Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007 within the Old City and the Ancient Harbor 9781407302720, 9781407332758

Table of contents :
Cover Page
Title Page
Copyright
INTRODUCTION AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Part I: Field Reports
The warehouse quarter (area LL) and the Temple Platform (area TP), 1996-2000 and 2002 seasons
Preliminary coin report, areas LL and TP, 1996-2000, 2002 seasons
The belt of Stephanos: gold belt ornaments found in area LL, 1996 and 1998 seasons
A Byzantine/Early Islamic bath on the S flank of the Temple Platform, excavations 1995
Ceramic assemblages from the Byzantine/Early Islamic bath
The Fatimid hoard of metalwork, glass, and ceramics from TPS: preliminary report
A market complex on the SW flank of the Temple Platform, 1995 season
Underwater excavations in the Herodian harbor Sebastos, 1995–1999 seasons
The Caesarea Ancient Reservoir Project (CARP): preliminary results
Part II: Specialized Studies
Site formation and stratigraphic development of Caesarea’s ancient harbor
Optical luminescence dating of sediments from Herod’s harbor
The fishing economy at Caesarea
Archaeobotanical remains from Caesarea: the 1997 and 1998 seasons
The ceramic oil lamps of the Transitional and Medieval periods (640-1300): a chronological and typological study

Citation preview

BAR S1784 2008

Caesarea Reports and Studies

HOLUM, STABLER & REINHARDT (Eds)

Excavations 1995-2007 within the Old City and the Ancient Harbor

Edited by

CAESAREA REPORTS AND STUDIES: EXCAVATIONS 1995-2007

Kenneth G. Holum Jennifer A. Stabler Eduard G. Reinhardt

BAR International Series 1784 2008

B A R red cover template.indd 1

20/04/2010 14:57:23

Caesarea Reports and Studies Excavations 1995-2007 within the Old City and the Ancient Harbor

Edited by

Kenneth G. Holum Jennifer A. Stabler Eduard G. Reinhardt

BAR International Series 1784 2008

Published in 2016 by BAR Publishing, Oxford BAR International Series 1784 Caesarea Reports and Studies © The editors and contributors severally and the Publisher 2008 The authors' moral rights under the 1988 UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act are hereby expressly asserted. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be copied, reproduced, stored, sold, distributed, scanned, saved in any form of digital format or transmitted in any form digitally, without the written permission of the Publisher.

ISBN 9781407302720 paperback ISBN 9781407332758 e-format DOI https://doi.org/10.30861/9781407302720 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library BAR Publishing is the trading name of British Archaeological Reports (Oxford) Ltd. British Archaeological Reports was first incorporated in 1974 to publish the BAR Series, International and British. In 1992 Hadrian Books Ltd became part of the BAR group. This volume was originally published by Archaeopress in conjunction with British Archaeological Reports (Oxford) Ltd / Hadrian Books Ltd, the Series principal publisher, in 2008. This present volume is published by BAR Publishing, 2016.

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Frontispiece: Caesarea Maritima, Site Map and Excavation Areas

This volume is dedicated to the memory of our colleague and friend

Avner Raban (1937-2004) “I will bring them back from Bashan. I will bring them back from the dark places of the sea” (Psalm 68:23-24).

Holum, Stabler, and Reinhardt: Introduction and Acknowledgements

TABLE OF CONTENTS Abbreviations used frequently in this volume Introduction and acknowledgements K. G. Holum, J. Stabler, E. G. Reinhardt

Part 1: Field Reports

The warehouse quarter (area LL) and the Temple Platform (area TP), 1996-2000 and 2002 seasons J. Stabler, K. G. Holum, F. H. Stanley, Jr., M. Risser, Anna Iamim.............................................1 Preliminary coin report, areas LL and TP, 1996-2000 and 2002 seasons P. Lampinen.................................................................................................................................41 Amphoras from the abandonment layer in area LL (L 1242, 1335) M. Oren-Paskal.............................................................................................................................49 The belt of Stephanos: gold belt ornaments found in area LL1, 1996 and 1998 seasons M. K. Risser..................................................................................................................................59 A Byzantine/Early Islamic bath on the S flank of the Temple Platform, excavations 1995 A. Raban, S. Yankelevitz..............................................................................................................67 Ceramic assemblages from the Byzantine/Early Islamic bath Y. D. Arnon..................................................................................................................................85 The Fatimid hoard of metalwork, glass, and ceramics from TPS: preliminary report Y. D. Arnon, A. Lester, R. Pollack.............................................................................................105 A market complex on SW flank of the Temple Platform, 1995 season A. Raban, S. Yankelevitz............................................................................................................ 115 Underwater excavations in the Herodian harbor Sebastos, 1995-1999 seasons A. Raban.....................................................................................................................................129 The Caesarea Ancient Reservoir Project (CARP): preliminary results R. J. Fitton, E. G. Reinhardt, H. P. Schwarcz............................................................................143

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Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Part 2: Specialized Studies Site formation and stratigraphic development of Caesarea’s ancient harbor E. G. Reinhardt, A. Raban.........................................................................................................155 Optical luminescence dating of sediments from Herod’s harbor W. J. Rink, E. G. Reinhardt........................................................................................................183 The fishing economy at Caesarea A. Fradkin, O. Lernau................................................................................................................189 Archaeobotanical remains from Caesarea: the 1997 and 1998 seasons J. Ramsay..................................................................................................................................201 New inscribed lead weights from Caesarea Alla Kushnir-Stein, Lionel Holland................................................................................................209 The ceramic oil lamps of the transitional and medieval periods (640-1300): a chronological and typological study Yael D. Arnon ................................................................................................................................212 Combined references for the three contributions on ceramics (Oren-Paskal, “Amphoras,” Arnon, “Ceramic assemblages,” and Arnon, “Oil lamps”).........................................................................265

vi



ABBREVIATIONS USED FREQUENTLY IN THIS VOLUME

Caesarea papers

R. L. Vann (ed), Caesarea papers: Straton’s Tower, Herod’s harbour, and Roman and Byzantine Caesarea (JRA suppl. 5; Ann Arbor, MI 1992).

Caesarea papers 2

K. G. Holum, A. Raban, and J. Patrich (edd.), Caesarea papers 2: Herod’s temple, the provincial governor’s praetorium and granaries, the later harbour, a gold coin hoard, and other studies (JRA suppl. 35; Portsmouth, RI 1999).

Caesarea retrospective

A. Raban and K. G. Holum (edd.), Caesarea Maritima: a retrospective after two millenia (Leiden 1996).

Oleson, Harbours 2

J. P. Oleson, M. A. Fitzgerald, A. N. Sherwood, and S. E. Sidebotham, The harbours of Caesarea Maritima, 2: the finds and the ship (BAR int. ser. 594, Oxford 1994).

Raban, Harbours 1

A. Raban et al., The harbours of Caesarea Maritima, 1: the site and the excavations, results of the Caesarea Ancient Harbour Excavation Project 1980-1985 (J. P. Oleson [ed.]; BAR int. ser. 491, Oxford 1989).

Holum, Stabler, and Reinhardt: Introduction and Acknowledgements



INTRODUCTION AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The present volume is the fourth to appear, after Caesarea papers in 1992, Caesarea retrospective in 1996, and Caesarea papers 2 in 19991, containing reports and studies of the Combined Caesarea Expeditions along with other scholarship on the site. Various causes have delayed this fourth volume, primary among them the lamentable death, on February 11, 2004, of our friend and colleague Avner Raban, Professor in the Department of Maritime Civilizations and the Leon Recanati Institute of Maritime Studies at the University of Haifa.2 Although never responsible for editing this volume, Avner would not have permitted such delays, had he lived, but would have insisted that we resolve minor shortfalls straightaway and bring the volume into print. Avner’s methods of encouragement were implacable, and of course he was ever an inexhaustible source of intellectual stimulation. Thus we dedicate this volume to the memory of Avner Raban, quoting a passage from the Psalms that was a favorite of Avner and his divers. We are also proud to include no fewer than five papers here that Avner authored or coauthored. They represent some of his finest work. The Combined Caesarea Expeditions excavated at Caesarea Maritima, Israel, on land and under water, between 1989 and 2007. This group, the CCE, functioned as an umbrella under which academic institutions in Israel, the U.S., Canada, and the U.K., as well as international volunteers, could pool resources of scholarship, funding, physical exertion, technical skill, and enthusiasm to explore archaeologically an illuminating ancient city, remarkable (among other reasons) for its setting at the juncture of land and sea. Avner Raban and Kenneth G. Holum organized CCE in 1988 with the backing of their respective institutions, the Leon Recanati Institute at the University of Haifa, and the Department of History of the University of Maryland. In 1993 Joseph Patrich, then of the Department of Archaeology, University of Haifa, joined the directorate, and from 1998 Raban associated Eduard G. Reinhardt of the School of Geography and Geology, McMaster University, with himself as director of harbor research. In all more than twenty international institutions and 2500 volunteers joined the effort during one- or two-month summer seasons between 1989 and 2007. Simultaneously, from 1993 until 2000 Raban and Patrich directed year-round excavations in CCE areas employing hired laborers, mainly new immigrants to Israel from Ethiopia and the former Soviet Union. By 2000, though, we had completed major fieldwork in most excavation areas on land, and the renewed intifada of that fall made further work with international volunteers difficult. We therefore concluded CCE land work with a study season in 2001, a short season of fieldwork in 2002, and a final study season in 2003. Meanwhile, harbor research has continued in 2001-2003, 2005, and 2007, and Reinhardt plans to organize further such research in the future. Nevertheless, CCE has now become so abstract an entity that it will be better to declare its demise, as soon as we finish writing our final reports. In the interim, the four volumes of interim reports and studies now published are cumulative introductions to the whole range of CCE excavation results. This fourth volume presents unpublished material from more than a decade of archaeological work at Caesarea between 1995 and 2007. Its chronological span is the entire spectrum of Caesarea’s occupation, from the time of Straton’s Tower, Caesarea’s Hellenistic predecessor (c. 300 B.C.E.) until the 19th-c. Bosnian settlement, but in the papers that follow there is a clear emphasis on the later periods, Late Antique or “Byzantine,” Early Islamic, and Crusader. In terms of terrain, the sites featured in this volume are the harbor and two excavation areas within Caesarea’s Old City, area LL to the N of the Inner Harbor and the Temple Platform (area TP) along with its flanks to the S and SW (areas TPS, Z).3 The field reports in part 1 update earlier reports in Caesarea papers and Caesarea papers 2 on the harbor and on the temple and church in area TP and present the first detailed data on the excavation of a Byzantine-Islamic bath in area TPS and on the warehouse quarter in area LL. The report on the reservoir project (CARP) that concludes part 1 shifts the focus to Caesarea’s well-preserved ancient aqueduct system, to the palaeohydrology of the reservoir established to the NE of the city in the 4th c. as part of that system. This project used coring effectively to recover datable microfauna preserved in the sediments of the ancient lake bed that represented different, chronologically successive hydrological regimes. 1 See the list of Abbreviations used frequently in this volume. 2 For an appreciation see K. Holum in Near Eastern archaeology 66 (2003), 81, and for a bibliography of Avner Raban’s works visit http://maritime.haifa.ac.il/raban/eng. 3 See the site map with excavation areas, frontispiece. ix

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

As in Caesarea papers, we present studies of datable material, of ceramics and coins, together with the stratigraphic reports in part 1. Thus the reader can readily evaluate the evidence we use for absolute dating of construction phases. We single out Arnon’s study of the ceramics from TPS as of special importance, because these pots and lamps represent a clear stratigraphic sequence of sealed loci that the excavators were able to identify, including layers deposited before and after the earthquake of 749 C.E. Also included here is a group of gold belt ornaments from area LL. In this case, the stratigraphy was not at all clear, a fact that we believe does not detract from the cultural interest of the objects. In part 2 are studies of several further categories of cultural evidence, including an interesting group of lead seals from a private collection (not from CCE excavations) and of fish bones and palaeobotanical remains from the excavations in areas TP and LL. The latter studies offer new but still tentative insights into Caesarea’s ancient environment and into the economy and diet of ancient Caesareans. Of methodological interest, especially to harbor archaeologists, is an evaluative report on the successful application in 1999 of optical luminescence dating to sediments from Caesarea’s harbor. Again, Arnon’s chronological and typological catalogue of ceramic oil lamps from Medieval Caesarea will be welcomed as the most comprehensive study of such lamps from Caesarea, and because the stratigraphy in most cases was tightly controlled. The substantial chronological study of Caesarea’s main harbor that begins part 2 exploits the full range of geoarchaeological techniques for gathering and evaluating data and introduces facies analysis as a means of resolving longstanding debates about the longevity of Herod’s harbor Sebastos at Caesarea and the aetiology of its demise. We believe that this study, taking the full range of coastal processes into account, including tsunamis, establishes a new stateof-the-art for archaeological study of ancient harbors. With the publication of these reports and studies, the entire range of our work at Caesarea since 1989 is therefore available in preliminary form for colleagues to evaluate and incorporate as appropriate into their own research. We will be grateful, of course, for critical suggestions as we prepare our final reports. Work on these is proceeding rapidly. Professor Michal Artzy has graciously assumed responsibility for seeing to press the two-volume study of the harbors that Avner Raban had nearly completed at the time of his death. Yael Arnon has revised and expanded her dissertation on Early Islamic and Crusader ceramics, which will appear in print soon as Caesarea Maritima in the late periods (700-1291 CE). Together with his colleagues, Joseph Patrich, now in the Institute of Archaeology, the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, is writing the final reports on the governor’s praetorium and warehouses in areas CC, CV, KK, and NN to the S of the Old City (cf. Caesarea papers 2, 70-149, for preliminary reports). Under Holum’s editorship work on the final reports on terrestrial excavations inside the Old City (TP, I, and Z) is advancing rapidly, now with the support of a grant from the Shelby WhiteLeon Levy Foundation, for which we are all grateful. The first volume will be ready for the press in mid-2008. In the meantime, since Caesarea papers 2 in 1999, a number of reports and studies on CCE excavations have already been published (apart from those cited in the reports and below) to which we would like to draw the reader’s attention. Of the substantial number of human skeleton remains recovered in our excavations, political intervention left little available to the researcher, but Piers Mitchell has begun to publish studies on palaeopathologies evident in Crusader skeletons (2006). The CCE directors invited Eitan Ayalon to publish objects of bone and ivory in his Tel Aviv Ph.D. dissertation, which has now appeared in print (Ayalon 2006). Yael Arnon, ceramic specialist and registrar, has published articles on the Early Islamic settlement (2004, 2006). Most prolific has been Joseph Patrich, who has published a series of penetrating articles on his excavations S of the Old City and on broader Caesarea topics (e.g. Patrich 2000, 2001a, 2001b, 2002a, 2002b, 2005, 2006a, 2006b, also Di Segni et al. 2003). Nor should we imply that of the various Caesarea excavating teams only CCE has been meeting its publication goals. The American Joint Expedition to Caesarea Maritima (JECM) that excavated in the 1970s and 1980s brought out volumes on Greek and Latin inscriptions (Lehmann and Holum 2000, a comprehensive study, however, of all significant inscriptions from Caesarea known by the mid-1990s) and on coins from its own excavations (Evans 2006). Stratigraphic reports from JECM are still wanting. Sites in Caesarea’s hinterland recently published include Ramat ha-Nadiv (Hirschfeld et al. 2000), Tel Tanninim (Stieglitz et al. 2006), and the dams and aqueducts N of the city (Porath 2002, Siegelmann 2002, Peleg 2002). Of the teams that excavated alongside CCE in the 1990s, the Israel Antiquities Authority project directed by Yosef Porath, located inside and S of the Old City (Porath 1998, 2000), and the University of Pennsylvania Project of Kathryn Gleason and Barbara Burrell that excavated the Promontory Palace (Gleason, Burrell et al. 1998) are likewise advancing rapidly toward final publication. Prospects are good that within the next few years, with major excavations now in abeyance across the terrain, Caesarea will take its place among the most thoroughly published of all Mediterranean archaeological sites. The editors of this volume invited the authors to acknowledge individually their indebtedness for financial, logistic, and scholarly support. On behalf of all, though, we express our profound gratitude to the Leon Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies for its continued commitment, especially for the engagement of Michal Artzy, charged with organizing curation and publication of the Caesarea material in succession to Avner Raban. We thank also the Department of History of the University of Maryland, and the College of Arts and Humanities and its dean James Harris, for long-term backing. Major funding has also come for the harbor project from the Baron Edmund de Rothschild Caesarea Foundation, and for the x

Holum, Stabler, and Reinhardt: Introduction and Acknowledgement

s

terrestrial excavations from the Rebecca Meyerhoff Philanthropic Fund and the Joseph and Rebecca Meyerhoff Center for Jewish Studies at the University of Maryland. Individual private donors have also been most generous, especially the Joseph and Mary Keller Foundation of Dayton, OH, and Mr. Norman Krisher of New York and Caesarea.

Kenneth G. Holum Jennifer A. Stabler University of Maryland

Eduard G. Reinhardt McMaster University

References Arnon, Yael D. 2004 “The Early Islamic period in Caesarea, mid-6th century to early 12th century CE,” Qadmoniot 127, 22-33 (Hebrew). ead. 2006 “‘There is not on the Roman sea a city more beautiful’: Caesarea and its water installations during the Early Islamic period,” Cathedra 122, 177-202 (Hebrew). Ayalon, Eitan. 2005 The assemblage of bone and ivory artifacts from Caesarea Maritima, Israel, 1st-13th centuries CE (BAR int. ser. 1457, Oxford). Di Segni, L, J. Patrich, and K. G. Holum 2003 “A schedule of fees for official services from Caesarea Maritima,” ZPE 145, 273-300. Evans, Jane DeRose 2006 The coins and the Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine economy of Palestine (JECM excavation reports 6, Boston). Gleason, Kathryn L., Barbara Burrell et al. 1998 “The promontory palace at Caesarea Maritima: preliminary evidence for Herod’s praetorium.” JRA 11, 23-52. Hirschfeld, Yizhar, et al. 2000 Ramat Hanadiv excavations: final report of the 1984-1998 seasons (Jerusalem). Lehmann, C. M., and K. G. Holum 2000 The Greek and Latin inscriptions of Caesarea Maritima (JECM excavation reports 5, Boston). Mitchell, Piers D. 2006 “Trauma in the Crusader period city of Caesarea: a major port in the Medieval eastern Mediterranean,” International journal of osteoarchaeology 16, 493-505. Peleg, Yehuda 2002 “The dams of Caesarea’s low-level aqueduct,” in D. Amit, J. Patrich, and Y. Hirschfeld (edd.), The aqueducts of Israel (JRA suppl. 46, Portsmouth, RI) 141-47. Porath, Yosef 1998 “Expedition of the Antiquities Authority,” ESI 105, 39-49. id. 2000 “Caesarea 1994-1999,” ESI 112, 34-40. id. 2002 “The water-supply to Caesarea: a re-assessment,” in D. Amit, J. Patrich, and Y. Hirschfeld (edd.), The aqueducts of Israel (JRA suppl. 46, Portsmouth, RI) 104-29. Patrich, Joseph. 2000 “A government compound in Roman-Byzantine Caesarea,” in Proceedings of the Twelfth World Congress of Jewish Studies, division B, history of the Jewish people (Jerusalem) 35*-44* (English section). id. 2001a “Urban space in Caesarea Maritima, Israel,” in J. W. Eadie and T. Burns (edd.), Urban centers and rural contexts (East Lansing, MI) 77-110. id. 2001b “The carcares of the Herodian hippodrome/stadium at Caesarea Maritima and connections with the Circus Maximus,” JRA 14, 269-83. id. 2002a “A chapel of St. Paul at Caesarea?” Liber annuus 50, 363-82. id. 2002b “Herod’s hippodrome/stadium at Caesarea and the games conducted therein, in L. V. Rutgers (ed.), What has Athens to do with Jerusalem, Essays in Honor of Gideon Foerster (Leuven) 29-68. id. 2005 “Herodian Caesarea–the urban framework,” in M. Mor et al. (edd.), For Uriel: studies in the history of Israel in antiquity presented to Professor Uriel Rappaport (Jerusalem) 497-538 (Hebrew). id. 2006a “Caesarea in transition from the Byzantine to the Muslim regime: the archaeological evidence from the Southwest Zone (areas CC, KK, NN) and the literary sources,” Cathedra 122, 7-30 (Hebrew). id. 2006b “The Wall Street, the Eastern Stoa, the location of the tetrapylon, and the halachic status of Caesarea (interpreting Tosefta Oholot XVIII:13),” Cathedra 122, 7-30 (Hebrew). Siegelmann, A. 2002 “Appendix: the tunnels of Taninim and Shunit,” in D. Amit, J. Patrich, and Y. Hirschfeld (edd.), The aqueducts of Israel (JRA suppl. 46, Portsmouth, RI) 130-40. Stieglitz, R. et al. 2006 Tel Tanninim: excavations at Krokodeilon Polis 1996-1999 (ASOR archaeological reports 10, Boston).

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Part I: Field Reports

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 1. Area LL, Excavation squares, Early Roman structures (Anna Iamim).

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

The warehouse quarter (area LL) and the Temple Platform (area TP), 1996-2000 and 2002 seasons Jennifer Stabler and Kenneth G. Holum with contributions by Farland H. Stanley, Jr., and Martha Risser, and drawings by Anna Iamim In 1996-2000 excavations on land concentrated on two sectors, areas LL and TP (see map, frontispiece). Area LL is a commercial and (later) residential neighborhood adjoining Caesarea’s Inner Harbor on the N, while area TP, the Temple Platform, was the site of King Herod’s temple to Roma and Augustus and of an octagonal Early Christian church erected c. 500. After five seasons of excavation, area LL has yielded ruins of a commercial or, more probably, a government warehouse (horreum) built c. 400, along with evidence that a similar structure preceded it dating from Herod’s time. Included below are the inventory of coins crucial for dating (Lampinen, below) and reports on an assemblage of gold belt ornaments, probably 6th c., found in trench LL1 (Risser, below), and on the ceramics of the abandonment layer that represents the end of the warehouse occupation just after the Muslim conquest of 641 (Oren-Paskal, below). In area TP (cf. Holum 1999, 16-34) new evidence emerged on the temple’s architecture, permitting a new attempt to reconstruct its order, as well as on its destruction in the 4th c., on the bema and other liturgical furnishings of the subsequent octagonal church, and on the monumental vaulted halls that occupied much of the site in the 13th c.

occupation of 1882-1948. Stratum 2, dated to the later Early Islamic period, consisted of numerous walls 25-30 cm in width that probably represented one-story dwelling units (cf. fig. 9). Stratum 2 closely followed an urban configuration that originated during stratum 3, the earliest Islamic phase. This phase marked a shift from a warehouse district closely associated with the harbor to a residential district tied more to the surrounding countryside. Stratum 4, then, the 7th-c. Byzantine occupation, was a large warehouse with walls 65-95 cm wide that fronted the N side of the Inner Harbor (cf. fig. 4). A wide street of large limestone pavers ran along the N edge of the warehouse complex toward the sea on the W. In a few trenches Levine and Netzer also reached earlier strata. They found several street levels below the limestone street of stratum 4, with indications that the street had been laid out in the in the Early Roman (Herodian) period. Large walls dating to the 2nd c. C.E. appeared in some areas also following the general orientation of the street (ib. 64-65). In 1986-1987 A. Raban and R. Stieglitz investigated a structure W of the warehouse that Levine and Netzer had also studied in 1976 (fig. 1) (ib. 65). Designated first area L, later incorporated into area S (below), this was a 23.7 m long E-W ashlar platform, probably a quay dating to Herod’s original construction of the harbor. A N-S structure of headers at right angles to it (W21) belonged to the same phase. Raban thought that by the late 2nd or early 3rd c. the quay had ceased to function. A beach deposit forming over the wall meant that the outer Herodian breakwaters had deteriorated by that time, exposing the quay to the surge of the open sea (Raban, Harbours 1, 151-54).

The renewed intifada of late 2000 brought an end to large-scale excavations in areas LL and TP, and renewed exploration does not appear likely at the date of this report. The senior staff devoted one month’s field study in summer 2001 to preparation for writing the TP final report, and in June 2002 we conducted small-scale excavations on stratigraphic and architectural issues raised in the study season. After another brief study season in 2003, we are now at work on the TP final report. We had hoped for two or three more field seasons to complete our work in area LL, but it now appears that a continuation there will await other excavators and a new project.

In 1986 Raban and Stieglitz excavated several trenches on the S flank of the suspected warehouse, designated area S, in order to define and date a wall that functioned either as a retaining wall or as a quay on the S side of the warehouse. This wall, along with a pavement inside the warehouse corridor, was thought to pre-date the Herodian harbor, but the dating was not secure. The quay in area S likely joined W21 in area L at a right angle and may have remained in use from the Herodian through Crusader periods. Also excavated were four storage bins in the SE room of the warehouse similar to others found in areas I, TP, and Z dating to the late 10th- or early 11th-c. (Raban, ib. 173-77).

Area LL This area is N of the Inner Harbor basin and E of the main Herodian harbor basin (frontispiece; fig. 1). In the 1970’s L. Levine and E. Netzer of the Hebrew University had investigated this sector, their Central Excavation Area, identifying at least four distinct strata (Levine and Netzer1986). Stratum 1 was the latest Crusader phase, but some evidence possibly belonged to the modern Bosnian 1

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

be part of the Crusader fortifications. So far no residential district from Caesarea’s earliest period has come to light. Hellenistic occupation (3rd-1st c. B.C.E.) Late Hellenistic fill layers 4255 and 4256 were encountered in LL4 adjacent to the NE corner of the warehouse below the limestone street. The top of the fill was at +3.23 m, and it was excavated to a depth of +2.94 m N of the limestone street, against the N balk of LL7. Fill layer 7086, also Hellenistic, appeared at higher elevations, +4.44-4.56 m, so the ancient ground level must have sloped steeply from N to S. Another feature probably dating to the Hellenistic period was quarried bedrock 5108 to the W of a 9th-10th c. Islamic storage bin in LL5 at +3.1 m (fig. 2). Its orientation corresponded with neither the limestone street nor the Herodian street grid. Further apparently pre-Herodian quarrying was identified in LL2 in 2000. This quarrying, the first evidence of Hellenistic occupation in area LL, indicated that Straton’s Tower, the town that preceded Caesarea on the site, extended into this area. No walls, however, or other structures from this period have as yet come to light in area LL. Early Roman occupation (22 B.C.E.-70 C.E.) Foundations of a building dating from King Herod’s time or shortly thereafter appeared in LL1, LL4, and LL5 below the walls of Byzantine warehouse rooms 1-4. These foundations, preserved to +3.8 m at their highest point, consisted of very large blocks of the local kurkar (calcareous sandstone) averaging 31×53×68 cm (figs. 2, 3, 5, walls 1171, 1253, 1254, 1261, 1402, 1411, 5061, 5067, 5087, 5090, 5123). The Early Roman structures had been dismantled down to their lowest two or three courses c. 400 C.E. and new walls built on top. Where we exposed them fully, the Early Roman foundations lay directly on the natural bedrock. On the E side of the warehouse, the outer foundation wall was 1.5 m wide (1171), while the interior foundations were 1.3 m wide (1402, 1411, 5061). The excavators also identified fill layers 5112, 5113, 5117, and 5118 dating to the Early Roman period in LL5 in room 3 of the warehouse. This fill leveled the surface above the bedrock for the warehouse floor. The top of the fill layers was at +3.11 m, and they bottomed on the natural kurkar bedrock at +2.04 m. The original floor probably lay somewhat above +3.11 m but had been robbed out later when new floors were constructed.

Fig. 2. Area LL5 looking N. On right, Islamic grain bin. To W and N of it are walls 5006 and 5015 of Byzantine warehouse room 3. Early Roman wall 5061 is in the foreground, and below 5015 is Early Roman 5123. Earlier quarrying visible in bedrock was presumably Hellenistic (Lisa Helfert). We renewed area LL excavations in 1996 in order, first, to trace the evolution of this apparent commercial district adjacent to the harbor from the Herodian through Byzantine periods. Moreover, the limestone street bisecting the area did not lie on the grid plan that Herod imposed upon the site, so its orientation was thought to represent earlier Hellenistic settlement with streets on a different orientation. Since the Byzantine warehouse gave way in the 7th-8th c. to Early Islamic residential occupation, new information was also expected on the important Byzantine-Islamic transition. Hence the excavators opened nine 10×10 m grid squares, numbered LL1-9 (fig. 1), in the five seasons discussed here. The project began excavating LL1-3 in 1996 to expand the Hebrew University excavations. In 1997 and 1998 we reopened trenches LL4 and LL5 above Levine and Netzer trenches E5 and E4 to clarify the relationship of the limestone street with the Byzantine warehouse to its S. In 1999 we began two new trenches, LL6 and LL7 to the N of LL4 and LL5 to study the Islamic features already exposed and to find (we hoped) Byzantine and earlier occupations below. In 2000 the team worked in LL8 and LL9 exploring an apparent fortification tower identified in LL6 during the 1999 season that was thought initially to

Together with the quays discovered earlier on the W and S side of area LL, the early foundations and leveling fills might indeed represent a large warehouse established in the Early Roman period when King Herod first built Caesarea, as Raban suggested (Raban, Harbours 1, 151-54). Levine and Netzer had already discovered this building, had recorded its S extent, and had recognized its overall plan and its link with the adjacent quays, evident especially in a wide doorway through its S wall (fig. 1)(1986, 59-65). The team excavated more fill layers with Hellenistic and Early Roman pottery (6098, 6135, 6137, 6138, 6139, 6140, 7078) in the N part of LL6 and LL7, N of the 2

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Fig. 3. Area LL1, room 2, looking E. Wall 1002 (c. 400) rests upon Early Roman wall 1171. To right and left are Early Islamic columns 1136 and 1131. Left of 1136 square plinth 1248 is embedded in plaster floor 1252. Plaster covering walls and the columns above c. 5.5 m represents 13th c. domestic occupation (Lisa Helfert). Byzantine limestone street, but found no walls, surfaces, or other structures associated with the fills. Elevations ranged from +5.71 down to +4.92 m, as much as 2.6 m higher than similar layers in the warehouse to the S, again because the topography sloped up to the N rather abruptly. Unfortunately, we have so far been unable to estimate the nature of occupation to the N of the street and warehouse during the Early Roman period. Roman Street layers (1st-3rd c. C.E.) Probes beneath the Byzantine limestone street in LL4 showed that earlier street surfaces had existed beneath it on the same line. 4231 was two dry laid kurkar stones of a likely E-W drain at +4.03 m top elevation. Pottery in soil layers 4233 and 4234 beneath it dated the drain to the 1st c. C.E. Also beneath the limestone street, layers 4251 and 4235, with 2nd- and 3rd-c. pottery respectively, presumably represented grading and/or resurfacing during the next 200 years.

and W (ib. 64-65). Evidently, the flanking rooms served as storage areas, while the corridor provided access from the quay on the S end of the structure and the street along its N side. Levine and Netzer had already exposed warehouse rooms 5-6 on the N end in their squares C-D/3, and we excavated additional rooms 1-4 in squares LL1, LL4, and LL5. The building’s walls were constructed of kurkar blocks mortared together (figs. 2, 3, 5). The N wall along the limestone street and the walls separating the central corridor from the flanking rooms were generally 0.65 m wide and consisted of double stretcher and header courses alternating with courses of headers only, while the E outer wall and the E-W walls separating the flanking rooms were 0.95 m wide and double-width, made of headers on one side and stretchers on the other. The header-stretcher technique was typical of other public buildings at Caesarea constructed ca. 400 C.E. (e.g. Bull et al. 1991, 77-78). The double-width walls may have supported a second story above the flanking rooms (below).

Byzantine occupation (ca. 400 C.E.) About 400 the Early Roman warehouse was dismantled and a new warehouse was constructed on the same foundations and apparently on the same plan (fig. 4). Levine and Netzer had already identified this warehouse, composed of a central corridor with rows of rooms opening onto it from E

In LL1 we excavated a 5.5×10 m section of room 1, the central corridor (fig. 5). Within this room the lowest floor uncovered, at +3.6-3.65 m, was tessellation 1400 of white tesserae (28 per 10 cm2) with a rectangular frame of red tesserae 8 cm wide. Below the tessellation was foundation 1412 of cobbles and gray mortar at +3.44-3.59 m. 3

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Fig. 4. Area LL, Byzantine Period (Anna Iamim).

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Comparing the Early Roman subfloor fills in LL5 (above), and the floors in Byzantine warehouse room 1 (below), we suspect that 1400 was the earliest floor in the Byzantine structure. Ceramics collected from the foundations of 1400 appeared to date to the 3rd c., but a coin of 351-361 was also recovered. In the NE and NW corners of room 1 were two bases of kurkar stones c. 1.7 m square solidly mortared together against the room’s outer walls (1256, 1398, the latter in fig. 5). Since the mosaic border and its foundation accommodated them, the bases apparently dated from the same period. Perhaps they functioned as platforms for winch lifts that transported jars and other containers to a second story above the flanking warehouse rooms. Each of the larger warehouse rooms measured c. 5.8×8.8 m. There was one entrance into warehouse room 2 in LL1. It was 1.9 wide with a threshold at +3.70 m and lay directly opposite an entrance on the E side of room 5 excavated by Levine and Netzer. A lime plaster floor, 1190, 1252, and 1345, was uncovered in the N and S portions of room 2, at elevations ranging from +3.69 m in the N to +3.46 m in the S. Similarly, Levine and Netzer identified a beaten earth floor in the N half of room 5 at +3.65 m and a lime plaster floor in the S half at the same elevation (1986, 46). As in room 5, the LL1 excavators discovered a subterranean vault, not yet explored, beneath the plaster floor on the N end of room 2 (1247). On the N, rooms 3 (fig. 2) and 6 were of equal dimensions, 4.7 m N-S and 5.6 m E-W. Room 4 between them measured 4.5 m N-S and 5.4 m E-W. Access to room 4 was probably from the limestone street on the N, and a wide doorway through its S wall opened into the central corridor, room 1. Room 4 also provided access into rooms 3 and 6 through doorways 1.4 m in wide with thresholds at about +3.75 m. Levine and Netzer had exposed a lime plaster floor in room 6 at +3.61 m. We observed a plaster floor at c. +3.6 m in strata below an 8th-c. paving in room 4 but did not excavate it. In room 4 fragmentary plaster floor 5051, at an elevation of +3.79 m, was probably the original floor of the 4th-5th-c. warehouse. Excavation of 5051 yielded 4th-c. pottery and three coins of the third quarter of the 4th c. This floor corresponded in elevation, and probably in date, with plaster floor 5100 in room 3 and with tessellation 1400 in room 1, the central corridor.

