Fulayj: a Late Sasanian fort on the Arabian coast

Abstract

Abstract

20,000 years of societal vulnerability and adaptation to climate change in southwest Asia

“…In southern Mesopotamia, there has been a long tradition of archaeological excavations and survey that provide insight into changing settlement systems, including the rise of urbanism, and the concomitant fluctuations in population size and distribution (e.g., Adams, ; Adams & Nissen, ). Similar data have also long been available for parts of Iran (e.g., Alden, ; Hole, ; Smith et al, ), and there are growing datasets for northern Mesopotamia and the adjacent uplands (e.g., Lawrence et al, ; Wilkinson et al, ), and parts of SE Arabia (al‐Jahwari & Kennet, , ; Magee, ) and also south Asia (e.g., Kumar, ; Possehl, ).…”

Archaeobotanical analysis of food and fuel procurement from Fulayj fort (Oman, 5th-8th c. CE) including the earliest secure evidence for sorghum in Eastern Arabia

“…The recent discovery of the Late Sasanian fort of Fulayj on the Batinah plain (Sultanate of Oman), occupied between the early 5th to 8th century, provides unique information about the nature of the Sasanian occupation. Moreover, with the exception of the tower from the site of Kush, this is the only site in Eastern Arabia to document the transition between the end of Antiquity and the beginning of the Islamic period (al-Jahwari et al 2018). The sequence from Fulayj provides information on a period which is still poorly understood archaeologically, including archaeobotanical data framed by a robust absolute chronology.…”

“…This phase is associated with the secondary insertion of mudbrick architecture inside the fort in Trench F and the later construction of an oven, possibly indicating a shift in site function from a military to a domestic occupation. After the general abandonment of the fort, some irregular walls and later pottery indicate limited activity within the area dated to the Late Islamic Period (16th to 20th century, Phase 4) (al-Jahwari et al 2018). Phases 1 and 4 have been mainly excluded from the archaeobotanical study because they are not directly linked to the occupation of the fort.…”

“…Publication of the whole corpus remains in progress (Dabrowski 2019: 159-200;Dabrowski et al forthcoming;Tengberg et al forthcoming). Recent archaeological investigations conducted at the Late Sasanian and Early Islamic fort of Fulayj on the Batinah plain (Sultanate of Oman), occupied from the c. early 5th to 8th century, provides a significant opportunity to increase our knowledge of the plant economy by studying macro-botanical remains (seeds, fruits, charcoals) from the only known site of this date in Oman (Priestman 2019, al-Jahwari et al 2018. This study sheds light on food and fuel acquisition strategies in an arid environment during the Late Sasanian and Early Islamic periods.…”

Sasanian Empire, Archaeology of the

“…Nevertheless, recent evidence, such as radiocarbon-dated human skeletons in the UAE alongside strontium isotopic studies, show evidence of individuals arriving from the Sasanian world, as is visible in the possession of Sasanian stamp seals by one interred individual (Kutterer et al 2015). Likewise, the recently uncovered fort of Fulayj in northwestern Oman has been directly radiocarbon dated to the Late Sasanian (fifth to mid-seventh centuries CE) period (al-Jahwari et al 2018. ).…”