The Ceramic Neolithic (SCU) period in Cyprus is unusual because of the island-wide uniformity observable in the material culture remains. It is only in the ceramic repertoire that regional variation can be detected, and this is most clearly evident in the surface decoration on the painted pottery. Regional variation is common in prehistoric societies, where external elements can act upon social and economic structures and thereby contribute to diversity. In Cyprus, where there were no external influences, factors that contributed to diversity were internally circumscribed. The predominant forces acting upon SCU Cyprus were economic. Subsistence strategies governed the ways in which early populations conducted their daily lives and interacted with others. The undertaking of seasonally related subsistence tasks would have directed the types of interaction that occurred between village groups and regions. Looking specifically at the material culture of the SCU phase, and in particular the distribution of variation in the pottery, the socio-economic processes that contributed to regional diversity are defined. Ceramic variation in SCU Cyprus is predominantly stylistic, and style can appear in many guises. Moreover, it is stylistic variation that is the extant measurable element of social interaction. This thesis argues that economic factors directed the types of social interactive processes that occurred during the SCU phase, and that this is reflected as stylistic variation in the ceramics. Measuring variety against the backdrop of economic and subsistence models aids the identification of the types of relationships which existed.

This thesis seeks to contextualize detailed studies of a number of domestic sites from the Later Iron Age through the entirety of the Roman period within the broader pattern of rural settlement in the modern counties of Oxfordshire, Sussex and Yorkshire. The primary aim is to examine the record of diverse rural settlements for evidence revealing the dynamics of cultural change in such areas. A secondary aim is to illustrate that, although large bodies of work incorporating general data can show sweeping trends, adding to this a more thorough investigation on a site-by-site basis can further illuminate materialities of practice in the past, leading to new ways of considering social interaction and local perspectives. In this way, comparing data at different scales of resolution can fill gaps in knowledge and lead us to a better understanding of group identity and social change. This study is primarily concerned with domestic occupation in a rural context, though of course in such a context agricultural activities (which in some cases are ‘invisible’ in the archaeological record) feature strongly among the daily routines which structure the record. Nonetheless, the complexity and multi-dimensionality of both domestic and other everyday activities can be revealed through detailed material studies couched within the interpretive framework of practice-theory. The different scales of research utilized in this thesis range from unpublished site reports to broad regional compendia, and each level of specification has a role in furnishing exploration of the dynamic role of different types of material culture, use of space, and daily practice. Exploiting evidence from rural sites to its full potential, the indepth comparison of sites within and between different regions offered in this thesis furnishes a novel range of perspectives on the construction and maintenance of local and regional social identities, both prior to and throughout the Roman period.

This research evaluates the potential of a geochemical and phytolith dual methodology for identifying activity areas at ephemeral sites, and adds to our understanding of the formation processes involved in the creation and preservation of soil signatures at ephemeral sites situated in dynamic environments. The work focuses on an investigation of the social use of space in temporary contexts using ethnographic and Neolithic case studies in Jordan. The background to this research involves the need for a better understanding of ancient activities at ephemeral sites during the Neolithic in the Near East. Despite the importance of this period, there are still many unanswered questions regarding the dramatic changes in subsistence and lifestyle that are associated with it. The structures built in this period, which in many ways embody the transition from hunter-gatherer societies to farming communities, are difficult to interpret due to their ephemeral nature and scarcity of organic remains. Nevertheless, although the motivation behind this research is achieving a better understanding of the Neolithic in the Near East, its outcomes are widely applicable to studies of ephemeral archaeological sites in various settings. A dual geochemical and phytolith methodology was applied to seven Bedouin campsites at Wadi Faynan, Jordan, which constituted the ethnoarchaeological data. This was done in order to test the methodology in a controlled setting where knowledge of the use of space at the sites was at hand. The campsites were either occupied or abandoned for various lengths of time during sampling. This allowed for a consideration of taphonomic processes involved in the creation and preservation of soil signatures at these sites. The dual methodology was also applied to three of the Neolithic sites of Wadi el- Jilat, Jordan. This was done in order to test the dual methodology on archaeological case studies, assessing its efficacy in identifying activity areas through the soil signatures that were still available at these sites following an abandonment period of more than 8,000 years. The geochemical and phytolith dual methodology was found to be successful in distinguishing activity areas at the ethnoarchaeological and archaeological sites, and carries much potential for future studies of the use of space in ephemeral structures. While previous studies have experimented with the use of multiple geoarchaeological methods for the study of spatial patterning at ethnographic and archaeological sites, this study is the first to address the use of statistical methods to combine the results from two different analysis techniques. The appropriate use of methods for data display and manipulation was found to be important for the successful application of multiple analysis techniques, allowing their results to aid archaeological interpretations of space. This research has contributed to knowledge by establishing the value of a dual geochemical-phytolith methodology for interpreting the use of space at ephemeral sites. Through future applications of this dual methodology and the statistical tools explored in this study, a contribution can also be made to our understanding of the social use of space in sites and during periods which are difficult to interpret.

