American Journal of Archaeology

Everything was possible with him, nothing was possible without him.

Khaled al-As’ad, distinguished archaeologist, was brutally killed by henchmen of the so-called Islamic State (Daesh) in Palmyra on 18 August 2015. He leaves behind his wife and 11 children.

Khaled al-As’ad—Abu Waleed as his friends called him—was born on 1 January 1934 to a noble Palmyrene family. As a student of history at Damascus University, he participated in large-scale excavations in Palmyra conducted by the Syrian Directorate-General of Antiquities and Museums (DGAM) and directed by the two doyens of Palmyrene archaeology: Adnan Bounni and Nassib Saliby. In 1963, As’ad was named director of the antiquities and the museum of Palmyra, a position he held until 2003, when his son Waleed took his place. During those 40 years, As’ad organized, managed, and directed all excavations, restorations, and research work in and around Palmyra. Here I can reflect on only a few of his career milestones. As a young man, he organized a guided visit to Palmyra in 1969 for the participants of the International Congress of Classical Archaeology held in Damascus. Perhaps the high point of his career was the inclusion in 1980 of Palmyra on the UNESCO World Heritage List, for which he had worked tirelessly. In 1992, he organized the international colloquium “Palmyra and the Silk Route” on behalf of UNESCO and the DGAM. For him, “business as usual” was to guide high political and cultural officials and delegations from all over the world, such as the French president Giscard d’Estaing or the American foreign minister Henry Kissinger, through the ancient town of Palmyra.

Of Bedouin ancestry, As’ad was keenly interested in the Bedouin tribes around Palmyra. Consequently, he cared deeply about ancient sites in the Palmyrene desert, such as Khan al-Hallabat and the desert castle at Qasr al-Kher al-Sharqi. As’ad obtained the highest international recognition, not least from his publication activities. His international reputation is documented, for instance, by his long-term membership in the International Council of Museums and the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland (Order Zasługi Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej).

Apart from his scientific activities, his unflagging and selfless engagement in helping others and organizing research possibilities made him highly esteemed by colleagues from all over the world. His knowledge of and his good relations with virtually everyone in and around Palmyra made him one of the most influential persons in the area. It was, for example, Abu Waleed who provided drinking water on-site during days when the temperature might reach 45°C, who procured tents for shade, who found the local experts and the equipment requested by the archaeologists. Our work and our life in Palmyra would have been impossible without him. And let us not forget his generous hospitality—whenever Abu Waleed invited colleagues to his house, there was always a great feast and friendly company, along with the delicious mansaf offered by the “grand seigneur” himself.

In the end, Khaled al-As’ad’s role as local tribal leader and caretaker of antiquities made him decide not to leave his family or “his” ruins. He refused to hand over the cultural heritage of Palmyra or to reveal the location of hidden antiquities to the vandals of the Islamic State. He paid for this with his life. We shall remember him for his courage and keep him forever in our grateful hearts.

Andreas Schmidt-Colinet
Institute for Classical Archaeology
University of Vienna
Franz-Klein-Gasse 1
1190 Vienna
Austria
andreas.schmidt-colinet@univie.ac.at

Reviewed Works

Periodization is a fundamental exercise for archaeology and for historical studies in general, aimed primarily at clarity in communication. However, this exercise imposes particular modes of conceptualizing specific periods. An attractive case study for research in the historiographical processes that shape periodization is posed by the period of Greek archaeology extending from the end of the second to the early first millennium B.C.E. This study analyzes the different conceptual baggage of each of the many names used for this period and focuses on the terminological struggle between the Dark Age(s) and the (Early) Iron Age. Ι argue that this struggle was shaped not only by discussions within classics but also by debates in other historical disciplines and developments in the political history of 20th-century Greece. The struggle over the name of the period has served as an arena for the unfolding of broader politicized debates in classics, Greek history, and the archaeology of the Mediterranean.

