959 Khirbat al-Mafjar: An Arabian Mansion in the Jordan Valley. Oxford: Clarendon. Miller, J. M., ed. 1991 Archaeological Survey of the Kerak Plateau. American Schools of Oriental Research Archaeological Reports. Atlanta: Scholars. Musil, A. 1907–1908 Arabia Petraea. Vienna: Holder. Waheeb, M. 1993 The Second Season of Excavations at Muwwaqar: Preliminary Report. Annual of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan 37: 5–19. (Arabic)