Abstracts

Abu SHMAIS Adeib (Jordan), “A new collection of unpublished lamps Candlesticks : Amman archaeological district”
The oil lamps was the most common means of lighting in the Middle East. It basically consisted of a reservoir, a wick, and fuel. This could be used from a variety of plants, which it was suitable and widely available. The other thing was the animal fat one of the early fuel, but vegetable oils particularly those produce from olives were providing a steady flame. this was free of smoke and used in most periods in this region. Stages of development/The background : 1- The concave shell and stone bowls was used in Pre-Pottery Neolithic period in this area. 2- The hand made ceramic bowls began to use in lighting until the end of Chalcolithic period were the wick floated on the fuel. 3- Under Pharaoh Dynasties a cylindrical vessel of stone or pottery cups was used as lamp, the light rising from the center. 4- In Mesopotamia the vessel made of a concave stone in a form of conch. 5- During the Early Bronze Age small bowls of pottery served as lamps, black traces found on their rims. And some rims pull out to form a small channel, and by the end of this period bowls or saucer had four channes (nozzles) During Bronze Age lamps used in ceremonies, tombs with food and objects of daily life, even at this early time, lamps were used not for producing light but as symbols of life. 6- Among the varieties of lamps in Belad esh-sham stump-base style were used in the Iron Age period and continued to use in tombs and religious rites. 7- This collection had forms related to the Candles which were found in a- Khilde Candlesticks/Arqoob khilde b- Umm es-Summaq Candlesticks/Khirbet Umm es-summaq The purposes of these styles connected with funeral ceremonies and this could has influence from the Canaanite culture. and this invented just for what I mentioned before.


ALA’EDDINE Abdallah & AWARKEH Rima (Lebanon), “Byzantine lamps from the 004 excavation in Beirut”
This paper aims to present two oil lamp types from site BEY 004 (Downtown Beirut). These are of particular importance from a chronological standpoint providing fixed markers since these types came from well dated and closed groups of Byzantine period. The first type (Caeserea type) comes from Room 146 with elements of a floor-deposit from the historically recorded earthquake of August 551 at Berytos/Beirut. A cache of lamps accumulated in the centre of the room with amphorae disturbed along the sides of the room ; a bag full of coins found inside one of the amphoras (LRA1). The second type comes from two Rooms : (a) undisturbed rubbish dump that covered almost the whole space inside room 100 ; this dump contains pottery of all categories and dated to 620’s and 630’s. (b) Room 97 presents a burnt deposit, with a group of local amphorae found fallen from a shelf, bronze objects as well as marble mortars were retrieved. The finds of this contexts are close in date to those from room 100. Dating evidence, as Jordan valley dishes, places this deposit to 650’s +. To sum up, this homogeneous material coming from these sealed deposits, provide us with more precise dating evidence that serve to correct some false conclusions from other sites, since these types are very common in the area and found almost in every Byzantine contexts.


BARRET Deirdre (USA), “The lamps at Khirbet et-Tannur”
During the spring and winter seasons of 1937 at Khirbet et-Tannur, Nelson Glueck recorded the discovery of many lamps and their fragments in his dig journal. Most of these lamp fragments have been stored at the Semitic Museum at Harvard University, and it is only recently that they have been documented. Although lamps were multivalent, a necessary artifact to lighten darkness in both secular and sacred settings, Glueck established that the temple complex was built solely for religious purposes, thus obviating conjecture regarding the function of the site. However, the lamps can also provide us with occupation dates : the earliest lamps dating to the latter half of the first century BC and the later lamps dating to the end of the Byzantine period. Of the forty-seven lamps found at the site, only fragments of the earlier lamps have survived, while the later ones are nearly complete. Indeed the concentration of Byzantine slipper lamps around the altar platform and in two of the dining rooms off the temple court suggests that Khirbet et-Tannur was still used for cultic purposes as late as the fifth century AD. The presence of two unusual lamp types is quite intriguing, and they may have been made specifically for the sanctuary. They are both wheel-made : one being completely round, with the wick-hole inserted within the shoulder rim : the other resembles a socket and saucer lamp, originally fired with a companion stand. One notable absence in the lamp corpus is that of the Nabataean volute lamp, so popular and evident at other Nabataean sites. The presence and absence of these three lamp types will be discussed.