A boundary between eastern and central Crete has been proposed for the Protopalatial period on the basis of the distribution of various types of material culture, most notably pottery. The distribution of Protopalatial seal groups, the production of which can be localized to specific regions on the island, is here added to this discussion. Malia and eastern Crete show a preference for prismatic seals with hieroglyphs and pictographic images, whereas central Crete produces mainly seals of other shapes with round seal faces and ornamental motifs. Evidence from seals is discussed in conjunction with evidence for the earliest attestations of script in Crete. From this perspective, a hypothesis is here suggested that, in contrast to what was previously thought, in Middle Minoan I/II Cretan Hieroglyphic was “at home” in Malia and the eastern part of the island, while Linear A was native in southern and possibly north-central Crete. In this context, the Hieroglyphic Deposit of Knossos is seen as intrusive in north-central Crete. This article explains the presence of Hieroglyphic documents at Knossos on the basis of theories that view the Minoan palaces as ritual centers potentially open to corporate groups from various regions on the island.

Aveni, Anthony F., ed. The Measure and Meaning of Time in Mesoamerica and the Andes (Dumbarton Oaks Pre-Columbian Symposia and Colloquia). Pp. x + 315, figs. 120. Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Washington, D.C. 2015. $75. ISBN 978-0-88402-403-3 (cloth).

Badoud, Nathan. Le temps de Rhodes: Une chronologie des inscriptions de la cité fondée sur l’étude de ses institutions (Vestigia 63). Pp. xvii + 542, figs. 148. C.H. Beck, Munich 2015. €108. ISBN 978-3-406-64035-3 (cloth).

Balandier, Claire. La défense de la Syrie-Palestine des Achéménides aux Lagides: Histoire et archéologie des fortifications à l’ouest Jourdain de 532 à 199 avant J.-C. Avec appendices sur Jérusalem et sur les ouvrages fortifiés de Transjordanie et du nord du Sinaï. Vol. 1, Synthèse historique. Vol. 2, Catalogue et appendices. Pp. vii + 718, figs. 183, maps 4. Gabalda, Pendé 2014. €120. ISBN 978-2-85021-234-5 (paper).

Barringer, Judith M. The Art and Archaeology of Ancient Greece. Pp. xx + 438, figs. 484, table 1, maps 9. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2014. $95. ISBN 978-0-521-17180-9 (paper).

Bayley, Justine, Ian Freestone, and Caroline Jackson, eds. Glass of the Roman World. Pp. xxvi + 204, figs. 151, tables 12. Oxbow Books, Oxford 2015. $70. ISBN 978-1-78297-744-2 (cloth).

Boardman, John. The Greeks in Asia. Pp. 240, figs. 208. Thames & Hudson, London 2015. $50. ISBN 978-0-500-25213-0 (cloth).

Cannatà, Maurizio. La colonia latina di Vibo Valentia (Archaeologica 171). Pp. xxvi + 236, figs. 34, b&w pls. 30, color pl. 1. Giorgio Bretschneider, Rome 2013. $132. ISBN 978-88-7689-281-3 (paper).

Carles, Marjolaine. Delphes avant le sanctuaire d’Apollon. Pp. 153, figs. 10, tables 4. Éditions Safran, Brussels 2014. €29. ISBN 978-2-87457-044-5 (paper).

Carlson, Deborah N., Justin Leidwanger, and Sarah M. Kampbell, eds. Maritime Studies in the Wake of the Byzantine Shipwreck at Yassıada, Turkey (Collection Histoire 7). Pp. xix + 248, figs. 89, tables 18. Texas A&M University Press, College Station 2015. $75. ISBN 978-1-62349-215-1 (cloth).

Caubet, Annie, Sabine Fourrier, and Marguerite Yon. Kition-Bamboula. Vol. 6, Le sanctuaire sous la colline (Travaux de le Maison de l’Orient et de la Méditerranée 67). Pp. 414, figs. 192, tables 14, plans 9. Maison de l’Orient et de la Méditerranée–Jean Pouilloux, Lyon 2015. €44. ISBN 978-2-35668-048-8 (paper).

