The Archaeology of the Arabian Peninsula 2, pp. 149-162, 2021/12/20
Connecting the Evidence. Proceedings of the International Workshop held at the 10th International Congress on the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East in Vienna on April 25, 2016
Recent excavations near Adam (Oman) yielded new data about the margins of the desert in Central Omanduring the Iron Age. Before our 2015 season, the Iron Age in Adam was essentially unknown. Several graves and reusedburials had been identified during surveys and excavations in two graveyards, but it seemed that the area of Adam wasnot highly occupied during this period, contrary to the situation observed in the major site of Salut, only 40km to thenorth-west. However, the discovery of an Iron Age site near Adam allows us to reconsider this first impression. Thesite consists of a group of structures located on the eastern tip of Jabal Mudhmar, near Wadi Halfayn. The main stonebuilding contains unique bronze weapons (life-sized, smaller than life-sized and miniatures) including arrows, bows,quivers and daggers that could be used for ritual purposes. Judging by its geographic location and its unusual content,the site could have had several functions: as a meeting and ritual place linked to social, political or religious activitiesor a relay on the ancient road between Adam and Sinaw.
Keywords: Iron Age; Oman; weaponry; pillared hall buildings; ritual
