Abstract
The Byzantine – Islamic transition (7th–8th centuries CE) in the desert-edge Palaestina Tertia is examined using faunal remains recovered from archaeological sites in the Negev. Archaeozoological analyses suggest sharp differences between Late Byzantine and Early Islamic animal economies, especially in herding patterns and the exploitation of wildlife resources. These differences are suggested to reflect both cultural and land ownership changes following the Arab conquest, against the backdrop of climatic change. The archaeozoological record thereby provides independent evidence to the rise and fall of societal complexity in this marginal region.
Highlights
The Negev Desert between the 4th and 8th c
In this paper we present the first study of a long-term faunal sequence obtained in recent campaigns in four key sites of the Negev, covering the Late Antique-Early Islamic period (Avdat, Shivta, Halutza, and Nessana)
Bone surface modifications generally comprise of a low frequency (
Summary
The Negev Desert between the 4th and 8th c. Through much of the late Holocene, human occupation of the arid Negev involved the presence of nomadic pastoralists, short-term military stations, isolated small-scale farmsteads and trading posts[7,16,22] This began to change with the Romanization and systemic settling down of Nabataean nomadic trading tribes from the 2nd c. A preference for sheep over goats has been observed in contexts where access to extensive pastureland is relatively unrestricted and production is oriented to urban markets[32,36,37] In these contexts, specialized producers maintain close relations of exchange with settled consumers who are typically engaged in non-farming activities (e.g., trade, military). Water shortages in the arid Negev could have limited the use of more water-dependent livestock species (e.g., cattle, Bos taurus), while changing cultural and religious orientations, including the introduction of Christianity and, later, of Islam, could have imposed different sanctions on the consumption of pig (Sus scrofa)[40,41]
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