Jawf/Tabuk Archaeological Project (JTAP)
A Brief Report of the Third Field Season, 2013
Sumio Fujii
College of Human and Social Sciences, Kanazawa University
Kakuma-machi, Kanazawa, 920-1192, Japanfujiikun@staff.kanazawa-u.ac.jp

Research Objective and History
Our research project, JTAP (Jawf/Tabuk Archaeological Project), aims to trace theprocess of pastoral nomadization in the northern half of the Arabian Peninsula. A key tothe issue is the socio-cultural movement in the five millennia spanning from thePre-Pottery Neolithic (when sheep and goats were first domesticated) to the EarlyBronze Age (when full-fledged nomadic society backed with a tribal system is supposed
to have been established).
Our comprehensive research started in December of 2012 with a reconnaissancesurvey in the northern half of the Tabuk Province (Fujii 2012). The survey locatedseveral promising sites, which served as targets for subsequent research (Fig. 1). The
second field season, conducted from 23 September until 9 October in 2013, focused on
the Gurayya Basin ca. 60 km north of Tabuk and attested to the existence ofChalcolithic to Early Bronze Age burial fields along Wadi Ghubai and Wadi Moharek(Fujii 2013). We test-sounded a tower tomb (Feature 3045) in preparation of futureinvestigation.
This report summarizes the research outcome of the third field season taken place for
two weeks from December 14 until 28 of the same year. We conducted a limited
excavation of Wadi Sharma 1 along the Red Sea coast, which proved to be a small
settlement dated to the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B.
The Site and Site-setting
Wadi Sharma is a small drainage system ca. 70 km in total length that rises in thewestern slope of Harrat al Uwayrid, a basalt plateau running in the center of the Tabuk1

Province in the NW-SE direction, and flows westward into the Red Sea. The site ofWadi Sharma 1 is located ca. 25 km upper of the mouth of the wadi, occupying atongue-shaped gentle slope protruding southward toward the sandy wadi bed (Figs.
2-3). This site was first found in 1980 during the Comprehensive Archaeological Survey
Program. The preliminary report refers to it as Site 200-47, one of the two Neolithic
sites located at the foot of Jebel Arrayig al-Yusri (Ingraham et al. 1981: 67). We visited
the site in the course of the first and second survey seasons and confirmed anew its
importance. This is the reason why we embarked on a full-fledged investigation.
The site is covered with stones and sand, and a number of masonry wall alignments
are exposed on the present ground surface. Overall, they develop southwestward along
the rocky ridgeline of the slope, suggesting a site area of ca.1.2 ha (= 60 m NS by 20 mSE). Given this, it would follow that the site represents a hamlet-size settlement. Our
portable GPS receiver set on the benchmark indicated the coordinates of latitude
28.05.463N, longitude 035.28. 561E, and an elevation of ca. 264 m.
With a background of a chain of rocky foothills, the site faces a wide wadi bed whereacacia and tamarisk trees are dotted (Figs. 4-5). Nowadays no perennial natural water
source is available around the site, but the existence of palm tree gardens along the wadibank is suggestive of the abundance of subsoil water. It is highly likely that theNeolithic local population enjoyed a more favorable condition of water supply.
Another focal point when we discuss the site location of Wadi Sharma 1 is theconvenience for local transportation. The drainage basin of Wadi Sharma is fringed withsteep slopes at both sides, but a small gap exists immediately to the west of the site,making it possible to traverse the rocky foothills in the north-south direction (Fig. 2). In
this sense, we can argue that the site occupies a strategic point of the local traffic.
Another likely inducement is the availability of various construction material including
sandstone, slate, and granite, all of which are easily procured around the foothill on
which the site is located. The site location of Wadi Sharma 1 can be understood in thesecontexts.
Excavation
The excavation took place following the standard 5m by 5m grid and locus system.
Since no reliable triangular point was available, a benchmark was set up arbitrarily at
the northern part of the site. Due to time constraints, our operation in this field season2

