Processing campaign and Survey in Spring 2012

In the years 2012 to 2015, the previous excavation and survey campaigns are to be evaluated and published. The excavations on the Tall Zira'a started in 2003 and were usually carried out twice a year to 2011. The tall survey took place in 2001, the hinterland survey in the Wadi el-'Arab in the years 2009 to 2012

Processing campaign

A large team is involved in the publication of the survey and excavation findings, which met in the excavation house Umm Qais/Gadara over the whole month of May and was able to work on the finds that are stored in the excavation house.

Currently planned are the publication of:
- Introduction - the excavation on the Tall Zira'a and the surveys (Vieweger/Häser)
- Classical ceramics according to their stratigraphy (Frauke Kenkel)
- The cooking pot ceramic (Andrea Schwermer)
- Bronze and Iron Age ceramics according to their stratigraphy (Frauke Kenkel)
- The religious history findings of the excavation (Andrea Gropp)
- The Late bronze and Iron I/II-Age findings of the excavation (Katja Soennecken)
- The classical findings of the excavation (Susan Schütz; Jutta Häser)
- The archäometric results of the excavation (Dr. Wolfgang Auge)
- The Survey results (Patrick Leiverkus)
- The Early and Middle bronze findings (Dieter Vieweger)

There are also works on the discovered Pearls (Marie Schulze), the Stone (Heribert Steinmetz and Hans-Martin Jakubik) and Glass finds (Stefanie Hoss) as well as on architecture (Marianne Voigt-Werling).

Experimental Archaeology

According to finds on the Tall Zira'a, we built a well insulated furnace with multilayered walls and examined its suitability for the ceramic fire.

Our question about experimental archaeology is whether and how the ceramic pots of the tell can be burned with local clay. The theme was edited by Dr. Wolfgang Auge, Hanna Brückelmann and our tried and tested builder Abu Mustafa.

>> Pictures at BAI website

Visitors

During the review campaign, Prof. Dr. Carla Vogt and Dr. Robert Lehmann (Universität Hannover) visited the team at Umm Qais and arranged for further archaeometrical cooperation between the "Gadara region project" and the University of Hannover.

Wolfram Nagel from the MDR spent some time in the excavation house and interviewed participants, informed himself about the project and the institutes involved in it. In the meantime, very interesting and informative radio contributions to the Gadara region project and to the Jerusalem/Amman have been created and aired.

>> Links at BAI website