CHARAF Hanan (Lebanon), “An Overview of the Bronze and Iron Age Lamps from Lebanon”
Of all the utilitarian vessels that have been found in archaeological excavations, the lamp seems to be the one least affected by typological development. Its initial concept as a spouted bowl barely changed during the Bronze and Iron ages, where it has been discovered in both settlement and mortuary contexts. Generally speaking, the lamp evolved from a deep pinched bowl in the Bronze Age to a shallow one in the Iron Age. This general Levantine trend was no different in Lebanon, except for Byblos which produced a number of interesting and unusual types. The aim of this paper is to provide an interpretative overview of the typological change, classification, manufacturing technology, and function of lamps found in Lebanon during the 2nd and 1st millennia BC.


CHRZANOVSKI Laurent (Switzerland), “A major lychnological crossroad : the Near East”
The aim of this synthetic presentation is to situate the Near-eastern lamps and their production in their historical, social, economical and religious context. Widely known as the crossroad of civilizations, and the origin of the main monotheist religions, the region is also the homeland of some of the most important lychnological innovations, such as the first clay lamps themselves, developped by the Phoenicians, the glass lamps of the late Roman period, or even the star-shaped stone lamps of the Umeyyad dynasties.
A comprehensive analysis of the role of the lamps in the area, their typological peculiarities, their affinities with the neighbouring regions and their insertion in the worships of the three main religions is essential to understand their evolution and longevity.


DA COSTA Kate (Australia), “The Byzantine lamps from Pella : their trade relationships”
Excavations by University of Sydney teams since 1979 have revealed contexts dating to the Late Roman, Byzantine and Umayyad periods (ca. 300 – 750 AD), including domestic, ecclesiastic, commercial and burial. Of the 1400 lamps catalogued to date, around 1000 date to this time period. They divide into over 20 types. Some of these types began as early as the 3rd century AD, but almost none continued in use after 750 AD. Most types comprise 1 – 2% of the corpus each, while the most common contain between 6 and 15%. In 2003 the mould of half a lamp was uncovered, which is the sole evidence for lamp manufacture at Pella. Based on distribution patterns, the vast majority of lamps found at Pella were not made there. This paper will present basic data on the Byzantine and Umayyad lamps at Pella, particularly the relative quantities of each type. It will the examine the distribution patterns of the lamps found at the site. Byzantine Pella lay in eastern /Palaestina Secunda/, close to the borders with /Palaestina Prima/ and /Arabia/. It will be demonstrated that the site lay at the intersection of several trade networks, very possibly due to its position on the east-west road from /Arabia/ to the Mediterranean coast, and its proximity to the provincial capital. These networks did not remain constant during the 450 years under discussion, however. The factors influencing the trade patterns provide evidence for long-term economic cycles in the region. They may also reflect the relationship of the indigenous cultures to Roman imperial administration.