Fig. 5. Area LL1, room 1, looking S. On left Byzantine wall 1217 above Early Roman 1411, on right 1266 above 1402. Tessellation 1400 is visible at right center, cobble foundation 1412 at center, and base 1398 at lower right. In background, beneath subsequent floor levels, are well 1309, cistern 1316, and sinkpits 1065 and 1370. Tabun (?) 1233 is at left center (D. Charles Smith). columns supported wooden beams upon which the upper floors were laid. On the other hand, the excavators found no evidence for the warehouse roofing system. We suspect a sloping gabled roof over the entire structure composed of timber covered with rooftiles. On the N side of the warehouse, a compact crushed kurkar layer, 4224, came to light at +3.95-4.02 m that may have been the foundation for the E-W street, predecessor of the limestone pavement, that served the warehouse at the time of its reconstruction in the 4th-5th c. The earlier street itself, presumably stone slabs, did not survived. Beneath 4224, and associated with it were four layers of makeup for the street (4226, 4228, 4229, 4232) and a N-S drain (4075, 4195)(fig. 6). The capstones covering the drain were at +3.96 m, and the fills associated with it dated to the 4th-5th c. In the 6th-7th c. construction of a storage bin to the S canceled the N-S drain, as did the E-W drain (4177) associated with the final limestone street pavement (below).

Levine and Netzer already proposed a second story above rooms 5 and 6 (1986, 46), and either another story or a balcony now appears likely above room 2. A square plinth of kurkar, 85×85 cm (1248), was set into the plaster floor roughly midway between the E and W and 3 m S of the N wall (figs. 3, 4). In its center was a dowel hole that had fixed a column ca. 60 cm in diameter, the imprint of which was visible in mortar adhering to the plinth’s upper surface. A number of corresponding column segments, bases, and capitals appeared in later reuse in room 2 and the vicinity. Indeed, Levine and Netzer uncovered two segments of such a column standing in situ in room 5 to the W of the central corridor (1986, 46-47, plan 10). Presumably, these 5

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Fig. 6. Area LL4 looking E. In center are capstones of N-S drain 4075, 4195 canceled at the right by wall 4252 of Byzantine storage bins. At left is E-W drain 4177 associated with limestone street 4061 above it (Lisa Helfert). Levine and Netzer (1986, 49) identified three rooms (7a, 7b, 7c) W of the warehouse, located on the S side of the street and accessible from it (fig. 4). Many sherds of storage jars were found in these rooms above at least two lime plaster surfaces, so it is likely that these rooms too were used for storage (ib. 48-50). By the 4th and 5th c., however, when the warehouse had been rebuilt, the Early Roman quay to the W had passed out of service and a beach had formed above it (above), so neither rooms 7a, 7b, and 7c, nor the N of the warehouses, likely received goods directly from ships. Such access to the warehouse is much more likely from the quay to the S, nearer the Inner Harbor, which appears to have remained in service until the 6th c. (Reinhardt and Raban, below, 174; also Raban et al., Caesarea Papers 2, 153-56), though it is uncertain how long seagoing ships could still tie up alongside.

Despite the incomplete excavation, it is clear that other buildings also stood in the warehouse quarter (fig. 4). In LL2, S of the limestone street, E-W wall 2028 appears to have dated to the late 6th-early 7th c., and crushed kurkar and mortar floor 2048 on its S side indicated a room in that position, perhaps dated to the 6th- or early 7th-c. Embedded in 2048 was a 5th-c. coin. In LL6 and LL8, on the N of the limestone street, CCE uncovered further walls that might represent another warehouse. E-W wall 6114/8012 flanked the N side of the street and was constructed in the double stretcher/header pattern, but was only c. 0.53 m wide. Bonding with this wall was N-S wall 8040/8041, only 0.47 m wide. A third wall, 6130/6021/7005 (cf. fig. 11), extending E-W 6 m N of 6114/8012, was probably contemporary with the other two but was 1.2 m wide and thus more massive. 6106 was a 0.86×1.35 m segment of white tessellation exposed at +4.56 m to the N of and abutting wall 6114, and just N of this were remains of slab pavement 6111/7134 at +4.55 m.

The LL warehouse measured c. 20×45 m overall and was built of relatively large stones above massive foundations (above). It contrasted in size and construction with a group of warehouses that Patrich excavated in area KK to the S of the main harbor (Caesarea retrospective, 146-76; id., Caesarea Papers 2, 75-81, 106-7). Hence, the KK warehouses may have belonged to private landlords, as Patrich himself proposed, while the LL structure more likely functioned as a government warehouse of the annona, the state apparatus that supplied grain, wine, oil, and other commodities to the army and civil service.

Further evidence for large-scale warehousing nearby of liquid commodities such as wine and oil was a pottery dump that the excavators encountered at +7.09 m in the S half of LL2 and extending ca. 20 m toward the S. Redeposited from somewhere nearby in the 12th or 13th c. (see below), this dump was generally 2 m thick and thus at a minimum contained 500 m3 of potsherds with occasional intervening lenses of soil. Before removing it mechanically, the team 6

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Fig. 7. Area LL4, looking N at 6 th/7th-c. grain bins. At left is Byzantine warehouse wall 4143. At left center is well 4049 (Lisa Helfert). sampled this deposit in two 1×1 m probes. Its contents (by weight) was 90-96.9% storage jars and transport amphoras, 0.8-2.4% tableware, 1.3-2.8% cookware, and 0.5-7.4% other, virtually all from the 4th-early 7th c. Also present were 23 datable coins, mainly from the 4th-6th c. and none later than early 7th. The numismatic and ceramic inventories indicate a continuous process of deposition extending through much of the renewed warehouse’s period of service.

pack animals and wheeled vehicles. A difficulty is that the limestone street sloped downward only slightly between LL4 and LL5, from +4.58 to +4.42 m, while the contemporary warehouse floors, at least in rooms 1 and 2, lay at least 0.5 m lower (below). Neither wheeled vehicles nor pack animals could easily have negotiated this drop in elevation, so porters must have unloaded the jars or sacks in the street and carried them down steps or a ramp into the warehouse through room 4. Levine and Netzer (1986, 47, 49) discovered such steps opening from the limestone street into room 7a with a similar change in elevation. Despite this, it appears that the warehouse (or warehouses) in area LL, though adjacent to the harbor, received a heavy volume of commodities by land.

Byzantine occupation (6th-7th c.) CCE discovered evidence of modification in the warehouse quarter in the 6th or early 7th c. that likewise suggests continued use of the warehouse and continuous urban occupation until the Muslim conquest (fig. 4). First, sometime in the later 6th c. the authorities made final improvements to the E-W street in LL4 and LL5. Before they laid the pavement, the builders installed E-W drain 4177 (fig. 6). The drain’s side walls were irregular kurkar stones set in mortar, its cappers were kurkar slabs, and in section it measured 40×70 cm. Then they laid pavement 4061/5017 using heavy limestone paving slabs averaging 40×60×25 cm (fig. 6). The stones were cut and fitted together with some care in rows across the direction of traffic flow but with a curious retrograde slant to the left . A fill from beneath the street (4241) contained pottery of the 6th-7th c. but no coins. In this period street builders at Caesarea generally employed the softer local kurkar slabs more frequently than the hard Mt. Carmel limestone (Wiemken and Holum 1981, 33), so the builders of the area LL street must have expected heavy traffic in and out of this warehouse quarter, perhaps involving both

Contemporary with the limestone street were two stonelined subterranean storage bins on its S side abutting wall 4143 of warehouse room 3 (fig. 7). These structures were suitable for storing grain or similar dry commodities. Access to the bins, each 1.74 E-W×2.88 m N-S, was presumably from the limestone street. Their walls, 2028, 4031, 4143, 4196, 4252, 4201, 4202, 4203, and 4204, were preserved as high as +2.85-3.22 m, so the bins were likely filled from the top. The interior slabs were cut precisely on their adjoining edges so they would fit tightly together, and they were set in soft, white, water-tight mortar against less carefully shaped outside blocks. Clearly the intention was to protect the content from moisture and vermin. The floor slabs, 4211 and 4250, elevation +1.78 m, appear to have been cut like the wall slabs, and in the SW corner of each floor was a circular depression, perhaps for collecting moisture. Patrich discovered similar granaries from the 7

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 8. Area LL1, looking S at abandonment layer 1242. At upper right is N wall of sinkpit 1083 (11th c.?) that penetrated the abandonment stratum, causing the dislocation upward of the gold belt ornaments (J. J. Gottlieb). m, containing quantities of broken 6th-7th-c. storage jars and other vessels (fig. 8), presumably from the latest warehouse occupation. With the ceramics were rubble from the natural collapse and robbing of the superstructure and many coins dating as late as the 630s but no later (layers 1240, 1242, 1332, 1335, 1340, 1357, 1360, cf. Lampinen, below, and Oren-Paskal, below). Hence the warehouse activity came to a relatively abrupt and permanent end. This abandonment layer also contained, originally, a collection of gold belt ornaments that had belonged to one of Caesarea’s most powerful men, but had somehow gone astray and found their way into the abandonment stratum, only to be recirculated into higher strata four or five centuries later when later occupants dug a sink pit that penetrated the strata below (see Risser, below). The abandonment stratum also appeared in the warehouse corridor, room 1, at +4.13-3.54 m (1359, 1382, 1393, 1397). In the N part of the corridor, some fill layers covered the latest plaster floors at elevations of +3.58-4.13 m. A patch of burned timbers in the NW corner indicated that the building’s timber roof burned and collapsed in the mid to late 7th c. (1359). A layer of clean sand, at +3.76-3.48 m, accumulated over the S part of the corridor (1397). Levine and Netzer also encountered sand layers that had spread over the area during a time of abandonment and prior to the Early Islamic building phase, especially in rooms 5, 6, and 7b to the W of the CCE excavation area. There the abandonment stratum contained fallen ashlars, chunks of mosaic floors, and large quantities of pottery,

Byzantine period in area KK to the S of the Old City, all located within the private warehouses there (Patrich, Caesarea retrospective, 164-68). During this period new floors were laid within the great warehouse of the annona, demonstrating continued occupation in the 6th-7th c. and perhaps some remodeling of the superstructure. In room 3 plaster floor 5098 was at +3.93 m. In the corridor, room 1, the two square bases in the NE and NW corners (1256, 1398) were dismantled and plaster floor 1391, 1395, and 1406 was laid above their position and across the entire corridor ranging in elevation from +3.97 m in the N to +3.64 m in the S. Significantly, 1395 contained a coin of Justinian I (527-565 C.E.). Byzantine-Islamic transition (after 640) The LL warehouse apparently remained in use through the 6th c. and during the Persian occupation of Caesarea between 614 and 627, representing the continuation of the annona system, and, more generally, of Caesarea’s role as a redistribution center for commodities imported by sea and for products of Caesarea’s agricultural hinterland. At least in LL, however, this economic activity ended abruptly in 640, when the Muslims stormed Caesarea and brought an end to Roman imperial rule. The archaeological evidence is clear that after 640 the LL warehouse fell quickly into disuse. We excavated an abandonment stratum in warehouse room 2, at +4.23-3.23 8

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

including numerous complete vessels (1986, 46-48). The sand layers apparently indicate a period of complete abandonment in LL between the Byzantine and Islamic periods at Caesarea.

The excavators also discovered evidence for the roofing of the unit in LL1. The roofs of the former warehouse having long-since collapsed, the courtyard remained open to the weather and hence required drain channel 1403 to carry away runoff. A timber roof pitched to the N sufficed for room 1a, but the spans of 2a and 2b to the E were too great, so in both rooms the builders installed columns salvaged from the earlier warehouse to support heavy crossbeams, which, in turn would have supported the structure of a roof (fig. 3). The same roofing system appears to have survived until the end of Crusader Caesarea.

The Early Islamic occupation (7th-8th c., UmayyadAbbasid) The archaeology of area LL confirms that the Muslim conquerors–or the earlier inhabitants now under Muslim rule--did not raze unused buildings of the previous regime but left them to collapse naturally or put them to use for different purposes. The harbor had ceased to function, and Caesarea’s role as a major redistribution center was over, so what remained of the warehouse was available for domestic occupation. When the new occupation is first perceptible in LL, toward the end of the 7th c., Byzantine structures were being subdivided into smaller rooms, presumably to be inhabited as dwellings (fig. 9). Former warehouse rooms 1 and 2, for example, were reoccupied as a single unit.1 In warehouse room 2, E-W division wall 1004 was built above the abandonment stratum, and rooms 2a and 2b of the 8th c. were paved with a kurkar slab floor at +4.13 m, partially preserved at the base of wall 1004. The threshold of the door in 1004 between rooms 2a and 2b was at +4.23 m, and the doorway in wall 1217 between rooms 1 and 2b was narrowed and its threshold elevated to +4.18 m. In room 1, wall 1302 blocked the entrance from former warehouse room 4 and the limestone street to the N, while E-W wall 1224/1346 subdivided the former corridor into a smaller room on the N, room 1a, and a larger one to the S. No floors survived, but possible sub-floor fills 1386, 1396, and 1407 in the S part of the former corridor lay at elevations from +3.52 to +3.99 m, while fills 1223, 1352, and 1390 to the N of wall 1224/1346 ranged from +3.88 to +4.12 m. Hence 7th/8th-c. floor surfaces in the former corridor, room 1, robbed out in subsequent phases, would have been at +4.15 to +4.25 m, roughly the same as contemporary surfaces in adjacent rooms. In the S of room 1, stone-lined drain 1403, at +4.14 m top elevation, may have carried runoff from the room, which was therefore open to the sky.

Elsewhere in area LL, where preservation is not good and the excavation less far advanced, the initial reoccupation in the late 7th-early 8th c. remains sketchy. In former warehouse room 4 a kurkar slab floor at +4.15 m (5020) corresponded in elevation with the floors in the dwelling to the S. To the N of the street, in LL8, fragmentary plaster floor 8038 of the 8th c., at +4.8 m, abutted N-S wall 8040/8041, indicating that a room of unknown use extended E of the wall. In LL4 the limestone street remained open and in use, but on the S side of the street walls 4066, 2009, 2110, and the E wall of the former warehouse (4143/1002) constituted a large space of unknown function. A threshold in 4066 at +4.81 m provided access from the limestone street. One of the floors within this space was kurkar slab pavement 4095 at +4.7 m, and circular sinkpit 4157 provided drainage. Fill 4161 within 4157 contained 7th-9th-c. pottery and a coin of c. 830, suggesting construction in the 8th c. and perhaps a century of use. In LL2, wall 2029, abutting wall 2028, had a threshold at +5.14 m, corresponding with fragmentary floor 2026 at +5.05 m built of kurkar chips and mortar. Embedded in 2026 was an Umayyad coin (695-750 C.E.) and 8th-c. pottery was found beneath it, so it appears that the building S of the limestone street was already subdivided in the 8th-9th c. Perhaps it functioned as a dwelling accessible from the limestone street. Abbasid through Crusader (9th-13th c.) In the 9th or 10th c., certainly after sinkpit 4157 had gone out of use, new construction blocked the limestone street bisecting area LL, and henceforth access was by narrow alleys such as one on the N between walls 6070/7023 and 6021/7005 (fig. 9). Thereafter, from the 10th c. through the fall of Crusader Caesarea to the Mamluks in 1265 C.E., occupation in the area developed in a linear fashion with no sharp breaks in culture or in patterns of organizing space. Generally, the subdivision of habitation space continued, floor levels gradually rose,2 drainage and waterstorage facilities were installed beneath the new floors, and industrial, commercial, and defensive installations were added in proximity to rooms for human habitation. In LL, as elsewhere at Caesarea, the sub-floor hydraulic installations–wells, cisterns, and sinkpits–gradually filled with silt containing broken pottery, animal bones, and other detritus of human occupation and thus had to be cleaned

Considering the plan so far, we identify room 1, to the S of wall 1224/1346, as the courtyard around which Early Islamic houses were typically arranged, while N of wall 1224/1346 was a reception room for men, and room 2a, set well away, was the women’s quarters or harem (Petherbridge 1978, 176, 184, 196). From the outside, one presumably reached this 7th/8th-c. domestic unit from the S, where a wall with an entrance, still unexcavated (cf. fig. 5), presumably separated it from the former warehouse corridor. Indeed it appears that in the 8th c. the corridor to the S had become an alleyway, probably unroofed, providing access to one or more domestic units built into the former warehouse, among them the unit excavated in LL1. 1

Rooms 5 and 6 to the W, excavated by Netzer and Levine, appear to have been filled with sand and building debris during this period and hence out of service (1986, 46).

2

Construction of subsurface sinkpits, cisterns, wells, and storage pits and bins destroyed most of the successive floors, which generally survived only in small patches.

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Fig. 9. Area LL, Early Islamic and Crusader period (Umayyad, late 7th through 13th c.)(Anna Iamim).

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out where possible or replaced. Besides the relatively small room sizes, it is these installations and their content that confirmed the generally domestic use of LL space in the Early Medieval period.

floor level in room 2b, were in roofed space, had no water inlets, and hence presumably functioned for cool storage. Circular installation 1233, in the NE of room 1, may have been the base of a tabun (oven) dating from the 10th or 11th c., the upper parts of which were later dismantled.

Subdivision continued, for example, in the LL1 domestic unit. Wall 1225 created a closet-like room E of 1a and accessed from it. Its floor was plaster pavement 1218. Wall 1267/1350, of the 10th or 11th c. (fig. 5), foreshortened room 1 on the S. In all the rooms, floor levels gradually rose. In the doorway in wall 1004 between rooms 2a and 2b a higher threshold at +4.69 m presumably represented an 8th9th-c. floor level in both rooms for which no other evidence survived. In 2b the next level was slab floor 1129/1031 at +4.84 m, beneath which, in 1040, were an Abbasid coin and 9th/10th-c. pottery. By then the doorway in 1004 had been blocked, so access to room 2a was presumably from the W through wall 1217, though the evidence has not survived. In room 2a pottery yielded a 13th-c. date for fragmentary slab floor 1133/1212 at +5.07-5.14 m, but this may represent repair of an earlier floor, since the likely date of 1013/1117/1053, a slab floor at roughly the same elevation in 2b, was at least two centuries earlier. In room 1, the courtyard, slab pavement 1287/1314/1326, at +5.05 m, represented the 9th-10th-c. level, while tessellation 1293, at +5.31 m, decorated with concentric black and red circles, had 10th-11th-c. pottery beneath it. Finally, in the 13th c., after part of wall 1224/1346 had been dismantled, plaster floor 1280/1283 was laid at +5.44 m over both 1 and 1a, consolidating the two rooms into one space. At this floor level and above, a thick layer of gray plaster covered the walls apparently in all the rooms of dwelling unit 1, and the same plaster is preserved on the reused columns that supported the roof above rooms 2a and 2b (fig. 3).

Dwelling 2 in LL2 and LL4 apparently became a coherent habitation unit in the 10th c., when new construction finally blocked the limestone street. The earliest definitive evidence of the blockage and of the new unit was a tessellated floor decorated with concentric circles of black and red tesserae that Levine and Netzer discovered in rooms 1 and 2 at +5.02-5.36 m. They assigned this floor to stratum 2b (later 10th c.)(1986, 32-37). CCE exposed more of the same floor in room 2 at +5.06 m (4010), and although the latest pottery beneath it dated 9th c., it corresponded closely in design and construction with 1293 in LL1 dated 10th-11th c. (above). Beneath this pavement, and laid just above the limestone street, was a drain channel, likewise discovered by Levine and Netzer, that apparently carried water from adjacent roofs S of room 2 across rooms 2 and 1 and then beneath the threshold in W 4056 to E-W drain 4073 N of dwelling 2. Also beneath the mosaic pavement in room 1 and penetrating the now canceled street was vaulted sinkpit 4068. The excavators found no external drain leading into 4068, so flow into it must have passed through an opening in its top. As Levine and Netzer discovered, a N-S wall (4001) later built to divide off the W third of room 1 had a shallow relieving arch over the sinkpit that might be explained as a device for keeping such an opening accessible, both for draining the floor and for periodically cleaning the sinkpit. It appears, therefore, that 4068 drained room 1, which was thus open to the sky and likely the courtyard of dwelling 2. Room 2 of the same dwelling, accessible by a broad doorway from room 1 and paved with the same tessellation, contained well 4049 in its NW corner and may likewise have been open, thus constituting a secondary courtyard. The other four rooms in this unit all had floors at appropriate levels (+4.94-5.4 m), and all could apparently be reached across thresholds at appropriate levels from rooms 1 or 2, except possibly room 4, which may thus have been the women’s room or harem.

Sub-floor installations evolved accordingly. In LL1 room 1, the courtyard (fig. 5), well 1309 was first dug in association with pavement 1287 (9th c.?) and functioned, to judge from the fill inside it, until the 12th c., when the water table apparently dropped below its maximum depth (+0.51 m). In the meantime, a vaulted, plaster-lined cistern, 1316, in service from the 10th- or 11th to the 13th c., increased the domestic water supply. Ceramic water pipes 1297, 1292, and later 1286, 10 cm in diameter, fed the cistern with water collected from building roofs to the N and S or SE. Drainage of room 1, after the laying of pavement 1287, was to the S through stone-lined drain 1343 at +4.98 m, just below the pavement level. From the 10th c., however, sinkpits accommodated runoff, most of them in room 1, the courtyard, still open to the sky. Rectangular vaulted sinkpit 1370, in the SE corner of room 1, received runoff at +5.17 m through a circular drain head fashioned from a reused Corinthian capital. N of it E-W channel 1318, top elevation +5.09 m, fed sinkpit 1083 (fig. 8) inserted beneath the floor of room 2b through a breach made in wall 1217. At +5.25 m vaulted sinkpit 1065, N of 1318, was the highest of these drainage installations, all of which still received runoff, and hence datable potsherds, in the 13th c. On the other hand, pits 1049 and 1262, below the 10th-c.

Sinkpit 4068, in the suspected courtyard of dwelling 2, contained 13th-c. pottery immediately above its plaster floor. Clearly it had been cleaned out repeatedly and still functioned until sometime in Crusader Caesarea’s last decades, presumably along with the tessellated floor just above it. Otherwise, dwelling 2 underwent continuous change from the 10th c. to the 13th. Well 4049 in room 2 appears from the fill within it to have functioned until the 12th c., like well 1309 in LL1. In the same room Levine and Netzer identified a plaster floor just above tessellation 4010, and room 4 perhaps received a new plaster floor, 2030, in the 11th c., to judge from a coin dated 1059-67 found in the floor’s matrix (2031). Originally, in the 10th c. or so, one apparently entered dwelling 2 from the N, through a doorway in wall 4056, but by the 11th c. the 11

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Fig. 10. Area LL7, looking N. Marble threshold in foreground opened into room 1, courtyard, paved with tessellation 7012. At upper left well 7002 and bench or podium against walls 7010 and 7044 (D. Charles Smith).

Fig. 11. Looking E across areas LL8 (foreground), LL6, and LL7, area LL5 to right. In center is cistern 6004 built against E-W wall 6021. At right center is sinkpit 6005 built against N-S wall 6015. At right, in LL5, is pavement 5023/5039 and beyond, in the upper right, dwelling 5, room 5, with pilasters 5025 and 5026 that supported an upper story (D. Charles Smith). 12

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

surface to the N of that wall was at ca.+6.9 m., nearly 70 cm higher than the threshold in 4056, so there must have been another entrance, not yet discovered. By this time, apparently, at least room 6 of dwelling 2 belonged to another dwelling unit located to the E, reached by a doorway in wall 4065 with a threshold at +5.9 m. In the 10th-11th c. dwelling 3, mostly in LL7, apparently functioned partly as access to dwelling 2. Thereafter it was a separate unit with floors at a higher level. Best preserved was room 2 with slab floor 4016 at +5.99 m. One reached this room through a doorway with a marble threshold from a courtyard, room 1, of unknown dimensions (fig. 10), paved with tessellation 7012 at +6.09 m., dated 11th c. This floor abutted well 7002 and a low, L-shaped structure, perhaps a wide bench or podium, built against walls 7010 and 7044. To judge from the elevation sinkpit 4063 to the S apparently belonged to this dwelling unit, and in the N of LL7 so did plaster surface 7059, at +6.11 m, N-S wall 7056, and sinkpit 7050. Much had obviously been robbed out here. E-W drain 7009 at +6.28 m and N-S drain 7028 at +6.42 m, indicated later, higher floors that had disappeared entirely. Dwelling 4 extended across LL7, LL6, and LL8 (fig. 11). The excavation yielded only a few fragmentary surfaces, of which the most extensive was slab pavement 6022 laid at +6.42 m against N wall 6021 in room 1 (fig. 12). It had 11th-c. pottery beneath it. Above the slabs of 6022, but not much later in date, were fragmentary tessellation 6024 and pavement 6051 composed of irregular segments of reused marble revetment set in mortar (hence not true opus sectile). Beneath 6022, and presumably likewise of the 11th c., was cistern 6004, vaulted and plaster-lined (figs. 11, 12), similar to 1316 in dwelling 1 and typical of Fatimid Caesarea (10th-11th c.). Like 1316 it had a square access in the pavement, and it too received water from adjacent roofs, conveyed in ceramic pipes 6066 and 6037 laid against wall 6021, the latter originating in settling basin 6052 (fig. 12, cf. also dwelling 5, below). Another ceramic pipe apparently carried overflow from the cistern into well 6036 just to the E. These features all indicate that room 1 was an open courtyard. Unfortunately, no thresholds survived here, but access to room 1 was likely from the alleyway to the N, while rooms 2 and 3 would have opened onto room 1. Sinkpit 6005 (fig. 11) received runoff from the courtyard through drain 6026 beneath the pavement, which communicated through wall 6015 with sinkpit 7088 beneath room 2.

Fig. 12. Area LL6, looking E. In foreground access shaft to cistern 6005. At upper left remains of settling basin 6052 and ceramic pipe 6037 draining into 6005. At right another pipe drained overflow of 6005 into well 6036. At lower left fragmentary floor 6022 marble fragments (Sharon Gee). the Crusader periods (fig. 13). Originally the tower was roughly rectangular in plan, but the W half collapsed long ago into the sea below and to the W. The surviving outer walls, 8013, 6003/9010, and 9011 measured 0.75-1.10 m thick, were constructed of squared kurkar blocks mortared together, and still stood as high as +8.5 m. Piercing the N and S walls, to an elevation of +7.1 m were flat pointed arches. At the corners and midway on the S side were heavy buttresses of masonry intended to support the upper parts, once significantly higher than at present. Unfortunately, stratigraphic evidence for the tower’s date is not decisive. Inside its walls, at +6.52 m., a fragmented plaster floor of unknown function, 9002, extended 6.35×2.15 m but did not clearly abut any of the walls. Five buckets of pottery from soil layer 9005 beneath this floor dated no later than the 9th c., but it remains uncertain how the floor related to the tower structurally or in function.

All of the walls of dwelling 4 appear to predate the 10th11th-c. remains, but other than the walls little evidence of earlier occupation has come to light so far. The excavators did uncover an earlier phase of well 6036, designated 6141, that apparently predated cistern 6004. The most striking evidence, however, that dwelling 4 existed earlier was the encroachment into its NW corner of a defensive watchtower that apparently dated to the 9th c.

While the tower was still in service, probably c. 1000 C.E., grain bins were installed in LL8 against its S side within what was perhaps an earlier room of dwelling 4 or another

This coastal watchtower or machras clearly dominated the area LL neighborhood from the Early Islamic into 13

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Fig. 13. Area LL8 and LL9, looking N toward Early Islamic coastal watchtower. At left walls 8015, built against one of the watchtower buttresses, and 8017 have heavy white plaster on their inner surfaces where facing stones of Fatimidperiod bins have been robbed out (D. Charles Smith). dwelling nearby (fig. 13). These bins were the same design as a group of six “silos” that Netzer and Levine exposed in square A/3-4 (1986, 61-62), each measuring 1.35-1.55 m wide and 2.3 m long. In LL9 the space available, enclosed by preexisting walls 8024, 8015, 8017, and 8030/8025, was 2.5×5.5 m, sufficient for three bins. On the insides of the walls thick white mortar survived with imprints of the tightly-fitting squared slabs that formed the interior walls of the bins. The excavation ended before reaching the tessellated floors characteristic of these bins, which proliferated in Caesarea areas I and TP in the mid-Fatimid period, usually in association with dwelling units (Raban, Toueg et al., Caesarea papers 2, 221-23).

the 9th or 10th c. (above). The earliest datable structure in dwelling 5 was a grain bin installed in room 4 (former warehouse room 3) either shortly before or shortly after the Byzantine limestone street passed out of use (fig. 2, at right). At the bottom the bin’s interior measured 2.74 m N-S, 2.4 m E-W, and it was c. 4 m deep. Its floor, at c. +1.67 m, was a white tessellation of which only fragments survived, and its exterior walls, at +5.15 m, survived nearly to their full height. The builders had laid a thick layer of white mortar with cobbles (5092) against the interior of the outer walls, 5009, 5010, 5048, and 5066, into which they then set tightly fitted rectangular slabs of kurkar to create a smooth interior face, all of which had subsequently been robbed out except the lowest course of facing stones (5111). A series of beam holes at c. +6.0 m in the N face of wall 5066 may represent the bin’s original ceiling or roof, through which grain was likely introduced and removed. Centered in the tessellated floor was a rectangular depression, 0.38×0.5 m, suited for collecting the dregs of the bin contents. Pottery and a weight (found in 5091) from masonry buttresses and fills between the bin’s walls and the outer walls of room 4 gave a relatively secure date of 9th c. or early 10th, about a century earlier than similar Islamic grain bins found in LL8 and elsewhere at Caesarea, and three centuries later than the Byzantine bins in LL4 (above).

W of the bins and down the slope, the team exposed the lower part of a large hydraulic installation, 2.28×3.2 m composed of walls 8020-8023 (fig. 14). Heavy hydraulic plaster coated the interiors of the side walls and the bottom, as in the cisterns common at Caesarea in the 10 th-11th c. (cf. 1316, 6004 above, 5081 below). The floor level was +4.99 m, so if this was indeed a cistern the surface level above its vault would have been c. +7.0 m or higher. Dwelling 5, first explored by Levine and Netzer in square E/4 (1986, 37-44), was further excavated in our areas LL5 and LL4. Here single-width wall 4064, also the W wall of dwelling 2, blocked the limestone street, apparently in 14

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Fig. 14. Area LL8 looking N. Walls 8020-8023 represent surviving base of Fatimid cistern (D. Charles Smith). Roughly contemporary with the grain bin, but certainly dating after the street was blocked, was an installation in room 5 that evidently served some industrial purpose (figs. 11, 15). Wall 4181 laid against blocking wall 4064 formed the E wall of room 5, while 4194 and 5015 were the N and S walls. Wall 4194 terminated to the W in a stone pilaster, 5025, that corresponded with pilaster 5026 built against 5015, the former N wall of the Byzantine warehouse. Both pilasters rested above wall 5027 that also formed a low threshold at +4.95 m giving access to the room 5, of which the original plaster floor, 5068 at +4.87 m, had 9th-c. pottery beneath it. Occupying the E two-thirds of the room thus delimited were two deep basins, represented in the remains only by a layer of hydraulic plaster adhering to walls 5015 and 4181 from +6.04 m down to +4.54 m, where their floors presumably rested on the pavers of the earlier limestone street. To judge from the hydraulic plaster, the S basin measured about 0.45×1.7 m inside, and the N basin about 1.7×1.7 m. Basins of such dimensions likely served for processing cloth or other commercial goods. A water supply was apparently at hand. Perhaps it was the users of these industrial tanks who converted the grain bin in room 4 into a cistern by installing a new floor of hydraulic plaster (5101). Moreover, Levine and Netzer (ib. 40-42) had uncovered a well from the same period (c. 10th c.) just to the W in room 1a.

room 5 and its threshold. To the SW room 3 had a threshold in wall 5007 at +4.9 m. The corresponding floor had apparently been robbed out, but sinkpit 5107 lay below it. The elevations indicate the original dwelling 5 floor levels in the 9th-10th c. just below +5.0 m. Walls 4194, 5027, 6060, 5029, and 6064, founded directly on the underlying limestone street, as well as 5012 and 5007 to the SW, appear to belong to the same occupation period. Rooms 2, 3, 6, and 7 thus delimited were clearly smaller than the habitation spaces in dwellings 1-4, perhaps because the occupants of dwelling 5 were of lower economic and social status. Access to the unit was apparently from the W. We suspect that animals were kept in part of room 1, clearly the main courtyard, and some of the smaller rooms perhaps served for storage. Pilasters 5026, 5025, and 5077 presumably supported an upper story carried on wooden beams that was accessible by a stair or ladder from room 1. This space would have been better ventilated than the small rooms below and hence more suited to human occupation. In the 10th and 11th c., during the Fatimid period, occupation continued in LL5 on the same plan but with elevated floor levels. The bin/cistern in room 4 had now passed out of use, and the entire space received a new plaster floor at +5.4 m. (Levine and Netzer L35), but no entrance into this large space was evident. In room 5 the industrial tanks seem to have remained in service, but to the W of them the opening across 5027 was raised to +5.36 m and the surface of adjacent room 1a to +5.3 m.

According to Levine and Netzer, the floor of 1a, made of kurkar blocks, was at +4.95 m, and the well head had been integrated carefully with it. The level was the same as 15

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 15. Area LL4 looking E. Remains of hydraulic plaster against walls 4198 (right) and 4181 (left) represent industrial basins. Vertical gap in the plaster on 4181 indicates a dividing wall between two basins (Lisa Helfert). After the Crusader conquest, during the 12th c., someone thoroughly robbed the industrial tanks in dwelling 5, room 5 all the way down to the underlying limestone street pavement, which was also robbed out. Slab floor 4193, at +5.47 m., with 13th-c. pottery below it, proved that room 5 remained in use, though for a different purpose. Hence, the evidence for dwelling 5 suggests continuous, organic development of occupation, primarily domestic but with some evidence of small-scale industry, from the 9th or 10th c. well into the 13th.

Again, the builders integrated the wellhead carefully into the new surface (Levine and Netzer L34). In rooms 6 and 7 contemporary surfaces had been robbed out subsequently, but vaulted sinkpit 4209, top elevation +5.14 m., would have lain beneath the 10th-11th-c. floor together with drain 4236 that fed into it. The most striking modification, however, was the repaving of room 1 with kurkar slabs 5023/5039 at +5.38-65 m, sloping gradually upward from E to W (fig. 11, right). This pavement extended at least 7 m W of its juncture with room 1a and was 7 m N-S. Abutting pavement 5039, wall 6006 may have framed a staircase of stone or wood that led upward to the second story. Levine and Netzer uncovered part of such a staircase, likewise 10th-11th c., in square D/2 (ib. 57). Beneath 5023 was vaulted, plaster-lined cistern 5081, entered through cistern head 5016 already studied by Netzer and Levine, who also described the system of pipes and settling basin beneath the pavement of room 1a that supplied 5081 (ib. 38-40). The system compared well with those of cisterns 1316 and 6004 described above. Entering the cistern, CCE excavators found its preservation excellent. The wall plaster was 4 cm thick, and its interior measured 1.98 m N-S, 3.43 m E-W, and 2.59 m. high. SW of the cistern head, occupation of rooms 2 (unexcavated) and 3 apparently continued. At the elevation of room 1, a threshold 1.3 m. wide opened into room 3. It had been cut from a marble column.

Elsewhere in LL there was further evidence of continuity. A bench with a kurkar trough on top positioned along the N edge of room 1 in LL1 indicated an industrial function for this room. On the other hand, relatively poor preservation of dwelling 3 in LL7 may represent robbing of structures in LL during the Crusader period. We recall that Raban (Raban et al. 1999, 224) associated large-scale robbing of stones from the Islamic and early Crusader structures in area I in the first half of the 13th c. with reinforcement of the medieval fortification wall on the S of area I wall during the Sixth Crusade (1252-1254 C.E.). Similarly, in area LL we may connect extensive robbing of stones from the upper portions of the Islamic and Crusader walls with construction of the fortification above the SW part of the warehouse (Levine and Netzer 1986, 16, 58-62).