The main focus of this research is on the funerary archaeology of the Hafit period (3,200-2,500 BC) in Early Bronze Age eastern Arabia, particularly within the Al-Batinah region of Oman. Notwithstanding the period’s lengthy research history our understanding of Hafit society is still very limited, while despite its importance little archaeological research has been carried out in Al-Batinah. The aim of the thesis is to explore the Batinah's Hafit archaeological dataset within the context of the northern Oman Peninsula and the wider region in order to consolidate our understanding of Hafit society. Google Earth is used to map the relative density and ubiquity of Hafit tombs across the northern Oman Peninsula, and to estimate the number of surviving Hafit tombs and the average size of the Hafit population. The location of every visible Hafit tomb in the Batinah region is also mapped. GIS analysis is carried out on both of these datasets in order to model the distribution of Hafit tombs in the Batinah and more broadly across the northern Oman Peninsula. To complement this regional analysis, three Hafit cemeteries and a suspected Hafit settlement are surveyed and recorded in detail on the ground. All of this data is brought together along with the published evidence in an attempt to provide fresh insight into the nature of Hafit society. Subsistence, the wider economy, and politics and ideology are discussed in detail. The importance of nomadic pastoralism, water resources, copper, and local and international trade emerge as major themes, as does the development of the Hafit economy and social structures later in the period. The wider geographical context is also examined – the phenomenon of widespread stone tomb construction in the fourth and third millennia BC across southwest Asia, and what this may reveal about Hafit society.

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The first chapter discusses why the topic and general approach of thesis was chosen. It outlines some of the problems involved in the study of the different resources as expressed in the archaeological record, addressing each resource individually. Finally, a model for the analysis of resource management is introduced. The Heit el-Ghurab settlement and various other settlement sites on the Giza Plateau are discussed. Each site is examined individually according to its project history, general features and activities concerning resource procurement and management, followed by a brief discussion. An overall discussion of the Giza sites concludes this chapter. The next three chapters discuss the settlements of Kom el-Hisn, Elephantine and Ayn Asil according to the outline developed for the chapter on the Giza Plateau. The final chapter summarises the various forms of resource procurement and management for the individual resources, before turning to discuss the economic character of the settlements studied and their interconnection. Finally, there follows a short discussion of the nature of the Old Kingdom economy on the basis of the results of the previous chapters, including a brief examination of earlier studies of the ancient Egyptian economic system

The aim of this thesis is to examine the pattern and extent of Near Eastern influence on Greek jewellery of the eleventh to eighth centuries B.C., concentrating on the areas of Athens, Lefkandi, and Knossos. These areas have been chosen because the excavations of all three areas have been fully published; in addition, some of the material from Lefkandi and Knossos has only recently been published, and so has not yet been included in a study of this nature. An introductory section gives a history of the study of jewellery, listing past work; from there, the process of the current study is laid out: the areas and periods of focus, the nature of the evidence, and the types (e.g. dress pins, finger rings, pendants) that will be considered. In addition, an overview of the Late Bronze Age material from the Aegean is given, to provide both a reference and a starting point for the study of the Early Iron Age material. One chapter is devoted to each area – Athens, Lefkandi, and Knossos, - in which the jewellery is laid out by date and type, and examined in the light of the development of the material from the Sub-Mycenaean/Sub-Minoan period to the end of the eighth century, and the influences, both internal and external, that are evident in the material. In addition to the individual studies, another chapter is devoted to a comparison of the material from all three areas, focusing in particular on differences and changes in types, usage, influence, and dates. Chapter seven gives a brief overview of Near Eastern jewellery, particularly the types, techniques, and materials used in its production. Following this is a chapter that compares the Greek material with the Near Eastern, examining in particular motifs, materials, types, and techniques that might have entered into the Greek repertoire by way of the Near East, and highlighting the dates of this adoption. The concluding chapter summarizes the material covered and gives conclusions comparing the nature and dates of Near Eastern influence on the jewellery in each of the three areas of Greece under consideration.

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For nearly 24 years, the archaeology of northern Cyprus has not been investigated as thoroughly as that in the southern part of the island. All foreign projects, which are responsible for the substantial majority of the archaeological work in Cyprus, are active in the south. This has created a major imbalance in our knowledge of the prehistory of the island. The new discoveries in the south have advanced our knowledge of the prehistoric period in Cyprus in many ways, but at the same time the lack of archaeological work in the north makes these potentially biased, and theoretical approaches cannot be confirmed without knowledge of the whole island. This thesis is an attempt to narrow this gap by applying a survey method that has not been applied on such a large scale in Cyprus before, with new interpretative aims and methods. The period of interest is from the Aceramic Neolithic to the end of the Chalcolithic, approximately 7,500 - 2,800 BC. The survey was carried out in Kyrenia district, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, over two field seasons. A total of twenty-eight sites was selected according to their surface richness from Stanley Price's gazetteer of sites published in 1979. Out of these sites twenty-two had surface finds, three had no surface finds and three were not found. In addition to these sites two previously unknown sites were discovered and surveyed. The method of survey was two-fold. The first was intensive total surface collection using a five metre grid, with results fed into a mapping programme to create scatter maps showing artefact distribution. The second was extensive area survey, which involved systematic field walking accompanied by surface collection.

No description available.