DURAND Caroline (France), “Les lampes des périodes nabatéenne et romaine de Khirbeth edh-Dharih, Jordanie”
Le site de Khirbet edh-Dharih, situé en bordure du wadi La‘ban, une centaine de kilomètres au nord de Pétra, est fouillé depuis 1984 par une équipe franco-jordanienne. Occupé dès la période Édomite jusqu’à la fin du moyen-âge, le site a connu une phase de construction majeure au début du IIe siècle de notre ère. On date de cette époque l’imposant sanctuaire, monument principal du site, autour duquel s’articulent diverses zones d’occupation remontant à la même période : un village, des bâtiments agricoles dont plusieurs huileries, un cimetière, des infrastructures d’accueil telles qu’une probable hôtellerie, un caravansérail, et des bains publics. Au même moment, la population autochtone, nabatéenne, passe sous tutelle romaine, et le site semble être occupé sans interruption jusqu’à la fin du IVe siècle, probablement jusqu’en 363, date d’un important tremblement de terre qui ravage la région. Parmi la grande quantité de matériel archéologique mise au jour en vingt ans de fouilles, de nombreuses lampes ont été découvertes. Nous nous proposons ici d’en présenter une sélection, issue de contextes nabatéens et romains. Nous y trouverons des lampes nabatéennes similaires aux productions de Pétra, des lampes romaines à disque ou non-décorées, des lampes moulées zoomorphes, enfin deux lampes de bronze. L’objectif premier sera d’obtenir une typo-chronologie précise en replaçant les découvertes dans leur contexte stratigraphique, et en procédant par comparaison avec les lampes découvertes sur d’autres sites nabatéo-romains (Pétra, Oboda). Par ailleurs, nous nous interrogerons sur la fonction secondaire possible de certaines lampes – la première étant, bien sûr, celle d’éclairer -, notamment sur la place des lampes votives dans un sanctuaire, à travers l’exemple de deux lampes plastiques en forme de têtes de bovidés. Deux autres lampes retiendront particulièrement notre attention. L’une est une lampe à disque décorée d’un motif relativement rare dans le monde romain, mais qui semble récurrent en domaine nabatéen : celui d’« Éros puni ». La seconde porte une inscription nabatéenne sur le fond, qu’on retrouve sur de nombreuses lampes découvertes en contexte nabatéen. Nous reviendrons sur la fonction et la signification de cette inscription. Enfin, nous aborderons, par le biais de l’étude des lampes, les problématiques économiques. Nous nous poserons la question du rapport entre productions locales, attestées à Khirbet edh-Dharih par la découverte de moules, et échanges régionaux, que nous révèlent les « importations » depuis Pétra (lampes nabatéennes) ou depuis la côte levantine (lampes hérodiennes).


FRANGIÉ Dina (France-Liban), “Les lampes hellénistiques et romaines de Beyrouth”
Les lampes présentées au cours de cette communication proviennent des fouilles d’urgence du centre ville de Beyrouth, chantiers 002 et 026. Le premier secteur (Bey 002) est situé au nord de la place des Martyrs (ou place des Canons), à l’emplacement du “petit sérail” ottoman, le second (Bey 026) n’est qu’une extension de ce premier. Le niveau hellénistique de la fouille a livré un vaste ensemble d’habitations. Dans le matériel recueilli, on mentionnera quelques milliers de lampes appartenant à différentes époques. Les lampes hellénistiques sont au nombre de ca 900, et romaines 1000 environ. Ce sont des lampes tournées fermées ou moulées datant du début du IIIe s. av. J.-C. jusqu’au IVe s. ap. J.-C. Les lampes hellénistiques de Beyrouth ont fait l’objet d’une étude détaillée (Dina Frangié, mémoire de maîtrise, 2003), première étude d’ensemble sur les lampes hellénistiques de Beyrouth ; deux types de lampes hellénistiques sont publiées dans les actes du colloque de Nyon organisé par l’ILA (sous presse). Les lampes romaines dont l’étude d’ensemble vient d’être achevée par moi-même devraient être publiées dans le volume consacré à la céramique romaine et byzantine du chantier 002/026. Je consacrerai la communication à vous présenter les principaux types de lampes hellénistiques et romaines de Beyrouth. La fouille de sauvetage des secteurs 002 et 026 de Beyrouth n’a pas fourni de données stratigraphiques suffisamment satisfaisantes, comme c’est le cas de nombreux autres secteurs de la fouille du centre-ville. L’étude présentée ici ne peut pas donc s’appuyer sur une stratigraphie très explicite, et les tentatives de datations ont été réalisées en rassemblant le maximum de données matérielles (dans la limite des données fournies par les spécialistes), en provenance des mêmes unités stratigraphiques que ces lampes ; ce travail a été surtout enrichissant pour jeter la lumière sur quelques assemblages et observer quelques types de matériel contemporain de ces lampes. Les comparaisons avec des parallèles en provenance de sites voisins, bénéficiant de stratigraphies cohérentes et qui forment avec Beyrouth une même unité culturelle, ont été très enrichissantes sur le plan chronologique, artisanal et commercial. L’analyse des lampes, quoique constituant un matériel modeste, suggère des hypothèses intéressantes et des nouvelles voies de recherche concernant les échanges, les productions locales et la connaissance de certaines catégories de matériel très répandues dans la Méditerranée orientale, dont la provenance restait encore inconnue jusqu’à présent.