Cipolla, Craig N., and Katherine Howlett Hayes, eds. Rethinking Colonialism: Comparative Archaeological Approaches. Pp. xiii + 252, figs. 15, maps 10. University Press of Florida, Gainesville 2015. $79.95. ISBN 978-0-8130-6070-5 (cloth).

Claassen, Cheryl. Beliefs and Rituals in Archaic Eastern North America: An Interpretive Guide. Pp. xv + 385, figs. 38, table 1. University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa 2015. $59.95. ISBN 978-0-8173-1854-3 (cloth).

Coe, Michael D., and Stephen D. Houston. The Maya. Pp. 320, figs. 213. Thames & Hudson, New York 2015. $26.95. ISBN 978-0-500-29188-7 (paper).

Cosmopoulos, Michael B. Bronze Age Eleusis and the Origins of the Eleusinian Mysteries. Pp. xvii + 227, figs. 80. Cambridge University Press, New York 2015. $99.99. ISBN 978-1-107-01099-4 (cloth).

Daehner, Jens M., and Kenneth Lapatin, eds. Power and Pathos: Bronze Sculpture of the Hellenistic World. Pp. 367, figs. 164. The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles 2015. $65. ISBN 978-1-60606-439-9 (cloth).

Demesticha, Stella, ed. Per terram, per mare: Seaborne Trade and the Distribution of Roman Amphorae in the Mediterranean (SIMA-PB 180). Pp. xxii + 298, numerous figs. Åströms Förlag, Uppsala 2015. €64. ISBN 978-91-7081-215-6 (cloth).

Devlin, Zoë L., and Emma-Jayne Graham, eds. Death Embodied: Archaeological Approaches to the Treatment of the Corpse (Studies in Funerary Archaeology 9). Pp. 174, figs. 29, tables 7. Oxbow Books, Philadelphia 2015. $76. ISBN 978-1-782979-43-2 (paper).

de Vos Raaijmakers, Mariette, and Redha Attoui. Rus Africum. Vol. 3, La via a Karthagine Thevestem, ses milliaires et le réseau routier rural de la région de Dougga et Téboursouk (BibAr 37). Pp. 154, figs. 161, b&w pls. 7. Edipuglia, Bari 2015. €50. ISBN 978-88-7228-765-1 (paper).

Docter, Roald, Ridha Boussoffara, and Pieter ter Keurs, eds. Carthage: Fact and Myth. Pp. 144, figs. 110. Sidestone Press, Leiden 2015. $35. ISBN 978-90-8890-311-3 (cloth).

Favaretto, Irene, and Alessandra Menegazzi. Un museo di antichità nella Padova del Cinquecento: La raccolta Marco Mantova Benavides all’Università di Padova. Pp. xii + 229, figs. 5, b&w pls. 78, tables 2. Giorgio Bretschneider, Rome 2013. $146. ISBN 978-88-7689-278-3 (paper).

Fejfer, Jane, Mette Moltesen, and Annette Rathje, eds. Tradition: Transmission of Culture in the Ancient World (Acta Hyperborea 14). Pp. 493, figs. 130, tables 10, maps 22. Museum Tusculanum Press, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen 2015. $72. ISBN 978-87-635-4258-6 (paper).

Fogelin, Lars. An Archaeological History of Indian Buddhism. Pp. xii + 250, figs. 43, tables 2. Oxford University Press, New York 2015. £68. ISBN 978-0-19-994823-9 (paper).

Fulford, Michael, and Emma Durham, eds. Seeing Red: New Economic and Social Perspectives on Gallo-Roman Terra Sigillata (BICS Suppl. 102). Pp. xviii + 446, figs. 355, tables 45. Institute of Classical Studies, School of Advanced Study, University of London, London 2013. £29.22. ISBN 978-1-905670-47-5 (cloth).

Golden, Mark. Children and Childhood in Classical Athens. Pp. xxii + 243, figs. 17. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore 2015. $24.95. ISBN 978-1-4214-1686-1 (paper).

