Mohammad Najjar
Biographic Data
| ID | 1001793 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Mohammad Najjar |
| GIVEN NAMES | Mohammad |
| FAMILY NAME | Najjar |
| SIGNATURE | NAJJAR M |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of California San Diego |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-5827-8345 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 25 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 131 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 25 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2002 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 8 |
Islamic Landscapes of Southern Jordan: The Evidence from Archaeological Investigations of Wādī Fidān in the Faynān Region
Wādī Fidān, the western portion of the Wādī Faynān system, has long been recognized as important for understanding the pre- and proto-historic occupation of southern Jordan. Its later periods are less known, but it remained a dynamic and important part of the regional settlement system. This paper presents the results of analysis of data from legacy excavations at Khirbat Ḥamrā Ifdān (KHI) and Wādī Fidān District (WFD) 50a and situates the result…
As if the Pieces of the Past Were in Our Hands”: Nonlinear Digital Public Archaeology with 3D Models on Sketchfab
This article describes the publication and evaluation of a user-driven narrative module on the public-facing 3D platform Sketchfab, which comprises dozens of interlinked 3D models relating to the archaeology of the Faynan region of Southern Jordan. Models included in the project are archaeological sites, excavation units, and artifacts related to the Iron Age and Islamic period archaeology of the region. By interlinking these models according to …
High resolution elemental characterization of prehistoric flint sources in southern Israel: Implications for archaeological provenance studies
Ceramic technology at Wadi Fidan 61, an early Pottery Neolithic site (ca. 6500 B.C.E.) in the Faynan region of southern Jordan
The Faynan region of southern Jordan became a center of industrial-scale metallurgical production during the Bronze and Iron Ages. However, socio-economic developments of the Pottery Neolithic period (ca. 6500-5500 B.C.E.) that helped set the stage for the rise of complex copper-producing societies are not well-understood. In this paper, we focus on ceramic technology at the early Pottery Neolithic site of Wadi Fidan 61 in the western part of the…
Integrating Digital Datasets into Public Engagement through ArcGIS StoryMaps
Archaeologists have a responsibility to use their research to engage people and provide opportunities for the public to interact with cultural heritage and interpret it on their own terms. This can be done through hypermedia and deep mapping as approaches to public archaeology. In twenty-first-century archaeology, scholars can rely on vastly improved technologies to aid them in these efforts toward public engagement, including digital photography…
Up the Wadi: Development of an Iron Age Industrial Landscape in Faynan, Jordan
In 2014, the Edom Lowlands Regional Archaeology Project renewed excavations at Khirbat al-Jariya (KAJ), an Iron Age copper smelting site in Faynan, Jordan. Located roughly 3 km from the prominent smelting center Khirbat en-Nahas (KEN), KAJ was an integral component of Early Iron Age (ca. 1200–800 b.c.) copper production in Faynan, one of the largest copper ore deposits in the southern Levant. To date, the site had only been investigated by survey…
Quantifying the effects of erosion on archaeological sites with low-altitude aerial photography, structure from motion, and GIS: A case study from southern Jordan
Khirbat al‐Mana‘iyya: An early Islamic‐period copper‐smelting site in south‐eastern Wadi ‘Araba, Jordan
Recent excavations in south‐eastern Wadi ‘Araba in Jordan have revealed the first early Islamic‐period copper‐smelting site known in the eastern side of the valley, which extends south of the Dead Sea to the Gulf of ‘Aqaba. Five test pits were excavated in 2012 at Khirbat al–Mana‘iyya, a prominent copper‐smelting camp in south‐eastern Wadi ‘Araba, Jordan. The results of these excavations demonstrate that the site was primarily active in the seven…
Environmental impacts of ancient copper mining and metallurgy: Multi-proxy investigation of human-landscape dynamics in the Faynan valley, southern Jordan
Early Bronze Age copper production systems in the northern Arabah Valley: New insights from archaeomagnetic study of slag deposits in Jordan and Israel
Building WF16: Construction of a Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA) pisé structure in Southern Jordan
The Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA) period in South-west Asia is essential for our understanding of the transition to sedentary, agricultural communities. Developments in architecture are key to understanding this transition, but many aspects of PPNA architecture remain elusive, such as construction techniques, the selection of building materials and the functional use of space. The primary aim of the research described within this contribution wa…
Characterizing the rural landscape during the Iron Age and Roman period (ca. 1200 b.c.–a.d. 400): An intensive survey of Wadi al-Feidh, southern Jordan
Archaeological surveys in the southern Levant have traditionally focused on areas with favorable climates and flat terrain where large urban sites are found, corresponding with a research focus on social complexity and state formation. Fewer surveys have explored the rocky, difficult-to-reach areas where large-scale agriculture was rare. This article uses survey data from the 2009 survey of Wadi al-Feidh, southern Jordan, to demonstrate the impor…
Solomonic Phobia or 10th Century Bce Phobia? Response to Zeidan A. Kafafi, “New Insights on the Copper Mines of Wadi Faynan/Jordan”, Peq 146.4 (2014), 263–80
In Zeidan A. Kafafi's recent review of the University of California, San Diego – Department of Antiquities of Jordan surveys and excavations published in this journal, while admirably working with
Iron Age Nomads and their relation to copper smelting in Faynan (Jordan): Trace metal and Pb and Sr isotopic measurements from the Wadi Fidan 40 cemetery
Joint Custody: An Archaeological Park at Neolithic Ghwair I, Jordan
Archaeological parks have enjoyed considerable success in both presenting excavation results to the public and, often, in benefiting local communities. While many such parks focus on large and visually impressive sites, smaller sites also can benefit from this approach to archaeological presentation. Here, we present the results of a modest park at the Pre-Pottery Neolithic site of Ghwair I in the remote Wadi Faynan of southern Jordan. The park w…
Khirbat Nuqayb al-Asaymir and Middle Islamic Metallurgy in Faynan: Surveys of Wadi al-Ghuwayb and Wadi al-Jariya in Faynan, Southern Jordan
Khirbat Nuqayb al-Asaymir, in the Faynan region of southern Jordan, is one of the best-preserved Middle Islamic–period copper production sites in the southern Levant. Two seasons of survey in Wadi al-Ghuwayb and Wadi al-Jariya revealed much about the site and the landscape surrounding it, which during the Middle Islamic period was exploited primarily for mining and pastoral activities. The finds from these surveys, focusing on those collected at …
Ancient texts and archaeology revisited - radiocarbon and Biblical dating in the southern Levant
The Iron Age sequence in the southern Levant is one of the most evocative and provocative in ancient history, since it coincides with events remembered in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). The authors show how a scientific chronological framework can be created and contribute an independent voice to the historical debate. They also show that, if archaeology is to complement history, such a framework requires an especially rigorous application of …
The beginning of Iron Age copper production in the southern Levant: New evidence from Khirbat al-Jariya, Faynan, Jordan
The authors have explored the workplace and house of copper workers of the early Iron Age (twelfth to tenth century BC) in Jordan's Wadi Faynan copper ore district, showing that it belongs in time between the collapse of the great Bronze Age states and the arrival of Egyptians in the area under Sheshonq I. They attribute this production to local tribes - perhaps those engaged in building the biblical kingdom of Edom
New Iron Age Copper-Mine Fields Discovered in Southern Jordan
High-precision radiocarbon dating and historical biblical archaeology in southern Jordan
Recent excavations and high-precision radiocarbon dating from the largest Iron Age (IA, ca. 1200–500 BCE) copper production center in the southern Levant demonstrate major smelting activities in the region of biblical Edom (southern Jordan) during the 10th and 9th centuries BCE. Stratified radiocarbon samples and artifacts were recorded with precise digital surveying tools linked to a geographic information system developed to control on-site spa…
A new approach for geomagnetic archaeointensity research: Insights on ancient metallurgy in the Southern Levant
Some Thoughts on Khirbet En-Nahas, Edom, Biblical History and Anthropologya Response to Israel Finkelstein