GRAWEHR Matthias (Switzerland), “Lamps of Nabataean Petra”
The Swiss-Liechtenstein excavations in the habitation quarter “Ez Zantur” above the civic centre of the former nabataean capital Petra produced some 3000 lamp fragments since 1988. My presentation will deal exclusively with a small section of the data : the locally produced Nabataean lamps (late 2nd cent. BC-106 AD). The complete Ez Zantur-corpus including specimens dating up until the 5th cent. AD. is in course of publication. The shapes and firing techniques of the earliest known locally produced lamps were closely related to the mouldmade production of the Eastern Mediterranean – but, astonishingly, the early Nabataean lamps were made by hand and mostly used locally. Consequently these lamps could not compete with the mouldmade massproduction and the higher quality standards of the imports, which were very common during the 1st cent. BC. At the very end of the 1st cent. BC the situation changed drastically. The archaeological data indicate that moulds were introduced in Petraean workshops. Signatures suggest that the change of the production technique may be connected to travelling Roman lampmakers. These trendsetters were immediately imitated by the local workshops and consequently, the increased local production ousted the imports to a high degree. The Roman inspired production proved to be extremely successful on the domestic Nabataean market from then on and persisted beyond the Roman annexation. Following the trends in the empire the repertoire of these “Roman” types was continuously updated. Disk motifs on the lamps reflecting the local cultural background remained rare exceptions. Late Hellenistic lamptypes from Egypt were another important influence on the Petraean workshops, which introduced in the early 1st cent AD two heavily egyptianizing types nowadays labelled as typical “Nabataean” lamps. They were very common throughout the whole kingdom. The popularity of these types is also reflected by the almost unaltered design up until the beginning of the 2nd cent. Some light will be shed on the lamp production as a facette of the closely knit economic system in Southern Transjordan and the paper will close with a short discussion of possible new methodological approaches to the study of Nabataean lamps.


HOLMQVIST Virpi (Finland), “Ceramic lamps from Jabal Harûn near Petra : Chronological and Typological considerations”
A ceramic oil lamp assemblage of over 100 specimens, including also complete lamps, has been found during the excavations of the Finnish Jabal Harûn Project (FJHP, University of Helsinki) since 1998. The archaeological site of Jabal Harûn, the mountain of the Prophet Aaron, is located in Southern Jordan, ca. 5 km southwest of the ancient city of Petra. Jewish, Christian and Muslim traditions refer to Jabal Harûn as the burial place of Moses’ brother, High Priest Aaron. The Jabal Harûn site is an extensive but ruined monastery and pilgrimage complex, which was built and in use during the 5th and the 6th centuries A.D. Its use continued at least to the Umayyad period (7th-8th centuries A.D). The site also contains structures dated to the Nabataean-Roman period, 1st century B.C. Hence, the Jabal Harûn ceramic lamp assemblage includes a variety of wheel-made and moulded lamps, mainly from the Byzantine and Early Islamic periods. The most representative lamps of the assemblage will be considered from typological and chronological viewpoints and presented in relation to their stratigraphic contexts. In addition, AMS-radiocarbon datings of samples taken from the nozzle soot of the lamps will be discussed.


KEHRBERG Ina (Australie), “The problematic of lamps : their contexts and taxonomic iconographies”
Two sites at Jerash and some of their archaeological contexts in particular have provided new information about mould-made lamps and their development from the Early Roman to the Byzantine period. The excavations of the hippodrome (1984-1996, DAJ : A.A.Ostrasz and I.Kehrberg) and the excavations of the Upper Temple of Zeus complex (1996-2000, IF[A]PO : J.-P.Braun, I.Kehrberg et.al.) have uncovered crucial material evidence for re-examinations of lamps and their chronological classifications. The case studies presented in this paper illustrate some of the points which at least in theory may necessitate many new lamp studies to attempt equally a revision of standard classified types of previous excavations. The first case are two clay matrixes or ‘sculptures’ of mould-made Late Hellenistic and Early Roman lamps found in the pottery kiln waste dump at the Hippodrome dated to the 3rd-4th century AD. The second case-lamp belongs to the Late Roman period and comes from a late 2nd-early 3rd century AD context at the North Temenos of the Upper Temple of Zeus ; the third again from hippodrome kilns with an earliest date of late 3rd ; the fourth example is a gypsum mould from a hippodrome kiln of the 4th-5th century and the last examples are a mould from a 5th and 6th century kiln at the hippodrome. Each lamp case will throw light on the problem we created with regard to abstract and standardised typologies arranged in chronological order and according to decoration and shape. The lamps will demonstrate that each ‘lamp type’ may have its generic origin but can have different life spans that cannot be reconciled with generic typologies. The results of this brief overview will also stress the importance of dating artifacts within a meaningful integral context, whatever their ‘standard’ classification label and not vice versa as is still often the case with many lamps finds.


