High-precision radiocarbon dating and historical biblical archaeology in southern Jordan

Bibliographic Data

ID23327005
AuthorsT E Levy (0000-0002-8618-6672, *Department of Anthropology,), Thomas Higham (University of Oxford), T F G Higham (0000-0002-5949-598X, University of Oxford), Christopher B Ramsey (0000-0002-8641-9309, University of Oxford), N T Smith (0000-0002-2142-3841), Neil G Smith (*Department of Anthropology,), Erez Ben-Yosef (0000-0002-9483-3809, *Department of Anthropology,), Mark Robinson (0000-0003-4911-7106, Oxford University Museum of Natural History, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PW, United Kingdom), Stefan Münger (0000-0002-8656-424X, University of Berne Biblical Institute, Unitobler, Länggassstrasse 51, CH-3000 Bern 9, Switzerland; and), Kyle A Knabb (0000-0003-3850-8259), Kyle Knabb (*Department of Anthropology,), Jurgen P Schulze (0000-0003-4903-4837, California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology, and), Mohammad Najjar (0000-0001-5827-8345, Friends of Archaeology, P.O. Box 2440, Amman 11181, Jordan), L Tauxe (0000-0002-4837-8200, Scripps Institution of Oceanography)
Year2008
Volume105
Issue43
Pages16460-16465
Publication date2008-10-28
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0027-8424 • E-ISSN: 1091-6490
PublisherNational Academy of Sciences (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1073/pnas.0804950105
PMID18955702
PMCIDPMC2575442
OpenAlexW2134024040
LanguageEN
Citations received58
References cited18

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 spatial analyses of archaeological finds and model data with innovative visualization tools. The new radiocarbon dates push back by 2 centuries the accepted IA chronology of Edom. Data from Khirbat en-Nahas, and the nearby site of Rujm Hamra Ifdan, demonstrate the centrality of industrial-scale metal production during those centuries traditionally linked closely to political events in Edom's 10th century BCE neighbor ancient Israel. Consequently, the rise of IA Edom is linked to the power vacuum created by the collapse of Late Bronze Age (LB, ca. 1300 BCE) civilizations and the disintegration of the LB Cypriot copper monopoly that dominated the eastern Mediterranean. The methodologies applied to the historical IA archaeology of the Levant have implications for other parts of the world where sacred and historical texts interface with the material record.

Ancient history · Archaeology · Bronze Age · Chronology · Excavation · Geography · Prehistory · Radiocarbon dating · Southern Levant · Archaeological Research and Protection · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Archaeology and Historical Studies · Geology · History