Graells i Fabregat, Raimon, Michaɫ Krueger, Samuel Sardà i Seuma, and Gabriella Scortino, eds. El problema de las “imitaciones” durante la protohistoria en el Mediterráneo centro-occidental: Entre el concepto y el ejemplo (Iberia archaeologica 18). Pp. 184, figs. 51, tables 9. Ernst Wasmuth, Berlin 2014. €42. ISBN 978-3-8030-0240-2 (cloth).

Hadjikyriakos, Iosif, and Mia Gaia Trentin, eds. Cypriot Cultural Details: Proceedings of the 10th Post-Graduate Cypriot Archaeology Conference. Pp. vii + 224, figs. 106, tables 12. Oxbow Books, Philadelphia 2015. $66. ISBN 978-1-78570-066-8 (paper).

Hansen, Valerie. The Silk Road: A New History. Pp. xv + 304, figs. 57, color pls. 16, tables 4. Oxford University Press, New York 2015. $21.95. ISBN 978-0-19-021842-3 (paper).

Hekster, Olivier. Emperors and Ancestors: Roman Rulers and the Constraints of Tradition (Oxford Studies in Ancient Culture and Representation). Pp. xxxii + 395, figs. 109, tables 5. Oxford University Press, Oxford 2015. $135. ISBN 978-0-19-873682-0 (cloth).

Herring, Adam. Art and Vision in the Inca Empire: Andeans and Europeans at Cajamarca. Pp. xii + 249, figs. 71, maps 2. Cambridge University Press, New York 2015. $99.99. ISBN 978-1-107-09436-9 (cloth).

Howe, Timothy, E. Edward Garvin, and Graham Wrightson, eds. Greece, Macedon and Persia: Studies in Social, Political and Military History in Honour of Waldemar Heckel. Pp. xiv + 214. Oxbow Books, Philadelphia 2015. £40. ISBN 978-1-78297-923-4 (cloth).

Kerner, Susanne, Rachael J. Dann, and Pernille Bangsgaard, eds. Climate and Ancient Societies. Pp. 351, figs. 81, tables 11. Museum Tusculanum Press, Copenhagen 2015. $52. ISBN 978-87-635-4199-2 (cloth).

Lahiri, Nayanjot. Ashoka in Ancient India. Pp. xix + 385, figs. 45, maps 3. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass. 2015. $35. ISBN 978-0-674-05777-7 (cloth).

Lassère, Jean-Marie. Africa, quasi Roma: 256 av. J.-C.–711 apr. J.-C. Pp. 778, figs. 115, color pls. 10. CNRS Éditions, Paris 2015. €45. ISBN 978-2-271-07673-1 (paper).

Levy, Thomas E., Thomas Schneider, and William H.C. Propp, eds. Israel’s Exodus in Transdisciplinary Perspective: Text, Archaeology, Culture, and Geoscience (Quantitative Methods in the Humanities and Social Sciences). Pp. xxvii + 584, figs. 80. Springer, New York 2015. $129. ISBN 978-3-319-04767-6 (cloth).

Madeleine, Sophie. Le théâtre de Pompée à Rome: Restitution de l’architecture et des systèmes mécaniques. Pp. 339, figs. 109, color pls. 9, tables 5, DVD 1. Presses Universitaires de Caen, Caen 2014. €30. ISBN 978-2-84133-508-4 (paper).

Madsen, David B., Dave N. Schmitt, and David Page. The Paleoarchaic Occupation of the Old River Bed Delta (University of Utah Anthropological Papers 128). Pp. xv + 287, figs. 134. University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City 2015. $55. ISBN 978-1-60781-393-4 (paper).

McConnell, Brian Evans. Wall Illustrations from the “Grotte” di Caratabia (Mineo, Sicily) (Kώkaλoς Suppl. 22). Pp. 116, figs. 33, b&w pls. 16. Fabrizio Serra Editore, Pisa 2015. €185. ISBN 978-88-6227-762-4 (paper).