LAFLI Ergun (Turquie), “Terracotta Lamp Collection of Antioch Museum in Southwestern Turkey”
Northwestern Syria has long been suspected of having an important role in lamp production during the Hellenistic, Roman and Early Byzantine periods, but no specific site has been proved yet. Source of Eastern Sigillata A is unknown, but suspected to be in the Antioch area. Therefore, this paper has been devoted to the lamp collection of Antioch Museum in southwestern Turkey. Antioch has been excavated by an U.S. American team back in 1930s. It was the capital city of the Seleucid dynasty in early Hellenistic period. Not a great deal of terracotta lamps from Antioch is known or has been published about Hellenistic-Roman sites in Turkish southeast. Antioch-on-the-Orontes is a strong contender of lamp production and it seems likely that at least some of the sites in the region have been imported their lamps from there. We cannot, however, determine the extent and range of imports from Antioch until we can distinguish between the clays. Nevertheless publications of lamps from southeastern Turkish and northwestern Syrian Hellenistic-Roman sites are rare. Studying the pottery collection of Hatay (Antioch) Museum can therefore be a great companion to our knowledge of lamp productions in the region. Collaboration with Princeton University that has in their possession some pottery from Antioch is also planned.


MANSOUR Sahar (Jordanie), “Hellenistic, Roman Lamps from the last excavations at the lower terrace of Amman Citadel”
Our knowledge of the Hellenistic period in Amman has been gained mainly from a limited number of archaeological excavations ; a few excavation deposits have revealed remains of Hellenistic occupation. The lack of both architecture and artifacts of early Hellenistic era is a noticeable phenomenon in all classical sites in Jordan, comparison with the remains of the late Hellenistic period. Further more the literary records that shed any light on this period are rare : Polybius relates that Antiochus III the great launched his troops to conquer Philadelphia in 218 BC ; the records of Zenon’s visit to Trans-Jordan around the year 256 BC contain no suggestion of impressive economic, demographic or cultural conditions. Therefore we cannot disregard any of the Hellenistic artifacts if we wish to create clearer information of this period in the lower terrace of the citadel where were built the defenses from the middle Bronze II (1750-1500BC) to the Iron Age and Hellenistic-Roman periods. In the south-east corner of the lower terrace the excavations revealed a casemate wall. This type of defense is common in the Iron Age II in Palestine and Jordan. This casemate wall continued in use at the Hellenistic period. At the west part of the outer casemate wall, a small room exists (2.50×2.50M) with a small entrance 1 m wide and 1.40 m high, both the entrance and room are coated with a thick layer of white plaster. The deposit inside this room dated to the Hellenistic period a large amount of sherds stamped Rhodian amphoras over the plastered floor were found (one is restored) : these remains indicate that the room was used as a storage place in the Hellenistic period. Also the stratified evidence inside the casemate gives a good sign that this structure continued in use in the Hellenistic period. The Hellenistic modifications are also quite obvious by adding a wall in square 4 directed from north to south that lay over the Iron Age wall. Maybe this wall is connected to the Hellenistic wall, which is located in the south-east corner of the lower terraces (Area B), which was excavated by Zayadine in 1973 (unpublished report). These walls were standing during the Third Syrian War (221-217 B.C ) in the period of Antiochus III. Polybius tell us (hist. V, 71,9) that Antiochus III the Great launched his troops on the conquest of Coele -Syria. Learning that his enemies were concentrated at Amman (Philadelphia), he besieged the city and he installed his siege machines at two sections, maybe to the south and north. The defenders surrendered when a captured prisoner revealed to the besiegers the location of an underground passageway leading to the hidden water supply. They blocked the tunnel with “wood, stones and all such kind of things”. The Hellenistic depositions, which were discovered over a Hellenistic floor inside the parallel walls, that formed of hard mud with spots of plaster covering it in some parts. It contains a large quantity of body sherds and inscribed Rhodian amphore-handles, dating to 3rd -2nd B.C century. A black decorated lamp, a similar one dated by Lapp to 200 B.C (Lapp : 1961), and other broken lamps, plates, bowls of black and red color (Fig), and two pieces of bronze coins were retrieved in a dark soil in bad state of preservation, but we are able to identify the Ptolemic eagle on the reverse. The Roman lamps were discovered at the Byzantines houses, which located also at the lower terrace. Six spouted lamps dated to the late Roman period.


