This work deals with the archaeometric study of the Bronze Age and Iron Age pottery from Tell Mishrifeh/Qatna (central‐western Syria), where the complete cycle of ceramic production is well documented. Petrographic, chemical and diffractometric analyses were carried out on both potsherds and a clayey material found in a separation basin within the area of the workshops. Petrographic groups were defined and maximum firing temperatures and redox firing conditions were estimated, providing constraints on identifying the production technology and its evolution with time. The studied potsherds turned out to be locally produced, with only a few cases of possible similarities with those described for other localities along the Orontes Valley, and in a couple of cases with evidence of pottery exchange.

The archaeological site Qurayyah, situated in the NW of the Tabuk Province of Saudi Arabia, has been repeatedly described as one of the largest and most significant oases of Northwestern Arabia. Human occupation in the oasis started at least from the early Holocene and continued to the Nabatean, Roman and late Byzantine period. The hydrologically favored position results from its specific geomorphological location where the plateaus fade towards the east and the landscape opens towards the Tabuk Basin so that a balanced water supply was ensured. We present a geomorphological map (1:20,000; main map) based on the interpretation of a high-resolution satellite image and detailed control in the field. The map integrates archaeological, hydraulic and natural features in order to show how the people at Qurayyah structured their landscape and developed water management strategies in relation to prevailing geomorphological processes during the incipient phase (Bronze Age) of the oasis.

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The phenomenon of very extended desert oases settlements, mega-sites featuring complex irrigation systems and monumental walls has long been observed in Northern Arabia. In the past, it has been linked to the settling down of nomadic components of the population and dated through archaeological material to the Late Bronze or Iron Ages (late second to mid-first millennium BCE). Since 2014 we have been investigating this development through the case study of the oasis of Qurayyah, a walled site of over 300 ha (Tabuk, NW Saudi Arabia). After mapping the geomorphological and hydroarchaeological layout of this ancient settlement, we established the age of key locations of the site through OSL and radiometric measurements from controlled stratigraphic excavations. We could thus confirm that a major – the largest so far documented in Arabia – flood protection and surface water harvesting system (SWHS) was developed already during the Early Bronze Age (2900–2600 calBCE) onto the relict late Pleistocene playa landscape. This sophisticated anthropogenic hydraulic infrastructure enabled the foundation of the river oasis and construction of the permanent walled settlement. Since different components of the SWHS erected on the site (dam, inlet, canals, weirs, outlet, etc.) resulted being synchronic, they are understood as functional elements of one and the same system. A test of the functionality of the identified SWHS for different rainfall scenarios has confirmed that the volume of its catchment’s surface-water supply was sufficient for irrigation, productive and drinking needs of the large oasis since its Early Bronze Age creation.

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<p>The arid regions of the world occupy 46% of the total surface area, providing a habitat for 3 billion people. More than 630 million people are directly affected by desertification. Extreme events like droughts and flash floods increase the pressure on plants, animals and above all, humans and their settlements. In the context of a climate change with such far-reaching consequences, historical oases settlements stand out as best practice examples, because their water supply systems must have been adapted to the changing climate during the Holocene to guarantee the viability of the oases and their inhabitants. I will focus on the ancient oasis Qurayyah, located in the northwest of the Arabian Peninsula, a unique example in this context. Recent research has proven that, lacking a groundwater spring, the formation of a permanent settlement in Qurayyah was made possible mainly by surface-water harvesting, with local fracture springs potentially only providing drinking water. First numerical dating results for the water harvesting system from optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of quartz confirm that the system was erected in a period characterized by changing climatic conditions from the Holocene climate optimum to the recent arid phase. This study aims to determine parameters and chronology of this sustainable irrigation system and intends to learn and understand how ancient settlers accomplished the construction of such a highly developed water supply system. To reach this research aim the irrigation system was reconstructed using field mapping and remote sensing techniques. It was shown that the reconstructed irrigation system worked as a flood irrigation system. Dams and channels were built to maximize the flooded area and at the same time to prevent catastrophic flooding under high discharge conditions. Contemporaneous historical irrigation systems in comparable size and complexity are known from Mesopotamia or Egypt. In addition to the system’s reconstruction, a new reverse engineering approach based on palaeobotany was developed for Qurayyah to reconstruct the climate conditions during the time of its operation. Compared to today’s precipitation of 32 mm per year in the research area, our results imply that the irrigation system was constructed in a time of significant climate change, because significantly higher amounts of precipitation would have been necessary to enable the cultivation of olive trees (reference plant for the reverse engineering approach), with a sufficient amount of water.</p>

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