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Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Herod’s temple to Roma and Augustus Much new evidence emerged in recent seasons for the temple’s original design, its longevity, and its eventual destruction. The first firm evidence extracted in 1989 and 1990 was the imported Herodian period construction fill, typically orange-brown in color, very compact, and containing little pottery. Berlin dated this deposit no later than the last quarter of the 1st c. B.C.E. (1992, 112-124). In 1998 more of the fill appeared in TP1 and TP2 (1211, 2226) at +12.08 m, giving a minimum elevation above 12.0 m for the floor of the temple podium, all of which had been robbed when the temple was destroyed. Still more of the construction fill came to light S of the podium in TP20 and TP22 at +11.23 m (20032, 20035, 22053, 22055, 22059, 22066, and 22068) and N of it in TP27 and TP30 at +10.91m (27002 and 30030). These elevations represent the minimum height of the paved esplanade surrounding the temple, which had likewise been robbed out.

Furthermore, the massive pottery dump we encountered in LL2 (described above) is perhaps best interpreted as ancient layers of storage jars abandoned inside the warehouse at the end of the Byzantine period that were dug out of the foundation trench for the 13th-c. wall and redeposited in LL2. The continuous layers of this LL2 dump, containing exclusively Byzantine pottery, lay above abandoned well 2100, which, like other 9th-10th-c. wells in area LL, had already passed out of use in the 11th c. because a falling water table had caused them to dry up. Mamluk destruction to modern Bosnian occupation The Mamluk under Sultan Baybars expelled the Crusaders from Caesarea in 1265 C.E., and in 1291 they returned to raze the fortifications so the Franks could not reestablish a foothold (Hazard 1975, 88-89). The city then lay largely abandoned until the Turkish government settled a Bosnian Muslim community on the site in 1882 (Raban, Harbours 1, 10, 42-44). A few rubbish pits and numerous walls of crude kurkar stone construction uncovered across area LL represent the Bosnian occupation of Caesarea.

CCE first encountered foundations of the temple podium in TP1, 2, and 3 in 1989 but did not recognize them as elements of the temple until 1995, when a large N-S segment of foundation that supported the pronaos on the W came to light in TP12 and TP13. It was made of large squared blocks of kurkar set in gray mortar and mortared to the underlying bedrock, which in TP12 and TP13 sloped downward toward the N. The entire length of this foundation has now been exposed, measuring 3 m in width and 28.6 m in length N-S (fig. 16). In 1995 excavators also found the SE corner of the podium foundation in TP17/18. Further discoveries in the meantime confirm that the external dimensions of the podium were 28.6 m N-S×46.4 m E-W. These foundations enclosed large voids beneath the pronaos and the cella, filled in when built to their full height with the imported fill mentioned above. On the N, E, and S, the enclosing foundation was 8.4 m wide, sufficient to accommodate the cella walls and a freestanding peripteral colonnade. A foundation on the W of the cella 5 m. wide supported the cella wall and perhaps further columns flanking the entrance.

Area TP Area TP, the Temple Platform, is a natural ridge of kurkar bedrock reaching about +11.0 m located at the geographical center of Caesarea (see map, frontispiece, and photographs in Holum et al. 1992, 88, and Holum 1999, 14). Herod the Great’s builders elevated this ridge and expanded it on all sides by importing a fill of earth retained by masonry walls in order to create a level esplanade c. 100 m. N-S and 90 m. E-W on which to construct a temple to Roma and Augustus (fig. 15). Josephus mentioned the temple in his descriptions of Caesarea, observing that it stood on a “hill of earth” opposite the harbor entrance (BJ 1.414) and was visible “far away” to those approaching by sea (AJ 15.339). Bosnian villagers reoccupied area TP in 1882. Avraham Negev cleared away modern Bosnian houses from area TP in 1960, exposing ancient ruins in the process, and then CCE conducted systematic excavations 1989-1992, 1995-2000, and 2002. Preliminary reports on the earlier seasons are available in Holum et al. 1992, 100-110, Holum 1999, 12-34, and id. 2004a, 105-12 and 2004b). This report will summarize and characterize mainly the important results of 1998-2000 and 2002.

Three courses of the E podium foundation were exposed in TP29 (29013) in the 1999 season (fig. 17). Here construction was of kurkar blocks measuring 43×54 to 60×60 cm cemented together with the usual hard gray mortar. The masons dressed the edges of the stones leaving a 6-10 cm boss in the center. These foundation courses survived to +10.25 m and were set directly on the kurkar bedrock. Another portion of the N temple foundation was exposed in TP10 in the 2000 season (10329). Two courses of the foundation were preserved at +8.95 m. The upper course was 60 cm high, the lower course 30 cm, and again the exposed faces of the stones were bossed. The bedrock (10335) had been cut to provide a level surface for the foundation, which was mortared to the bedrock with a 4 cm layer of dark gray mortar.

Hellenistic remains Only two features came to light dated to the time of Hellenistic Straton’s Tower, and neither revealed the type of occupation. The only built feature was still only N-S wall fragment, 5057/5504, excavated in 1990-1991 and 1997, embedded in Herodian fill and therefore earlier than the fill (Holum 1999, 15). In 1998 the excavators exposed quarrying of the bedrock below Herodian fill in TP1 and TP2. It is possible that Herod’s builders quarried stone for the temple here, but more likely the quarrying represented Hellenistic construction of some kind.

In 2000 the SW corner of the podium foundation appeared in TP7 directly below a wall of the superimposed Early 17

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 16. Area TP, Herodian structures (Anna Iamim).

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Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Fig. 17. Area TP, deep podium foundations of Herod’s temple (29013) cemented to the bedrock, looking W (Lisa Helfert).

Fig. 18. Area TP, stucco from column of the Herodian temple (Lisa Helfert). podium corner, where the cut was perpendicular to the W face. We suspect that the quarrying dated from the original construction phase and was undertaken to accommodate the foundations of a monumental staircase providing

Christian church (7009, below). One podium course survived at +10.6 m, and on its W side the bedrock had been quarried flush along the N-S foundation line down to +6.9 m. The quarrying extended 32 cm to the S of the 19

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

access to the temple from the W (fig. 20), but no direct evidence for such a staircase has so far come to light. CCE has also identified a large number of architectural fragments of stucco and kurkar from the temple’s superstructure, perhaps 50-60 in all, including fragments of Corinthian capitals, bases, column drums, and entablature, some pieces from CCE trenches, others from other excavation projects or found lying about the site (fig. 19). One of the most important was a large piece of fluted stucco found in TP30 in 1999 that had covered a drum of one of the temple’s columns (figs. 18-19). This stucco was 4 cm thick, was laid on a diameter of c. 2 m, and its 5.5-cm-wide flutes protruded 1.5 cm at an interval of 15 cm between flutes. Like other architectural fragments, it testifies to the temple’s elegance and monumentality. Consolidating earlier work of Lisa Kahn and Debra Taylor, Edna Amos is now preparing a catalogue for the final report of all of the architectural fragments that we associate with Herod’s temple. Based on these fragments and on the in situ remains Anna Iamim has created a reconstruction of Herod’s temple to Roma and Augustus in its architectural setting (fig. 20). Destruction of Herod’s temple and intermediate 5th-c. occupation The 1998-2000 seasons brought important new evidence on the transition from paganism to Christianity on the Temple Platform. We can assert with some confidence that Herod’s temple still stood late in the 4th c. until it collapsed or was purposely destroyed c. 400. The fluted stucco fragment in TP30 lay 7.64 m N of the temple podium at +11.16 m directly on top of Herodian fill 30030 and embedded in a later fill (30015) that was part of a layer extending across the site. That conspicuous layer elsewhere contained not only more temple fragments but also pottery and coins yielding a date of c. 425 (e.g. 2228, 2247, 19060, 19166, 25083). Interpreted in context, the TP30 stucco thus suggests both the temple’s longevity and its date of destruction. The relevant context consisted of more stucco fragments, obviously representing the collapse of an entire standing column with the structure that it supported. Two further pieces of column stucco appeared in TP27 and TP30, one of them 1.07×1.07 m located 3.5 m N of the podium at +11.53 m, the other 70×77 cm located 6.7 m N of the podium at +11.48 m. All three stucco pieces lay on the same line and had apparently come detached from a single column. Further N on the same line, at +11.76 and +11.7 m, the excavators found two more architectural fragments, both of kurkar, one of them a piece of architrave measuring 0.90×0.91 m, the other part of a Corinthian capital measuring 43×44×71 cm. To judge from these components, a standing column on the N side of the temple podium had collapsed toward the N with the capital and architrave still upon it, and subsequently the column drums themselves and the larger kurkar blocks had been removed for reuse in other construction, leaving the useless stucco and a few smaller fragments. The early 5th-c. fills surrounding the

Fig. 19. Area TP, Herodian temple, Corinthian order restored from preserved fragments (Edna Amos and Anna Iamim). 20

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Fig. 20. Herod’s Temple to Roma and Augustus, reconstruction looking E (Anna Iamim). architectural fragments indicate that the building, in whole or in part, survived through the 4th c. and then collapsed or was purposefully destroyed within a decade or two of 400 C.E. In the 2002 season the team found decayed stucco, though no identifiable architectural fragments, in similar contexts in TP17, 31, and 32 on the building’s SE flank. Thus similar collapse occurred in that quarter, and hence generalized collapse or destruction of Herod’s temple is likely at about the same date.

church had cut through thick fills laid earlier above the robbed-out temple foundations, so clearly there was a hiatus between temple and church. In the 1998-2000 seasons we concluded that a second episode of leveling in the third quarter of the 5th c. raised the ground surface uniformly to c. +12 m. We know further that from c. 470 a previously unrecognized occupation phase filled part of the hiatus between monumental phases (fig. 21). In the 1998 season we exposed heavy mortar foundations in TP1, TP2, TP19, and TP25 (1049/1071, 2219, 19017/19053, 25080/25090). Measuring c. 55 cm wide and 30-40 cm deep, these foundations were set in trenches dug into the two layers of fill above the robbed-out temple foundations. The builders first laid hamra and cobbles along the base of the trenches as a leveling layer, then inserted small field stones and poured concrete over them to fill the trench and create a level surface to receive the superstructure. The mortar was uniformly very hard and dark gray in color with many inclusions of charcoal, pottery, tesserae, glass, and bone. Additional foundations of this type were exposed in the 1999 season in TP23 (23158 and 23167) and TP29 (29003), and in the 2000 season in TP9 (9115, 9135), TP10 (10311, 10351), and TP23 (23208). The top surface elevation ranges from +11.5 m in the NE of TP10 to +12.08 m in the W of TP12.

That the collapse was general across the site, and was the consequence of hostility toward paganism and thus purposeful demolition, we gather also from the thoroughness of its perpetrators. They demolished not only the massive colonnades, cella, and podium but also the subterranean foundations in most places down to the lowest courses mortared to the bedrock (fig. 17). They then brought in a fill of earth to bury the temple’s last traces beneath a new ground surface at +11.5-12.0 m, the same early 5th-c. fill in which we found the stucco in TP30. As reported above, this fill layer contained numerous coins from later 4th c., the latest dating 395-408. Before the 1998 season we had assumed incorrectly that Herod’s temple remained standing, either intact or in a ruinous condition, until an octagonal Early Christian church was built on its foundations about 480-500 C.E. (Holum 1999, 26-27). Yet even before 1998 evidence existed that foundation trenches of the later octagonal

A single foundation segment, 23158 in the S part of TP23, showed clear traces of white mortar where the stones of a superstructure course had been robbed (fig. 22). This is the 21

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 21. Area TP, Intermediate foundations (Anna Iamim).

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Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Fig. 22. Area TP, Intermediate foundation 23158 with mortar indicating superstructure blocks (Sharon Gee). consistently by c. 25 degrees. The buildings appear to have been relatively spacious, occupying a total area in the central concentration of 13 m N-S×43 m E-W. Yet we recovered no evidence at all for their function and can offer no identification. There is nothing about the foundations that suggests a church or any other familiar building type. So far we must satisfy ourselves by calling these structures simply the “intermediate occupation.”

only evidence for construction of stone blocks rather than primarily of timber (cf. below). We assume the use of many blocks of Herod’s temple. Related to these foundations we found two small segments of floor surface. In the SE part of TP23 a 0.58×1.72 m segment, 23168, extended above foundation 23167 at +11.76 m. This segment was rough plaster c. 10 cm thick containing carbon, small sherds, and shells. In 2000 another associated floor segment appeared in TP28, cut by a foundation of the later octagonal church. This was 28031, 0.9×1.9 m at +11.84 m. These were the only clues about the building above the foundations.

We sectioned three segments of these curious foundation recovering only undiagnostic pottery and no coins, yet the date of this “intermediate occupation” is relatively clear. In TP2 and TP25 the inner and outer foundations of the later octagonal church, 2237 and 25094, cut mortar foundations 2219 and 25080, so the latter clearly predated the church. In TP25 the floor of the later church lay upon a fill c. 1 m above the mortar foundation. The best dating evidence remains the fills into which the intermediate foundations were set. Across the site, we identify this second filling and leveling operation as 2222, 2247, 7309, 7312, 7314, 19028, 19029, 19054, 19055, 19060, 19164, 25034 25083, 31143, 31145, and 31146. They contained numerous 4thearly 5th-c. coins and a few later specimens that indicate a date for this second filling operation in the third quarter of the 5th c. (Appendix A, below). A single coin in 2222 dated 491-518 C.E. may have been intrusive.

Several similar fragments of mortar foundation have also been found 10-30 m away from the central concentration (fig. 21). To the S in TP22 foundation 22031, elevation +12.08 m, extended N-S and was 55 cm in width. Aligned with it were two fragments in TP20, foundations 20025 and 20026, elevation +12.17 m. The excavators recovered no dating evidence, but foundations 20025 and 20026 predated wall 20022 set above them, which was contemporary with the octagonal church. Still another N-S fragment of the same type and date came to light in IAA excavations adjacent on the SW to the CCE trenches (fig. 21). These foundations and floors were of relatively consistent construction at roughly the same elevation and thus appear to have belonged to one or more coherent buildings constructed at the same time. The orientation of the N-S walls was apparently the same as the underlying temple and the later church, but the E-W walls differed

The octagonal church Apparently the intermediate occupation lasted no more than a decade or two until c. 490, when a conflagration 23

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 23. Area TP, Byzantine structures (Anna Iamim).

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Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Fig. 24. The octagonal church on the Temple Platform, reconstruction looking E (Anna Iamim). dome (figs. 24-25). The outer square foundations, measuring 50 m on a side externally and divided by crosswalls of the same construction, represented entrance corridors on N, S, and presumably W, as well as side chapels and rooms for liturgical use and storage. When trenching for the church foundations, the builders cut the underlying foundations of the intermediate phase and penetrated all of the fill layers to what survived of the temple foundations. Curiously, they adopted the W edge of the podium foundation as the W edge of the outer octagonal foundation and thus the same orientation as Herod’s temple, presumably because this procedure enabled them to exploit the Herodian masonry on the NW as a solid base where the bedrock dropped away. Where the various foundations extended beyond the temple foundations or the kurkar bedrock, they set the squared blocks of the foundations on a base of smaller rough blocks and field stones set in a heavy matrix of darkgray mortar with large chunks of charcoal.

destroyed it. Presumably the building or buildings had roofing of timber and tile, and perhaps part of the superstructure was also of flammable wood. Evidence of wooden construction destroyed by fire was a 10-30 cm thick layer of dark soil and ash that appeared just above the intermediate foundations in some trenches (e.g. 1208, 1212, 2217, 2224, 23206, 28028). Not long thereafter, new builders appeared on the site. They leveled the burned-out ruins, set aside the usable building stones (many of them derived from the underlying temple), and spread across the site, above the burn layer, still another layer of fill soil at about +12.7 m (e.g. 2215, 11131, 19023, 25021, 25025, 28027). Coins and pottery in this layer date to the 5th c., and its position above the robbed intermediate foundations indicates later 5th c., as does the striking absence of 6th c. coins (see Lampinen, below, 45-47). Through it the builders then dug the foundations for an Early Christian church, octagonal in plan, on the same site where Herod’s temple had stood a century earlier.

As of 1998 the excavators had also assembled much data on church superstructure. Negev had already uncovered an opus sectile floor in one of the side rooms and exposed portions of the N and S doorways (in situ marble thresholds, jamb blocks), superstructure blocks with clamp holes for affixing marble revetment, and a number of capitals, column shafts, and bases from the interior colonnade (Holum et al. 1992, 103-4, figs. 37-39). He also discovered in situ remains of one of the corner piers of the internal colonnade (fig. 25, cf. Holum et al. 1992, 102, fig. 36), although he failed to recognize what these stones represented, or indeed that the building was a church. Edna Amos is now assembling a catalogue of the kurkar and marble architectural fragments that we associate with the church (fig. 27). Generally, the kurkar blocks show signs

Negev’s clearing operation and our excavations in 1989-1992 and 1995-1998 had already exposed much of what survives of this church (fig. 23, Holum et al. 1992, 100-108; Holum 1999, 27-31). The remains were, first, concentric outer and inner octagonal foundations 0.65 and 1.1 m wide respectively, built of squared kurkar blocks cemented together with a hard, white mortar in the upper courses and a gray mortar lower down. These octagons were inscribed within two concentric square foundations 60 cm wide likewise of squared kurkar blocks mortared together. The outer octagonal foundation, 39 m in diameter, supported the church’s outer walls, the heavier inner foundation an interior colonnade with corner piers, above which rose (presumably) a clerestory and a pitched roof or 25

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 25. The octagonal church, plan of original configuration (Anna Iamim).

Fig. 26. The octagonal church, revised configuration (Anna Iamim). 26

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Fig. 27. Reconstructed columns with plinth, bases, and capitals from interior colonnade of octagonal church (Edna Amos and Tatiana Meltsen). in situ, mortared to the inner octagonal foundation, two plinths upon which columns of the internal colonnade had been mounted, one in TP27 measuring 67×69×61 cm high (fig. 28), the other in TP4 measuring similarly 68×70 cm but only 52 cm high (fig. 30, cf. below). No trace survived of the marble slabs that probably faced these plinths. Together with the corner pier that Negev exposed, the in situ plinths permits tentative recovery of the interior colonnade in its original configuration (fig. 25). Also belonging to the original church, we think, was a rectangular foundation in the exact center of the church (figs. 23, 25) that was of the appropriate size and in the correct position to support a shrine, perhaps in the form of a sarcophagus, that contained the bones of the Early Christian martyr whom the church memorialized. As preserved, this foundation, 23143 and 23157, measured 1.36 m E-W×1.78 m N-S, but it had been cut on the E by Crusader broad foundation 23105 (below), so we suspect its original dimension to have been c. 1.4×2.5 m. Its preserved top elevation was +12.71 m, just below the level of the marble floor slabs (missing here), and the foundation did appear to abut on the N the

of reuse. Presumably, the church builders found much of the kurkar fabric for their church either reused in the intermediate phase or lying about the site, but the stones likely originated in Herod’s temple. The excavations of 1998-2000 and 2002 exposed further segments of the foundations and permit an accurate, upto-date plan of all subsurface features (fig. 23). Of prime importance, however, were a number of discoveries about the church’s superstructure and its interior that permit us to reconstruct details of its internal design and to distinguish between two phases in its liturgical function, perhaps separated chronologically by no more than a few decades. These discoveries included more fragments of the church floor, composed of large, 4-cm-thick marble slabs at +12.8-12.9 m (fig. 33)(2261, 4112, 10348, 11127, 23122, 23154, 23188, 23194, 23224, 27009, 27010, 28021). Everywhere the system was the same: the slabs were set in a hard dark-gray mortar laid above a leveling layer of cobbles in red clay (hamra), above a base of crushed kurkar in compact, light-yellow sand. The excavators also found 27

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

When first built the church’s apparent function was to focus the religious emotion of pilgrims and other visitors on the martyr shrine centered within the colonnade beneath the dome. This was a martyrium in the strict sense, a martyr shrine. The colonnade and ambulatory continued all around, and there was no permanent architectural provision for celebrating the Christian sacrificial liturgy or eucharist, as in a congregational church. Indeed, 1989-1992 excavations in TP3 on the E of the octagon revealed no subsurface foundations of an internal or external apse in the normal position that would have housed a bema, the chancel or raised platform for the eucharist, and the 1998-1999 excavations in TP4 and TP25 demonstrated the continuation across the E bay both of the colonnade, of which one of the plinths remained in position, and of the church’s original marble floor, surviving only as imprints of marble slabs averaging 40×90 cm in the hard darkgray mortar at +12.88 m (25070). The same excavations, however, also revealed, directly above the original floor, a higher floor of the same type of marble slabs set at +13.17 m in similar hard dark-gray mortar (25067) above a layer of hamra and cobbles (25069)(fig. 29). Adopting the identical materials and technique, apparently after an interval of not many years, builders who may well have been the same as those of the original church undertook a significant redesign, equipping the church with a raised bema. They stripped the marble floor slabs from the E bay and set them aside for reuse. Above the slabs’ imprints, they laid the same type of leveling layer of cobbles embedded in red hamra as in the original floor, then the same darkgray mortar and presumably the reused slabs. Including the marble slabs–now all missing but for their imprints– the bema level would have been about +13.2 m, c. 40 cm higher than the ambient church floor. The remnants of this remodeling in TP4 and TP25 fit comfortably the hypothetical plan of an apsidal bema occupying the E bay and inscribed within the E outer octagon wall (figs. 23, 26).

Fig. 28. Area TP27, inner octagonal foundation looking W toward in situ plinth of internal colonnade. Visible at nearer right are shadows of missing blocks of corner pier (D. Charles Smith).

Other structural details discovered or reinterpreted in the 1998-2002 seasons relate to the same redesign. The TP4 plinth, now embedded in the makeup for the bema floor, was cut in height from c. 61 to 52 cm to accommodate floor slabs above it (fig. 30, see above). On the N side of the bema the cobbles of the bema floor makeup abutted fragmentary E-W wall 9070, 71 cm wide, composed of five headers joined with very hard gray mortar, resting upon the marble slabs of the original floor. This fragment, representing the foundation of the wall that circumscribed the bema, may indeed have been heavy enough to support the superstructure of an internal apse, perhaps with additional buttressing against the outer octagon wall on the E (not preserved). On the W 4112 (fig. 30) part of a step survived, 20 cm high, 32 cm wide, revetted with marble slabs, that provided access from the original floor to the level of the bema. Nevertheless, later occupations destroyed most of the evidence for the bema, so no in situ remains survived of a chancel screen, nor were there clear traces of an altar table upon the bema or of a semicircular synthronon for clerics behind it.

makeup of the church floor and thus was contemporary with it. Consisting of two layers of cut stones in a gray mortar matrix, this foundation lay upon a 40-cm-thick 5th-c. fill above intermediate foundation 23158. In eleven seasons of excavation we discovered no inscription revealing the identity of the martyr whose bones rested in the suspected martyr shrine in the center of the octagonal church. A reasonable hypothesis, however, is St. Cornelius, the Roman centurion of Acts 10, associated with St. Peter and hence of the apostolic age, whom 4th- and 5th-c. legend claimed as a Christian martyr and as Caesarea’s first bishop. Late Antique literary sources mention first a “bath” and then a domus or church of St. Cornelius, which the anonymous Piacenza Pilgrim visited in the 6th c. and from which he “took away a blessing from his bier” (ex cuius lectu benedictionem tulimus, sources in Krentz 1992, 262, 264, Holum 2003, 157-58). The “blessing” that the pilgrim removed may well have been just a chip of stone from the monument in the center of the area TP church. 28

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Fig. 29. Area TP25, N-S section, showing makeup 25067, 25069 for raised bema superimposed above original church floor 25070 (Anna Iamim).

Fig. 30. Area TP4, EW elevation showing remains of W edge of the bema (9053) with step (4112) (Anna Iamim). 29

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 31. Fragments of ambo base from TP25 (Aaron Levin). Found in 1998 in a pit dug through the bema, six fragments of a circular marble base 1.62 m in diameter (fig. 31), likely were part of the same episode of redesign. The function of the base is virtually certain. Mortar adhered to its edge, and on its upper surface were dowel holes and roughly-finished rectangles indicating the position of six colonnettes or pillars fixed to it. Embedded in the octagon’s marble pavement, presumably on the left in front of the bema (fig. 26), this base would have supported the upper structure of the church’s ambo or preacher’ pulpit. It would have resembled in position, design, and function the hexagonal ambo of the early 6th c. published recently from Horvat Beit Sila in Judaea, which, in the normal fashion, was associated with the bema and accessible from it (Batz 2004, 115-16). Hence the ambo belonged with the bema, both representing conversion of the area TP octagon from a martyr shrine into a congregational church housing both eucharistic liturgy and preaching, presumably relatively early in the 6th c.

a pavement in TP31 abutting the SE corner of the outer square foundation that probably represented a paved esplanade surrounding the church (31002). At +12.67 m it was composed of kurkar slabs c. 40×90×25 cm thick. Finally, we reexamined the drainage issue exhaustively in 2003 and concluded that all of the rooms built upon the octagonal and square foundations were roofed, including the triangular spaces between the octagon and the side rooms (cf. figs. 23, 24). The triangular spaces must have been covered because no subfloor drains came to light that could have drained them, and we now know for certain that capacious vaulted cisterns on the E of the building and beneath the W side rooms (narthex?) drained, respectively, the roofs of the side rooms and the roofs of the octagon. On the NE, in an unnumbered Negev trench, we located a vertical ceramic downspout, attached to the outer wall of one of the side rooms, that fed a subfloor drain channel emptying into the E cistern. On the W, we identified two downspouts, in TP13 and TP1, attached to the outer wall of the octagonal building at the W junctions of the triangular spaces and the outer octagon. These downspouts emptied into well-preserved channels that conducted the flow to the vaulted cistern beneath the W entrance (fig. 32).

Newly discovered details of the N entrance corridor were jamb blocks with cuttings for hinges in the N wall (30022) indicating a double doorway 3.0 m wide, and a single jamb block in the W wall of the same room (30021). No doubt similar provisions for accessibility existed in the S entrance corridor, where a jamb and threshold survived in the outer octagon wall, but no evidence emerged for a narthex on the W or an entrance on the E, at least in the original martyrium design. In 2000 the excavators uncovered

Collapse of the octagonal church (8th c.) and medieval domestic occupation (9th-12th c.) We uncovered no clear evidence that the Muslim conquest of Caesarea in 640 affected the octagonal church adversely. Small chips of green conglomerate 30

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Fig. 32. Area TP13, looking NE, showing channel that drained roofs of octagonal church into vaulted cistern (visible at lower left)(J. Stabler). stone (serpentine?) proliferated in the soil above and surrounding the suspected foundation of the martyr shrine (23143/23157)–material that may have come from decorative revetments of the martyr shrine itself, and could represent the shrine’s violent destruction or removal under the Muslim regime. Alternatively, the church might have survived the first century after the conquest unscathed, or it may have been put to reuse as a mosque. In any case, the church certainly collapsed sometime in the mid- to late 8th c. The evidence for collapse includes cratering in the marble pavements caused by the impact of heavy superstructure (columns? capitals?)(e.g. fig. 33). This suggests earthquake destruction, perhaps in the major tremor of 749 that apparently destroyed the bathing establishment excavated in TPS just to the SE (Raban and Yankelevitz, below, 79). Subsequently, the occupants of Muslim Caesarea leveled the site and dug pits to dispose of large marbles from the church such as column shafts and capitals that hindered new construction. One such pit, 9002/25015/25088 dug through the bema floor, yielded two marble column segments and the six fragments of the ambo base. Ceramics from the backfill in the pit dated to the 8th c.

The new construction was domestic, consisting of courtyard houses like those area LL (above) and in area I just W of TP (Raban et al., Caesarea papers 2, 221-24). The subsequent monumental occupation phase of the 13th c. (below) destroyed virtually all of the courtyards, floors, and walls that belonged to the intervening TP domestic phase, except for a few house fragments (e.g. in TP4, Holum et al., Caesarea Papers, 109), but left behind numerous subterranean drains, sink pits, grain bins, wells, and cisterns very similar in design to those in areas I and LL (figs. 34-35). It was these subterranean installations, of course, that destroyed most of the evidence for the underlying octagonal church. The new occupation set in perhaps a few decades after collapse of the church, c. 800, reached its height c. 1000 under the Fatimids, when as many as twelve dwellings existed in TP (we believe), and apparently continued unabated through the Crusader conquest of 1101 until after the Battle of Hittin in 1187, when emirs of the victorious Saladin seized Caesarea and left it ruined and desolate (Hazard 1975, 85-86). From shortly after 1101 to 1187, of course, the dwelling quarter had shared the Temple Platform with the triple-apsed basilical church St. Peter on the SW of the site (Pringle 1993, 166-70), but this lay outside the area TP excavation area. 31

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 33. TP23, looking E, view of mortar bedding for floor slabs, and beyond it some of the preserved marble slabs. The latter show cratering of the church floor perhaps caused by the earthquake of 749 (D. Charles Smith). We did study the subterranean remnants of the domestic occupation. Where possible we excavated sinkpits to the bottom to date them by analyzing the ceramics in the lowest fill. Those excavated since 1997 included 7074, 19091, 21112, 27013, 30006, and 30075. 7009, for example, on the SW quarter of TP, measured 2.65 m N-S×4.5 m E-W and was 4.3 m deep. Ceramics in the lowest of the internal fills (7304, 7313) dated early 8th c. On the other hand, we did not excavate wells 10316 and 21049 which resembled wells elsewhere on the site dating from the 9th-10th c. Of vaulted, plaster-lined cistern 9137 we exposed the vault measuring 2.3×3.6 m, identifying 11th c. fill above it, but the interior remains unexcavated (fig. 35). Ceramic pipes encased in mortar fed into it on N and S. Partly dismantled during the Crusader period, plaster-lined cistern 25036 measured 1.7×2.5 m. Like other cisterns and sinkpits, it exploited an earlier foundation as one of its walls, in this case the outer octagon’s E foundation. We surveyed a number of grain bins (e.g. 4116, 21049, 28017) but excavated none to the bottom because they corresponded very closely to bins excavated earlier on TP and in I and LL dated c. 1000 (see above, area LL).

street to the N of TP, known from area I to the W but as yet unexposed in this sector, apparently connected with about three N-S streets (fig. 34). The slab pavement of the N-S street through the center of TP dated from the 13th c., but beneath it were three successive layers of mortar bedding I (11110/23120, 11111/23123, 11112/23128), the lowest of which appears from ceramic evidence to have dated to the 9th c. 13th-c. Crusader occupation After the destruction and virtual abandonment of Caesarea in the wake of the Horns of Hittin, the 5th and 6th Crusades revived the coastal towns of the Crusader kingdom, including Caesarea, and promoted significant new construction. At Caesarea the fortifications were restored, the basilica of St. Peter was reconsecrated, and a new prosperity ensued from 1228 to 1265 (Hazard 1975, 87-88). The N-S street bisecting area TP received a new pavement 3.6 m wide of kurkar slabs at +12.8-13.5 m (30089, 30026, 23106, 5033, 11100), beneath which 13th c. pottery was found (e.g. 11102). Also beneath the 13th-c. pavement was drain 27023 that carried runoff from a large structure E of the street to reused sinkpit 27013, which contained a high volume of fish scales and 13th-c. pottery in 27014. On the S of area TP the N-S street intersected with an E-W lane or street, 2 m wide, likewise of kurkar slabs (fig. 36).

Streets and lanes must have provided access to the area TP residences, not only for the human inhabitants but for pack animals that transported building materials, provisions, and grain carried to and from storage in the bins. An E-W 32

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Fig. 34. Area TP, Early Islamic occupation (Anna Iamim).

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Fig. 35. Area TP, plaster-lined cistern 9137, looking N (Lisa Helfert). Beside these streets stood a number of buildings–at least five, probably more–of monumental scale set upon foundations that were broad enough to sustain the weight of equally thick walls as well as the lateral thrust of vaulting. Hence we have designated these buildings as vaulted halls 1-5 (fig. 36). Little of their superstructures survived, but the scale and method of construction can be estimated from a similar vaulted building, 7.5 m wide×16 m long, that still stands to much of its original height c. 100 m N of area TP (fig. 37). Denys Pringle proposed that this unexcavated building housed a merchant’s storehouse and residence (Pringle 1993, 182-83). The height of its ruined vault, and the scale of the foundations in TP, indicate that some or all of these buildings had second storeys on the interior, probably of timber construction sustained on wooden crossbeams, but we found no evidence for such accommodations other than a possible foundation of an external staircase (below). Characteristically, the builders laid the foundations of these halls in trenches dug to the necessary width, without a foundation trench on either side, and they generally used squared blocks on the exterior of the foundations and roughly coursed layers of stones laid in soil on the interior. We sectioned or excavated a number of these foundations and wall fragments and found a proliferation of 13th-c. pottery embedded within them. Floors of kurkar slabs or of plaster over a matrix of cobbles likewise had 13th-c. pottery beneath them. The massive foundations of these buildings penetrated the earlier occupation strata down to the Herodian foundations, while some of their floors lay at or below the level of the marble floors of the octagon, so clearly it was the builders of these Crusader halls who destroyed much of the evidence for the preceding monumental and domestic occupations.

The first such building we identified, in 1992, was hall 1 in TP8 and TP11, adjacent on the E to the N-S street, measuring inside 6.5 N-S×9.6 m E-W with walls 1.6 m thick. The N broad foundation was 8004/11116. The S foundation, 11003/11132, used the S wall of the octagonal church, 8006/11008, as part of its width, but the E part of the broad foundation was apparently later dismantled. Very hard white plaster covered the hall’s interior walls, while the floor, at +12.83 m, was the same plaster over a matrix of cobbles (8024, 11124). This floor extended across backfilled Fatimid grain bin 8054 that had 13th-c. pottery in the upper layers of fill. The entrance, presumably, was on the E. We do not know who used this building, but its size and careful construction indicate a public function or a high level of private prosperity. On the W of the N-S street was another, much larger hall of similar construction, designated hall 2. Its E wall, abutting the N-S street, was 2178, 2218, 5500, 23402, 27002, 24002, and 30004, altogether 33 m long. Five courses of superstructure were 2 m wide, four courses of foundation below them 2.3 m wide. The W wall, 6.7 m distant and likewise 2 m wide, was 32.65 m long and consisted of 2177, 19304, 19308, 19309, 21044, and 24033. A doorway 1.65 m wide in the W wall reused a marble column segment as a threshold. Part of hall 2’s floor was kurkar slabs, but part of it, 2169 and 2178, was plaster over cobbles, as in hall 1, and the same plaster had coated some of the interior side walls. Floor levels were +12.31-12.74 m, lower than preceding Early Islamic and Byzantine occupation levels. Closing hall 2 on the S in TP2 and TP28 was a smaller room 5×8.5 m at a higher elevation that may have been a chapel. Its walls were 2176, 2177, 2178, and 28020, and 34

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Fig. 36. Area TP, 13th c. Crusader occupation (Anna Iamim).