MLYNARCZYK Jolanta (Pologne), “Late Ummayad lamps from Hippos (Susita), Jund al Urdun (Golan)”
Since 2000, the Polish archaeological team has participated in an international project (under the auspices of the Haifa University) aiming at revealing the remains of Hippos/Susita, one of the Dekapolis towns, a close neighbour of Gadara/Umm Qays. Our task has been to uncover the so-called North-west Church situated at the very centre of the Byzantine/Umayyad town, in a place which till the 4th/5th century was occupied by a pagan temple. Although during six seasons of systematic fieldwork at Susita terracotta lamps or their fragments attributed to the Byzantine/Umayyad times were found in all the areas under exploration, it is only the North-west Church that yielded lamps firmly sealed in destruction deposits of the earthquake of AD 749. In this communication, we are going to examine the examples of the Umayyad-period terracotta lamps from Susita, with emphasis on the finds from the church which are safely dated to around the mid-8th century AD. The latter pertain to just two well-defined types, and the examination of their fabrics suggests that they originated in the same manufacturing centre as jar lids and a few other pottery vessels found in the diakonikon of the church. The study of this assemblage may significantly advance our knowledge of regional trade patterns in this part of Jund al Urdun. MLYNARCZYK Jolanta (Pologne), “The fading lights of a Church…“ In the so-called North-west Church at Hippos/Susita, which was destroyed by the earthquake in AD 749 and never rebuilt, a number of objects have been found definitely crucial to the interpretation of the religious practices of local Christians in the final years of the Umayyad rule. The finds included not only an altar, reliquaries and marble balustrades of the chancel with votive crosses of silver fixed to the columnettes, but also lighting devices. Among them, there were two polycandela of bronze, a bronze lamp in shape of a dove as well as terracotta lamps and fragments of glass lamps. The finding places of these objects are indeed relevant to their specific liturgical use : a dove-lamp hung before the Eucharistic altar, a polycandelon in the arched entrance to the martyrion chapel, and humble terracotta lamps lit by the faithful in front of the chancel screens ; unused terracotta lamps and another polycandelon were being stored in the diakonikon. This communication will discuss the lighting system of the North-west Church as reflection of the liturgical organization ; some comparisons will be presented in an attempt to trace the diffusion of specific models of lighting devices throughout the Bilad esh-Sham in the Byzantine and Umayyad periods.