Israel Finkelstein's recent comments inTel Aviv regarding our paper on the Iron Age excavations at Khirbet en-Nahas in southern Jordan contain numerous misinterpretations of the data. This short response outlines why those comments are erroneous. In particular, we describe why the formation of complex societies in Iron Age Edom did not occur under Assyrian tutelage
Ghwair I: A Small, Complex Neolithic Community in Southern Jordan
The past several years have witnessed exciting developments in defining the transition to food production in the Near East. In particula1; the documentation of large mega-sites has caused considerable revision in our comprehension of the trajectory of early Neolithic village life. At the same time, recent excavations at smaller villages have also provided considerable new data. One such site is Ghwair I, a small but exceptionally preserved Pre-Po…
Reassessing the chronology of Biblical Edom: New excavations and14C dates from Khirbat en-Nahas (Jordan)
An international team of researchers show how high-precision radiocarbon dating is liberating us from chronological assumptions based on Biblical research. Surface and topographic mapping at the large copper-working site of Khirbat en-Nahas was followed by stratigraphic excavations at an ancient fortress and two metal processing facilities located on the site surface. The results were spectacular. Occupation begins here in the eleventh century BC…
Early Bronze Age metallurgy: A newly discovered copper manufactory in southern Jordan
Recent excavations in southern Jordan have revealed the largest Early Bronze Age (c. 3600-2000 BC) metal manufactory in the ancient Near East. On-site Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analyses of the finds provide new evidence concerning the scale and organization of metal production at a time when the first cities emerged in this part of the Near East. Materials and lead isotope analyses of the metallurgical finds provide important data for …
Reassessing the chronology of Biblical Edom: New excavations and14C dates from Khirbat en-Nahas (Jordan)
An international team of researchers show how high-precision radiocarbon dating is liberating us from chronological assumptions based on Biblical research. Surface and topographic mapping at the large copper-working site of Khirbat en-Nahas was followed by stratigraphic excavations at an ancient fortress and two metal processing facilities located on the site surface. The results were spectacular. Occupation begins here in the eleventh century BC…
Early Bronze Age metallurgy: A newly discovered copper manufactory in southern Jordan
Recent excavations in southern Jordan have revealed the largest Early Bronze Age (c. 3600-2000 BC) metal manufactory in the ancient Near East. On-site Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analyses of the finds provide new evidence concerning the scale and organization of metal production at a time when the first cities emerged in this part of the Near East. Materials and lead isotope analyses of the metallurgical finds provide important data for …
Ghwair I: A Small, Complex Neolithic Community in Southern Jordan
The past several years have witnessed exciting developments in defining the transition to food production in the Near East. In particula1; the documentation of large mega-sites has caused considerable revision in our comprehension of the trajectory of early Neolithic village life. At the same time, recent excavations at smaller villages have also provided considerable new data. One such site is Ghwair I, a small but exceptionally preserved Pre-Po…
Early Bronze Age copper production systems in the northern Arabah Valley: New insights from archaeomagnetic study of slag deposits in Jordan and Israel
Iron Age Nomads and their relation to copper smelting in Faynan (Jordan): Trace metal and Pb and Sr isotopic measurements from the Wadi Fidan 40 cemetery
The beginning of Iron Age copper production in the southern Levant: New evidence from Khirbat al-Jariya, Faynan, Jordan
The authors have explored the workplace and house of copper workers of the early Iron Age (twelfth to tenth century BC) in Jordan's Wadi Faynan copper ore district, showing that it belongs in time between the collapse of the great Bronze Age states and the arrival of Egyptians in the area under Sheshonq I. They attribute this production to local tribes - perhaps those engaged in building the biblical kingdom of Edom
Environmental impacts of ancient copper mining and metallurgy: Multi-proxy investigation of human-landscape dynamics in the Faynan valley, southern Jordan
A new approach for geomagnetic archaeointensity research: Insights on ancient metallurgy in the Southern Levant