Messier, Ronald A., and James A. Miller. The Last Civilized Place: Sijilmasa and Its Saharan Destiny. Pp. xiv + 280, figs. 56, maps 11. University of Texas Press, Austin 2015. $55. ISBN 978-0-292-76665-5 (cloth).

Nair, Stella. At Home with the Sapa Inca: Architecture, Space, and Legacy at Chinchero. Pp. xx + 268, figs. 160. University of Texas Press, Austin 2015. $45. ISBN 978-1-4773-0250-7 (paper).

Pickup, Sadie, Marianne Bergeron, and Jennifer M. Webb. Cypriote Antiquities in Reading: The Ure Museum at the University of Reading and the Reading Museum. Reading Borough Council (Corpus of Cypriote Antiquities 30, SIMA 20[30]). Pp. viii + 55, figs. 112. Åstrom Editions, Uppsala 2015. €24. ISBN 978-91-7081-201-9 (cloth).

Popa, Cătălin Nicolae, and Simon Stoddart, eds. Fingerprinting the Iron Age: Approaches to Identity in the European Iron Age. Pp. xii + 428, figs. 96, tables 4. Oxbow Books, Oxford 2014. £24. ISBN 978-1-78297-675-2 (cloth).

Rice, Prudence M. Pottery Analysis: A Sourcebook. 2nd ed. Pp. xxxii + 561, figs. 121, tables 49. University of Chicago Press, Chicago 2015. $55. ISBN 978-0-226-92321-5 (paper).

Rodning, Christopher B. Center Places and Cherokee Towns: Archaeological Perspectives on Native American Architecture and Landscape in the Southern Appalachians. Pp. xvi + 257, figs. 20, tables 6. The University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa 2015. $59.95. ISBN 978-0-8173-1841-3 (cloth).

Rush, Laurie, and Luisa Benedettini Millington. The Carabinieri Command for the Protection of Cultural Property: Saving the World’s Heritage (Heritage Matters Series 17). Pp. xix + 210, figs. 55. The Boydell Press, Woodbridge, England 2015. $99. ISBN 978-1-78327-056-9 (cloth).

Sagona, Claudia. The Archaeology of Malta: From the Neolithic Through the Roman Period (Cambridge World Archaeology). Pp. xix + 449, figs. 68, tables 4. Cambridge University Press, New York 2015. $135. ISBN 978-1-107-00669-0 (cloth).

Salapata, Gina. Heroic Offerings: The Terracotta Plaques from the Spartan Sanctuary of Agamemnon and Kassandra. Pp. viii + 393, b&w pls. 25, maps 3. University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor 2014. $70. ISBN 978-0-472-11916-5 (cloth).

Samuels, Kathryn Lafrenz, and Trinidad Rico, eds. Heritage Keywords: Rhetoric and Redescription in Cultural Heritage. Pp. xx + 309, figs. 18, tables 5. University Press of Colorado, Boulder 2015. $36.95. ISBN 978-1-60732-383-9 (paper).

Schoelwer, Susan P., ed. The General in the Garden: George Washington’s Landscape at Mount Vernon. Pp. xv + 190, figs. 130. Fred W. Smith National Library for the Study of George Washington, Mount Vernon, Va. 2015. $39.95. ISBN 978-0-931917-48-6 (cloth).

Schwartz, Glenn M., ed. Rural Archaeology in Early Urban Northern Mesopotamia: Excavations at Tell Al-Raqa’i (Monumenta archaeologica 36). Pp. xxvii + 662, figs. 541, tables 180. Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press, Los Angeles 2015. $89. ISBN 978-1-938770-04-3 (cloth).

Seyler, Dorothy U. The Obelisk and the Englishman: The Pioneering Discoveries of Egyptologist William Bankes. Pp. 304, figs. 40, color pls. 29. Prometheus Books, New York 2015. $26. ISBN 978-1-63388-036-8 (cloth).

Smallwood, Ashley M., and Thomas A. Jennings. Clovis: On the Edge of a New Understanding. Pp. x + 364, figs. 30. Texas A&M University, College Station 2015. $50. ISBN 978-1-62349-201-4 (cloth).