focused on Area 1 extending over a total of eleven squares around the benchmark (Fig.
6). The excavated area total 245 square meters, and the volume of excavated soil
amounts ca. 20 cubic meters.
We dag down until the middle level of Layer 2 and revealed the top course of wallalignments of masonry structures (Figs. 7-9). Due to the long spell of strong sandstorm,
the excavation was interrupted at this stage and has not yet reached their foundation
course. The only exception to this is a small trench (Trench I) opened along the northernedge of Square B8, where we confirmed that the preserved wall segment (ca. 0.4 mhigh) was constructed on a bed rock layer underlying ca. 30-40 cm below the present
ground surface (Fig. 10).
Structural Remains
The excavation has revealed a cluster of stone-built structures, most of which wereconstructed with a double-faced, dry masonry technique. As for construction material,sandstone, slate, and granite cobbles ca. 20-30 cm long were used without any
substantial processing. In addition, small rubble was used as adjusters for masonrywalls. In view of the volume of fallen stones around the walls, the original wall heightof the structures is estimated at more than 1 m.
The exposed structural remains fall into two in terms of typology: a large square
structure ca. 8-10 m on a side and several oval or rectangular features ca. 2-3 m in alonger axis. It appears that the former has a tripartite layout consisting of a central halland several side rooms. The location of an entrance to this large structure is still
unknown, but there is a high possibility that it existed at the southeastern part whereillicit digging pits leave their scars. Meanwhile, most of the smaller features clusteredalong the northern and eastern walls of the key structure. Both components werecombined to form a large complex, but further scrutiny is required to grasp its overallpicture.
Small Finds
The limited excavation yielded a small number of artifacts. Flint artifacts included
single-platform pyramidal cores, a crested blade, unmodified blades and flakes, Amuq
type points, a scraper, a serrated blade with silica sheen, scrapers, a retouched blade,and a digging tool (Fig. 11). The contents of the tool kit suggest that the inhabitants3were engaged in both hunting and agriculture. Of significance is the occurrence of thediagnostic points, which, together with the existence of the large, multi-roomed, square
structure, enables us to tentatively date the settlement to the PPNB (Pre-Pottery
Neolithic B), especially the Late PPNB.
Grinding implements made of slightly reddish sandstone also occurred in a small
number. They contained a basin quern and several palm-size grinding slabs, both ofwhich attest to the importance of cereal cultivation at the settlement (Fig. 12).
Miscellaneous finds included a snail bead and several unworked snail and shellfragments, suggesting that the inhabitant was engaged in the exploitation of marine
products of the Red Sea as well.
Concluding Remarks
The limited excavation has made it clearer that the site of Wadi Sharma 1 is the second
PPNB settlement in Saudi following al-Aynah (Site 200-104) located again in theTabuk Province (Ingraham et al. op. cit.: 67-68, Al-Asmari 2012). This means that theNeolithic northwestern Arabia was incorporated into the cultural sphere of the southern
Levant, and that the initial stage of pastoral nomadization in the area should be
discussed in this context. However, our excavation still remains halfway and has justcaught a glimpse of the site. The next field season scheduled in September of 2014 is
expected to provide further insights into the archaeological implications of the uniquesite.
Acknowlegements:
We would like to appreciate the staff member of the Saudi team organized by Mr.
Abdulrahman al-Mansour (Riayd), Mr. Harifa al-Harifa (Riyad), Mr. Abdulfadi
al-‘Onaize (Duba), Mr. Salem Musa al-‘Oqbi (Tabuk), and Mr. Yarob al-‘Ali (Tabuk).
Their kind cooperation was essential to the success of this field season. It is needless tosay that the careful support of the SCTA main office headed by His Royal HighnessPrince Sultan bin Salman bin Adul Aziz lay behind it. Our thanks also go to Dr. Ali I.
al-Ghabban and Mr. Jamar S. Omar, both of whom kindly understood the peculiarity ofour research interest and allowed us to conduct a comprehensive investigation notconfined to a specific site.

4References
Fujii, S.
2012

Jawf/Tabuk Archaeological Project (JTAP), 2012: A brief report of the jointsurvey in December, 2102. Field report submitted to the SCTA.

2013aJawf/Tabuk Archaeological Project (JTAP), 2013: A brief report of the second
field season, 2013. Field report submitted to the SCTA.

2013b

Chronology of the Jafr pastoral prehistory and protohistory: A key to theprocess of pastoral nomadization in the southern Levant. In: Abu-Azizeh, W.
and Tarawneh, M. (eds.), Syria 90 (Current Research on Protohistoric
Settlement in Desert Areas of Jordan): 47-123.

Al-Asmari, K. F.
2012

Oyaynah Archaeological Site: The Study of Neolithic Period Northwest ofSaudi Arabia. Riyad: King Abdulaziz Publication, University. Thesis Series
No 279.

Ingraham, M. L., Johnson, T. D., Rihani, B., and Shatla, I.
1981

Comprehensive archaeological survey program: Preliminary report on areconnaissance survey of the northwestern province (with a note on a brief
survey of the northern province). Atlal 5: 59-84.

5

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Wadi Shrama 1: Area 1 (looking N).

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Wadi Shrama 1: Area 1 (looking NE).

Wadi Shrama 1: Square B8, Trench I (looking NW).
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Wadi Shrama 1: flint artifacts.

Fig. 12Wadi Shrama 1: grinding slabs.
12