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Fig. 37. Vaulted Crusader hall still standing N of area TP, looking NE (K. Holum). its pavement was kurkar slabs 2181/28911 at +13.55 m, beneath which the excavators found 13th-c. pottery. Its E wall continued the line of the E broadwall of hall 1, 2178, but was only 1.5 m wide. Set against it was the stone base of a semicircular apse 4 m in diameter, the feature that suggests a chapel. Access may have been from the N via a few upward steps, or from the W.

broadwalls almost certainly supported vaults, so another broadwall, as yet undiscovered, must have existed roughly 5-6 m distant to the N and parallel to 13002/24004. This hypothetical wall would have taken its orientation from the street leading upward from the W–which must therefore have angled to the NE for some reason as it reached the level of the Temple Platform (fig. 36). The hall between 24004/13002 and its assumed counterpart on the N was hall 4. Its floor, at +12.36 m, was pavement 24023 made of kurkar slabs that abutted wall 24004. In 24004 a doorway 1.5 m wide opened into hall 4 from hall 2. Further W, in wall 13002, a doorway 1.8 m wide opened toward the N into hall 4. It was equipped with a threshold cut from a marble column.

The S wall of the chapel, 28020, functioned also as part of the N foundation wall of hall 3, constructed much like halls 1 and 2 on similar foundations and measuring 19 m or more E-W and 5.6 m wide N-S inside. The continuation of 28020 W was 7004 and 7010/7024, both 2 m wide. Against the latter the excavators found a subterranean buttress wall, 7302, required perhaps because here the foundation had been sunk into unstable fill within abandoned Early Islamic sinkpit 7074 (above). The S broadwall of hall 3, 1.5 m wide, lay outside the CCE excavation area against the narrow lane on the N side of the church. Cleared already by Negev, this wall had an entrance 2 m wide in which the door opened to the N. We discovered no floor levels of hall 3, but Early Islamic well 7048, in the W interior of the building, appears to have been kept in service during the 13th c. To the N of hall 2 still another broad wall appeared in TP24. Wall 24004, 1.9 m wide and 20.5 m long, closed hall 2 on the N and continued W as 13002 (cf. fig. 38). 1.9 m wide and at least 20.5 m long, this broadwall was oriented at an acute angle to hall 2. As argued here, these

The area enclosed on three sides by halls 2, 3, and 4, more recently occupied by 19th-20th-c. Bosnian houses that Negev cleared in 1961, had been heavily disturbed, but we did uncover, at +12.73 m, patches of kurkar slabs with 13th-c. pottery beneath them (7004, 1053, 12001, 13020) that were the remains of a pavement of the entire courtyard enclosed by contemporary halls 2-4. Located within this area was the large vaulted cistern 1041, originally built for the octagonal church, which remained in service to the early 13th c., according to pottery in its upper fills. Not long thereafter, however, perhaps contemporary with construction of the Crusader halls, the builders sunk rectangular well/cistern 1088, an impressive 1.7×2 m 36

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

rectangular shaft of carefully fitted squared blocks that we excavated down fifteen courses to +9.7 m. Whether or not it reached the water table, and thus functioned as a well, 1088 also received runoff from the roof of the threeapsed Crusader church on the S through a ceramic pipe drain beneath the floor of hall 3. Consisting, therefore, of three vaulted halls (or four, if another hall existed on the W) surrounding a courtyard and a central cistern or well, the complex on the W of area TP corresponded with the Crusader courtyard buildings of roughly the same scale that Pringle identified (e.g.) at Bait Dajan, Bir Zait, Burj as-Sahl, ar-Ramk, and Umm Khalid, all likewise in the territory of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem (Pringle 1997, 26-27, 34, 41, 88-89, 104-105). The building type was multi-functional, but we imagine the vaulted halls of area TP housing commercial establishments on their ground floors and perhaps residences on the second storeys. A curious feature of wall 24004, the S broadwall of hall 4, tends to confirm residential use of these buildings, at least of their second storeys. The builders of hall 4 positioned 24004 directly above Fatimid grain bin 24005, at a slightly different orientation, supporting the broadwall above the grain bin by means of a crude vault that proved the bin was to remain in use. Access to the former bin was by means of a square vertical shaft from above, embedded within the fabric of 24004 and hence contemporary with it (fig. 38). After puzzling for years about this shaft, we now identify it as the lower portion of a latrine chute that conducted human waste from a latrine on the building’s second storey straight downward to grain bin 24005, hence now reused as a cesspit. Pringle identified similar latrine chutes in several castles, residential halls, and churches in the Crusader kingdom of Jerusalem (1993, 15, 2000, 11, 13, 17, 43, 74, 80, 82, 92), and indeed one survives in the N wall of the standing Crusader hall N of area TP (ib. 45) .

Fig. 38. Area TP24, looking E. At right, wall 24004 with square shaft accessing reused bin 24005 below it. Against wall 24004 is bench 24017 with animal ties (Aaron Levin). slabs across much of the building at +13.26 m. On the SE of hall 5, extending E, was broadwall 4030 4.3 m long and 2.1 m wide, constructed like the other broad foundation walls in TP but without a twin, and therefore perhaps the foundation not of a vault but of a stairway that provided access to the second storey of hall 5.

In 1999 and 2000 we excavated still another vaulted hall, hall 5, flanking the central N-S paved street on the E, thus to the N of hall 1 and separated from it by an E-W alleyway 2.6 m wide. Hall 5 measured inside 5.1 m E-W and 14.5 m N-S. Its W wall was 5002 and 23105, built like the other broadwalls in TP but only 1.1 m wide, presumably because of this hall’s relatively narrower span. Embedded in broadwall 23105 was the bottom of a vertical shaft that emptied into channel 27023, beneath the N-S street, and into sinkpit 27013 (above). Because 27013 yielded many fishbones, the excavators thought of hall 5 as a fish market, but at this distance from the sea fish were more likely consumed than sold. By analogy with the latrine chute in hall 4, we propose that the vertical shaft in 23105 brought down refuse of dinners eaten in the second storey of hall 5. Hence it too suggests habitation of the second storeys. Wall 9074 and 4004 formed hall 5’s E foundation, 1.8 m wide and 5.1 m distant from the W wall. On the N the closing wall was 23193 and 9005/23176/23210/9005, 84 cm wide, and on the S 4080, 80 cm wide. Opposite each other in the E and W walls were 1.5-m-wide entrances. As for the floor, we excavated pavement 5603/9100/23116, made of kurkar

On the E side of TP the excavators found evidence of large-scale robbing during the Crusader period. Beneath 13th-c. kurkar pavement 25004, for example, was a 4×8 m robber trench dug from +12.67 down to +10.36 m, presumably to remove foundations of the octagonal church, and backfilled with soil containing 13th-c. ceramics. The stones thus recovered may have been put to use for new construction in the immediate vicinity, or even, as in area LL, for refortification during the building campaign of Louis IX 1252-1254 (above). 14th- and 15th-c. Mamluk occupation In 1265 the Mamluk Sultan Baybars seized Caesarea, and in 1291 Sultan al-Ashraf Khalīl leveled the fortifications and much of the town as well (Hazard 1975, 88-89). Very little evidence emerged of subsequent Mamluk occupation of the Temple Platform. At some point, a low bench 24017, 37

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 39. Area TP24, looking NW. The pavement of hall 4 is 24023, and above it are Mamluk kiln d eposits(Lisa Helfert). 30-40 cm high, was laid against the N side of wall 24004 canceling the entrance into hall 4 from hall 2. Cut into the N edge of the bench were a number of animal ties (fig. 38), so the bench may have supported mangers of wood, and the hall itself may have been converted into a stable. Most clearly Mamluk in date were multiple layers of lime and ash excavated N of wall 24004, above the pavement of hall 4, that demonstrate the operation of a lime kiln in the immediate vicinity later during the Mamluk period (fig. 39).

Department of History, The University of Maryland Department of History, The University of Oklahoma Department of Classics, Trinity College Porria Illit, Israel

Modern Bosnian occupation Of the modern Bosnian occupation of 1882-1940–relatively large dwellings on the W, associated garden plots and stone-fenced yards further E–Negev’s clearing operation removed virtually all traces. Several well shafts still accessible from the surface presumably served the Bosnian inhabitants. In TP1 and TP2 a subterranean trash pit, 1205 and 2208, constructed of dry- laid kurkar stones set in a stretcher pattern, represented this occupation, as did the material in leveling and fill layers that Negev left behind, quantities of “Marseilles” rooftiles, fragments of china, wine bottles, and miscellaneous metalware.

38

Stabler, Holum, Stanley, Risser and Iamim: The warehouse quarter and the Temple Platform

Acknowledgements The authors express their gratitude to the field staff of the 1996-2000 seasons: Ronni Toueg, stratigrapher; Farland Stanley, Martha Risser, and Clayton Lehmann, area supervisors; Jennifer Stabler, Audrey Shaffer, Jerry Black, Clayton Lehmann, Marion Brew, Jennifer Ramsay, and Tina Hill, trench supervisors; Robert Hutchens, Heidi Racine, Stephen Murphy, Janet Davison, Stacey Poulos, Matthew Hill, and Brad LeMarr, assistant trench supervisors; Yael Arnon, registrar and ceramics; Laurie Brink, associate registrar; Hagith Sivan, assistant to the registrar; Anna Iamim, chief surveyor; Peter Lampinen, numismatics; Edna Amos, architectural fragments; Tatiana Meltsen, drafting; Aaron Levin, Lisa Helfert, and Charles Smith, photographers; J. J. Gottlieb, darkroom; Jennifer Ramsay, palaeobotany; Carole Cope, palaeozoology; Janet Davison, Janet Blit, Radha Dalal, and Fred Winter, administrators; Chad McDaniel, computers and database. Participating institutions (one or more seasons) were Dominican University, the University of Kansas, Trinity College, the University of South Dakota, the University of Oklahoma, and the University of Maryland.

id. 2003 “The Christianizing of Caesarea Palaestinae” in G. Brands and H.-G. Severin (edd.), Die spätantike Stadt und ihre Christianisierung, Symposium vom 14. bis 16. Februar 2000 in Halle/Saale (Wiesbaden) 151-64. id. 2004a “The Combined Caesarea Expeditions’ excavations: the warehouse quarter alongside the harbor and Temple Platform,” Qadmoniot 128, 102-12 (Hebrew). id. 2004b “Caesarea’s Temple Hill: The archaeology of sacred space in an ancient Mediterranean city,” Near Eastern archaeology 67, 184-99. Holum, K. G., A. Raban, C. M. Lehmann, D. le Burrurier, R. Ziek, and S. F. Sachs. 1992 “Preliminary report on the 1989-1990 seasons, Caesarea papers, 79-111. Horton, F. L., Jr. 1996 “A sixth-century bath in Caesarea’s suburbs and the transformation of bathing culture in Late Antiquity,” Caesarea retrospective, 177-189. Kahn, L. 1996 “King Herod’s temple of Roma and Augustus at Caesarea Maritima, Caesarea retrospective, 130-45. Krentz, E. 1992 “Caesarea and early Christianity,” Caesarea papers, 261-67. Levine, L. I. and E.Netzer 1986 Excavations at Caesarea Maritima, 1975, 1976, 1979–final report. (Qedem 21; Jerusalem). Patrich, J. 1996 “Warehouses and granaries in Caesarea Maritima,” Caesarea retrospective, 146-76. Petherbridge, G. T. 1978 “Vernacular architecture: the house and society,” Architecture of the Islamic world: its history and social meaning (G. Mitchell [ed.], New York). Pringle, D. 1993 The churches of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem: a corpus, 1: A-K (excluding Acre and Jerusalem) (Cambridge). Pringle, D. 1997 Secular buildings in the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem: an archaeological gazetteer (Cambridge). Raban, A. 1996 “The Inner Harbor basin of Caesarea: archaeological evidence for its gradual demise,” Caesarea retrospective, 628-66. Raban, A., R. Toueg, S. Yankelevitz, and Y. Arnon 1999 “Land excavations in the Inner Harbor 1993-1994,” Caesarea papers 2, 198-224. Rowsome, P., and B. Yule 1999 “Arab and Crusader sequence in area I14,” Caesarea papers 2, 285-94. Wiemken, R. C., and K. G. Holum 1981 “The Joint Expedition to Caesarea Maritima: eighth season, 1979,” BASOR 244, 27-52

Sponsors of our excavations in areas TP and LL were the Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies, University of Haifa, and the Department of History, University of Maryland. We received substantial and generous financial support from the Joseph and Mary Keller Foundation and from the Rebecca Meyerhoff Fund in the Joseph and Rebecca Meyerhoff Center for Jewish Studies of the University of Maryland. Apart from their devoted labor in the field, we thank the Caesarea volunteers for contributing through their volunteer fees to the project’s financial well-being. References Batz, S. 2004 “The Church of St. Theodore at H. Beit Sila,” Qadmoniot 128, 114-19 (Hebrew). Berlin, A. M. 1992 “Hellenistic and Roman pottery, preliminary report, 1990.” Caesarea papers 112-24. Bull, R. J., E. M. Krentz, O. J. Storvick, and M. Spiro 1991 “The Joint Expedition to Caesarea Maritima: tenth season, 1982” in W. E. Rast (ed.), Preliminary reports of ASOR-sponsored excavations 1982-1989 (BASOR suppl. 27, Baltimore). Hazard, H. W. 1975 “Caesarea and the Crusades,” in C. T. Fritsch (ed.), Studies in the history of Caesarea Maritima (Missoula) 79-114. Holum, K. G. 1999 “The Temple Platform: a progress report,” Caesarea papers 2, 12-34.

39

Lampinen: Preliminary coin report, areas LL and TP

Preliminary coin report, areas LL and TP, 1996-2000, 2002 seasons

Peter Lampinen

This report of the coins found in CCE areas LL and TP during six dig seasons is derived from the preliminary field readings done every season and updated during the course of the season to provide field dating for the excavators. Although I add general comments on the entire corpus of coins found, this report is not a full catalogue. Included in the lists are a few specimens of special interest for one reason or another, as well as all coins that proved significant for dating the loci evaluated in the foregoing stratigraphic report (Stabler et al., above, 1-39). Precise dates and ruler information are provided whenever possible, a general chronology and type listing otherwise. Of course, the great majority of coins found at Caesarea are too worn or corroded to permit more than a general identification. Complete identifications and references will appear in the final coin report of the CCE excavations.

Fig. 1. Byzantine glass weight (LL10983V4)(the author).

The lists are constructed by area and ascending locus number. The left four columns (license, area, basket, code, and running number) together constitute the registration number for each material culture item. In all we recorded 391 datable coins and numismatic-related artifacts from five years of excavation in area LL. Of these 93 are listed here, including three small bronze weights, one Byzantine glass weight (fig. 1), one Byzantine bulla, and several lead tesserae. The vast majority of the coins were the usual copper and bronze minor denominations, although three gold pieces were found (figs. 2-4), the most curious being a contemporary counterfeit of a histamenon of Constantine X (fig. 4). Three poorly preserved Islamic silver dirhems were also recorded, as well as five equally corroded Crusader deniers.

Fig. 2. Constantius II solidus (LL10474C1)(the author). As Stabler et al. report (above, 9-17), abandonment of the warehouse complex led to reoccupation of the site in Islamic times. Examples of coinage of this period range from Early Byzantine imitative issues to the latest Ottoman paras. The preponderance of coins dated from the Abbasid period, mostly crudely cast bronze fals. A small deposit of mixed Fatimid billon and cast bronzes suggests the concurrent production of these pieces into later periods. Continued relations with the Mediterranean world were revealed by several later Byzantine anonymous folles (figs. 6-7) and the counterfeit histamenon of Constantine X (fig. 4), issued contemporary with the Crusader-period deniers, identifiable types of these being from Lucca in Italy, Tripoli, and Jerusalem. The latest coin in LL, a five millieme of Egypt, represents activity in the Bosnian settlement in the final phase of occupation at Caesarea.

Limited numbers of Hellenistic, Early Roman, and Roman coins were recovered from LL, mostly from fill in the warehouses in LL1 and LL2, a total of 16 ranging from the Seleucid pieces to an Antoninianus of Probus. The majority of finds consisted of Late Roman and Byzantine issues, mid-4th through mid-7th c., of which 34 percent were mid-4th to late-5th c. and 40 percent were 6th to mid7th c. The most significant discovery of this period was the large number of Late Byzantine folles in the abandonment levels of the warehouse in LL1, with examples of several of the late Byzantine countermarks of Heraclius, Theodore (fig. 5), and the eagle.

In all 224 datable coins, plus one Islamic coin weight, were found in excavations in area TP during the 1996-2000 and 2002 seasons. Of these 76 are listed here. Excepting 41

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 3. Maurice solidus (LL60055C1)(the author).

Fig. 6. Anonymous follis class I (LL10918C1)(the author).

Fig. 4. False histamenon of Constantius X (LL20067C1) (the author).

Fig. 7. Anonymous follis class A (LL20157C1)(the author).

Fig. 5. Follis with Theodore countermark (LL10987C1) (the author).

Fig. 8. Denier of Corinth (TP30000C1)(the author).

three Crusader billon deniers, all coins were copper or bronze. The state of preservation was uniformly poor, and only a handful of coins proved fully identifiable. Many were recovered as fragments, and could only be very approximately dated. Nonetheless, within this small corpus we have a good representative sample of coinage of all periods of Caesarea’s history, with several notable points of interest.

For the Roman period, from the mid-1st through 4th c. C.E. there are but four badly worn provincial coins, one identifiable as a Caesarea issue of Commodus. Presumably this dearth represents the fact that the Herod’s temple and its temenos sealed the entire site during the period, so few coins entered the archaeological record. The 4th and 5th c. represent the high point of activity on TP. Hence 187 coins, or 83% of the total, fell within the period 300-450 C.E. These finds were undoubtedly related to infilling of the site and construction of the socalled intermediate building and of the octagonal Christian church.

For the early history of the site, we found three Hellenistic coins from prior to the founding of Caesarea, and three coins of Judaea and the Roman governors of the first century CE. A specimen from TP2 may be one of the earliest coins found at Caesarea (TP20856C3), a poorly preserved Greek bronze conservatively dated in the field as 3rd-2nd c. B.C.E., but possibly as early as the 4th c. B.C.E. The Greek and Judaean coins represent activity around the Herodian temple at TP, during and after its construction.

The most surprising discovery was the paucity of later 5th- and 6th-c. coins from TP. Elsewhere at Caesarea this period is the most prolific in coin finds. On TP we have only seven coins, a mere 3% of the total finds. The drop42

Lampinen: Preliminary coin report, areas LL and

off of finds after 450 is quite abrupt, and suggests that the Christian building and its courts, like Herod’s temple earlier, sealed the entire site and prevented coins from entering the archaeological record so long as the church was in use. The finds from TP25 provide the best evidence of the transition, first to the intermediate building, then to the church.

weight) of the Umayyad-Abbasid period, four badly corroded later Islamic bronzes, probably Ayyubid through Mamluk, and three Crusader deniers close out the numismatic history of area TP. The denier of Corinth (fig. 8), a surface find near TP3, was an unusual find in Palestine, and was one of two found at Caesarea in recent years.

Scattered surface finds attest to activity on TP after destruction of the church. Fourteen coins (including the



P.O. Box 345, Bausman, PA 17504

Table 1. Coin List License Area Basket Code

Running No.

Date

Ruler

03/96

LL1

69

C001

1040

750- 900 CE

ABBASID

03/98

LL1

474

C001

1213

355- 361 CE

CONSTANTIUS II SOLIDUS

03/98

LL1

497

C001

1223

565- 578 CE

JUSTIN II

63/00

LL1 1040 C001

1224

695- 750 CE

UMAYYAD

03/98

LL1

624

C001

1240

630- 641 CE

HERACLIUS

03/98

LL1

645

C001

1240

634- 636 CE

THEODORE C/M

03/98

LL1

666

C001

1240

383- 395 CE

ARCADIUS

03/98

LL1

674

C001

1240

568/ 569 CE

JUSTIN II

03/98

LL1

703

C001

1240

383- 395 CE

HONORIUS

03/98

LL1

711

C001

1240

6TH- 7TH CE

03/98

LL1

731

C001

1240

588/ 589 CE

MAURICE

03/98

LL1

646

C001

1242

629/ 630 CE

HERACLIUS

03/98

LL1

671

C001

1242

613- 618 CE

HERACLIUS

03/98

LL1

682

C001

1242

613- 618 CE

HERACLIUS

03/98

LL1

684

C001

1242

6TH- 7TH CE

03/98

LL1

684

C002

1242

518- 538 CE

PENTANUMMIUM

03/98

LL1

735

C001

1242

582- 602 CE

MAURICE

03/98

LL1

739

C001

1242

629/ 630 CE

HERACLIUS

03/98

LL1

739

C002

1242

569/ 570 CE

JUSTIN II

03/98

LL1

743

C001

1242

6TH- 7TH CE

03/98

LL1

743

C002

1242

612/ 613 CE

03/98

LL1

743

C003

1242

6TH CE

03/98

LL1

755

C001

1242

534- 565 CE

JUSTINIAN

03/98

LL1

761

C001

1242

351- 361 CE

FEL TEMP REPARATIO

03/98

LL1

761

C002

1242

5TH- 6TH CE

03/98

LL1

773

C001

1242

518- 538 CE

PENTANUMMIUM

03/98

LL1

784

C001

1242

589/ 590 CE

MAURICE

25/99

LL1 1014 C001

1242

527- 565 CE

JUSTINIAN

63/00

LL1

397

C001

1247

527- 565 CE

JUSTINIAN I

25/99

LL1

918

C001

1277

1078- 1081

ANONYMOUS FOLLIS CLASS I

25/99

LL1

921

C001

1280

1193- 1249 CE

AYYUBID

25/99

LL1

969

C001

1313

11TH- 12TH

FATIMID

LEAD BULLA, CORRODED

I+B

I+B HERACLIUS I+B

CB

CB = cast blank-imitative coinage of the 5th-6th c.; C/M = countermark; I+B = Dodecanummium of Alexandrian type, imitative issues of the late 6th-early 7th c.

43

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Table 1. Coin List (continued) License Area Basket Code

Running No.

Date

Ruler

25/99

LL1

969

C002

1313

11TH- 12TH

FATIMID

25/99

LL1

969

C003

1313

10TH- 11TH

ABBASID/FATIMID

25/99

LL1

969

C004

1313

11TH- 12TH

FATIMID

25/99

LL1

969

C005

1313

10TH- 11TH

ABBASID/FATIMID

25/99

LL1

969

C006

1313

10TH- 11TH

ABBASID/FATIMID

63/00

LL1 1175

C001

1316

320- 324 CE

CRISPUS

25/99

LL1

983

C001

1332

512- 518 CE

ANASTASIUS I

25/99

LL1

983

C002

1332

593/ 594 CE

MAURICE

25/99

LL1

983

C003

1332

583/ 584 CE

MAURICE

25/99

LL1

983

V004

1332

6TH CE

GLASS WEIGHT, UNCERTAIN MAGISTRATE

25/99

LL1

987

C001

1335

634- 636 CE

THEODORE C/M

25/99

LL1

990

C001

1335

573/ 574 CE

JUSTIN II

25/99

LL1

990

C003

1335

631- 641 CE

EAGLE C/M

25/99

LL1

990

C004

1335

593/ 594 CE

MAURICE

25/99

LL1

990

C005

1335

580/ 582 CE

TIBERIUS II

25/99

LL1

990

C006

1335

6TH- 7TH CE

I+B

25/99

LL1

990

C007

1335

6TH- 7TH CE

I+B

25/99

LL1

990

C008

1335

6TH- 7TH CE

I+B

25/99

LL1

993

C001

1335

572/ 573 CE

JUSTIN II

25/99

LL1

993

C002

1335

612/ 613 CE

HERACLIUS

25/99

LL1

993

C003

1335

631- 641 CE

EAGLE C/M

25/99

LL1

93

C005

1335

634- 636 CE

THEODORE C/M

25/99

LL1

98

C001

1335

631- 641 CE

HERACLIUS

25/99

LL1 1013 C001

1335

518- 527 CE

JUSTIN I

63/00

LL1 1036 C001

1360

611- 612 CE

HERACLIUS

63/00

LL1 1042 C001

1360

597- 598 CE

MAURICE

63/00

LL1 1047 C001

1360

LATE 5TH CE

VANDALIC

63/00

LL1 1056 C001

1360

629- 630 CE

HERACLIUS

63/00

LL1 1061 C001

1360

613- 618 CE

HERACLIUS

63/00

LL1 1061 C002

1360

6TH CE

63/00

LL1 1061 C003

1360

HELLEN- ISTIC

63/00

LL1 1070 C001

1360

425- 450 CE

63/00

LL1 1070 C002

1360

LATE 4TH CE

63/00

LL1 1070 C003

1360

450- 518 CE

63/00

LL1 1070 C004

1360

5TH- 6TH CE

CB

63/00

LL1 1070 C005

1360

5TH- 6TH CE

CB

63/00

LL1 1071 C002

1360

425- 450 CE

CROSS IN WREATH

63/00

LL1 1071 C003

1360

627- 638 CE

JUSTINIAN I

63/00

LL1 1071 C004

1360

618- 627 CE

JUSTIN I

63/00

LL1 1157

C001

1382

640s CE

63/00

LL1 1167

C001

1382

1ST CE ?

63/00

LL1 1187

C001

1382

6TH- 7TH CE

63/00

LL1 1236 C001

1382

527- 565 CE

44

HERACLIUS, UNKNOWN C/M I+B JUSTINIAN I

Lampinen: Preliminary coin report, areas LL and

Table 1. Coin List (continued) License Area Basket Code

Running No.

Date

Ruler

63/00

LL1 1245 C001

1382

527- 565 CE

JUSTINIAN I

63/00

LL1 1203 C002

1390

618- 628 CE

PERSIANS

63/00

LL1 1249 C001

1395

527- 565 CE

JUSTINIAN I

63/00

LL1 1247 C001

1397

527- 565 CE

JUSTINIAN I

63/00

LL1 1275 C001

1397

5TH- 6TH CE

63/00

LL1 1275 C002

1397

450- 518 CE

MONOGRAM

63/00

LL1 1275 C003

1397

527- 565 CE

JUSTINIAN I

63/00

LL1 1255 C001

1400

351- 361 CE

CONSTANTIUS II

03/96

LL2

45

C001

2026

695- 750 CE

UMAYYAD

03/96

LL2

67

C001

2031

1059- 1067 CE

03/96

LL2

80

C002

2048

450- 457 CE

15/97

LL2

157

C001

2058

976- 1025

ANONYMOUS FOLLIS CLASS A

03/98

LL4

332

C001

4161

c. 830 CE

ABBASID

03/98

LL5

87

C002

5051

364- 375 CE

GLORIA ROMANORVM

03/98

LL5

87

C003

5051

355- 361 CE

JULIAN CAESAR

03/98

LL5

87

C005

5051

MID 4TH CE

25/99

LL5

138

C001

5091

8TH- 9TH CE

25/99

LL6

55

C001

6025

582- 602

03/98

TP2

757

C001

2215

395- 308 CE

VIRTVS EXERCITI

03/98

TP2

757

C002

2215

395- 308 CE

HONORIUS

03/98

TP2

757

C003

2215

341- 347 CE

CONSTANTIUS II

03/98

TP2

757

C004

2215

4TH- 5TH CE

LEAD TESSERA

03/98

TP2

757

C006

2215

5TH CE

03/98

TP2

758

C001

2217

383- 395 CE

ARCADIUS

03/98

TP2

758

C002

2217

383- 395 CE

HONORIUS

03/98

TP2

758

C004

2217

337- 341 CE

GLORIA EXERCITVS

03/98

TP2

794

C001

2222

491- 518 CE

ANASTASIUS I

03/98

TP2

777

C001

2224

4TH CE

03/98

TP2

806

C001

2228

383- 395 CE

SALVS REIPVBLICAE

03/98

TP2

853

C001

2247

395- 408 CE

CONCORDIA AVG[GG], CROSS

03/98

TP2

853

C002

2247

364- 378 CE

VALENS

03/98

TP2

856

C003

2248

15/97

TP3

0

C001

3000

1260- 1270 CE

63/00

TP7

459

C001

7302

351- 361 CE

63/00

TP7

450

C001

7304

750- 800 CE

63/00

TP7

466

C001

7304

MID- 4TH CE

63/00

TP7

455

C001

7309

MID- 4TH CE

63/00

TP7

461

C002

7312

MID- 4TH CE

63/00

TP7

473

C002

7312

351- 361 CE

63/00

TP7

473

C003

7312

383- 395 CE

63/00

TP7

473

C004

7312

MID- 4TH CE

63/00

TP7

473

C005

7312

364- 375 CE

CB

FALSE HISTAMENON OF CONSTANTINE X MARCIAN

ISLAMIC WEIGHT MAURICE SOLIDUS

3RD- 2ND BCE? HELLENISTIC?

45

CORINTH DENIER LUMP OF 5-6 ABBASID SILVER

ARCADIUS

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Table 1. Coin List (continued) License Area Basket Code 63/00

TP7

Running No.

Date

Ruler

468

C002

7314

383- 398 CE

HONORIUS

25/99 TP11 104

C002

11103

750- 900 CE

ABBASID

25/99 TP11 114

C002

11112

695- 750 CE

UMAYYAD

63/00 TP11 152

C001

11131

400- 408 CE

GLORIA ROMANORVM

63/00 TP11 157

C001

11131

383- 395 CE

VOTA TYPE

03/96 TP19

23

C002

19023

425- 450 CE

CROSS IN WREATH

03/96 TP19

23

C003

19023

425- 450 CE

CROSS IN WREATH

03/96 TP19

23

C004

19023

364- 375 CE

GLORIA ROMANORVM

03/96 TP19

30

C001

19028

383- 395 CE

SALVS REIPVBLICAE

03/96 TP19

34

C001

19028

364- 375 CE

SECVRITAS REIPVBLICAE

03/96 TP19

34

C002

19028

LATE 4TH CE

03/96 TP19

34

C003

19028

383- 395 CE

SALVS REIPVBLICAE

03/96 TP19

34

C004

19028

457- 474 CE

LEO I

03/96 TP19

64

C001

19028

395- 408 CE

GLORIA ROMANORVM

03/96 TP19

64

C002

19028

425- 450 CE

CROSS IN WREATH

03/96 TP19

65

C001

19029

383- 395 CE

SALVS REIPVBLICAE

03/96 TP19

65

C002

19029

425- 450 CE

CROSS IN WREATH

03/96 TP19

65

C003

19029

MID 4TH CE

03/96 TP19

68

C001

19054

LATE 4TH CE

03/96 TP19

68

C002

19054

5TH CE

03/96 TP19

69

C001

19055

395- 408 CE

VIRTVS EXERCITI

03/96 TP19

70

C002

19055

395- 408 CE

HONORIUS, VIRTVS EXERCITI

03/96 TP19

74

C001

19055

364- 375 CE

SECVRITAS REIPVBLICAE

03/96 TP19

74

C002

19055

383- 395 CE

VOTA TYPE

03/96 TP19

74

C003

19055

383- 395 CE

SECVRITAS REIPVBLICAE

03/96 TP19

74

C004

19055

425- 450 CE

PLAIN CROSS

03/96 TP19

82

C001

19060

MID 4TH CE

03/98 TP19 328

C002

19164

383- 392 CE

VALENTINIAN II

03/98 TP19 328

C005

19164

425- 450 CE

VICTORY TO L.

03/98 TP19 328

C006

19164

450- 518 CE

MONOGRAM

03/98 TP19 328

C007

19164

450- 518 CE

MONOGRAM

03/98 TP19 331

C001

19166

383- 395 CE

THEODOSIUS I

03/98 TP19 331

C002

19166

383- 395 CE

SALVS REIPVBLICAE

03/98 TP19 332

C001

19166

383- 395 CE

SALVS REIPVBLICAE

03/96 TP20

58

C003

20035

383- 392 CE

VALENTINIAN II

03/96 TP22

73

C001

22053

2ND BCE

03/98 TP25

37

C004

25021

351- 361 CE

CONSTANTIUS II

03/98 TP25 163

VICTORY TO L

C001

25021

425- 455 CE

03/98 TP25 0028* C001

25025

5TH CE

03/98 TP25

34

C001

25025

425- 455 CE

03/98 TP25

43

C001

25034

4TH CE

03/98 TP25

43

C002

25034

383- 395 CE

46

VICTORY TO L.

SELEUCID

VICTORY TO L THEODOSIUS I

Lampinen: Preliminary coin report, areas LL and

Table 1. Coin List (continued) License Area Basket Code

Running No.

Date

Ruler

03/98 TP25

43

C004

25034

395- 408 CE

HONORIUS

03/98 TP25

43

C005

25034

402- 408 CE

GLORIA ROMANORVM

03/98 TP25

43

C006

25034

351- 361 CE

CONSTANTIUS II

03/98 TP25

89

C001

25083

5TH CE

03/98 TP25

89

C002

25083

341- 346 CE

63/00 TP28

41

C001

28031

MID 4TH CE

63/00 TP28

41

C002

28031

383- 395 CE

THEODOSIUS I

50/02 TP31 166

C001

31143

351- 361 CE

CONSTANTIUS II, FEL TEMP REPARATIO

50/02 TP31 174

C001

31145

355- 361 CE

CONSTANTIUS II, SPES ROMANORUM

50/02 TP31 176

C001

31146

306- 337 CE

CONSTANTINE I

47

IVST VENER MEMOR

Oren-Paskal: Amphorae from the abandonment layer in area



Amphoras from the abandonment layer in area LL (L 1242, 1335) Michal Oren-Paskal

The pottery presented here is the amphoras from loci 1242 and 1335 in LL1. The excavators designated this as the abandonment layer, deposited immediately after the Muslim conquest of Caesarea in 640 (see Stabler et al. above, 8-9).* In this layer amphoras represented roughly 80 percent of the entire ceramic assemblage. Omitted here is the admixture of domestic wares that seemed less likely to represent the function of the building in which the abandonment layer was found. Within the layer, locus 1242, excavated in 1998, was well defined, lying directly upon the plaster floor of the Byzantine warehouse and below a later surface that had been robbed out. Locus 1335 was more of the same deposit excavated a year later, and in 2000, loci 1357, 1360, 1382, 1393, and 1397 belonged to the same deposit. The purpose of this study is to determine the nature of the container assemblage, including the origin and use of the containers, in order to identify the function of the building, which was likely a horreum. In addition, the ceramic evidence reflects the commerce and economic relations of the city. This study will comprise a description of the types (parallels, dating, origin, and possible contents), relative frequency of the types, and a comparison of the amphoras in the assemblage with other examples in Caesarea and other sites.

of the jar and the well-known fame of Gaza and Ashkelon wines in the Byzantine period (1986, 99). This amphora is indeed recorded on sites throughout the Mediterranean region between the 6th and 8th c. Egloff suggested the end of the Umayyad period as the latest production date (1977, 116-17). More recently Majcherek proposed an outline for the development of the Gaza amphora that distinguished four chronological types beginning in the first c., of which the LL1 amphoras belonged to the fourth type (1995, 163-69). At Benghazi (Berenice) this type, designated Late Roman amphora 3, appeared in levels of the early 6th c. (Riley 1979, 219-22). According to Riley, it was it most frequent in the SE Mediterranean, and from there imports began into the W Mediterranean in the late 4th c., reaching their peak in the mid-5th c. and tailing off at the end of the 5th. On the other hand, imports to Spain had began in the late 5th c. and probably continued until the mid- to late 6th (Keay 1984, 280-81). In Palestine concentration of the type in the Late Roman and Byzantine periods was greatest in the S and on the coast, especially at Ashdod. In contrast, Tel Keisan yielded only one rim sherd (Tubb 1986, 54). Riley suggested the Gaza region as the origin of the amphora according to petrologic analysis (1975, 30-31). In the Caesarea hippodrome, this type comprised 24 percent of all the amphorae in the Byzantine levels. Adan-Bayewitz reached the same conclusion (1986, 98). The LL1 material likewise ranks as the second most common amphora type, comprising 22 percent of the ceramics in the deposit (fig. 1).