Quantifying the effects of erosion on archaeological sites with low-altitude aerial photography, structure from motion, and GIS: A case study from southern Jordan
Some Thoughts on Khirbet En-Nahas, Edom, Biblical History and Anthropologya Response to Israel Finkelstein
Israel Finkelstein's recent comments inTel Aviv regarding our paper on the Iron Age excavations at Khirbet en-Nahas in southern Jordan contain numerous misinterpretations of the data. This short response outlines why those comments are erroneous. In particular, we describe why the formation of complex societies in Iron Age Edom did not occur under Assyrian tutelage
Integrating Digital Datasets into Public Engagement through ArcGIS StoryMaps
Archaeologists have a responsibility to use their research to engage people and provide opportunities for the public to interact with cultural heritage and interpret it on their own terms. This can be done through hypermedia and deep mapping as approaches to public archaeology. In twenty-first-century archaeology, scholars can rely on vastly improved technologies to aid them in these efforts toward public engagement, including digital photography…
High resolution elemental characterization of prehistoric flint sources in southern Israel: Implications for archaeological provenance studies
Khirbat al‐Mana‘iyya: An early Islamic‐period copper‐smelting site in south‐eastern Wadi ‘Araba, Jordan
Recent excavations in south‐eastern Wadi ‘Araba in Jordan have revealed the first early Islamic‐period copper‐smelting site known in the eastern side of the valley, which extends south of the Dead Sea to the Gulf of ‘Aqaba. Five test pits were excavated in 2012 at Khirbat al–Mana‘iyya, a prominent copper‐smelting camp in south‐eastern Wadi ‘Araba, Jordan. The results of these excavations demonstrate that the site was primarily active in the seven…
Joint Custody: An Archaeological Park at Neolithic Ghwair I, Jordan
Archaeological parks have enjoyed considerable success in both presenting excavation results to the public and, often, in benefiting local communities. While many such parks focus on large and visually impressive sites, smaller sites also can benefit from this approach to archaeological presentation. Here, we present the results of a modest park at the Pre-Pottery Neolithic site of Ghwair I in the remote Wadi Faynan of southern Jordan. The park w…
Ancient texts and archaeology revisited - radiocarbon and Biblical dating in the southern Levant
The Iron Age sequence in the southern Levant is one of the most evocative and provocative in ancient history, since it coincides with events remembered in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). The authors show how a scientific chronological framework can be created and contribute an independent voice to the historical debate. They also show that, if archaeology is to complement history, such a framework requires an especially rigorous application of …
New Iron Age Copper-Mine Fields Discovered in Southern Jordan
Early Bronze Age metallurgy: A newly discovered copper manufactory in southern Jordan
Recent excavations in southern Jordan have revealed the largest Early Bronze Age (c. 3600-2000 BC) metal manufactory in the ancient Near East. On-site Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analyses of the finds provide new evidence concerning the scale and organization of metal production at a time when the first cities emerged in this part of the Near East. Materials and lead isotope analyses of the metallurgical finds provide important data for …
Reassessing the chronology of Biblical Edom: New excavations and14C dates from Khirbat en-Nahas (Jordan)
An international team of researchers show how high-precision radiocarbon dating is liberating us from chronological assumptions based on Biblical research. Surface and topographic mapping at the large copper-working site of Khirbat en-Nahas was followed by stratigraphic excavations at an ancient fortress and two metal processing facilities located on the site surface. The results were spectacular. Occupation begins here in the eleventh century BC…
Some Thoughts on Khirbet En-Nahas, Edom, Biblical History and Anthropologya Response to Israel Finkelstein
Israel Finkelstein's recent comments inTel Aviv regarding our paper on the Iron Age excavations at Khirbet en-Nahas in southern Jordan contain numerous misinterpretations of the data. This short response outlines why those comments are erroneous. In particular, we describe why the formation of complex societies in Iron Age Edom did not occur under Assyrian tutelage
Ghwair I: A Small, Complex Neolithic Community in Southern Jordan
