The dwarf palm tree of the king: a Nannorrhops ritchiana in the 24th-23rd century BC palace of Jericho

Abstract

Charred botanical finds from the excavation of the Early Bronze Age city of Jericho (Tell es-Sultan), one of the earliest urban centers of 3rd millennium BC Palestine, were collected during the 2015-2017 excavation seasons carried out by Sapienza University of Rome and the Palestinian MoTA-DACH. Among other plant macro-remains, a round fruit was found in the subsidiary room behind the throne room of Royal Palace G, next to a vase, in the burnt filling overlying the platform. It was identified as a drupe of a dwarf palm, through classical archaeobotanical techniques and computed tomography scan. Two dwarf palms were taken into consideration: the Mediterranean dwarf palm (Chamaerops humilis L.) and the Mazari palm (Nannorrhops ritchiana (Griff.) Aitch. native to the Saharo-Indian region), both with small, round/oval fruits, none of which currently grows in the area of Jericho. A detailed analysis of iconography, archaeobotanical literature and herbarium samples of both species stored in Rome (RO), Florence (FIAF) and Edinburgh (E), has allowed to identify the charred drupe as Nannorrhops ritchiana. Its presence in the palace suggests the existence of an overland commercial track to the south-east, across the desert of Saudi Arabia, which only recent excavations and other finds have revealed.