Gaza jar (fig. 2: 1-4) This amphora has a tall cylindrical body, thickened rim, and hollow base that is pointed or flattened. Two ring handles are attached to the shoulders. Ribbing occurs at the level of the handles and bellow them. Wide ribbing appears on the base. Clay accretions adhere below the rim, and to the shoulder and the wall. The ware varies between brown and reddish brown, and contains many white grits. The amphora was smeared inside with resin or bitumen.

CATALOGUE (all measurements in cm) 1. 03/98 LL1 (1708.001, 1242). Upper vessel fragment. Rim D 8.5. Upright vertical rim, cylindrical body, and ridged loop handles on the shoulder. Clay accretions occur around the rim and on the shoulder. Rough sandy fabric with many small to large white grits and a few large black grits. Light red 2.5YR6/6 external surface; red 2.5YR5/8 interior. Parallels: Johnson and Stager 1995, 96 and fig.6.1A (Tel Ashkelon, mid-2nd to mid-7th c., type A); Magness 1992b, 165 and fig. 12:14 (City of David, mid-4th to mid7th c.); Kingsley 1997, 14 and fig. 9:62 (Tel Tanninim, late

Riley suggests that the amphoras were the most common wine containers of the 5th and 6th c., a hypothesis supported by the use of resin or bitumen smeared on the interior (1975, 39). Adan-Bayewitz rejected the alternative of use for transporting fish products, pointing also to the ubiquity *

For works cited, see combined references at the end of this volume.

49

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Year

Loci

1998 1999 2000 Total

242

1C 28 1Y 5 T.3 Black 8 T.3 Brown 2 T.2 8 Egyptian 7 LR1 6 LR2 8 Misc. 2 Totals 74

335, 344, 399

357, 360, 382, 393, 397

17 2 2 4 14 2 2 3 2 48

14 2 2 2 14 2 1 3 2 42

59 9 12 8 36 11 9 14 6 164

%

36 5.4 7.3 4.8 22 6.7 5.4 8.4 3.6

Fig. 1. Minimum counts of jars from the LL1 horreum. Byzantine); Tubb 1986, 51-55 and fig. 2:3 (Tel Fara, 6th to 7th c., type 1); Watson 1992, 239-40 and fig. 10:76 (Pella, mid 7th c.); Egloff 1977, 117 and pl. 61:1 (Kellia, 650 to 700, type 183); Majcherek 1995, 169 and pl. 8:2 (Kom elDikka, Alexandria, beginning of 7th c, form 4); Peacock 1984, 121 and fig. 35:12 (Carthage, 5th to 6th c., Almagro 54); Bonifay and Piéri 1995, 112 and fig. 9:64 (Marseilles, late 6th to 7th c., LRA 4b); Keay 1984, 278-81 and fig. 283:7 (Catalunya, 5th to 6th c., Keay LIVC). 2. 25/99 LL1 (1990.002, 1335). Rim and shoulder. Rim D 11. Upright rim with clay accretions around it and on the shoulder. Rough sandy fabric with many small to large white grits. Light reddish brown 5YR6/4 external surface; reddish yellow 5YR6/6 interior. Parallels: see cat. 1. 3. 25/99 LL1 (0990.003, 1335). Rim and shoulder. Rim D 11. Slightly inturned rim with clay accretions around the rim and on the shoulder. Rough sandy fabric with many small white grits. Light red 2.5YR6/6 external surface; red 2.5YR5/8 interior. Parallels: Kingsley 1997, 14 and fig. 9:60 (Tel Tanninim, late Byzantine); Majcherek 1995, 169 and pl. 8:2 (Kom el-Dikka, late 6th to early 7th c., form 4); Oked 1999, 230 (North Sinai, end of the 6th to end to end of the 7th c., Gaza jar type 3). 4. 25/99 LL1 (0990.001, 1335). V-shaped, broadly ribbed base. Rough sandy fabric with many small white grits. Light reddish brown 5YR6/3-6/4 external surface; yellowish red 5YR5/6 interior. Parallels: Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 97-99 and fig. 1:13 (Caesarea, Late Byzantine, amphora type 2); Magness 1993, 144 and fig. 3:6 (Caesarea, 6th to mid-7th c.); Kingsley 1997, 14 and fig. 8:67 (Tel Tanninim, Late Byzantine); Oren-Paskal 2006, 146.88 (Tel Tanninim, 6th to 7th c.); Tubb 1986, 51-55 and fig. 1:4 (Tell Fara, 6th to 7th c., type 1).

Fig. 2. Gaza jars. Southern bag-shaped amphora (fig. 3:5-13) A relatively low neck and combed shoulder with grooves that are narrower than those on the grooved body are 50

Oren-Paskal: Amphorae from the abandonment layer in area

3:1 (Tel Fara, 6th to 7th c., type 3C); Uscatescu 1996, 163 and fig. 93:601 (Gerasa, 6th c., group XXXVII form 2C); Peacock and Williams 1986, 191 and fig. 110 (5th to 6th c., class 46). LL

characteristic of this amphora. Usually a plain zone separates the grooved shoulder from that of the body. The amphora has an everted or simple rim with a bulged neck, ring handles on the shoulder, and a round base. Clay accretions generally occur bellow the rim and on the shoulder. The fabric is sandy, and the color varies between light red to light reddish brown. Some amphorae were purposefully drilled below the shoulder, apparently to provide an outlet for the escape of carbon dioxide emitted during the continuing fermentation of new wine and to allow pouring without the need to open the stopper (AdanBayewitz 1986, 92). During the Byzantine period this amphora is the commonest vessel in Caesarea, used as a container for wine from the city and the surrounding area (ib. 97). Using literary and archaeological evidence, Vitto (1987, 48) proposed that this amphora contained a variety of foodstuffs and liquids like water, wine, oil, dried figs, fish-sauce, and wheat. The assumption that this amphora carried wine is strengthened by the presence of bag-shaped sherds in the Dor harbor with black pitch on their interiors (Kingsley 1994-95, 52).

6. 03/98 LL1 (0761.003, 1242). Upper vessel fragment. Rim D 9.5. Slightly everted rim, concave neck, combed shoulder, ribbed body, and ring handles attached to the shoulder. A plain band occurs between the shoulder and the body. Sandy fabric with many small and few large white grits. Red 2.5YR5/6 external surface; red 2.5YR 5/8 interior. Parallels: Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 91-97 and fig. 1:6 (Caesarea, 6th to mid-7th c., type 1B); Brosh 1986, fig. 1:19 (not mentioned in her text)(Caesarea, 8th to early 10th c.); Magness 1992a, 129 and fig. 58:20 (Caesarea, mid-6th c.); Kingsley 1997, 12 and fig. 1:39 (Tel Tanninim, Late Byzantine); Calderon 1999, 135 and pl. 1:2 (Kh. Ed-Deir, 6th to 7th c., type 1A); Tubb 1986, 56-60 and fig. 3:1 (Tel Fara, 6th to 7th c., type 3C); Ustinova and Nahshoni 1994, 161 and fig. 4:5 (Be’er Sheva, 6th to 11th c., variant C); Rosenthal-Heginbottom 1988, pl. 11:90 (Rehovot-in-theNegev, 6th to 7th c., form 1C).

Riley (1975, 27; 1979, 224) suggested Palestine as the origin because these amphoras are so frequent in Byzantine levels at Caesarea and other sites. The type is rare in Egypt. An Egyptian origin was assumed by Empereur and Picon (1989, 245), specifically the Alexandria and Lake Mareotis region. This amphora is dated to the 6th and first half of the 7th c., and some continue to appear until the beginning of the Early Islamic period.

7. 03/98 LL1 (0761.008, 1242). Rim, neck, and shoulder. Rim D 8. Everted rim, bulged neck, and combed shoulder. Clay accretions occur around the rim. Sandy fabric with many small white grits and a few shells. Reddish yellow 5YR6/6 external surface; yellowish red 5YR5/6 interior. Parallels: Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 91-97 and fig. 1:6 (Caesarea, Late Byzantine, amphora type 1B); Ustinova and Nahshoni 1994, 164 and fig. 4:5 (Be’er Sheva, 5th c. to Early Islamic period); Bonifay and Piéri 1995, 112-13 and fig. 10:68 (Marseilles, end of the 6th c., LRA5).

According to our count, this amphora was the most common vessel in LL1 and accounted for about 36 percent of the amphorae (fig. 1). The final type in a long tradition of cylindrical containers, this jar is well known in the 6th and 7th c. in Palestine, Egypt, and in the Mediterranean regions generally: Caesarea (Riley 1975, 27-28; AdanBayewitz 1986, 91-97; Peleg and Reich 1992, 154; Magness 1992a, 135; Magness 1993, 142); Tell Fara (Tubb 1986, 56-60); Beer Sheva (Ustinova and Nahshoni 1994, 161); Tel Tanninim (Kingsley 1997, 12); Kh. Ed-Deir (Calderon 1999, 135); North Sinai (Oked 1999, 234-37): Kellia (Egloff 1977, 117-18); Gerasa (Uscatesco 1996, 163); Pella (McNicoll et al. 1992 163); Catalunya (Keay 1984, 357-58); Marseilles (Bonifay and Villedieu 1989, 29-31); Carthage (Peacock 1984, 121); Benghazi (Riley 1979, 223).

8. 03/98 LL1 (1761.001, 1242). Rim, neck, shoulder, and handles. Rim D 8.7. Slightly everted rim, bulging neck, combed shoulder, and ring handles attached to the shoulder. Sandy fabric with many small white grits. Reddish yellow 2.5YR7/6 external surface; very pale brown 10YR7/3 interior. Parallel: Oked 1999, 234-35 (N Sinai, mid-6th to end of the 7th c., southern bag-shaped jar type 1); McNicoll et al. 1992, 163 and 168, fig. 2.4 (Pella, 600-640); Bonifay and Villedieu 1989, 29-31 and fig. 8:8 (Marseilles, of the 6th c., “amphore syro-palestinienne”). 9. 03/98 LL1 (1761.004, 1242). Upper vessel fragment. Rim D 9.6. Simple rim, convex neck, combed shoulder, a sharp ridge at the transition between the neck and the shoulder, ribbed body, and ring handles attached to the shoulder. A narrow plain band occurs between the shoulder and the ribbed body. Sandy fabric with many small and a few large white grits. Red 2.5YR5/6 clay. Parallels: Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 91-97 and fig. 1:4 (Caesarea, 6th to mid-7th c., type 1B); Kingsley 1997, 13 and fig. 3:52 (Tel Tanninim, 6th to mid-7th c.); Calderon 2000, 131-32 and pl. XVIII:19 (Ramat Hanadiv, 6th to 7th c., globular jar); Calderon 1999, 135 and pl. 1:4 (Kh. Ed-Deir, 6th to 7th c., type 1A); Egloff 1977, 117-18 and pl. 60:4 (Kellia, mid7th to early 8th c., type 186).

CATALOGUE 5. 03/98 LL1 (0761.002, 1242). Upper vessel fragment. Rim D 6.2 cm. Slightly everted rim, bulging neck, combed shoulder, bag-shaped ribbed body, and ring handles attached to the shoulder. A plain band occurs between the shoulder and the body. Sandy fabric with many small and few large white grits. Light red 2.5YR6/6 clay. Parallels: Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 91-97 and fig. 1:6 (Caesarea, 6th to mid-7th c., type 1B); Kingsley 1997: 5 and fig. 2:42 (Tel Tanninim, Late Byzantine); Oren-Paskal 2006, 140.53 (Tel Tanninim, 6th to 7th c.); Tubb 1986, 56-60 and fig. 51

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 3. Southern bag shaped jars.

10. 03/98 LL1 (1714.001, 1242). Upper vessel fragment. Rim D 9.5. Round rim, combed shoulder, ribbed bagshaped body, and ring handles on the shoulder. Smooth band occurs between the shoulder and the body. Sandy fabric with many small and a few large white grits. Light red 2.5YR6/6 external surface; red 2.5YR5/8 interior. Parallels: Riley 1975, 26 and 28 3 (Caesarea, 6th c., form 1C); Tubb 1986, 56-60 and fig. 4:1 (Tel Fara, 6th to 7th c., form 3C).

11. 03/98 LL1 (1706.002, 1242). Complete vessel. Rim D 8.8, body H 37.2. Simple rim, a ridge at the bottom of the neck, combed shoulder, ribbed bag-shaped body, and round ribbed base. Ring handles on the shoulder. Smooth band and depression between the shoulder and the body. Sandy fabric with many small and a few large white grits. Light red 2.5YR6/6 clay. Parallels: Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 91-97 and fig. 1:7 (Caesarea, 6th to 7th c., type 1B); Kingsley 1997, 12 and fig. 2:40 (Tel Tanninim, Late Byzantine); Oren-Paskal 2006, 141-42.67 (Tel Tanninim, 6th to 7th c.). 52

Oren-Paskal: Amphorae from the abandonment layer in area

12. 03/98 LL1 (1761.005, 1242). Shoulder, body, and handles. Bag-shaped body, combed shoulder, ribbed body, and ring handles attached to the shoulder. Smooth band and depression occur between the shoulder and the body. Sandy fabric with many small and a few large white grits. Light red 2.5YR6/6 external surface; red 2.5YR5/8 interior. Parallels: see cat. 11.

LL

Shubeika, 6th-7th c.); Watson 1992, 238-39 and fig. 9:69 (Pella, 6th c.). 15. 03/98 LL1 (1726.002, 1242). Upper vessel fragment. Rim D 10. Outbeveled rim, slightly inturned neck, a sharp ridge at the transition between the narrow ribbed shoulder and the wider ribbed body. A smooth band between the shoulder and the body. White diagonal lines with circles on the body. Well levigated fabric with frequent small white grits. Dark gray 5YR4/1 external surface; light red 2.5YR6/6 interior. Hard fired. Parallels: Loffreda 1974, 43 and fig. 8:2 (Capernaum, 4th to mid-7th c., class B); Landgraf 1980, 69-80 and fig. 21:20 (Tel Keisan, 5th to 8th c., black amphora); Avshalom-Gorni 1998, 65 and fig. 5:8 (Kh. El Shubeika, 6th to 7th c.); Avissar 1996, 73-74 and fig. XII: 6 (Yoqne`am, 5th c. to Early Islamic); Kingsley 1997, 53 and fig. 3:53 (Tel Tanninim, Late Byzantine); Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 99-101 and fig. 2:1 (Caesarea, 7th c., type 3).

13. 03/98 LL01 (0706.001, L 242). Base. D. 15. Round base. Sandy fabric with many small white grits. Reddish yellow 5YR7/6 external surface; light red 2.5YR6/6 interior. Parallels: Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 91-97 and fig. 1:5 (Caesarea, Late Byzantine, type 1B). Northern bag-shaped amphorae (fig. 4:14-18) The amphora has a bag-shaped body, and a pronounced ridge marks the transition between the shoulder and the body. In some of the amphoras, there is a sharp ridge at the bottom of the neck. The type is hard fired, and the walls are thin. The gray color of the ware, characteristic of this type, sometimes varies in the firing to red. The clay has many white grits. Some amphoras have white decoration of diagonal lines and concentric circles. Based on the fabric, the contexts in which it has been found, and the distribution pattern, Adan-Bayewitz proposed that this amphora type contained oil. This vessel is especially common at sites in the Galilee and the Jordan Valley, areas known for their olives and oil production (Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 100-101). In Tell Keisan this type is very common, and Landgraf calls these amphorae “Beisan” and indicates that because of the thinner and harder fabric they are less porous (Landgraf 1980, 69-76). The “Beisan” amphora was very common during the Byzantine period in Capernaum (Loffreda 1974, 43-44); Khirbet el-Kerak (Delougaz and Haines 1960, 34); Yoqne’am (Avissar 1996, 147-48). In Pella (Watson 1992, 238-39) and in N Sinai (Oked 1999, 238-39), the type continued to appear until the end of the 7th c., and in Caesarea it even extended into the 8th c. The type also appears at Carthage (Peacock 1984, 121). A workshop that produced amphoras of this type was revealed in Uza (Avshalom-Gorni 1998, 58). The type is dated from Late Roman into the Islamic period. Cat. 18 is similar to northern bag-shaped amphora in fabric and in shape. The ware is well levigated and was not fired hard.

16. 03/98 LL1 (1726.001, 1242). Complete vessel. Rim D. 9.6. Everted rim, vertical neck, ring handles attached to a narrow ribbed shoulder, wider ribbed bag-shaped body, round base with a pointed edge. White crossing lines and concentric circles. Well levigated fabric with frequent small white grits. Dark gray 2.5YRN3 external surface; dark gray 2.5YRN3 to red 2.5YR5/6 interior. Hard fired. Parallels: Riley 1975, 31 and 31:18 (Caesarea, 4th to late 5th c., type 3); Magness 1993, 144 and fig. 3:8 (Caesarea, mid-4th to mid-7th c.); Watson 1992: 238-39 and fig. 9:72 (Pella, 7th c.). 17. 03/98 LL1 (1726.003, 1242). Base, lower vessel fragment. Round ribbed base with a pointed edge, and a ribbed bag-shaped body. White crossing lines, horizontal line, and concentric circles. Well levigated fabric with frequent small white grits. Gray 2.5YR4/0 external surface; light red 2.5YR6/6 interior. Hard fired. Parallels: see cat. 16. 18. 03/98 LL1 (1726.004 1242). Shoulder, body, and handles. Partly ribbed shoulder, ribbed bag-shaped body, and ring handles attached to the shoulder. A sharp ridge occurs at the transition between shoulder and body and a smooth band below it. Well levigated fabric with frequent small white grits and quartz grains. Light reddish brown 5YR6/4 clay. Parallels: Uscatescu 1996, 159 and fig. 23:600 (Gerasa, 6th c.).

CATALOGUE 14. 03/98 LL1 (1726.006, 1242). Upper vessel fragment. Rim D 8. Plain rim, slightly inturned neck, shoulder, and a sharp ridge at the transition between the shoulder and the body. Ring handles are attached to the shoulder. A smooth band between a narrow ribbed shoulder and a wider ribbed body. White diagonal lines on the body. Well levigated fabric with frequent small white grits. Dark gray 5YR4/1 external surface; light red 2.5YR6/6 interior. Hard fired. Parallels: Loffreda 1974, 43-44 and fig. 8:5 (Capernaum, 4th to mid-7th c., class B); Johnson 1988, 219 and fig. 7-54:824 (Jalamé, mid 2nd to early 4th c., Palestinian bag jar); Avshalom-Gorni 1998, 65 and fig. 5:9 (Kh. El

Egyptian amphoras (fig. 5:19-23) These types are characterized by the ware that varies between strong brown and yellowish brown, containing gold mica. This clay is typical of the Nile region. The first type (fig. 4:19-22) has a tall ribbed neck, carinated shoulder, a long, tapering, deep ribbed body, and solid base. The handles are attached at the middle of the neck and to the shoulders. Several sites, such as Oxyrhynchos, Antinoopolis, and Hermoupolis in Middle Egypt were 53

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 4. Northern bag shaped jars. suggested by Empereur and Picon as production sites (Empereur and Picon 1989, 244-46). The presence of black resin on the interior surface and small holes at the bottom of the neck suggest that the amphora contained wine (Arthur and Oren 1998, 209). The amphora is not very common on sites in the Palestine region and is also

rare in Benghazi in the early 6th c. (Riley 1979, 225) and at Carthage (Peacock 1984, 121). In area LL1, only 6.7 percent of the amphoras are Egyptian. (fig. 1). The type is dated from the 5th until the end of the 8th c. The second type (fig. 5:23) has a similar body shape, the neck is ribbed in the middle, and two handles are attached to the neck and 54

Oren-Paskal: Amphorae from the abandonment layer in area

orange color and the second is yellow cream and is not as frequent as the first (Riley 1979, 212). One variant of many occurs in area LL1 (fig. 6:24-25) and is characterized by wide ribbing, a distinct ridge on the neck, and an everted rim. The fabric is pale yellow and contains black grits. This is one of the most common amphoras in the Byzantine sites in the Mediterranean region and is known as Yassi Ada type 1, Late Roman amphora 1, British Bii, type LIII, and Beltran 82. The earliest example came from a 4th c. context at Tiritake (Riley 1979, 212). In Catalunya the earliest appearance of the type was in late 5th c. (Keay 1984, 278). In Carthage, two complete amphoras were found dating from the beginning of the 6th to 7th c. (Peacock 1984, 119). At Benghazi the period of greatest diffusion was the early 6th c. (Riley 1979, 213). At Kellia the amphora occurred from the 5th to the end of the 7th c. (Egloff 1977, 112-13). The type also occurs at the Athenian Agora in the early 6th c. (Robinson 1959, 115). The continuation of manufacture into the 7th c. seems likely, but it is difficult to date the end of production (Keay 1984, 272). From a preliminary impression of Caesarea amphoras, we may assume that this type was very common in Byzantine contexts. The variation in fabrics may suggest more than one site of production. An Egyptian origin had been assumed until the petrologic analysis of Peacock pointed to an origin in an area of ultra-basic volcanic rock. In the E Mediterranean, small ultra-basic formations are found in central Greece, in the Rhodian Peraea, on the W side of the gulf of Antalya, in Cyprus, around the bay of Iskenderun in SE Turkey, and in N Syria (Antioch) (Peacock 1984, 22). Production centers of this type were identified by Empereur and Picon around the bay of Iskenderun (1989, 237). Three sites of manufacture were found in Cyprus (Empereur and Picon 1989, 242). LL

to the round shoulder. No parallels for this type were found outside of Caesarea. CATALOGUE 19. 03/98 LL1 (1717.001, 1242). Neck, body, and handles. High neck, an angle in the transition between the shoulder and the body, down-tapering deeply grooved body, broad handles from the neck and to the shoulder. Soft fabric with many minute flecks of mica and many small white grits. Strong brown 7.5YR5/4 external surface; brown 7.5YR4/3 interior. Parallels: Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 103-4 and fig. 2:10, 12 (Caesarea, 7th c., type 7); Arthur and Oren 1998, 207-9 and fig. 9:4 (N Sinai, mid-4th to mid-7th c.); Oked 1999, 244 (N Sinai, 4th to beginning of 5th c.; mid-6th to end of 7th c., Egyptian amphora 1); Egloff 1977, 114-15 and pl. 58:6 (Kellia, 630-700, type 173); Rodziewics 1984, 155 and pl. 57:227-28 (Alexandria); Ballet 1995, 17 and fig. 16 (Egypt, 5th to 8th c., LRA 7); Riley 1979, 224 and fig. 92:359 (Benghazi, early 6th c., LRA 6); Peacock 1984, 121-23 and fig. 35:14 (Carthage, 4th to end of 6th c., Carthage LR7). 20. 03/98 LL1 (1717.007, 1242). Rim and neck fragment. Rim D 8. Outfolded rim, ribbed neck. Soft fabric with many minute flecks of mica. Strong brown 7.5YR5/4 external surface; brown 7.5YR4/6 interior. See cat. 19. 21. 03/98 LL1 (1717.008, 1242). Rim and neck fragment. Rim D 7. Outfolded beveled rim, ribbed neck. Soft fabric with many minute flecks of mica and many small white grits. Strong brown 7.5YR5/4 external surface; brown 7.5YR4/6 interior. See cat. 19. 22. 03/98 LL1 (1717.004, 1242). Base. Solid tapering spike. Soft fabric with many minute flecks of mica and many small white grits. Brown 7.5YR5/3 external surface; dark yellowish brown 10YR4/4 interior. See cat. 19.

The content of the amphora was wine to judge from the amphoras from the Yassi Ada shipwreck of 625/26 C.E. One grape seed appeared in the only complete amphora found there, and several vessels recovered were lined with resin (Van Alfen 1996, 203). If the origin of the amphora was in the region of Antioch, perhaps the content was oil, since there was a marked expansion in olive production in the region from the 4th to the early 6th c. (Peacock 1984, 119).

23. 03/98 LL1 (1717.002, 1242). Neck, shoulder, and handles. High ribbed neck, ribbed shoulder, and broad handles from the neck to the shoulder. Soft fabric with many minute flecks of mica. Brown 7.5YR5/3 external surface; dark yellowish brown 10YR4/4 interior. Parallels: Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 104-5 and fig. 2:13-14 (Caesarea, 7th c., type 9).

CATALOGUE 24. 03/98 LL1 (1726.005, 1242). Rim, neck, and handle stump. Rim D 7.2. Slightly everted rim, cylindrical neck with red dipinto mark, and a sharp ridge. Two thick handles are attached to the neck. Sandy fabric with many small to medium white and black grits. White 10YR8/2 external surface; very pale brown 10YR7/3 interior. Parallels: Avshalom-Gorni 1998, 80-81 and fig. 10:4 (Kh. Ovesh, 6th-beginning of 7th c.,Yassi Ada amphora, green or yellow clay); Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 102 and fig. 2:4-5 (Caesarea, 7th c., type 5); Uscatescu 1996, 177-78 and fig. 42:79 (Gerasa, 6th c., group XL form 9B); Bass 1982, 155-57 and fig. 8-3, CA1 (Yassi Ada, early 7th c., CA1-CA2); Riley 1979, 216 and fig. 91:346 (Benghazi, 6th to mid-7th

Late Roman amphora 1 (fig. 6: 24-25) The general form varies between an angular and an ovoid profile, the rim is thickened, the neck is wide or narrow, short or elongated, and the base is round and has a nipple in the center. The handles are thick and grooved, attached at the top of the neck and to the shoulder. The ribbing is widely spaced on the center of the body, becoming closer towards the shoulder and the base. There are occasionally red-painted letters on the neck or on the shoulders. These seem to be capacity marks (Riley 1979, 212). The fabric varies between light brown and pale yellow and contains white and black grits and occasional quartz grains. Riley observed two fabrics. The first ranges from buff to an 55

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 5. Egyptian amphorae. c., LRA1a); Keay 1984, 268-77 and fig.118:7 (Catalunya, late 5th c., LIIIB); Peacock and Williams 1986, 185-87 and fig. 44B (early 5th-mid-7th c., class 44B). 25. 25/99 LL1 (1993.001, 1335). Rim, neck, and handle stump. Rim D 9. Everted rim, two handles attached to a ridged neck. Sandy fabric with frequent small white and black grits. White 2.5Y8/2 external surface; very pale brown 10YR8/3 interior. Parallels: see cat. 24.

157). The first has a continuous band of narrow, sometimes wavy bands, and the second sub-type is based on several separate bands of narrow grooves. The amphora appeared in the 4th c. at the Athenian Agora (Robinson 1959, 109). Riley suggests the 5th c. as the beginning of the type in the E Mediterranean (1979, 217). In Marseilles the type occurs at the end of the 6th c. (Bonifay and Villedieu 1989, 27). The amphora was very common in Romania, but Bass claims that this type was an import into the Black Sea region (1982, 164). The end of manufacturing of this type was in the 6th c. (Peacock 1984, 119).

Late Roman amphora 2 (fig. 6:26-28) This amphora generally consists of a globular body covered by horizontal comb decoration, a pronounced rim, conical short or elongated neck, a rounded base with a knob, and inclined handles attached at the neck and to the shoulder. The fabric varies between pink and red and contains white and black grits and many mica particles. Bass divides the type into two sub-types according to the decoration (1982,

The origin of this amphora seems to have been the Aegean region (Riley 1979, 219). Bass supports this view based on research of Radulescu that suggested the Bodrum region 56

LL

Oren-Paskal: Amphorae from the abandonment layer in area

Fig. 6. LRI (24, 25) and LR2 jars (26, 27, 28). of Turkey as the production site (1982, 164). Arthur and Oren call this type Chian, bringing forward the evidence of kiln material that has been discovered at Chios (1998, 207). Peacock and Williams point to Argolid in the Aegean region as a production site (1986, 182). Scorpan suggests production on the Black Sea Coast and inland to serve the large estates there producing wine and grain (Keay 1984, 354).

10YR8/3 interior. Parallels: Bass 1982, 160 and fig. 8-5: CA20 (Yassi Ada, early 7th c., type 2); Van-Doorninck 1989, 248-50 and fig. 1:6 (Yassi Ada, early 7th c.). 27. 03/98 LL1 (1724.001, 1242), upper vessel fragment. Rim D 6.8. Everted rim, conical neck, bowed handles from the neck to the shoulder, body decorated with deep horizontal grooving sets. Well levigated fabric with many minute flecks of mica and many small white grits. Reddish brown 5YR5/4 external surface; reddish yellow 5YR6/4 interior. Parallels: Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 102-3 and fig. 2:6-7 (Caesarea, 7th c., type 6); Bass 1982, 159 and fig. 8-5: CA16 (Yassi-Ada, early 7th c., type 2); Van-Doorninck 1989, 248-50 and fig. 1:5 (Yassi Ada, early 7th c.); Bonifay and Piéri 1995, 109-11 and fig. 8:55 (Marseilles, 6th c.).

Most of the amphoras in the Yassi Ada wreck (625/26 C.E.) were coated with resin on the interior. Bass assumed that most of these amphoras were filled with wine, since nine amphoras of this type contained grape seeds (1982, 165). The classification at Caesarea was done according to two different rims that were found. Variant A has a rim that resembles the shape of a cup, while in variant B the rim is a continuation of the neck.

28. 25/99 LL1 (1988.001, 1242), rim. Rim D 11. Everted thickened rim. Well levigated fabric with many minute flecks of mica and frequently small white grits. Yellowish red 5YR5/6 external surface; red 2.5YR5/6 interior. Parallels: Tomber 1999, 301 and fig. 8:131 (Caesarea, late 4th to early 5th c.); Arthur and Oren 1998, 207 and fig. 5:6 (N Sinai, 2nd half of 7th c.); Robinson 1959, and pl. 29:109, (Athenian Agora, late 4th c., M272); Abadie 1989, 26-27 and fig.5:3 (Marseilles, end of 6th c.); Keay 1984, 352-57 and fig. 166:1-10 (Catalunya, before the mid- to late 6th c., LXV); Peacock 1984, 119 and fig. 34:3 (Carthage, 6th

The two main variants of Late Roman 2 represented in area LL1 comprised 8.4 percent of the ceramics. It was the most common type of the imported amphoras (fig. 6). CATALOGUE 26. 03/98 LL1 (1724.002, 1242). Rim, neck, shoulder fragment, and handles. Rim D 6.2. Everted rim, conical ribbed neck, and bowed handles from the rim to the shoulder. Smooth fabric with many small white grits. Light red 2.5YR6/6 external surface; very pale brown 57

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

c., Bi); Riley 1979, 217-19 and fig. 92:349-50 (Benghazi, early 6th c., LRA2); Peacock and Williams 1986, 182-84 and fig. 101 (4th to early 7th c., class 43).

The large number amphoras from the region and abroad indicates a city of large population and flourishing commerce. The imported amphoras confirm commercial relations abroad after the harbor restoration about 500. The main commercial relations were with Egypt and the Eastern Mediterranean, and it appears that the most important commodities were wine and oil.

Conclusions An examination of the ceramics from area LL loci 1242 and 1335 reveals a coherent assemblage (fig. 1). In general the assemblage is well known from other sites, including Caesarea, in the Late Byzantine levels. Indeed, the assemblage that Adan-Bayewitz published in 1986 came from adjacent trenches excavated by Netzer and Levine and exhibits much the same profile (1986, 90-129). The large quantity of the amphoras and the parallels from other sites reinforce the view that the building functioned as a horreum, at least in the latest period of use in its original Byzantine configuration. The ceramics and the latest coins (see Lampinen, above, 43-45) indicate that the site was abandoned after the Islamic conquest.

The Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies, The University of Haifa Acknowledgements Sapir Ad drew the profiles in pls. 2-6. I am grateful to Avner Raban for many hours spent together studying the ceramic material and for helping me with his wide knowledge. I also express my appreciation to Kenneth G. Holum for giving me the opportunity to work on this material.

58

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Risser: The belt of Stephano

The belt of Stephanos: gold belt ornaments found in area LL, 1996 and 1998 seasons

Martha K. Risser

than 640 (above). The same is true of another gold object (12, figs. 2–3) discovered near sinkpit 1083 in 1998 just above the abandonment layer. Hence it appears that the Caesarea gold pieces were disturbed but not discovered when later builders dug into the abandonment stratum, and though they came to light in 12th-13th c. contexts they were probably lost in the 7th c. Although found in a disarticulated state, it is clear that these pieces were once used to buckle and decorate a belt. The buckles that fastened shoes in this period were smaller and lighter than the one in this assemblage, while the outfitting of horses required a somewhat different array of fittings. A 7th c. grave excavated at Bócsa, Hungary, preserved parts of a leather belt with lappets to which gold decorative pieces similar to the Caesarea examples were affixed. A drinking horn and scabbard were suspended from the belt.1 Such belts are represented in art as well.2 They were decorated with metal pieces that helped keep the leather stiff. Lappets, straps, and fasteners of various lengths were used to attach weapons and personal equipment. Catalogue (measurements in cm) 1 Buckle frame. Antithetical eagles. LL0099.J004. H 3.75, W 2.75, Th 0.8. Figs. 1, 4–5, 8. 2 Buckle tongue. Rectangular inlay, punched patterns on sides, monogrammed tip. LL0157.J001. L 4.95, W 1.30. Figs 1, 6–8. 3 Belt fitting. Tasseled rosette. On back, one loop at center of rosette and one near bottom of tassel. LL1099. J001. H 4.65, W 2.0. Figs. 9–10. 4 Belt tab. Pocketed, perforated near top center. Square knot at center, pair of downturned leaves above, scalloped border around sides and bottom of knot. Back plain. LL0145.J001. H 2.95, W 2.2. Figs. 11–12.

1. Eleven gold belt ornaments discovered in 1996 (A. Levin). In July 1996 excavators in area LL found eleven gold pieces from the later 6th- or early 7th c. (1–11, fig. 1) that had belonged to the ornamental belt of one of the Caesarea elite. The objects lay in soil deposits above the latest floor of a Byzantine warehouse abandoned after the Muslim conquest in 640 (see Stabler et al., above, 8-9). Pottery and coins associated with the objects dated as late as the 13th c., but the layers in which they were found had been disturbed by construction, as late as the 13th c., of sinkpit 1083 which penetrated down to the latest warehouse floor. The excavators proposed, therefore, that despite their later contexts the gold pieces all originated in abandonment layer 1242 deposited immediately after the Muslim conquest and containing coins dating no later

  I. Erdélyi, The art of the Avars (Budapest 1966) 19, 34. See also C. Balint, Die Archäologie der Steppe (Vienna and Cologne 1989) 204; W. Trousdale, The long sword and scabbard slide in Asia (Smithsonian contributions to anthropology 17, Washington DC 1975) 100 fig. 83; A. K. Ambroz, “Problems of the Early Medieval chronology of Eastern Europe (part II),” Sovetskaia arkheologiia 3 (1971) 272 fig. 12. 2   See esp. Trousdale (supra n. 1) 96–100, figs. 78, 79, 82. 1

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Figs. 2–3. Belt fitting 12 discovered in 1998, front and back sides (P. Lampinen).