The past several years have witnessed exciting developments in defining the transition to food production in the Near East. In particula1; the documentation of large mega-sites has caused considerable revision in our comprehension of the trajectory of early Neolithic village life. At the same time, recent excavations at smaller villages have also provided considerable new data. One such site is Ghwair I, a small but exceptionally preserved Pre-Po…
High-precision radiocarbon dating and historical biblical archaeology in southern Jordan
Recent excavations and high-precision radiocarbon dating from the largest Iron Age (IA, ca. 1200–500 BCE) copper production center in the southern Levant demonstrate major smelting activities in the region of biblical Edom (southern Jordan) during the 10th and 9th centuries BCE. Stratified radiocarbon samples and artifacts were recorded with precise digital surveying tools linked to a geographic information system developed to control on-site spa…
A new approach for geomagnetic archaeointensity research: Insights on ancient metallurgy in the Southern Levant
New Iron Age Copper-Mine Fields Discovered in Southern Jordan
Ancient texts and archaeology revisited - radiocarbon and Biblical dating in the southern Levant
The Iron Age sequence in the southern Levant is one of the most evocative and provocative in ancient history, since it coincides with events remembered in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). The authors show how a scientific chronological framework can be created and contribute an independent voice to the historical debate. They also show that, if archaeology is to complement history, such a framework requires an especially rigorous application of …
The beginning of Iron Age copper production in the southern Levant: New evidence from Khirbat al-Jariya, Faynan, Jordan
The authors have explored the workplace and house of copper workers of the early Iron Age (twelfth to tenth century BC) in Jordan's Wadi Faynan copper ore district, showing that it belongs in time between the collapse of the great Bronze Age states and the arrival of Egyptians in the area under Sheshonq I. They attribute this production to local tribes - perhaps those engaged in building the biblical kingdom of Edom
Khirbat Nuqayb al-Asaymir and Middle Islamic Metallurgy in Faynan: Surveys of Wadi al-Ghuwayb and Wadi al-Jariya in Faynan, Southern Jordan
Khirbat Nuqayb al-Asaymir, in the Faynan region of southern Jordan, is one of the best-preserved Middle Islamic–period copper production sites in the southern Levant. Two seasons of survey in Wadi al-Ghuwayb and Wadi al-Jariya revealed much about the site and the landscape surrounding it, which during the Middle Islamic period was exploited primarily for mining and pastoral activities. The finds from these surveys, focusing on those collected at …
Joint Custody: An Archaeological Park at Neolithic Ghwair I, Jordan
Archaeological parks have enjoyed considerable success in both presenting excavation results to the public and, often, in benefiting local communities. While many such parks focus on large and visually impressive sites, smaller sites also can benefit from this approach to archaeological presentation. Here, we present the results of a modest park at the Pre-Pottery Neolithic site of Ghwair I in the remote Wadi Faynan of southern Jordan. The park w…
Building WF16: Construction of a Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA) pisé structure in Southern Jordan
The Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA) period in South-west Asia is essential for our understanding of the transition to sedentary, agricultural communities. Developments in architecture are key to understanding this transition, but many aspects of PPNA architecture remain elusive, such as construction techniques, the selection of building materials and the functional use of space. The primary aim of the research described within this contribution wa…
Characterizing the rural landscape during the Iron Age and Roman period (ca. 1200 b.c.–a.d. 400): An intensive survey of Wadi al-Feidh, southern Jordan
Archaeological surveys in the southern Levant have traditionally focused on areas with favorable climates and flat terrain where large urban sites are found, corresponding with a research focus on social complexity and state formation. Fewer surveys have explored the rocky, difficult-to-reach areas where large-scale agriculture was rare. This article uses survey data from the 2009 survey of Wadi al-Feidh, southern Jordan, to demonstrate the impor…