SALLES Jean-François (France) & FRANGIÉ Dina (Liban), “Lampes de Byblos”
La plupart des chercheurs d’aujourd’hui considèrent que la quasi-totalité du matériel archéologique recueilli pendant près de cinquante années de fouilles sur le site de Jbeil-Byblos est « inutile » – à quelques exceptions d’ensembles homogènes publiés par les fouilleurs au fur et à mesure de leurs découvertes (par ex., la jarre Montet). Cette affirmation d’un matériel « sans intérêt » repose sur deux constatations. D’une part, il ne paraît pas possible, dans les volumineux catalogues d’objets que sont les Fouilles de Byblos I (1939) et Fouilles de Bybolos II (1954-1958), d’attribuer une date à chaque trouvaille autre que celle proposée par le fouilleur M. Dunand, dans la mesure où le lecteur « pressé » ne sait pas retrouver la position horizontale et verticale de l’objet – et, dans de nombreux cas, M. Dunand ne propose pas de date ni d’analyse détaillée de chacune de ses trouvailles. Le mieux qu’on puisse faire, semble-t-il, est une liste des lampes mentionnées et/ou illustrées dans ces deux volumes, et d’en établir un classement typologique : c’est ce qu’on trouvera dans cette communication (Dina Frangié). D’autre part, la « méthode Dunand », définie à plusieurs reprises avec précision par son auteur, ne permet pas, le plus souvent, de reconstituer une réelle « stratigraphie » du site, peu présente il est vrai dans le déroulement quotidien de la fouille. Les grandes phases archéologiques de l’antique cité demeurent fréquemment incertaines, en particulier dans les niveaux supérieurs – il faut rappeler combien le site a été bouleversé par les grandes constructions du Moyen Âge et des siècles postérieurs. Dès lors, l’inventaire présenté plus haut ne présente aucun autre intérêt que typologique, et pourrait constituer une collection quelconque sans réelle provenance. Ces deux affirmations sont en partie exagérées, même si une analyse scientifique telle que requise par les méthodes archéologiques du XXIe siècle reste évidemment inaccessible. Mais un dépouillement très attentif des divers dossiers documentaires publiés permet d’avancer quelques propositions sur l’organisation des niveaux supérieurs du site, et de mieux replacer de nombreuses trouvailles dans leur contexte archéologique et historique : c’est ce qu’on s’efforcera de présenter pour les lampes publiées de Byblos (Jean-François Salles).


VILLENEUVE Estelle (France), “Lampes d’époque omeyyade inscrites en arabe, Jordanie et Bilad esh-Sham”
L’examen d’une soixantaine de lampes inscrites en arabe koufique, dispersé à travers les publications depuis plus d’un siècle et enrichi de quelques inédits, permet d’établir une typologie croisée des formes céramiques et des informations épigraphiques. A la lueur du corpus, nous proposerons une nouvelle lecture de certaines inscriptions qui soulèvent quelques questions relatives au mode d’emploi des lampes, du combustible utilisé et l’évolution ultérieure des modes d’éclairage. Enfin, les lampes signées par les potiers de Jérash pemettent quelques remarques onomastiques.


ZAYADINE Fawzi (Amman) : “Hellenistic lamps from the estate of the Tobiads (wadi Seer)”
The Citadel hill, in the heart of modern Amman preserves the remains of ancient Rabbth-‘Ammon-Philadelphia. The strategic hill, 840 m ab.s.l. is isolated by deep ravines on both sides, except on the north Jebel al-Hussein where the slope provides access to the defense wall. It was usually from that side that the citadel was attacked, since a large water cistern is excavated in the rock promontary. Because of this water reservoir, this part of the ‘Amman was designated as the « City of Water » in the Biblical records (2 Sam.12 : 26-31 ; 1 Chr 20 : 1-3). From that northern part of Rabbat-Amana Antiochus III stormed and captured the citadel hill in 218 BC. The Citadel extends in four terraces from northwest to southeast. In the upper terrace were built the defenses from the Middle Bronze II (1750-1500 BC) to the Iron age and Hellenistic periods. In this part of the Citadel, around the Umayyad Audience Hall and the circular cistern were discovered Hellenistic levels from the early second century BC, from Squares 2 and 4 (ADAJ, 22 [1977-8], 37). The four moulded lamps (Fig.23 and Pl.XXIII, 1) are made of grey metallic ware : J.13374 and 13377 are decorated with rosettes and radiating incised lines. Lamp J. 13378 of grey ware is provided with seven spouts and is decorated with two palmettes and semi-circlar lines. There was a seven spouted lamp found from the excavations of Samaria-Sebaste near Nablus, but there is no close parallel to this lamp in the available publications of Jordan. The pottery from the square 2 is early second century BC. The Hellenistic lamps could be dated to that period, except for lamp J.13377 of pear shaped but has no side projection. It is poorly moulded and could be an imitation of the second century BC types ; it may be dated to the first century BC. The other group of Hellenistic lamps was found by Sahar Mansour and Husam Hijazeen in the lower third terrace.

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