Figs. 4–5. Buckle frame 1, front Levin).

Fig.6–7. Buckle tongue 2, front and back sides (A. Levin).

Fig. 8. Buckle tongue 2 with buckle frame 1 (A. Levin).

and back sides (A.

Figs. 11–12. Belt fitting 4, front and back side (A. Levin).

Figs. 9–10. Belt fitting 3, front and back side (A. Levin).

Figs. 13–14. Belt fitting 5, front and back side (A. Levin).

Figs. 15–16. Belt fitting 6, front and back side (A. Levin). 60

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Risser: The belt of Stephano

Figs. 17–18. Buckle frame 7, front and back sides (A. Levin).

Figs. 19–20. Buckle frame 8, front and back sides (A. Levin).

Figs. 21–22. Buckle frame 9, front and back sides (A. Levin).

Figs. 23–24. Buckle frame 10, front and back sides (A. Levin). H 2.75, W 2.15. Figs. 19–20. 9 Belt fitting. Open panel at top with punched design. Heart-shaped main panel with leaf at center, looped ropes at either side, scalloped border. On back, two loops at top and one at bottom. LL0157.J002. H 3.1, W 2.9. Figs. 21–22. 10 Belt fitting. Punched decoration on front. On back, one loop at top and one at bottom. LL0117.J001. H 2.4, W 1.5. Figs. 23–24. 11 Belt fitting. Punched decoration on front. On back, one loop at top and one at bottom. LL0099.J005. H 2.4, W 1.5. Figs. 25–26. 12 Belt fitting. Open panel above, with scalloping across top divided from heart-shaped main panel by a pair of downturned leaves. Scalloped border around sides and bottom of bowline knot. On back, two loops at top and one at bottom. LL0788.J001. H 3.5, W 3.5. Figs. 2–3.

Figs. 25–26. Buckle frame 11, front and back sides (A. Levin). 5 Belt fitting. Figure-of-eight knot at center, pairs of leaves above and below, scalloped side borders. On back, two loops at top and two at bottom. LL0099.J003. H 3.5, W 2.4. Figs. 13–14. 6 Belt fitting. Half-hitch knot, pair of downturned leaves above, scalloped border around sides and bottom of knot. On back, two loops at top and one at bottom. LL0099. J002. H 3.2. W 3.5. Figs. 15–16. 7 Belt fitting. Half-hitch knot, pair of downturned leaves above, scalloped border around sides and bottom of knot. On back, two loops at top, horizontal band near bottom. LL0117.J002. H 3.1, W 2.6. Figs. 17–18. 8 Belt fitting. Carrick-bend knot, pair of upturned leaves above, scalloped border around sides and bottom of knot. On back, one loop at top and one at bottom. LL0103.J001.

Of the twelve pieces, ten (3–12) are solid gold, created from sheets of metal decorated with repousséd and punched designs. 4 is made of two gold sheets; a plain sheet is soldered onto the back with an opening at the top, forming a pocket into which the end of a leather strap could be tucked. A single small perforation shows that the strap was secured in position by a pin. The edges of eight other pieces (3, 5–12) were folded over to form the narrow sides. These pieces were left open and hollow on the back. Two or three gold nails were soldered onto the backs of these ornaments and looped back upon themselves at the ends. 7 has a narrow band on the back near the bottom, 61

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2006

running parallel to the line formed by two nails just inside the top edge. 4, the end tab, and six of the other pieces (5–9 and 12) are decorated with knotted or looped cable designs. 10 and 11, two small and roughly rectangular pieces, carry simple abstract punched patterns. They are reminiscent of 4th c. propeller-stiffeners, elongated metal attachments that prevented the leather from doubling over at the waist, but are probably too short to have served as such.3 Alternately, they may have been placed between the double-leaf ends of larger pieces. 3 is decorated with a rosette. One cable encircles the rosette, and others hang as pendants from it.

the common depiction of trousers and tights in art suggest that legislation was not an effective means of controlling what people wore. The large number of known buckles suggests that what had formerly been officially eschewed as barbarian dress was widely adopted in Late Antiquity. Russell adds that the range of materials in which buckles were manufactured indicates that tights and trousers were worn by upper and lower classes alike.8 Although Russell looks primarily at Europe, it should be noted that trousers had long been worn by Persians. Belts of the type in evidence at Caesarea are associated with the Sasanians.9 Ann Gunter and Paul Jett have discussed objects in the Sackler Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. which are similar to the Caesarea gold assemblage. They reconstruct a leather belt from which lappets and a sword scabbard were suspended. The Sackler belt fittings are apparently 7th c. Sasanian, while similar pieces were found in a 4th c. context in Susa.10 This is earlier than the contexts of other fittings of the same type found in excavations, so they propose Susa as a possible place of origin for this type of belt.

1 and 2 fit together to form the frame and tongue of the buckle and like the other pieces are decorated with punched designs. The frame (1), an ovoid ring, consists of a relatively heavy gold sheet enveloping some other material, barely visible but evident through a gap between the gold sheets on the back. It is shaped and decorated to evoke a pair of eagles facing the center of the ring, their heads meeting at the groove for the tongue. This is a common motif on Early Byzantine buckles.4 The tongue (2) appears to be solid gold. No buckle plate was found, but the loop at the base of the tongue evidently attached to a separate plate by means of a hinge. Since gold is too soft to be practical for a hinge, it may have been made, at least in part, in another material and then covered in gold. Such gilding was common. Numerous gilded belts were made for those who could not afford gold, or as duplicates to be worn in place of originals when theft or damage was feared.5 For example, a similar and roughly contemporary buckle in the Sackler Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution is gilded cast silver, while the buckle and belt fittings found in an Early Medieval cemetery in Celarevo, Serbia, are gilded bronze.6 Either material would have formed a stronger hinge than pure gold. Yet the Caesarea belt may have been made for show rather than for practical use, so durability would not have been an issue. A cast gold buckle in New York has an impractical gold hinge-pin.7

Though buckled belts with lappets were apparently first developed and donned by trouser-wearing peoples, the use of a belt does not necessarily imply that its owner wore trousers. In the Iliad (4.132–35, 186) the zoster worn by Menelaos as he battled the Trojan forces was a leather military belt with metal decoration, so such belts were apparently known to the poet. When Roman soldiers adopted mail from the Celts, they soon learned to wear belts over the mail to transfer its weight from the shoulders to the hips.11 The porphyry tetrarchs in Venice appear to be bare-legged but wear elaborate belts.12 Belts with lappets were used as military equipment, and the buckle from Caesarea may be a type that only officers were permitted to wear.13 The material was costly, and the workmanship is fine. Ornate belts were sometimes given as gifts from the emperor himself to men of high rank.14 Various types of knots shown on the decorative panels perhaps reflect the nautical or technological interests of the owner or of the person who presented it to him.

In his study of buckles from Anemurium, James Russell discusses the evidence for the wearing of belts during the Byzantine period. Arguing that belts would usually have been worn with trousers or tights, Russell traces these garments from their first appearance in the Early Roman Empire, when they were the costumes of Gauls, Sarmatians, and certain other barbarians, to the late 4th c., when laws were passed specifically to discourage wearing them. Widespread archaeological evidence for buckles and

A number of parallels indicate that the belt represented by the Caesarea ornaments dated from the 6th or 7th c. A group of gold belt ornaments was found in a rich grave at Kunágota, Hungary, together with a solidus of Justinian I dated 545–65.15 Eight of these ornaments, shield-shaped

  For propeller stiffeners see M. C. Bishop and J. C. N. Coulston, Roman military equipment from the Punic Wars to the fall of Rome (London 1993) 173–79. 4   K. Weitzmann, ed., Age of spirituality: Late Antique and Early Christian art, third to seventh century (New York 1979) 325–26 no. 303. 5   M. Ross, “Jewels of Byzantium,” Arts of Virginia 9 (1968) 12, 22; I. B. Lippolis, L’orificeria nell’impero di Costantinopoli tra IV e VII secolo (Bari 1999) 218. 6   A. C. Gunter and P. Jett, Ancient Iranian metalwork in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and the Freer Gallery of Art (Mainz 1992) 220–21; R. Bunardwic, Celarevo (Rome 1985) nos. 345–50. 7   Weitzmann (supra n. 4).

  J. Russell, “Byzantine instrumenta domestica from Anemurium: the significance of context,” in R. L. Hohlfelder (ed.) City, town and countryside in the Early Byzantine Era (New York 1982) 145–46. 9   Trousdale (supra n. 1) 85–102. 10   Gunter and Jett (supra n. 6). 11   Bishop and Coulston (supra n. 3) 59–62. 12  ��������������������������������������������������������������������� For photographs and further discussion of the group, see D. E. Kleiner, Roman sculpture (New Haven 1992) 401–5. 13   M. Ross (supra n. 5) 22. 14   I. M. Johansen, “Rings, fibulae, and buckles with imperial portraits and inscriptions,” JRA 7 (1994) 223–42. 15   E. Garam, “Die münzdatierten Gräber der Awarenzeit,” in F. Daim

3

8

62

Risser: The belt of Stephano

plates with punched patterns on the front and loops on the back, are similar in size and technique to 6, 7, and 8. The punched patterns are used more extensively than on the Caesarea examples, which have prominent repousséd work. A silver pocketed piece similar in manufacture to 4 but undecorated was found in the grave as well and was apparently used on a harness.16 A second parallel is a gold shield-shaped belt fitting in the Royal Ontario Museum. It bears a representation of Odysseus, and on the basis of the figural style Paul Denis proposes a date of ca. 550.17 He suggests Constantinople as its place of manufacture. The shape is similar to 8, but the upper corners project slightly outward, giving the impression of more careful and attentive workmanship. This impression is consistent with the delicate execution of the figure, but the difference could be chronological. The boxy top of 8 may indicate a somewhat later date than for the Ontario piece. Finally, two gilded silver pieces from a 7th c. grave at Ledvice, Czech Republic, are similar to those found at Caesarea.18 One, a pocket end tab, is decorated with a looped rope or cable pattern. The other, a shield-shaped belt ornament, is very similar to 8 and even bears a depiction of the same type of knot. Also particularly similar is a shield-shaped brass plate found at Sardis. Like 8 and the Ledvice piece, it is decorated with a Carrick bend knot and has three loops on the back. Waldbaum dates this third example, found in a 2nd-story residence above the Byzantine shops lining the N side of Sardis’ main avenue, to the late 6th or early 7th c.19

arrangement and should be later than the Crimean type.22 Ambroz’s studies of metal objects found in graves in the region along the W coast of the Black Sea and in the area S of the Crimea show that plates, often rectangular or shieldshaped, became a common feature of buckles from the 6th c. onward.23 While none of the belt ornaments found at Caesarea is a buckle plate, the buckle clearly must have had one. Furthermore, the same rectangular and shieldlike shapes as in Ambroz’s examples turn up among the Caesarea ornaments. In her study of belt buckles from Late Antiquity, Isabella Lippolis distinguishes four basic types, subdivided into smaller classes.24 Although its buckle plate, an integral part, is missing, it is clear that the closest parallels for the Caesarea example are to be found in the late 6th and 7th c. 1 and 2, the frame and tongue of the buckle, most closely approximate Lippolis’ types 1, 4c, and 4d. Furthermore, solid cast-gold buckles with thick oval loops and long, heavy, inlaid flat-tipped tongues were a style typical of the late 6th and 7th c.25 Two gold buckles that are similar to the Caesarea example in design, but are about half its size, are part of the Mytilene Treasure on display in the Byzantine Museum in Athens. Shaped the same as 1, the frames of the gold buckles from the Mytilene treasure are attached to plates by means of hinges, evidence for which is lacking on the Caesarea example. The tongues of both buckles, however, are quite similar in shape and form to 2. The Mitylene and Caesarea buckles all have open rectangular spaces for inlay work. All three have similar punched designs. The Mytilene hoard, found in 1951, includes coins dating to the reigns of Phokas and Herakleios and thus dates to the early 7th c.26

Buckles, though, are the best indicators of chronology, and those of the type found at Caesarea date to the 6th and 7th c. Bronze buckles with tongues shaped similarly to 2 have been found in graves of that period at Corinth.20 A few corroded examples were recovered from the 7th c. Yassi Ada shipwreck.21 The chronology of Late Roman and Byzantine buckles, however, has been established primarily through the study of grave good assemblages in Eastern Europe and the Western Eurasian Steppe. As Ajbabib established in work on graves in the Crimea, the earliest buckles have tongues hinged directly onto the frames. The Caesarea buckle requires a more complex

Four groups of artifacts at Dumbarton Oaks include similar buckles. One of the buckles, part of a treasure said to be from Latakia, Syria, has an attached plate with a knot represented at the center.27 The monogram and knot may   A. I. Ajbabib, “Pogrebenija konca VII–pervoj poloviny VII vv. V Krymu,” Drevnosti Épochi velikogo pereselenija narodov V-VIII vekov (Moscow 1982) 165–92; A. Bortoli-Kazanski and M. Kazanski, “Les sites archéologiques datés du IV au VII siècle au nord et au nord-est de la Mer Noire: état des recherches,” Travaux et mémoires 10 (1987) 483 fig. 7; Balint (supra n. 1) 7–76. 23  ����������������������������������������������������������������� A. K. Ambroz, “Problems of the Early Medieval chronology of Eastern Europe (Part I),” Sovetskaia Arkheologiia 2 (1971) 96–123; Ambroz (supra n. 1) 106–32; Bortoli-Kazanski and Kazanski (supra n. 22) 437–89, esp. 479 fig. 3, 484 fig. 8. For eagle-headed buckle plates associated with buckles generally similar in form to the one found at Caesarea see L. Vagalinski, G. Atanassov, and D. Dimitrov, “Eagle-head buckles from Bulgaria (6th-7th centuries),” Archaeologia Bulgarica 4 (2000) 78–91. See also Balint (supra n. 1) 23–27, 66–68 for further information on chronology. 24   Lippolis (supra n. 5) 217–33. 25   E. D. Maguire, H.P. Maguire, and M.J. Duncan-Flowers, Art and holy powers in the early Christian house, Illinois Byzantine Studies 2 (Urbana and Chicago 1989) 96. 26   M. Chatzidakis, The Byzantine Museum (Athens 1994) 15 fig. 27. The coins are dated 602–10 (Phokas) and 613–30 (Herakleios). 27   M. C. Ross, Byzantine and Early Medieval antiquities in the Dumbarton Oaks collection, 2: Jewelry, enamels, and art of the migration period (Washington, DC 1965) 4–6 pl. VII. Ross dates this group to the 2nd 22

(ed.) Awarenforschungen (Studien zur Archäologie der Awaren 4, Archaeologia austriaca Monographien 1; Vienna 1992) 137–38, 153–56, 170, 173–74, figs. 1–2. 16   Ib. 137–38, 178 fig. 6.1–2. 17   P. Denis, “Recent acquisitions of ancient jewelry by the Royal Ontario Museum,” Ancient jewelry and archaeology, ed. A. Calinescu (Bloomington and Indianapolis 1996) 211–12, fig. 12. 18  ������������������������������������������������������������������� N. Profantová, “Avarische Funde aus den Gebieten nördlich der awarischen Siedlungsgrenzen,” in F. Daim (ed.) Awarenforschungen (Studien zur Archäologie der Awaren 4, Archaeologia austriaca Monographien 1; Vienna 1992) 662 no. 8; 716, fig. 2.8–9, 768 pl. 54.6–7. 19   J. C. Waldbaum, Metalwork from Sardis: the finds through 1974, The archaeological exploration of Sardis, G. M. A. Hanfmann and J. A. Scott, edd. (Cambridge MA 1983) 120 pl. 44; J. S. Crawford, The Byzantine shops at Sardis, ib., 9 (Cambridge MA 1990) 99–101 no.582. 20   G. R. Davidson, The minor objects, The American School of Classical Studies, Corinth 12 (Princeton 1952) 271, esp. nos. 2191, 2193. 21   S. W. Katzev, “Miscellaneous finds,” Yassi Ada, eds. G. F. Bass and F. H. Van Doorninck, Jr., 1 (College Station 1982) 275–80.

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indicate a link with the Caesarea artifacts. Also apparently from Syria is a buckle dated to the 1st half of the 7th c. through a study of coins thought to be part of the same hoard.28 Another buckle, probably 7th c., has a floral motif punched into the tip of the tongue.29 A rosette on the buckle plate is similar to that on 3. The 4th group, also 7th c. and said to be from Sicily, includes two buckles, one of them with a monogrammed tongue tip.30 The monogrammed buckle is hinged to a shield-shaped buckle plate similar in shape to 6 and 7, while the plate of the other buckle is closer in shape to 9.

are in the style of imperial art, Marvin Ross argued for a Constantinopolitan origin or at least influence.38 The use of Greek inscriptions and Greek monograms on some of the buckles further supports the hypothesis that Constantinople was the major center of buckle production in Late Antiquity.39 The buckle found at Caesarea may also support this hypothesis. The buckle tongue, 2, bears a Greek cruciform monogram for Stephanos identical to that on a lead seal apparently found in unstratified context in Constantinople.40 On the reverse of the lead seal is the same monogram as on the buckle tongue, resolvable into the name Stephanos, while the obverse shows the busts of the Virgin Mary and the Christ Child. Zacos and Veglery suggest a date of 550–650 for the seal on the basis of the iconographic style, the letter forms, and the use of a cruciform arrangement for the monogram.41 It is not unreasonable to infer that two objects bearing identical monograms came from the same place and were roughly contemporary, so on this basis alone the belt found at Caesarea should be dated c. 550 to 650 C.E. The comparanda adduced above, which are numerous, obviously pertinent, and relatively well-dated, yield the same dating for the Caesarea belt ornaments, with significant inclination toward the later part of the period. It is unlikely, of course, that a high Roman military officer or magistrate would have worn such a belt at Caesarea after the Muslim conquest in 640.

An oval bronze buckle frame found in a Grave at SzegedMakkoserdö, Hungary, lacks the delicacy of 1, but the shape is basically the same. Like 1, the frame appears to have birds or creatures of some other kind curving antithetically around the sides. The other grave goods included a gold solidus of Constans II dated 654–59.31 The bronze piece appears to be a copy of gold versions such as 1, and verifies that such frames were an established type by the middle of the 7th c. So many buckles and related ornaments have been found in central and western Europe that they were once considered evidence of a barbarian presence when they turned up elsewhere.32 Buckles of this type found at Corinth were associated with invaders from the north.33 Gold ornaments found in NW Iran were offered as supporting material evidence for the hypothesis that they had arrived with the Avars, attested in the Caucasus region in 558 C.E.34 Recent studies show, however, that the Avars more likely adopted buckle types from the Byzantine Empire and northwest Iran.35 The wide distribution of buckles in Constantinople and other parts of the eastern Mediterranean has led to the conclusion that some buckles were of Byzantine manufacture.36 Werner and Csallány pointed to the use of common forms, designs, and techniques, and argued that there was a centralized Mediterranean workshop or group of workshops from which gold buckles were exported and sometimes copied.37 Noting that some buckles and belt tabs, including several in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection,

The name Stephanos is well-known at Caesarea. K. Holum has studied two men of that name who occupied the high civil and military office of proconsul in Caesarea during the 6th c.42 The earlier was from Gaza, and we first hear of him in 529/530, when he was named consular governor of Palestine. By 536, when Choricius wrote a panegyric in his honor, Stephanus had a reputation for honesty, justice, and successful leadership. As governor, he apparently had soldiers at his disposal; he had prevented Egyptian robbers from penetrating into Palestine and had cleared the roads of brigands. When there were rumors of arson at Caesarea he had calmed the populace effectively, and he had also repaired Caesarea’s aqueducts. In 536, crediting Stephanus with pacifying “a province troubled with religious strife and other forms of public disorder,” the Emperor Justinian elevated his governorship to the rank of proconsul.43 The 2nd Stephanos was “Stephanus the Syrian,” proconsul in Caesarea in July 555 when the Samaritans and Jews joined forces in a rebellion. Stephanos attempted to halt the looting and destruction of the city’s churches but was chased to his governor’s palace (praitorion) and slaughtered within it. His distraught widow traveled to

half of the 6th c. 28   Ib. 10–12 pl. XIV. 29   Ib. 7–8 pl. X. 30   Ib. 8–10 pl. XI.A-B. Ross argues that this may have belonged to a member of the court of Constans II, in which case the date would be 641–668. 31   Garam (supra n. 15) 144–45, 153–56, 170, 229 figs. 4 (buckle), 11 (coin). 32   See Russell (supra n. 8) 140–41. 33   G. R. Davidson, The minor objects, American School of Classical Studies, Corinth 12 (Princeton 1952) 266–69. 34   R. D. Barnett and J.E. Curtis, “A review of acquisitions 1963–70 of western Asiatic antiquities (2),” BMQ 37 (1973) 128. 35   C. Balint, “Kontakte zwischen Iran, Byzanze und der Steppe,” Awarenforschungen, Studien zur Archäologie der Awaren 4, Archaeologia Austriaca Monographien 1, ed. F. Daim (Vienna 1992) 309–496. 36   Russell (supra n. 8) 141. 37   D. Csallány, “Les monuments de l’industrie byzantine des metaux I,” Acta antiqua Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 2 (1954) 311–48, esp.340–42; J. Werner, “Byzantinische Gürtelschnallen des 6. und 7. Jahrhunderts aus der Sammlung Diergardt,” Kölner Jahrbuch für Vor- und Frühgeschischichte 1 (1955) 36–47.

  Ross (supra n. 27) 5, 8–10, 42–44.   Russell (supra n. 8) 141 (citing unpublished study by G. Vikan). 40   G. Zacos and A. Veglery, Byzantine lead seals (Basel 1972), vii, 753 no. 1206 and pl. 241 no. 447. 41   Ib. xiii, 367, 753. 42   K. Holum, “Flavius Stephanus, proconsul of Byzantine Palestine,” ZPE 63 (1986) 231–39. 43   Cf. J. R. Martindale, The prosopography of the Later Roman Empire, vol. 3B (Cambridge 1992) 1184–85 “Stephanus 7.” 38 39

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Risser: The belt of Stephano

Acknowledgements I wish to express my gratitude to Kenneth G. Holum, to the late Avner Raban, and to Joseph Patrich, CCE directors, who invited me to publish these pieces; to Aaron Levin and Peter Lampinen who took the photographs; to Trinity College for supporting the project; and to volunteer excavators James Coy, Sam Coy, Elaine Davis, Catherine Hammer, Scott Johnson, Talia Kipper, Tonya Miller, Mark Stuckenbruck, and Sheila Van Deventer. I am most especially grateful for the generous and valuable assistance provided by Csanád Bálint, Arthur Bankoff, Jane DeRose Evans, Reuven Goren, Guy Sanders, and Frederick A. Winter.

Constantinople and met with the Emperor Justinian, who ordered the uprising crushed and Stephanus avenged.44 Either of these Stephanoi could have been the belt’s owner, but both were probably too early. More significantly, though, the two 6th c. proconsuls belong to the type of high civil and military officials who might have worn such a belt, having received it (as in at least in some cases) as a gift from the emperor, as part of their insignia of rank. Two bronze weights from Caesarea, of a type used by jewelers and in financial transactions, bear inscriptions identifying the proconsul Flavius Stephanos as the issuing authority.45 Since this Stephanos ranked as proconsul, the weights must date from the period after 536 when Justinian promoted a man named Stephanos to that rank. The proconsul of the weights could be either of the Stephanoi mentioned above or a different one, including the Stephanos of the belt ornaments. A final Caesarea Stephanos appears on a lead seal found during recent excavations in area KK. On the obverse of this seal is a cruciform monogram different from the one on belt tongue 2 but still resolvable into the name Stephanos.46 On the seal’s reverse, however, an inscription identifies this Stephanos as diakonos, so he was an ecclesiastical official and would not have worn the belt that these ornaments represent. Most likely the belt belonged to another imperial Stephanos, likely a proconsul or other imperial magistrate, who held office at Caesarea at the beginning of the 7th c. Possibly, the belt’s origin was Constantinople and it came to Stephanos as the emperor’s gift. Not long thereafter, Stephanos lost it–or it was taken from him–and it came to rest somehow in the abandonment layer of area LL.

This paper is dedicated to the memories of Scott Johnson, lost in the tragedy of September 11, 2001, and of my colleague, friend, and summer roommate, Mansoureh “Mumi” Niamir.

Department of Classics, Trinity College

  Ib. 1186 “Stephanus 14.”   Holum (supra n. 42) 231–32, 239. 46   J. W. Nesbitt, “Byzantine lead seals from the area of the governor’s palace,” Caesarea Papers 2, 131. The monogram is close but not identical to another seal from Constantanople in Zacos and Veglery (supra n. 40) 752 no. 1204 and pl. 241 no. 442. 44 45

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Raban and Yankelevitz: A Byzantine/Early Islamic bath

A Byzantine/Early Islamic bath on the S flank of the Temple Platform, excavations 1995 Avner Raban and Shalom Yankelevitz

Fig. 1. Schematic plan of central Caesarea showing excavation areas (Anna Iamim).

positioned on both sides of NE-SW wall 011 comparable in width (1.2 m) and block size to W209 in Z2 (figs. 2-3). S of 011 a massive fall of stone blocks appeared in this trench, confining it to a narrow section that extended S about 20 m where a stone-lined well was exposed (L020). On the other side of wall 011 the trench was limited by the mouth of another well to the E (L032) and by a wall (W012) parallel to and 1.2 m NW of W011. The backhoe started probing between these walls, but was halted almost immediately when it hit a staircase (L014) descending NE between the walls toward the base of well L032.

Area TPS (Temple Platform South) is located along the SE edge of the Temple Platform (area TP) (figs. 1-2). Earlier excavations in area Z2 to the W had exposed a massive wall of kurkar blocks (W209/2417) used as a retaining wall for the artificial fill forming the Temple Platform (Raban et al. 1993, 46-51, figs. 98, 99, 101; Raban 1998; 67-68; Stanley 1999, 35-37). TPS was opened to determine if the retaining wall continued to the E and N. The excavators hoped to determine the ancient boundaries of the Temple Platform on its S and E perimeter. In a four month season, late in 1995, they accomplished this goal, but they also uncovered a copious hoard of Early Islamic pottery, glass, and metalwork, and in addition a well-preserved Late Byzantine bath.

We calculated the position of the top of the staircase and moved the backhoe to the SW just beyond that point. Backhoe trench 2 was excavated at that location, 1.2 m across and 5 m along the NW side of W011 (figs. 2-3). It cut through a homogeneous fill of soil and crushed

The excavation began with a search for the retaining wall, in three trenches dug by a backhoe. Backhoe trench 1 was 67

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Fig. 2. Area TPS, final top plan (Anna Iamim).

Fig. 3. SW part of area TPS looking SW (J. J. Gottlieb). 68

Raban and Yankelevitz: A Byzantine/Early Islamic bat

blocks. On the inside access to it had been blocked twice: first when the staircase was canceled and the hollow between W011 and W012 was deliberately filled, and secondly when well L032 was inserted and penetrated through the landing at the foot of the staircase, just beyond the passage. The builders of the well employed retaining walls 011, 012, and 016 but added their own wall 009 between W011 and W012. While digging down for the well, the builders had come upon hollow L061 within W011 and had left a window 40×70 cm, that gave access from the well to the hollow. This created a hidden storage space that could be reached through the well by a person descending some 3.5 m down the shaft. The two loose stones concealed the opening from those accessing the well from above. h

sandstone containing some Late Hellenistic and Early Roman pottery. This probe commenced at an elevation of +12.3 m, next to and above the upper landing platform of the staircase (L015), and ended just above bedrock at +8.6 m in the N and +7.4 m in the S. The excavators projected the course of W011 to the SW and that of W209 in Z2 to the E (fig. 1). Backhoe trench 3 was excavated just N of the projected intersection point of these walls, about 25 m WSW of well L032. The backhoe exposed the inner face of the same retaining wall (fig. 4), which turned at that point from the 112 degree orientation of W209 to the 73 degree orientation of W011. Within TPS the retaining wall curved slightly, so its orientation was 65 degrees next to well L032. The fill in backhoe trench 3 had been disturbed more than once, either for renovation of the wall (see below) or for the construction of underground installations, such as Early Islamic cisterns and sinkpits. The surface of the trench was at +11.73 m, and it was excavated to the bedrock at +6.42 m. After the backhoe trenches were completed, additional trenches were opened and excavated manually. The details of these investigations are reported below.

The hoard had probably been placed in the chamber in a time of emergency by a metal shop owner and his family who hoped to return to retrieve their valuables. For an unknown reason, the family never returned to claim their property. Excavation of TPS

Discovery of the Fatimid hoard

After discovery of the retaining wall of the Temple Platform and the Fatimid hoard it was decided to extend the excavations in TPS. The following report summarizes the results of that excavation, discussing the data in order from the earliest (lowest) to the latest (upper-most) occupation level.

In backhoe trench 1, manual excavations aimed to expose the staircase fully and study it properly. The staircase was constructed of stone slabs laid directly over the fill of the Temple Platform. The original width of the stairs was about 1.6 m. They descended to the NE along the inner side of retaining wall 011 from a landing at +12 m (L015) that was removed during the Early Islamic period when cistern L007 was installed next to it (figs. 2-3). The upper two stairs were missing, leaving the highest surviving one at +11.26 m. Wall 015 retained the staircase in its original stage but was later partly removed and replaced by wall 012, laid above one side of the stairs so that the width of the passage was reduced by half a meter to 1.15 m. This later wall was covered by thick plaster that continued over the stairs and W011.

The Hellenistic Phase (stratum XVI, 2nd-1st c. B.C.E.) No architectural remains of the Hellenistic phase were found in area TPS. In two of the three backhoe probes the bedrock was reached below the Herodian fill of the Temple Platform, inside (N of) retaining wall 011. In backhoe trench 1 along the NW side of the staircase and its retaining wall 012, the kurkar bedrock was found at an elevation of +8.8 m sloping to the SE. No man-made cuttings were found in the bedrock in this trench. In backhoe trench 2, at the base of Herodian wall W011, the elevation of the quarried bedrock was +7.73 m.

The lowest stair was reached at +8.66 m where the staircase was blocked by a vertical wall (W009) rising to +11.90 m. The uneven W surface of this wall suggested that it had retained a fill inserted above the staircase. At the lower right corner were some loose blocks that left a hollow gap between measuring 40×60 cm. When the blocks were removed, a chamber-like enclosure 0.9 m wide, 1.6 m long, and 1.4 m high was discovered penetrating SW into the mass of W011. It was packed with over 200 bronze, pottery, and glass vessels (see Arnon, Lester, and Pollack, below, 105-14).

At the base of the Herodian fill in backhoe trench 2, two burials were exposed at +8.13 m (T034). They had been laid into an earlier elongated cutting 55 cm wide in the bedrock on a N-S axis. The S end of the tombs had been disturbed when Herodian retaining wall 011 was built. One skeleton was found scattered. The other was in situ, though its skull had been removed when W011 was built (fig. 4). The small finds next to the burial included a molded glass bowl, an Eastern Sigillata A sherd, an iron key, a square bronze nail, and pieces of a bag-shaped jar. The pottery dated the burials to about 100 B.C.E.

When the chamber was cleared, it became evident that it had blocked a passage, L061, through W011, through which people once passed on their way up the staircase to the elevated plateau of the Temple Platform. The passage had been blocked on the outside (SE) by a mass of tumbled

The Herodian Phase (stratum XV, late 1st c. B.C.E.-early 1st c. C.E.) The major architectural feature dated to the time of Herod the Great in area TPS was the massive cut-stone retaining 69

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Fig. 4. Hellenistic burial T034 under W011, looking W (J. J. Gottlieb).

The Mid-Byzantine Phase (stratum XI, late 5th to mid-6th c. C.E.) Renovation of the TPS retaining wall took place c. 500 C.E. when the octagonal church was built (Holum 1999, 27-31). Evidence of the renovation was found in backhoe trench 3 at the SE corner of the Temple Platform. Here a foundation trench was dug along the inner (N) face of the retaining wall in the Mid-Byzantine period and 5 courses were added to the Herodian wall to a height of +12.60 m (fig. 5). To the N (fig. 6), a 90-cm- wide doorway (L010) was opened through the lower portion of Herodian retaining wall 011. There were recesses for wooden doorjambs on the inner (NE) side of the opening. Four steps with a tread height of about 23 cm ascended from outside (the SE) from +6.9 to +7.78 m to a 1.7 by 1.9 m landing. Staircase L014, 1.65 m wide, then ascended from the landing up to the height of the Temple Platform upon which the octagonal church stood. Part of the Herodian fill on the inner side of the retaining wall was removed in order to build the staircase. Wall 016 was built as the NE edge of the staircase, and wall 015 on its NW. The walls of the staircase were built of kurkar stones 40×60×30 cm, laid in a stretcher pattern. Eighteen steps of cut kurkar survived, measuring 18 cm high and 35 cm wide. The highest step reached +11.26 m, higher at that point than the top of retaining wall 011.

wall that defined the S and E edges of the Temple Platform (W011). Portions of the S retaining wall had been exposed earlier in areas Z and Z2 to the west (Porath 1998, 48; Gendelman and Arnon 1993, 51; Stanley 1999, 35-37). In those areas the lower five courses were related to the Herodian construction phase. In backhoe trench 3 in TPS (fig. 1), 30 m E of the Herodian retaining wall in area Z2, the wall was 1.5 m wide and changed orientation from a SE direction to ENE (fig. 5). The lower courses were fitted at an angle, and the base of the retaining wall was set on the bedrock at +7.06 m. The inner face of retaining wall 011 and 10 m of its external (SW) face were exposed in backhoe trenches 1 and 2 (figs. 1-2). The original Herodian construction survived to +10 m. The wall was laid in even courses about 52 cm high. The wall retained a fill of crushed kurkar, sand, and silt containing ceramics dating from the 4th to the 1st c. B.C.E. The Herodian fill inside the retaining wall (L033 and L047) remained intact to +11 m, indicating that the wall had originally stood higher and had been renovated after its initial construction (below). The slope of the layers in the fill suggested that it had been poured from the inside against the retaining wall. The stones in the wall and the mortar between the courses were similar to those in the foundations of the temple (Holum 1999, 17-26). Unlike the stones in the temple foundation, however, none of those in the retaining wall had drafted margins.