Solomonic Phobia or 10th Century Bce Phobia? Response to Zeidan A. Kafafi, “New Insights on the Copper Mines of Wadi Faynan/Jordan”, Peq 146.4 (2014), 263–80
In Zeidan A. Kafafi's recent review of the University of California, San Diego – Department of Antiquities of Jordan surveys and excavations published in this journal, while admirably working with
Iron Age Nomads and their relation to copper smelting in Faynan (Jordan): Trace metal and Pb and Sr isotopic measurements from the Wadi Fidan 40 cemetery
Environmental impacts of ancient copper mining and metallurgy: Multi-proxy investigation of human-landscape dynamics in the Faynan valley, southern Jordan
Early Bronze Age copper production systems in the northern Arabah Valley: New insights from archaeomagnetic study of slag deposits in Jordan and Israel
Khirbat al‐Mana‘iyya: An early Islamic‐period copper‐smelting site in south‐eastern Wadi ‘Araba, Jordan
Recent excavations in south‐eastern Wadi ‘Araba in Jordan have revealed the first early Islamic‐period copper‐smelting site known in the eastern side of the valley, which extends south of the Dead Sea to the Gulf of ‘Aqaba. Five test pits were excavated in 2012 at Khirbat al–Mana‘iyya, a prominent copper‐smelting camp in south‐eastern Wadi ‘Araba, Jordan. The results of these excavations demonstrate that the site was primarily active in the seven…
Quantifying the effects of erosion on archaeological sites with low-altitude aerial photography, structure from motion, and GIS: A case study from southern Jordan
Integrating Digital Datasets into Public Engagement through ArcGIS StoryMaps
Archaeologists have a responsibility to use their research to engage people and provide opportunities for the public to interact with cultural heritage and interpret it on their own terms. This can be done through hypermedia and deep mapping as approaches to public archaeology. In twenty-first-century archaeology, scholars can rely on vastly improved technologies to aid them in these efforts toward public engagement, including digital photography…
Up the Wadi: Development of an Iron Age Industrial Landscape in Faynan, Jordan
In 2014, the Edom Lowlands Regional Archaeology Project renewed excavations at Khirbat al-Jariya (KAJ), an Iron Age copper smelting site in Faynan, Jordan. Located roughly 3 km from the prominent smelting center Khirbat en-Nahas (KEN), KAJ was an integral component of Early Iron Age (ca. 1200–800 b.c.) copper production in Faynan, one of the largest copper ore deposits in the southern Levant. To date, the site had only been investigated by survey…
Ceramic technology at Wadi Fidan 61, an early Pottery Neolithic site (ca. 6500 B.C.E.) in the Faynan region of southern Jordan
The Faynan region of southern Jordan became a center of industrial-scale metallurgical production during the Bronze and Iron Ages. However, socio-economic developments of the Pottery Neolithic period (ca. 6500-5500 B.C.E.) that helped set the stage for the rise of complex copper-producing societies are not well-understood. In this paper, we focus on ceramic technology at the early Pottery Neolithic site of Wadi Fidan 61 in the western part of the…
High resolution elemental characterization of prehistoric flint sources in southern Israel: Implications for archaeological provenance studies
As if the Pieces of the Past Were in Our Hands”: Nonlinear Digital Public Archaeology with 3D Models on Sketchfab
This article describes the publication and evaluation of a user-driven narrative module on the public-facing 3D platform Sketchfab, which comprises dozens of interlinked 3D models relating to the archaeology of the Faynan region of Southern Jordan. Models included in the project are archaeological sites, excavation units, and artifacts related to the Iron Age and Islamic period archaeology of the region. By interlinking these models according to …
Islamic Landscapes of Southern Jordan: The Evidence from Archaeological Investigations of Wādī Fidān in the Faynān Region
Wādī Fidān, the western portion of the Wādī Faynān system, has long been recognized as important for understanding the pre- and proto-historic occupation of southern Jordan. Its later periods are less known, but it remained a dynamic and important part of the regional settlement system. This paper presents the results of analysis of data from legacy excavations at Khirbat Ḥamrā Ifdān (KHI) and Wādī Fidān District (WFD) 50a and situates the result…
Archaeology (22 works) · Geography (17 works) · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies (16 works) · Archaeology and Historical Studies (15 works) · History (15 works) · Wadi (12 works) · Ancient history (11 works) · Geology (11 works) · Bronze Age (10 works) · Excavation (10 works)