Smith, Adam T. Political Machine: Assembling Sovereignty in the Bronze Age Caucasus (Rostovtzeff Lectures). Pp. xv + 242, figs. 50. Princeton University Press, Princeton 2015. $39.50. ISBN 978-1-400-86650-2 (cloth).

Sofaer, Joanna. Clay in the Age of Bronze: Essays in the Archaeology of Prehistoric Creativity. Pp. xii + 214, figs. 39, tables 2. Cambridge University Press, New York 2015. $34.99. ISBN 978-0-521-15536-6 (paper).

Stefanidou-Tiveriou, Theodosia. Die lokalen Sarkophage aus Thessaloniki (Sarkophag-Studien 8). Pp. xviii + 302, figs. 2, b&w pls. 100. Franz Philipp Rutzen, Ruhpolding 2014. €99. ISBN 978-3-447-10240-7 (cloth).

Stig Sørensen, Marie Louise, and Dacia Viejo Rose, eds. War and Cultural Heritage: Biographies of Place. Pp. xx + 291, figs. 60, maps 2. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2015. $99. ISBN 978-1-107-05933-7 (cloth).

Stoltman, James B. Ceramic Petrography and Hopewell Interaction. Pp. xix + 209, figs. 37, tables 65. University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa 2015. $69.95. ISBN 978-0-8173-1859-8 (cloth).

Van Dyke, Ruth M., and Reinhard Bernbeck. Subjects and Narratives in Archaeology. Pp. 299, figs. 69, online videos 2, online audio file 1. University Press of Colorado, Boulder 2015. $23.95. ISBN 978-1-60732-387-7 (paper).

van Gijn, Annelou, John C. Whittaker, and Patricia C. Anderson, eds. Exploring and Explaining Diversity in Agricultural Technology (Early Agricultural Remnants and Technical Heritage [EARTH]: 8,000 Years of Resilience and Innovation 2). Pp. xxi + 383, figs. 285. Oxbow Books, Oxford 2014. £20. ISBN 978-1-84217-515-6 (cloth).

Voorhies, Barbara. An Archaic Mexican Shellmound and Its Entombed Floors (UCLAMon 80). Pp. xviii + 220, figs. 80, tables 16. UCLA Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press, Los Angeles 2015. $55. ISBN 978-1-93877-02-9 (paper).

Werness-Rude, Maline D., and Kaylee R. Spencer, eds. Maya Imagery, Architecture, and Activity: Space and Spatial Analysis in Art History. Pp. xiv + 426, figs. 171. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque 2015. $75. ISBN 978-0-8263-5579-9 (cloth).

Wilson Jones, Mark. The Origins of Classical Architecture: Temples, Orders and Gifts to the Gods in Ancient Greece. Pp. xvii + 304, figs. 235. Yale University Press, New Haven 2014. $65. ISBN 978-0-300-18276-7 (cloth).

Zborover, Danny, and Peter C. Kroefges, eds. Bridging the Gaps: Integrating Archaeology and History in Oaxaca, Mexico. A Volume in Memory of Bruce E. Byland. Pp. ix + 428, figs. 120. University of Colorado Press, Boulder 2015. $75. ISBN 978-1-60732-328-0 (cloth).

In the past three decades, an Iron Age date for reoccupation of areas surrounding the Palace of Nestor on the Epano Englianos Ridge has become well attested, but the extent and nature of this reoccupation has remained unclear. My reexamination of the Main Building stratigraphy using data recorded in the excavation notebooks has helped define the extent of reoccupation by providing evidence for two phases of temporary reuse. The first phase of reuse, which dates between the final destruction and the early 10th century B.C.E., occurred inside small areas of the Main Building that had not yet collapsed. The second phase occurred on top of and around the Main Building ruins and has a terminus post quem of the early 10th century B.C.E. My reanalysis confirms a more complex site history than originally recognized and bears tremendous implications for looting and other disturbances to the remains.