A second feature of the Mid-Byzantine renovations was a section of a stylobate oriented about 10 degrees E of 70

h

Raban and Yankelevitz: A Byzantine/Early Islamic bat

Fig. 5. The inner face of retaining wall W011 in backhoe trench 3 looking S (A. Raban). N, at the base of a later wall W104 and on the E side of the excavation area (fig. 6). The stylobate lay at the same orientation as the major N-S street (cardo maximus) just to the E. The top of the stylobate was at about +6.0 m, and it carried a widely-spaced colonnade, of which five columns survived in situ. The three columns on the S were black granite, spaced over 2 m apart. The other two were local kurkar and were probably a later replacement of the originals. The tops of the columns, 34-37 cm in diameter, reached elevations between +10.71 and +10.79 m. This colonnade probably represented a courtyard or palaestra in the unexcavated area to the E.

of these openings was originally used as a door, or passage, providing access to the apodyterium from the E (below). The main entrance to the bathhouse was possibly from the SW through an opening in wall 156, where a pilaster marking one side of the entrance was exposed in the S balk of TPS (fig. 8). To the S and outside of this entrance was round, stone-lined well L020 at +6.2 m quarried through the kurkar bedrock. A kurkar stone staircase descended to the well from the W, from the contemporary occupation level (+ 7.9 m). The apodyterium was a large room about 12 m E-W × 4 m N-S. It was probably covered by a barrel-vaulted roof, at least above its NW portion, as indicated by the remains of a collapsed vault springing from the pilaster at W156. The floor was paved by regular stone slabs F050 at +8.09 m. Abutting W104 at a right angle, W138 probably served as the N wall of the apodyterium, and W019 was possibly its continuation on the W side of the room. The preservation of W138 was not sufficient to determine its original form. At the end of excavation, it remained mainly within the unexcavated balk. It probably was not a continuous solid wall, but rather a series of broad pilasters bearing the roof (fig. 9).

Late Byzantine A phase (stratum X, mid- to late-6th c.) In the mid-6th c. a two-storey bathhouse was built to the SE of retaining wall 011. The excavation area did not extend far enough to expose the N and E limits of the complex. The overall plan of the bathhouse was triangular, or trapezoidal, with its apex at the NNE, where the colonnade under W104 met the E retaining wall of the Temple Platform (fig. 7). In its original phase the E side of the bathhouse was defined by screen wall 104 that was built over the stylobate of the colonnade. Broad pilasters were added to each column on its external (E) side. These pilasters supported shallow N-S arches that probably supported a second floor. Three of the arches exposed during the excavations (L142, 157, and 145) were blocked by thin screen walls in which rectangular windows were installed. It is possible that one

The frigidarium was the next room to the N between W104 on the E, W152 and W080 on the N, W011 on the W, and W019 and W138 on the S. Its pavement, F078, consisted 71

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 6. Phase plan of TPS, exposed remains of c. 550 C.E. (stratum X)(Anna Iamim).

Fig. 7. Phase plan of TPS, exposed remains of c. 600 C.E. (stratum IX) (Anna Iamim).

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h

of large rectangular marble slabs in various shades of light gray. The larger slabs were 0.9×1.7 m, and the smaller ones were 50×80 cm. The elevation of the floor was +6.89 m at the NNW corner, and it sloped gently to +6.8 m in the S corner. On the W side of the room, by the entrance to doorway L010 leading to staircase L014, was a rectangular slab of pinkish marble 0.85×1.5 m surrounded by a border of black marble (fig. 7). On the E side of the room was rectangular basin L139, 1.2×2.1 m, sunk below the marble floor. A brick parapet wall, 0.7 m above the marble floor, surrounded the basin. This brick structure had once been revetted with marble slabs similar to those still on the floor of the basin. The overall depth of the basin was about 1.5 m. The wall behind it (W104) was covered with slabs of greenish marble, segmented horizontally by thin panels of dark gray marble. There were perforations in the lower part of wall 104, one above the other. Only the lower one (F145), 30 cm above the floor of the basin, belonged to the initial construction phase. It was 6 cm in diameter, and a lead pipe connected it to a large water tank on the other side of W104. In the NW corner of the frigidarium, at the foot of W011, was sunken basin or small pool L081 (0.7×1.3 m) that had originally been revetted with small marble slabs later replaced by hydraulic plaster. The bottom of the basin was dug into the bedrock to +5.8 m, 1.15 m below the elevation of the surrounding marble floor. Beyond the basin, in the narrowing triangular gap between W011 and the wall of the caldarium (W037), was a domed niche with a semicircular skylight that had broken pieces of flat, transparent glass still in place (L093, see below). Along the foot of

Fig. 8. W102 (phase IX) abutting W156 (phase X) with the pilaster of the W entrance to the bathhouse, looking W (J. J. Gottlieb).

Fig. 9. The E pilaster of W138, looking S (J. J. Gottlieb). 73

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Fig. 10. Room L107, the tepidarium of the bathhouse from above, E at right. The marble-reveted door on the left led to the caldarium (J. J. Gottlieb). W080 were remains of a dismantled marble bench 43 cm wide with two articulated marble legs 1.1 m apart. Two vaulted rooms were located adjacent to the frigidarium on the N, separated from it by broad stone walls 080 and 152. The tepidarium, L107, was a small trapezoidal room measuring 1.5 m on the S (W152), 1.65 m on the E (W104), 1.35 m on the N (W151), and 2.05 m on the W (W108) (fig. 10). Its entrance from the frigidarium was through a doorway 80 cm wide in W152 that was lined with large thin slabs of light gray marble. The floor of the chamber was at +6.7 m and consisted of cemented rubble suspended over a hypocaust, not excavated but visible under W152. There was a bench 40 cm wide and 50 cm high along its entire E side, made of mud bricks and originally revetted with marble slabs, as were the rest of the floor and the inner walls. Only the imprints of the marble slabs remained on the floor and bench, along with some copper nails and marble chips still stuck on the faces of W152 and W108. A raised, marble-revetted doorway through W108 led to the next room on the W, the caldarium (fig. 10). The roof of the tepidarium (L107) was a barrel vault, the S part of which had collapsed (fig. 11). A broad rectangular skylight was located in the center of the vault. It had been blocked during the next construction phase (IX) and replaced by a smaller round one next to it on the N. The arched space between the top of W151 and the vaulted

Fig. 11. The vaulted roof of the tepidarium, L107, looking N from below (J. J. Gottlieb). 74

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Fig. 12. The vertical tubuli in the S side of the caldarium (W080), looking S (J. J. Gottlieb). roof was open, but in it were remains of fired bricks used as a framework for an intact segmented glass window (fig. 11). The caldarium (L141) was a rectangular room 1.5 m wide and at least 4.6 m long. Its N wall and the furnace beyond it were not excavated. It was covered by a barrel vault, of which only the center and the ends remained intact. Embedded within the long walls of the caldarium (W037, W108) were six round ceramic tubuli, three in each wall, that carried hot air from the hypocaust to the roof, or to the second floor. On the interior walls of the caldarium (W080 and W037) square tubuli were installed; covered with plaster, they extended up to the springing [?] of the vaulted roof (fig. 12). Most of the caldarium’s marble floor had been robbed out in a later period, but its elevation was estimated at +7.05 m based on the height of the bottom of the tubuli. Beneath the floor was a hypocaust. Some of the displaced marble floor slabs were found in it, as well as several rounded firebricks from the suspensurae of the hypocaust. Two domed niches had been incorporated into the caldarium’s side walls. One was located on the W side of the room (L093) and included a skylight in the narrow triangular opening next to retaining wall 011 (fig. 13). The inner face of the dome of L093 was covered in a thick white plaster with Greek letters in red paint (indecipherable). The second niche, L100, was positioned in W108 in order to utilize the triangular opening beyond the N wall of the

Fig. 13. The domed niche on the NW side of the caldarium, L093, looking W (J. J. Gottlieb). 75

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Fig. 14. Looking down toward the glazed skylight of L100 above the caldarium on the E (J. J. Gottlieb).

Fig. 15. The central part of TPS, looking downward toward the SE. In the center is the frigidarium, at the lower left the tepidarium and caldarium. Note the tubuli emerging through the caldarium roof. The E-W wall at upper center is W017 (J. J. Gottlieb). 76

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Fig. 16. The roof and the tessellated floor (F054) of the 2nd story of the caldarium, looking downward towards the S (J. J. Gottlieb). tepidariium (W151) next to W104 (fig. 14). At the base of each niche were bathtubs (alvei) revetted in marble. A unique feature of this bathhouse was the mosaic floors, F054, on both sides of the vaulted roof of the caldarium. Above these floors, the upper surface of the vault over the caldarium (at about +11.02 m), and the adjacent tepidarium vault as well, were coated with carefully smoothed plaster that also covered a series of parallel benches installed along the upper sides of both vaults (L154, fig. 15, lower left). Slight indications survived of walls, removed during later occupations, that had once confined the trapezoidal area above the two vaults. The six rounded tubuli had carefully articulated openings in floor 054, perhaps indicating, with the walls and benches, that there had been another caldarium on the second floor of the bathhouse (figs. 15, 16).

Fig. 17. Wardrobe L040 with marble shelves, looking SE (J. J. Gottlieb). were laid around the basin at the NW corner (F071). On the E side of the bathhouse the arched openings in W104 were blocked, creating a solid screen wall. The three chambers beyond W104 to the E, L144, L157, and L143 were remodeled into water tanks and were coated with hydraulic plaster from bottom to top (+10.7 m). Openings above W080 and W152, below the vaults of the caldarium and tepidarium were also blocked. The upper parts of these two bath units were covered by thick white plaster painted red.

Late Byzantine B phase (stratum IX, late 6th- to mid-7th c.) In this period the bathhouse underwent several modifications (fig. 7, cf. fig. 19). The major alterations were in the large apodyterium on the S. A new N-S wall, 102, on the W side of the large apodyterium (fig. 8), along with a screen wall 019, converted that section into a porch. To roof it a vault 5 m long was inserted between walls 011 and 102. The stone floor of the former apodyterium (F050) remained in use. A doorway in W019 (fig. 18) provided the only access into the bathhouse and to the staircase (L014) leading to the Temple Platform. Three steps descended from threshold on the N in wall 019 to the marble floor of the bath. Furthermore, E-W wall 049 was built (apparently a continuous screen wall but of unknown function). In the gap between walls 019 and 049, a wardrobe was added, furnished with shelves made of marble slabs (fig. 17). Thus in this phase the W half of the frigidarium was converted into an apodyterium. A new marble floor, 072, was laid over and replaced the original one (F078), and kurkar slabs

Transitional Byzantine/Islamic and Umayyad phases (stratum VIII, mid-7th-early 8th c.) Two sub-phases of modification were evident in the Transitional/Umayyad Phase in TPS (fig. 19). Soon after the Arab conquest of Caesarea in 640 C.E. the bathhouse was renovated but continued to operate much as in its previous phase. The stone floor of the porch, F050, was surfaced with lime plaster (F035) at +8.10 m. Screen wall 019 was plastered as well, and its new coating continuing to the N over the marble floor (now F062). Some marble architectural fragments were buried under F062 of the frigidarium, including a large broken basin on a column pedestal and part of a marble screen decorated with a Maltese cross. The fill below F062 contained early 7th-c. 77

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pottery and coins, the latest of which dated to the reign of Heraclius. In the same sub-phase a bench were placed against W011 next to entrance 010 and new steps leading down from the doorway in W019. The same plaster employed elsewhere was laid over the steps within doorway L010. New retaining walls 012 and 013 were built against walls 015 and 016, reducing the width of stairway L014 to 1.2 m Wall 012, extending c. 4.5 m, rested on the N side of the stairs (fig. 3). The staircase and its side walls were covered by the same white plaster described above. A new plaster floor (F148) was laid over the room to the E of W102, extending SE to the old well (L020), which continued in use. In the second sub-phase of phase VIII two major developments took place over the entire area: 1) extensive robbing of almost all the marble revetments from the walls and some floors of the bathhouse, and 2) the raising of the occupation level by almost a meter above a massive fill. These developments represented the end of the bath house.

Fig. 18. Wardrobe L040 with marble shelves, looking SE (J. J. Gottlieb).

Fig. 19. Umayyad floor F035 outside the entrance to the bathhouse and the doorway through W019, looking NE (J. J. Gottlieb).

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Fig. 20. The Umayyad partition walls outside L010 (the doorway through W011), looking N (J. J. Gottlieb). The bathhouse apparently ceased functioning about 700 C.E. Its caldarium and tepidarium were stripped of their marble, as were the N walls of the frigidarium (W080, W152). The plaster floors were covered by debris that was topped with new floors of mud-coated, beaten soil at + 7.9 m (F060). The pottery sherds, oil lamps, and coins recovered from the debris under the new floor dated primarily to the later part of the 7th c. The space between the doorway in W019 and passage L010 through W011 was subdivided by low partition walls 053 and 052 (fig. 20). These small subdivided spaces were filled with broken bag-shaped storage jars that contained quantities of fish scales and fish bones. Similar jars were found within L010 and in L125, a fill layer in the E part of the frigidarium. The top two steps within L010 were converted into a bench, into which an almost intact Coptic painted jar was installed (fig. 21). On the S side of TPS wall 118 was built perpendicular to W102, separating L116, the fill over F148, from well 020 (figs. 19, 22).

The Umayyad phase in TPS was completely sealed by a destruction layer of tumbled stones, columns, capitals, and detached plaster. Four fallen columns were found lying parallel to each other with their tops pointing NW (see figs. 19, 22). It is likely that this sudden overall destruction was caused by some natural catastrophe. The best-known event is the severe earthquake of 18 January 749 that totally destroyed Beth Shean and Sussita (Hippos)(Amiran et al. 1994, 266). The Abbasid phase (stratum VII, mid-8th to mid-9th c.) It was difficult to determine when during the Abbasid period area TPS was once again occupied. The destruction debris filled up all the rooms and the staircase up to c. +12 m, almost to the top of retaining wall 011, and on the E up to +10 m. Renewed building in the area began directly on top of the destruction layer with little effort to salvage the building materials from the collapsed structures. Very little of the Abbasid structures survived later disturbance and alterations. The isolated remnants identified were mostly of massive stone walls and carefully-laid stone pavements. Wall 017 extended E of wall 011, on almost the same line as earlier wall 049 (see figs. 2, 15). In the NE sector a stone-lined sinkpit was discovered, aligned with W017. The foundation of a floor, F099, was laid over W108 of the earlier caldarium.

The evidence suggests that the second sub-phase dated to the early 8th c. During this sub-phase the bathhouse was converted into an industrial complex, probably for processing fish. Initial identification of the fish bones and scales indicates that the most common species was tilapia, or wild St. Peter’s Fish, known to have been the most common species in the coastal lagoons and marshes of the country at the time. Similar remains of processing wild St. Peter’s Fish were found in area I7, in the Abbasid occupation level.

Less coherent were the fragmentary remains of two parallel walls S of the caldarium, W088 and W089, with stone slab floor F070 between. Further to the S, new retaining walls 79

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Fig. 22. F148 and one of the fallen columns with other tumbled building materials over mid-8th-c. fill, looking NE (J. J. Gottlieb).

Fig. 21. An early-8th-c. jar decorated in Coptic style, from above the steps in L010 (A. Raban).

Fig. 23. Well L020 and retaining walls, looking NW (A. Raban).

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Fig. 24. Abbasid floor F127 and Bosnian pit L131, looking E (J. J. Gottlieb).

Fig. 25. Drainage channel L067, looking NE (J. J. Gottlieb).

004 on the N, W003 on the E, and W005 on the W were built around well 020 to reach the higher occupation level. A new access was built to the well from the S and W (fig. 23). SE of the well were a stone slab floor (F127) at +10.15 m and part of a wall, 128, along its N side (fig. 24).

and reuse of them as septic and trash pits, such as L076 in the caldarium and L048 over F070. Also discovered was a segment of massive wall 083, which extended N at a right angle from W017 and defined from the SE the space paved by L097 (fig. 2).

Summarizing the fragmentary data from the Abbasid phase, one might reconstruct three residential units in the area, one on either side of W017 and a third to the S, E of well L020.

The Early Fatimid phase (stratum V, late 10th-early 11th c.) Prosperous urban life in Islamic Caesarea continued through the second half of the 10th c., and TPS was probably just E of a flourishing market in area Z (see Raban and Yankelevitz in this volume). A new building was constructed in the central sector of TPS with W017 on its N side, a stone wall laid in a header pattern above W011 on the W (fig. 3), and W079 on its S side. Plaster floor F041 was laid where staircase L014 had led to the Temple Platform. A plaster-lined cistern, L007, 1.5×2.5 m and 2.3 m high, was built below this floor and survived into the Crusader period (fig. 26). Well L032 was dug between W012 and W013 from +12.2 m down to the bedrock. The well reused 012 and 013, and the other two sides were lined with unmortared kurkar stones. The 0.8×1.0 m shaft was quarried into the bedrock to a depth of +0.3 m, just below the contemporary water table. While digging the well, the builders came upon the rectangular hollow in doorway L010 that had been blocked by the earthquake debris in the 8th c. Here the chamber was fashioned where

The Tulunid-Ikhshidid phase (stratum VI, mid-9th to mid10th c.) Elsewhere at Caesarea the Tulunid-Ikhshidid stratum characteristically retained the urban layout of the Abbasid era, with necessary renovations made to the walls and floors. The few remains of construction in TPS that could be dated to this phase exhibited this trend. All the structures of the previous phase remained in use but with some modifications. Some floors of pebbles and beaten earth were now covered by plaster, such as F046 above F087 (fig. 2), or by stone slabs, such as F097 to the N, the latter also provided with a stone-lined subfloor drainage channel (L067, fig. 25). Heightened hygienic concern is suggested by the reopening of the old vaulted chambers of the bathhouse, now well below the occupation level, 81

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Fig. 26. Staircase L014 looking SW and the entrance to water tank L007 (A. Raban).

Fig. 27. Descending staircase L014 and the back of well L032, looking NE (A. Raban).

we found the Fatimid hoard. Another rich garbage dump, L135, dating to the Early Fatimid phase, was found in the Byzantine water tank of the bathhouse, L132.

white marble (fig. 25). The old Byzantine chambers E of W104 continued to be used as subterranean dumping pits for the disposal of domestic garbage (L132, L133).

Mid- and Late Fatimid phases (strata IV-III, mid- to late 11th c.) Not much remains from the Mid- and Late Fatimid phases. Many structures of this period were probably later robbed of their stones by the Crusaders. Deducing from other excavated areas in Caesarea, we know that the first half of the 11th c. (stratum IV) was a declining era in the city’s life, and the necessity of hiding property in a secret vault, L010, may illustrate the unsettled situation at the time. During the second half of the 11th c. (stratum III) there were general attempts to renew the higher urban standards of the later part of the 10th c.

The Crusader phase (stratum II, 12th-13th c.) Not a single building component was found in TPS that could be attributed to the Crusader phase. Quantities of 13th-c. pottery vessels were found in water tank L007 and in dumping pits L132 and L133. Well 032 was also kept in use through the Crusader period. Some of the Fatimid walls were robbed of their stones, and the resulting robber trenches were filled with soil containing 13th-c. pottery. The stones may have been removed for the reconstruction of the fortification wall around the city by King Louis IX 1252-54 C.E. (cf. Stabler et al., above, 16, 32). The Bosnian phase (stratum I, 1884-1948) This Bosnian phase was represented in TPS by a single structure. This was a subterranean stone-lined and plastered garbage pit 1.3×1.7 m (L131) that intruded into Abbasid floor F127 (fig. 2). The bottom of the pit was reached at +9.1 m. Recovered here were large quantities of glass bottles (wine, perfume, and medicinal), glass ink containers, glass and brass oil lamps, iron tools, brass utensils, enameled bowls, rifle slings, and even a steel sword with nicely decorated hilt.

In area TPS most of the Early Fatimid buildings continued in use, including water tank L007 and the two wells L020 and L032, but the latter ceased functioning and was filled in stratum III. The two main building units of this phase were on both sides of W017, which was renovated in the 11th c. A tessellated floor (F044) was laid on the S side of the wall, and one of opus sectile (F018) on the N side. Beneath F018 was drainage channel 067. Floor 018 was laid in a courtyard lined with reused Byzantine columns of 82

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h

References Amiran, D. H. K., E. Arieh, and T. Turcotte. 1994 “Earthquakes in Israel and adjacent areas: macroseismic observations since 100 B.C.E.,” IEJ 44, 260-305. Holum, K. G. 1999 “The Temple Platform: progress report on the excavations” in Caesarea papers 2, 13-34. Raban, A. 1998 “Combined Caesarea Excavations 1992-1994,” ESI 17, 58-76. Raban, A., K. G. Holum, and J. A. Blakely, 1993 The Combined Caesarea Expeditions. field report of the 1992 season (University of Haifa, Recanati Center for Maritime Studies Publications 4, Haifa). Stanley, F. H., Jr. 1999 “The south flank of the Temple Platform (area Z2, 1993-1995), in Caesarea Papers 2, 35-40.

The Recanati Center for Maritime Studies, The University of Haifa

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Ceramic assemblages from the Byzantine/Early Islamic bath Ya’el D. Arnon

In area TPS, on the S edge of Caesarea’s Temple Platform, the team excavated a small, two-storey bathouse in an excellent state of preservation (see Raban and Yankelevitz, above, 67-83).* Constructed in stratum X (mid-6th c.), the bathhouse underwent several alterations during its lifetime, passed out of use as a bath c. 700, and then served commercial or industrial purposes until its destruction in the earthquake of 749 C.E. There followed an Early Islamic domestic occupation in TPS that resembled areas I, LL, and TP and continued into the Crusader period.

collapse into the range of the historical earthquake of 18 January 749 C.E. The striking phenomenon of stratum VII, the Abbasid phase, mid-8th to mid-9th c., was complete discontinuity from the previous occupations. Destruction debris filled up all the rooms almost to the top. Fill L076 leveled the area above the destruction debris for new construction. The excavators unearthed three residential units, and new floors, e.g. F070 and F099, were attached to newly-built walls. In stratum VI, Tulunid and Ikhshidid, mid-9th to mid-10th c., all the structures of the previous phase remained in use with just one modification, the replacement of pebble and beaten earth floors with plaster ones (F036). Apart from well L032, beside which the Fatimid hoard appeared, not much remained of strata V, IV, and III, Early-, Mid-, and Late Fatimid, late 10th-late 11th c., perhaps because of robbing late in the Crusader period, phase II, 12th-13th c.

This study focuses on well-stratified pottery assemblages associated with coins that date the main phases of the bath’s occupation. The bath’s original construction dated to stratum X, Late Byzantine A, mid- to late-6th c. The first datable alteration, in stratum IX, Late Byzantine B, late-6th to mid-7th c., was dated by the pottery in L073 beneath floors 050 and 072 (fig. 1). Thereafter, the most significant structural and conceptual alteration occurred in stratum VIII, the Byzantine-Islamic transition, mid7th to mid-8th c., divided between two radically different sub-phases. Unfortunately, precise dating of the transition between these two sub-phases is difficult. The ashlar floor of the bath’s porch, F050 and F072, was covered by a new floor of lime plaster, F060, F056, and F148, and benches were placed along the walls between the new stairs that led down from the doorway towards the opening L010. The fill below the floors, L062, contained coins dated 641-695. During the second sub-phase, beginning c. 700, the bathhouse ceased functioning and was extensively robbed of almost all the marble coating from the walls and from some of the floors. A massive imported fill raised the entire occupation level. During the subsequent sub-phase, dated by coins collected from floors F060 and F148, TPS perhaps functioned for processing fish. Then stratum VIII was completely sealed by the total destruction of the bath building and by masses of fallen ashlars, columns, capitals, and detached plaster in L116, L113, L028, and L040. Coins collected from this debris dated no later than 715. This numismatic evidence brought the episode of

*

This report presents the ceramic assemblages from selected, sealed loci that are related to discernible strata. For description of the strata see Raban and Yankelevitz, above, 67-83. Within the chronological divisions (strata) I group the ceramics as tableware, cooking wares, basins, and containers. Stratum IX, Late Byzantine B phase (late 6th- to mid7th c.) The pottery that represents this layer was recovered from L073, the fill under floors F050 and F072. Table ware: Byzantine red-Slipped bowls (fig. 2.1-2) Two groups of this type were unearthed in this phase: Egyptian red-slipped ware A, known also as Coptic redslipped (Hayes 1972, 387) and Cypriot red-slipped ware, known also as Late Roman D (Hayes 1972, 371). The first type (pl. 1:1) could be distinguished as Egyptian A, form C, dated to the 6th c. or later (Hayes 1972, fig. 85c) or Rodziewicz type O (Rodziewicz 1976, 50, 54, 61). Characteristic are the typical pinkish Nile Valley clay and a rather matt orange/red slip interior and exterior. Egyptian red-slipped wares were recorded in Yoqne’am, Jerash, Sumaqa, and in Kellia where they were dated to the 6th7th c. (Avissar 1996, fig. XII.3.13; Uscatescu 1996, group

For works cited, see combined references at the end of this volume.

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Fig. 1. Harris matrix of area TPS central. III, fig. 12; Kingsley 1999, 274; Egloff 1977, type 34, pl. 40:3). The second type (pl. 1:2) could be distinguished as Hayes form 9, type B, dated between 580/600 and the end of the 7th c. (Hayes 1972, 382 and figs. 81:5, 9, 82:10-12). Characteristic are a fine and smooth deep-maroon clay and a reddish-brown slip, a shade darker then the clay underneath. Cypriot red-slipped bowls form 9B were well distributed all over the Middle East, in Israel, Jordan, and Egypt (Johnson 1988, 305-308, fig. 7-17; Ben Arieh 1997, figs. V:22-25 and VII:13-16; Calderon 2000, pl. X:70-78; Kingsley 1999, 274; Uscatescu 1996, fig. 12 group V; Rodziewicz 1976, 45.13; Egloff 1977, pl. 108.25).

inner surface is covered by a matt red slip (2.5YR6/6). Rim D 24. 2. Bowl (fig. 2.2) (7/95 TPS0162, L073). Wheel-made with a broad, flat base bearing a shallow groove close to the edge. Weak red ware (2.5YR6/4), finely levigated and well-fired. The entire surface is covered by a matt reddish brown slip (5YR5/4). Base D 16. Cooking pots: closed cooking pots with or without handles (fig. 3.6-7) The closed cooking pots of this phase are characterized by a globular-shaped body with a definite funnel neck and a thick rim that is sharp, rounded, or beveled. Often observed are two loop handles that extend from the rim onto the shoulders. This type of cooking pot is well recorded in sites related to the Byzantine era (Calderon 2000, 108; Uscatescu 1996, fig. 89.539; Peleg 1989, 61; Smith 1973, pl. 109.5; Tubb 1986, 61; Tomber 1999, fig.

CATALOGUE (all dimensions in cm) 1. Bowl (fig. 2.1) (7/95 TPS0154, L073.006). Wheel-made with a grooved, thick, everted rim, triangular in section. Light red (pinkish) fabric (2.5YR7/6), porous in texture, and containing white grits and mica flakes. The outer and 86

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Fig. 2. Area TPS, stratum IX bowls and lamps. 87

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Fig. 3. Area TPS, stratum IX jars, jug, and cookpots.

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common throughout the entire Mediterranean basin from the 3rd to the early 8th c. (Sciallano and Sibella 1994, Amphore Mañá D). Early specimens differ from the later ones in their rim shape. Stratum VIII in Caesarea yields only the late types, which lack the gutter on the inner side of the rim. A Late Byzantine date was given to this type in Ashkelon (Johnson and Stager 1995, 96, fig. 6.10), in the Negev (Rosenthal-Heginbottom 1988, 86), and at Tell Fara (Tubb 1986, 54-55, fig. 2.3, type 1), Jerash (Uscatescu 1996, 171-75, fig. 95.628, group XXXIX), Alexandria (Majcherek 1995, 169, form 4), Jerusalem (Magness 1992b, 165, fig. 12:14), Tel Tanninim (Kingsley 1997, 14, fig. 9.61; Oren Paskal 2006, fig.120), Ramat Hanadiv (Calderon 2000, 119), and Caesarea (Riley 1975, 27, type 2; Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 97-99, fig. 1.13). The latest excavations in Caesarea brought to light the existence of this type in the Early Islamic occupation levels as well, although it occurred less frequently (Arnon 2003, 55). such vessels also appear in Kellia, Ashmunein, and Bethany (Egloff 1977, 117, type 183; Bailey 1998, pl. 133.T126; Saller 1957, 212-13, pl. 115.2). h

37-40; Kingsley 1999, 282, fig.9.2, 526; Johnson 1988, 190-92). CATALOGUE 3. Cooking pot (fig. 3.6) (7/95 TPS0154, L073.002). Wheelmade with a funnel neck and everted rim. Heavy ribbing is noticed on the lower neck. Two loop handles are attached to the rim and probably extended onto the shoulders. Red ware (10R4/6), porous in texture, containing an abundance of small-size white grits. The inner surface is fired to a grayish hue. Rim D 14. 4. Cooking pot (fig. 3.7) (7/95 TPS0154, L073.003). Ware and the shape the same as above, except for the lack of handles. Rim D 12.5. Containers: southern Palestinian bag-shaped jar (fig. 3.1, 3) A bag-shaped body covered with widely spaced ribbing characterizes this type along with a relatively short, slightly swollen neck, two loop handles attached to the shoulders, a concave base, usually ribbed, and a thick everted rim. The shoulders and the lower part of the vessels usually exhibit deep ribbing. Varying in color from orange to pink or orange-brown, with a sandy texture, some are made from light brown clay and covered by a yellowish/light brown coat. The southern Palestinian jar is well recorded in Late Byzantine layers (6th-7th c.) such as Tel Fara (Tubb 1986, 56, figs. 3.4, 4.1), Jerusalem (Magness1993, 226:2), Tel Tanninim (Kingsley 1997, 5, fig. 2.54; Oren-Paskal 2006, fig.118), Kh. ed-Dier (Calderon 1998, 135), Ramat Hanadiv (Calderon 2000, 127), Jerash (Uscatescu 1996, 163, fig. 93:601), Kastra (Haddad 1999, 79), Rehovot-inthe-Negev (Rosenthal-Heginbottom 1988, 94, pl. II.90), and in Caesarea (Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 91; Riley 1975, 27; Peleg and Reich 1992, 145, fig. 14.13; Lenzen 1983, 90, fig. 30.41; Magness 1992a, 130-31).

CATALOGUE 7. Jar (7/95 TPS0157, L073). Wheel-made jar, with a thick, rounded, slightly everted rim and sloping shoulders, covered with fired clay chunks. Reddish yellow ware (5YR6/6), porous, containing medium-size white grits and quartz inclusions. Rim D 12. Containers: northern Palestinian storage jar (fig. 3.4) The Northern Palestinian storage jar body shape resembles the southern type with one exception: a pronounced carination always at the junction between the shoulders and the body. Distinguishing characteristics are a thin, hard-fired ware, gray hue, and white-painted ornaments on the outer surface. The gray hue is the result of a reduced firing and is not due to a different clay mixture. The origin of the type was in the Late Byzantine Period, although some scholars suggest an earlier appearance in the 2nd c. (Johnson 1988, 214-15). Its main distribution is in the N of Israel and Trans-Jordan, with a S termination at the Dead Sea.

CATALOGUE 5. Jar (fig. 3.1) (7/95 TPS0154, L073.005). Wheel-made, consists of a heavily ribbed bag-shaped body, a slightly swollen short neck, everted rim, loop handle that is attached to the shoulder, and fired clay chunks on the lower neck (due to the manufacturing process). Reddish yellow fabric (5YR6/6), porous texture, and coarsely levigated. Rim D 9.

Adan-Bayewitz suggested in his study that it held olive oil rather than wine (Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 88-101). Late Byzantine dates were given to this type in Capernaum (Loffreda 1974, fig. 8, class B; Peleg 1989, 60.3), Kh. Karak (Delougaz and Haines 1960, 34), Kursi (Tzaferis 1983, fig. 7:1 pl. XIV:1, 3), Ramat Hanadiv (Calderon 2000, 129), Tel Keisan (Landgraf 1980, 69), Yoqne’am (Avissar 1996, 147-8), and Mt. Nebo (Schneider 1950, 21-4). This type has been dated to the Late Byzantine period, extending to the 8th c. as well (Smith 1973, pl. 45:281; Smith and Day 1989, pl. 54.1, 2; McNicoll 1982, pls. 146:3, 148:4, 6; Walmsley 1995, fig. 1.3; Riley 1975, 31; Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 99; Magness 1992a, 131).

6. Jar (fig. 3.3) (7/95 TPS0254, L073.001). The shape is similar to the one mentioned above. Light brown fabric (7.5YR7/4), finely levigated, and well fired to a yellowish/ very pale brown hue (10YR8/3). Rim D 1. Containers: cylindrical Gaza jar (fig. 3.2) The Gaza storage jar, or perhaps an amphora, is characterized primarily by its cylindrical cigar-shaped body, ending in a base that is pointed, flat, or rounded, and by its rounded rim and sloping neck. Fired clay chunks from the production process appear on the outer surface below the rim. Heavy ribbing appears on the shoulders between the handles and on the pointed base. Originating in the Classical period in the W Mediterranean, the cigar-shaped amphora became

CATALOGUE 8. Jar (7/95 TPS0168, L073). A wheel-made jar, consisting of a relatively high cylindrical neck, and straight leveled 89

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

rim. Red ware (2.5YR7/6), dense, containing small-size white grits and basalt inclusions. Thick-formed and well fired. The outer surface is fired to a gray hue and the inner to a reddish gray (5YR5/2) due to a reduced firing.

18; Coen Uzzielli 1997, fig. 11 pl. VII.1-3; Adan-Bayewitz 1986, type 1, ill. 123 and figs. 124, 125). Although in sites like Jalamé (MacDonnell 1988, 116-35), Shavei Zion (Prausnitz 1967, 45-46), and Beth She‘arim (Avigad 1976, 190-92) this type is dated to the 4th-6th c., in Caesarea it is considered as a Transition period lamp, for it was uncovered in Byzantine levels as well as in post-conquest ones. The data from Caesarea may allow us to suggest a relatively long time span for this type, beginning in the 4th c. and extending until the 7th c.

Containers: Egyptian white-slipped water jug (fig. 3.5) The Coptic water jars are characterized mainly by their typical fabric, white or yellowish slip, and the rich decorations on the outer surface. Although TPS specimens lack the lower part of the vessel it is quite clear from the fabric, the white slip, and the neck and rim shape that they belong to this special group. The Caesarea water jug resembles the one that was found in Summaqa, Elephantine, Tod, and Kellia and dated there between the 5th and 7th c. C.E. (Kingsley 1999, 273, fig. 12:10; Gempeler 1992, 137, pl. 78:4-5; Pierrat 1996, 204, fig. 107; Egloff 1977, type 204).

CATALOGUE 11. Oil lamp (fig. 2.4) (7/95 TPS0154, L073.008). Moldmade lamp with an ovoid, pointed ring base, light red ware (2.5YR7/6), finely levigated and hard fired. 12. Oil lamp (fig. 2.5) (7/95 TPS0154, L073.009). Moldmade lamp with a central filling hole and a pyramidal knob handle. Fabric as above.

CATALOGUE

Oil lamps: candlestick oil lamp (fig. 2.6)

9. Jug (7/95 TPS0154, L073.002). Wheel-made with a slightly concave neck and an everted rim. Red ware (10R4/6), porous texture, containing mica flakes. The outer surface is coated with a yellowish white slip. Rim D 10.

An ovoid, pointed, mold-made oil lamp, often known as slipper or candlestick lamp. Characteristics of this type are: a large filling hole surrounded by two ridges, the inner one often higher and the outer extending in a straight line onto the nozzle, which is an integral part of the body. The base is set off by a base ring, rarely containing a projecting pellet. The ware is usually pinkish (7.5YR7/6 or 2.5YR6/6) and is very often buff-slipped. The rim is decorated with a radiating pattern or inscription, always in Greek letters. This type is well known all over the region, and it has been recorded in Byzantine levels (Scholl 1991, group 1, fig.1; McNicoll et al. 1992, pl. 115.8; Magness 1992b, fig. 9.13 and figs. 12.18, 19; Tushingham 1972, fig. 11.46; Aharoni et al. 1964, fig. 25).

Oil lamps: Samaritan type III (fig. 2.3) This is an ovoid, pointed, molded oil lamp, of which the ware is usually reddish brown (5YR6/6), porous, and often buff-slipped (5Y8/3). Characteristic are a sunken discus surrounded by a ridge that extends onto the nozzle and forms a slightly trapezoidal shallow channel, a relatively horizontal knob handle, and a sunken ring base often containing a projecting pellet in the center. Rim decorations include radial lines, net patterns, and projecting dots. This type of lamp corresponds more or less with Sussman type III, and it was dated in Apollonia-Arsuf to the 5th-7th c. (Sussman 1983, fig. 9.2 and pl. 12.89).

CATALOGUE

CATALOGUE

13. Oil lamp (7/95 TPS0154, L073.010). A mold-made, ovoid, pointed lamp with a central filling hole surrounded by a high ridge, reddish/yellow ware (7.5YR7/6), finely levigated and hard fired.

10. Oil lamp (7/95 TPS0180, L073). Mold-made, ovoid, pointed lamp with a central filling hole surrounded by a ridge. Reddish yellow ware (7.5YR6/6), porous, and relatively coarse.

Stratum VIII (mid-7th-mid-8th c.)

Oil lamps: flat, ovoid, pointed-base oil lamp (fig. 2.4-5)

Structural preservation from this phase was excellent. An abundance of ceramic sherds accompanied by coins was retrieved on and below the floor, F035, F056, and F060, covered by the earthquake debris. The latest coin above the floor dated to 715 (L040 baskets 0074, 0094, 0108, 0112), while the latest coin below it dated to 695 C.E. (L062 basket 0148). Included in the pottery assemblage are tableware, basins, cooking ware, and containers, of which containers comprised the largest pottery type in this stratum. This category included vessels such as storage jars, amphorae, and sphero-conical vessels known as vessels for “Greek fire.” The initial impression is that the ceramic deposits were a continuity typologically and technologically from the Byzantine era, a phenomenon that has also been observed in Transjordan (Sauer 1982, 332; Gawlikowski 1986, 120), Egypt (Rodziewicz 1976, 64), and Israel (Lenzen 1983, 394; Arnon 1999, 225). In

A mold-made oil lamp. Characteristic are a flat, ovoid, pointed ring base; a small sunken discus surrounded by a raised ridge that extends onto the nozzle and circumscribes a definite trapezoidal channel; and a pyramidal knob handle opposite the wick hole. A relatively small filling hole is placed in the center of the discus, which is often decorated with relief ornaments comprised of floral, geometric, zoomorphic, and cultic symbols such as a cross and even a depiction of Late Byzantine coins. This lamp is well formed and fired with an orange-pink (5YR7/6) ware that is finely levigated. The type was studied by Rosenthal and Sivan (Rosenthal and Sivan 1978, types 510, 511) and is well represented in sites from the N of Israel (Avigad 1976, pl. XXXI, type 3; MacDonnell 1988, figs. 6-4 and 54; Prausnitz 1967, figs. 15, 14-17; Bagatti 1969, fig. 236.2; Loffreda 1974, type L9, photo 25 and fig. 90

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slipped bowls appear in stratum IX and extend to stratum VII (Arnon 1996, 35). Petrographic analysis points to its Egyptian origin (ib. 89). h

Caesarea the first observed differences were mainly in production techniques and occurred about 700 (probably after ‘Abd al-Malik’s administrative and monetary reform). The same phenomenon was noticed in Pella (Watson 1992, 246) and by Sauer in various sites in Tranjordan (Sauer 1986, 301).

CATALOGUE 16. Bowl (7/95 TPS0425, L062.004). A wheel-made bowl consisting of a globular body, a slightly everted rim with a relatively wide, graded beveled ridge below it. Pink ware (5YR7/4), porous, containing white grits, grog, and mica flakes. Red brown slipped interior and on the outer upper part. Rim D 14.

Tableware: fine ware, cups/bowls (fig. 4.3, 5) Fine ware types of cups and juglets are also known as Byzantine fine ware (Gichon 1974, 119) and traditionally are dated to the Byzantine and Early Islamic periods (ib. 1974, 139). The ware is characterized by finely levigated clay in a pinkish or orange hue that is well produced and fired (at a relatively high temperature). Light brown bands following the marks of the wheel often appear on the outer and inner surface. This type of vessel is well recorded all over the country from Sde Boqer in the Negev and Kh. al-Mafjar in the S (Baramki 1944, 68, ware 10; Whitcomb 1988, fig. 11e; Nevo 1985, pl. 6.16; Haiman 1995a, fig. 16, 1, 2) to Yoqne’am, Capernaum, Tiberias, and Pella in the N (Avissar 1996, 118, type 4; Peleg 1989, fig. 43.19; Stacey 1995, fig. 6.12; Walmsley 1986, fig. 9.11; 1991, figs. 9.6 and 7.8). Although this type appears in Caesarea already in stratum IX (Late Byzantine), undoubtedly it extends to stratum VIII and even to stratum VII (8th-9th c.), in a different form and decoration (see stratum VII, description of painted samples).

Tableware: orange-slipped and brown-painted bowls (fig. 4.4) This style of decoration is an outstanding remnant from the Byzantine Period, predominantly the Coptic style in Egypt. Dark brown ornamentation executed on a light red/ orange surface is well represented on tableware in Kellia and Ashmunein where several types were dated to the 7th– 8th c. (Egloff 1977, pl. 115, type 99, p. 97, types 212 and 217, pp. 128-29, and type 247, pp. 138-39; Bailey 1998, pl. 132, type D, and pl. 120, C715, C716). Moreover, the hue, texture, and composition of the clay in these types of vessels are characteristic of Egyptian clay (Arnon 1996, 86). CATALOGUE 17. Bowl (7/95 TPS0114, L060.001). A wheel-made bowl, consisting of a slightly everted rounded rim, and beveled walls. Pink ware (5YR7/4), porous in texture, containing small size white grits, grog, and golden mica flakes. Orange-slipped interior and exterior. The outer upper part is decorated with reddish and brown paint. Remnants of rouletting ornaments appear below the painting. Rim D 11.

CATALOGUE 14. Small bowl or large cup (fig. 4.3) (7/95 TPS0425, L062.003 ). A wheel-made bowl consisting of a globular body, shallow ring base, and a straight rim. Reddish/yellow ware (5YR7/6), dense, finely levigated, well made and fired (gray core), containing very small-size white grits. Light brown bands following the wheel marks appear exterior and interior. Rim D 10, base D 4, H 35.

Tableware: goblets (fig. 4.6)

15. Bowl (fig. 4.5) (7/95 TPS0316, L113.001). Wheel-made with a slightly concave base, carinated body, and thick everted rim. Reddish/yellow ware (5YR7/6), dense, finely levigated, well made and fired (gray core), containing very small-size white grits. Light brown bands following the wheel marks appear exterior and interior. Rim D 16, base D 6, H 4.

Very few specimens of this type have been recovered in Caesarea so far. Such a goblet is recorded from Jerash and was dated there to the Umayyad period (Abu Dalu 1993, 30). Similar decorated goblets were recorded in Kellia and were dated to the second half of the 7th c. (Egloff 1977, 159-60, types 302 and 305, pl. 84.2, 9)

Tableware: Egyptian red-slipped bowls (fig. 4.2)

CATALOGUE

The red-slipped bowls are characterized by their light red/pinkish clay always containing mica flakes, and by a reddish brown/orange slip on the interior and on the outer, upper part of the bowl. This type is well recorded in Egypt since the Ptolemaic period (Rodziewicz 1983, 73). It was studied by Hayes and was dated to the 7th-8th c. (Hayes 1972, 387). The excavations from Alexandria (Kom elDikka), Kellia, Ashmunein, Abu Mena, and Fustat show that this type extends into the 9th and even to the 10th c. (Rodziewicz 1983, 74; Egloff 1977, pls. 39.12, 13, 40.3; Bailey 1998, pl. 120.C27, C34, C35, and C24; Engemann 1989, Abb. 5, 13, 14; Kubiak and Scanlon 1986, 37), while those in Syria are dated to the Umayyad period only (Orssaud 1980, fig. 306, types 6, 7). In Caesarea, the red

18. Goblet (7/95 TPS0408, L062.001). A wheel-made goblet consisting of incurved walls, inverted rim triangular in section, and a string cut flat foot widening at its edge. Reddish/yellow ware (5YR7/6), porous in texture, coarsely levigated and formed, containing medium- and large-size white grits and grog inclusions. Rim D 8, base D 4, H 7. Tableware: thick-formed coarse jugs (fig. 4.7) Common features that this group shares are the coarseness of the clay and the crudity of the production. In addition, all the jugs have a ring base and were fired to a pale hue (almost two tones brighter than the original hue). This type comprises the largest group among the tableware. 91

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 4. Area TPS, stratum VIII cooking ware, cups, bowls, goblets, and juglets.

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CATALOGUE

h

Cooking ware: globular cooking ware (cooking pots)(fig. 4.1)

19. Jug (7/95 TPS0347, L113.004). A wheel-made jug with a shallow ring base, light red ware (2.5YR6/6), porous in texture, coarsely levigated, and crudely made, containing large size white grits. Fired to a whitish hue on the outer surface. Base D 8.

Closed cooking pots of phase VIII are characterized by a globular shape, sometimes slightly carinated towards the shoulders and heavily ribbed with a definite neck, vertical or funnel, a thick rim, sharp, rounded, or beveled, and two loop handles that extend from the rim onto the shoulders. The stylistic origin of this type of cooking pot is well anchored in the Byzantine period (see cat. 3 above). From Byzantine sites there are two types of closed cooking vessels: one with a neck and the other without. In Stratum VIII all the closed cooking pots have necks. It seems that only one of the two Byzantine prototypes continued in vogue into the Early Islamic era. One might wonder why. The frequent type found is one with a smooth vertical neck and a semibeveled thick rim. Peleg dated such a type in her report from Capernaum to the Umayyad period (Peleg 1989, 79). A Transition period, or an Umayyad date, was given to this type in Sde Boqer (Nevo 1985, pl. 5.13), Elot (Avner 1998, fig. 138-10), Jerash (Uscatescu 1996, fig. 104.717; Rasson and Seigne 1989, fig. 10.1), Amman (Northedge et al. 1992, fig. 133.1), Tiberias (Stacey 1995, figs. 1.3, 4), Pella (Smith and Day 1989, pl. 53.5, 10,14; Watson 1992, fig. 3.20), Carmiel (Sharabani 1992, 136; Yeivin 1992, fig. 23.5), Dhiorios and the Kornos Cave in Cyprus (Catling 1972, 11, fig.7; Catling and Dikigoropoulos 1970, 54-55, figs. 7-8), Hammat Gader (Ben Arieh 1997, fig. XI.7), and Bûsra (Wilson and Sa’d 1984, 123).

Tableware: fine ware juglets (fig. 4.8) The fine ware juglets are of the same category as the fine ware bowls and cups listed above. This type was also studied by Gichon and was designated as “type γ necked jugs and juglets” (Gichon 1974, 132). The type appears in Magness’ study as well and is classified as form 2A (Magness 1993, 240). Characteristics of the type, besides the ware, are the string-cut foot base, globular body, and thick guttered rim. As the Byzantine fine ware mentioned above, the juglets are dated to the Late Byzantine and Early Islamic eras (Magness 1993, 239). Good parallels from the Byzantine/Islamic levels are reported from Jerusalem, Ramat Rachel, Kh. Karak, and Bethany (Delougaz and Haines 1960, pl. 34.1; Magness 1992b, fig. 12.15; Aharoni et al. 1964, fig. 23.7; Saller 1957, 304). CATALOGUE 20. Juglet (7/95 TPS0151, L062.002). A wheel-made juglet with a string-cut flat foot base. Reddish/yellow ware (5YR7/6), dense in texture, well made, finely levigated and well fired. The outer surface is fired to a pink hue (5YR7/4). Light brown bands, which are so typical of the fine Byzantine ware, are absent. Rim D 2.5.

CATALOGUE

Tableware: micaceous, pink-slipped juglets (fig. 4.9)

22. Cooking pot (7/95 TPS0094, L040.003). A wheelmade cooking pot with a globular, slightly carinated ribbed body, vertical smooth neck, thick folded rim triangular in section, and a loop handle extending from the rim onto the shoulder. Red ware (2.5YR5/8), porous in texture, containing an abundance of white grits. Rim D 9.8.

Pinkish slipped micaceous ware is very rare. All the samples are of the closed form used as pouring ewers. Characteristic are the dark red or brown clay, dotted and sparkled with golden mica flakes, and the thick pink or whitish slip coating the entire exterior and interior of the vessel. Usually, the outer surface is decorated with dark brown, dark red, or black painted ornaments above the slip. The colors and components of the ware, slip, and style of decoration resemble the Egyptian Christian Coptic ware (Ballet and Scanlon 1991, 481, 485-86). A similar description of the ware and slip is recorded in Fustat and was identified as Nubian ware (Scanlon 1981, 68). In Alexandria, Rodziewicz classified it as type W and dated it to the Byzantine and Early Islamic periods (Rodziewicz 1976, 61-62), and in Ashmunein it was classified as J46-9 (Bailey 1998, pl. 133), dated to the 8th–9th c. A similar specimen found at Capernaum was given the same date (Peleg 1989, fig. 51.1), while in Pella it was found only in Umayyad deposits (Smith and Day 1989, pl. 62.1). Since mica is present in the clay, this ware is undoubtedly of foreign origin, probably from Egypt.

Cooking ware: open cooking ware (casseroles) (fig. 4.10) Open cooking wares, or casseroles, were the dominant type of cooking vessels in this stratum. They had their origin in the Roman period (Guz-Silberstein 1995, 322, fig. 6.49, no. 9). In the Late Byzantine period they varied from a globular form to a blunt, conical one. Most of the samples are furnished with two horizontal loop handles, sometimes pushed upward and attached to the upper part, just below the rim, and a flat rim slanting inwards. As mentioned above, these casseroles and their variants had a long life span beginning in the 2nd c. and extending to the 9th (Magness 1993, 211; Elgavish 1977, 20, pl. IV: XXVI). Many were recorded in Late Byzantine sites from Tell ‘Arqa in the N (Thalmann 1978, fig. 39.9) to Capernaum (Loffreda 1974, fig. 11.1), Yoqne’am (Avissar 1996, fig. XII.6.11-13), Ramat Hanadiv (Calderon 2000, 108), Caesarea (Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 125), Ramat Rachel (Aharoni et al. 1964, fig. 8.5), Jerash (Uscatescu 1996, fig. 74), and Rehovot-in-the-Negev (Rosenthal-Heginbottom 1988, pl. V.200). An 8th c. date was given in Pella (Smith and Day 1989, pl. 61.12, 13), Jerash (Falkner and Schaefer

CATALOGUE 21. Juglet (7/95 TPS0148, L062.003). A wheel-made juglet with a foot base, red ware (2.5YR5/6), porous in texture, containing small size white grits and mica flakes. Thick pink slip interior and exterior. Base D 5. 93

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Fig. 5. Area TPS, stratum VIII jars, amphora.

94

Arnon: Ceramic assemblages from the Byzantine/Early Islamic bat

1986, 431), Amman (Northedge et al. 1992, fig. 133.3-4), Nakhal Mitnan (Haiman 1995a, 40, fig. 16.10), Nakhal Shahak (Israel 1995, fig. 6.12), Hammat Gader (Ben Arieh 1997, fig. XII.8), Bûsra (Wilson and S’ad 1984, fig. 457), and Kh. al-Mafjar (Baramki 1944, fig. 13.2; Whitcomb 1988, fig. 1.3.g).

h

thickness of the vessel, the hue, and the length of the neck. The Early Islamic jar is thicker than the Late Byzantine, a phenomenon that was also observed in Transjordan (Sauer 1986, 305-6). It has a higher neck and a weak red/ gray hue with a reddish core. Adan-Bayewitz suggested in his study that it held olive oil rather then wine (AdanBayewitz 1986, 88-101). This type was dated to the Late Byzantine period extending to the 8th c. (Smith 1973, pl. 45:281; Smith and Day 1989, pl. 54.1, 2; McNicoll 1982, pls. 146:3, 148:4, 6; Walmsley 1995, fig. 1.3; Riley 1975, 31; Adan-Bayewitz 1986, 99; Magness 1992a, 131). An Umayyad date was given in Transjordan (Sauer 1982: fig. 3; Uscatescu 1996, fig. 112.808), Tiberias (Stacey 1987-88, 4.2; 1995, fig. 1.2), and Kh. al-Mafjar (Baramki 1944, fig. 3.1-3, pl. XIX.1-2).

CATALOGUE 23. Casserole (7/95 TPS0347, L113.003). A wheel-made casserole with a blunt conical body, incurved rim triangular in section, and a horizontal loop handle, slightly twisted and attached to the wall below the rim. Red ware (10R4/6), porous in texture, containing an abundance of small-size white grits. Rim D 24. Containers: storage jars (figs. 5.1-2)

CATALOGUE

The term container is applied to all vessels that were used for the storage of liquids or solids in order to transfer them from place to place, or to vessels that were used for permanent storage. Five types of containers were retrieved from phase VIII, the most prominent being the bag-shaped jar that had three main variants: southern Palestinian, northern Palestinian, and micaceous. The eminent characteristic of these types is that the maximal girth is below the center of the vessel, a shape that resembles a bag or a sack. The origin of the type went back to the 7th c. B.C.E. (Raban 1980, 83-87) and it has extended through the millennia to modern times. In addition, there was another one, the Late Roman 2 amphora.

25. Handle of Storage Jar (7/95 TPS0347, L113.001). Light red ware (2.5YR6/8), dense, finely levigated, hard fired and thin potted, containing very small-size white grits. The outer surface is fired to a reddish brown hue (2.5YR5/3) and decorated with white paint. Containers: micaceous bag-shaped jar (figs. 5.3, 4, 6) This type is the only storage jar that might be considered to be a specific indicator of stratum VIII, for it has no forerunners in the Byzantine era. It has a relatively swollen neck. The red ware with mica flakes characterizes it as micaceous ware. It is finely levigated, well formed, and hard fired. Such jars were recorded in well-stratified levels dating to the Umayyad period in Pella, where they appeared after the 659/60 earthquake (Walmsley 1995, 661; Watson 1995, 319, fig. 9.4), in Jerash (Uscatescu 1996, fig. 23.3), and Amman (Sauer 1986, fig. 2.68). Moreover, this type of jar was retrieved in Kellia in a deposit dating to 650-730, along with the southern Palestinian storage jar (Egloff 1977, pl. 114.1), and in Ashmunein context 130 dated to about 675-750 (Bailey 1998, 136-37, pl. 133.W10, W25).

Containers: southern Palestinian storage jar, late version (fig. 5.1-2) For a general description see cat. 5 above. Post-Byzantine dates were given to this type in Kellia (Egloff 1977, 117-18, pl. 19.4), Carthage (Hayes 1978, 53, fig. 13.49), and Pella. Although McNicoll ascribes the type to phase V at Pella dated to 600-640, Watson suggests that this phase must be associated with the 659/60 earthquake (McNicoll et al. 1992, 163, 168; Watson 1995, 315-6). In his study on the bag-shaped amphorae Kingsley emphasized the continuation of the type to the 8th c. (Kingsley 1994-95, 39-42).

CATALOGUE 26. Storage jar (fig. 5.6) (7/95 TPS0094, L040.004). A wheel-made jar with a bag-shaped body, sloping shoulders, swollen neck, a slightly everted rim, and two loop handles attached to the shoulders. The body is ribbed on its upper part. Reddish brown ware (2.5YR5/4), relatively dense, containing small-size white grits and mica flakes. Rim D 10.

CATALOGUE 24. Storage jar (fig. 5.1) (7/95 TPS0094, L040.001). A wheel-made jar with a short, slightly swollen neck, a thick everted rim with clay remnants attached to it, finely ribbed sloping shoulders, and a remnant of a handle on the shoulder. Red ware (2.5YR5/6), sandy texture, containing small-size white grits. Rim D 10.

27. Storage jar (fig. 5.3) (7/95 TPS0142, L060). As the previous example. Rim D 10.

25. Storage jar (fig. 5.2) (7/95 TPS0346, L116). Form and shape as the previous. Reddish yellow ware (5YR6/6), porous, sandy texture, containing small-size white grits. Fired to a light brown hue (7.5YR6/3). Rim D 9.

28. Storage jar (fig. 5.4) (7/95 TPS0337, L116.001). A wheel-made jar with a funnel-shaped neck and a slightly everted rim, triangular in section. Red ware (10R5/6), porous, containing white grits and mica flakes. Thin white slip is on the interior only. Rim D 12.

Containers: northern Palestinian storage jar (fig. 5.7)

Containers: coarse ware bag-shaped small jar (fig. 5.5)

The origin of the type lies in the Late Byzantine period (for a general description see cat. 8 above ). Early Islamic specimens differ from Late Byzantine ones in the

Just one specimen of this type was identified. Body shape and rim form resemble the southern Palestinian storage jar, but in a smaller version. The loop handles are thinner and 95

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Fig. 6. Area TPS, stratum VIII lamps.

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Greek inscriptions appeared on several examples. The appearance of Greek letters on lamps during the Islamic period is not surprising. According to Balādhuri, Greek remained the official language of state registers until ‘Abd al-Malik’s reform in the year 81H/700-701 C.E. (Day 1942, 70). F. Day dated this type to the 7th-8th c. (ib. 71), as did Kennedy (1961-63, 90), and Hadad (1997, 178). In Kh. al-Mafjar and Pella the type appears only in the pre-earthquake levels (i.e. pre-749)(Baramki 1944, 65, 73; Walmsley 1988, 153, ill. 9), as is the case in Caesarea. Moreover, this type is the only one to be found in the singlephase, exclusively Umayyad sites such as Sde Boqer and Nakhal Mitnan (Nevo 1985, pl. 7.2; Haiman 1995a, fig. 16.17; id. 1995b: fig. 8.22). Some of the lamps bear a potter’s mark or some other symbol on the base (fig. 6:1, 2, 3, 6). Such lamps were recorded in Capernaum (Loffreda 1974, 95 and fig. 28.10; Peleg 1989, fig. 70.12.7), Kh. Karak (Delougaz and Haines 1960, pl. 44.12), Yoqne’am (Avissar 1996, fig. XV.16), Nazareth (Bagatti 1969, fig. 42), Hammat Gader (Coen Uzzielli 1997, pls. VII-IX), Kursi (Tzaferis 1983, pl. XVI.4), and Beth Shean (Hadad 1997, fig. 43). Similar types were recorded as well in Syria in Djebel Seis (Brisch 1965, Abb. 29, 31) and in Busra (Wilson and Sa’d 1984, 87), where they were considered as local production. Syrian types are characterized by a rosette depiction within the ring base. h

more delicate than the prototype. Similar specimens were recorded in Kellia and Kursi, where they were dated to the second half of the 7th c. extending to the first half of the 8th (Egloff 1977, 119, pl. 22.3, type 190, deposit X; Tzaferis 1983, pl. XV, phase III), and in Kafar ‘Ara, where it was dated to the Byzantine period (Sussman 1976, 100). CATALOGUE 29. Small jar (7/95 TPS0074, L040). Wheel-made, consisting of a ribbed concave base, bag-shaped body, a short, slightly swollen neck, and a sharp rim. Reddish Brown ware (2.5YR5/4), coarsely produced, and poorly fired. Rim D 9, base D 9, max. W 26, H 36. Containers: Late Roman 2 amphora (fig. 5.8) The title LR2 was given to this type in Carthage and Benghazi (Peacock 1984, 119; Riley 1979, 217, 219). Characteristics are a relatively short conical neck with a high everted rim, two bowed handles attached to the neck and extending onto the sloping shoulders, a bag-shaped globular body ribbed on its upper part (below the handles), and a small knob base. The ware ranges from buff to light red. The presence of mica flakes in the Caesarea sample indicates a foreign origin, probably the Aegean or the Black Sea region (Peacock and Williams 1986, 182). This Amphora was well distributed around the Roman Empire from Britain and France in the W to the Black Sea in the NE and Egypt in the SE. It was the second largest group recovered in the Yassi Ada wreck, which was dated to the 7th c. (Bass 1982, 157-60; Von Doorninck 1989, 250). Although Robinson dates this type in the Athenian Agora to the 4th c. (Robinson 1959: 109), most other scholars suggest a Late Roman (Byzantine) date (Magness 1992a, fig. 68.3; Riley 1981, type LR2; Keay 1984, 352-57, type LXV; Bonifay and Villedieu 1989, 25-27; Arthur and Oren 1998, 5-6) and even continuing into the Early Islamic era (Hayes 1992, 71, type 32; Egloff 1977, 113, type 167).

Since all the parallels were recorded from the N of Palestine, and basalt inclusions are present in all the samples, it might be suggested that this type was produced there, probably with Syrian influence, or even that it was imported from the capital Damascus. CATALOGUE

CATALOGUE

31. Oil lamp (fig. 6.5) (7/95 TPS0074, L040). Pale yellow ware (2.5Y7/4), porous, containing large quantities of white grits, with a central filling hole surrounded by two ridges. Ladders and projecting dots comprise the major decorative pattern.

30. Amphora (7/95 TPS0151, L062.001). A wheel-made amphora with a high conical neck, an everted rim, and two loop handles attached to the neck. Light reddish brown ware (5YR6/4), dense, well made, finely levigated, and well fired to a pinkish hue (7.5YR7/4), containing very small size white grits. Rim D 6, neck H 10.

32. Oil Lamp (fig. 6.4) (7/95 TPS0453, L035). Pink ware (5YR7/4), porous, containing large quantities of white grits, and buff-slipped. The lamp has a central filling hole surrounded by two ridges, the outer extending onto the nozzle and circumscribing the wick hole. A conical knob handle is placed opposite the wick hole. L 8, W 5.7.

Oil lamps: almond-shaped oil lamp with a conical handle (fig. 6.1-6)

33. Oil Lamp (fig. 6.1) (7/95 TPS0049, L024). Light reddish ware (2.5YR6/6), porous and coarsely made, thin white slip applied on the outer surface only. Large- and medium-size white grits and basalt inclusions.

The most prominent lamp type in this phase is a hand-made molded oil lamp. The body is pointed, ovoid, of an almond shape and is double conical in section with a conical handle and a base set off by a ring. The lamps are usually decorated with concentric bands of projecting dots, ladder patterns, or semi-floral designs. A raised ridge surrounds a large filling hole and on several examples extends onto the nozzle, forming a definite channel. Yet there are also lamps without a channel (fig. 6.4). The ware is usually porous, of a buff color (5YR8/3) or light red (2.5YR6/6) and buff slipped.

34. Oil lamp (fig. 6.6) (7/95 TPS0336, L113). Light red ware (5YR7/4), porous, containing small- and mediumsize white grits and basalt inclusions. White slip is applied on the outer surface only. The ring base bears a potter’s mark, and a decorated channel is circumscribed by a ridge. L 9.8, H 3.4, W 4.5. 35. Oil lamp (fig. 6.2) (7/95 TPS0103, L040). Light reddish ware (2.5YR6/6), porous, and coarsely potted, thin white 97

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Fig. 7. Area TPS, stratum VII bowls, jugs and juglets, basins, jars, and lamps.

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Islamic conquest. In her study of the Samaritan lamps from Apollonia-Arsuf, Sussman considers this a Samaritan type and classifies it as Samaritan type IV. She has suggested a 6th-7th c. date for the type but emphasizes that it continued in vogue into the Early Islamic period (Sussman 1983, 85). The finds from Beth Shean extend this date to the mid8th c. (Hadad 1997, 168). In TPS this lamp is absent in loci above the earthquake debris. Therefore, a 7th c. date, or even the beginning of the 8th, will be an appropriate terminus ad quem. h

slip applied on the outer surface only. Large- and mediumsize white grits and basalt inclusions. Oil lamps: Jerash lamps (fig. 6.3, 8) A hand-made molded oil lamp. The body is pointed, ovoid, and relatively small in size but not almond-shaped as the previous type. The base is flat with a shallow ring often decorated with two or four pairs of half vaults (fig. 6.3). The nozzle is a clear continuation from the Roman-Byzantine tradition and has a reservoir decorated with raised radiating strokes and half vaults on the nozzle. Some of the lamps have a hand-made zoomorphic head (horse??) on top of the handle. The ware is usually red-brown (10R4/6) and is finely levigated. This type is well recorded in Jerash and is known also as the Jerash lamp. Stratigraphy and inscriptions dated the lamps from Jerash to the Umayyad period (Scholl 1991, 66; Khariy and ‘Amr 1986). The same date was given in el-Bassa (Iliffe 1934, 90; Bagatti 1970, 87-88) and Beth Shean (Hadad 1997, 169). Fragments retrieved from the kiln in Jerash (Abu Dalu 1993, 23-34) and the name of Jerash inscribed on lamps seem to prove that this was the city of their origin (‘Amr 1986, 162). Recently, however, a Jerash type mold was published from Beth Shean, yet the researcher observes that not a single lamp made from this specific mold has been found (Hadad 1997, 170, fig. 40). Relatively few samples of this type have been uncovered in Caesarea so far, and all are related to phase VIII.

CATALOGUE 38. Oil lamp (7/95 TPS0309, L113). Light red ware (2.5YR6/8), porous, containing medium-size white and black grits and grog inclusions. Light weak red surface (2.5YR5/2). Horseshoe-shaped filling hole surrounded by a ridge that extends onto the nozzle and circumscribes a wide, shallow trapezoidal channel. W 6. Oil lamps: candlestick-type oil lamp (fig. 6.7, 10) For a general description see type cat. 13 above. Although considered Byzantine, this type extended into the Umayyad period (Sauer 1986, fig. 4.126; Hadad 1997, 159). In Caesarea this is considered as a Transitional Period type, for it was uncovered in area TPS on the Umayyad floor and below it. A similar date was given in Déhes, Syria (Orssaud 1980, fig. 310, type 1), Jerusalem (Magness 1993, 251-55), and Pella (Smith and Day 1989, 117). The type was studied by Nitowski, and it seems that the inscribed Caesarea example corresponds with her group VII (Nitowski 1974, 29). The Caesarea example has an unintelligible inscription and is dated to the 7th-8th c. (fig. 6.10), while the radiated type is dated to the 5th-8th c. (fig. 6.7)(Nitowski 1974, 34).

CATALOGUE 36. Oil lamp (fig. 6.8) (7/95 TPS0151, L062). Red ware (2.5YR6/6), finely levigated, well made, containing very small-size white grits. L 7.5, W 5.5. 37. Oil lamp (fig. 6.3) (7/95 TPS0148, L062). Red ware (2.5YR6/6), finely levigated, well potted, containing very small-size white grits.

CATALOGUE 39. Oil lamp (fig. 6.10)(7/95 TPS0311, L116). Ring base and central filling hole surrounded by two ridges. Pinkish ware (7.5YR6/2), dense, finely levigated, containing small size white grits. White slipped interior and exterior. Height 3.5, W 6.4.

Oil lamps: light brown ovoid pointed lamp (fig. 6.9) This is an ovoid, pointed mold-made oil lamp. The ware is usually light red (2.5YR6/6) or light brown (7.5YR6/4), containing large quantities of small-size white grits. The surface is always fired to a light brown (7.5YR5/2) or a weak red (2.5YR5/2) hue, probably as a result of a reduced firing. Characteristics are a relatively raised rim, a large central filling hole, often of an extended horseshoe shape, a wide, shallow channel, a flat base following the lamp’s outlines, and a small relatively horizontal tongue handle. Projecting dots, herringbone, and net patterns are the most common decorations on the rim. This type of lamp is well recorded in sites such as Kh. Karak (Delougaz and Haines 1960, pl. 44.13), Capernaum (Peleg 1989, fig. 10.2), Nazareth (Bagatti 1969, 234.27), Pella (Walmsley 1988, ill. 9.5), Kefar ‘Ara (Sussman 1976, pl. XXVI, groups C, D), Hammat Gader (Coen Uzzielli 1997, fig. 12 and pl. VI.1-2), Caesarea (Adan-Bayewitz 1986, ills. 126, 128b, type 2), and Beth Shean (Hadad 1997, figs. 31-34). All the sites mentioned above, except Kefar ‘Ara, which is a burial cave, were well established and prospered during the Byzantine era and continued to be occupied after the

40. Oil lamp (fig. 6.7)(7/95 TPS 0151, L062). Ring base and central filling hole surrounded by two ridges. Pink ware (7.5YR7/4), dense, well made, hard fired, containing small size white grits. Yellowish slip on both sides. Stratum VII (mid-8th-mid-9th c.) This stratum is stratigraphically discontinuous from previous strata. A mass of destruction debris filled up all the rooms almost to the top. Three residential units were unearthed. The whole area was leveled by L076, and renewed construction was undertaken above the massive debris. New floors, such as F070 and F099, were exposed and found to be attached to newly built walls. Tableware: fine marble ware (fig. 7.1) This bowl type corresponds with the fine ware cups and juglets of the previous phase. They share the same fabric and production technique but differ in form. Stratum VII 99

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Tableware: Islamic red-slipped bowls (fig. 7.3-5)

was the first layer to yield fine ware bowls produced from the same ware but in various forms, such as the wide-ledged rim, flaring or carinated bodies, or bowls with incurved walls and various rim shapes. Some of the bowls were white slipped on the inner surface under a black painted decoration. The term marble ware was given to this type by the Caesarea team, notwithstanding its appearance in the previous stratum, because of the presence of the typical brown bands that resemble the appearance of marble, and in order to distinguish this ware from the Fine Byzantine ware, a term which connotes an earlier chronological period.

For a detailed description see cat. 16 above. As previously mentioned, this Byzantine type also extends to stratum VII, as similarly observed in Tiberias, Ashmunein, and Fustat (Stacey 1995, fig. 6.22, stratum IV, 750-880 C.E.; Bailey 1998, pls. 132-33; Kubiak and Scanlon 1986, fig. 50). Surprisingly, the number and the variety of shapes relating to this type in stratum VII are larger than in the previous one. Specimens from this stratum have just an orange slip interior and a red/purplish slip on the outer upper part. Some are decorated with roulette patterns, a common decoration on the Egyptian red-slipped ware (Hayes 1972, fig. 86; Engemann 1989, Abb. 5).

This bowl type is well distributed all over Israel and is designated in Gichon’s study as ware C, type γ (Gichon 1974, fig. 2.7), dated to the Late Byzantine-Early Islamic eras. In Kh. al-Mafjar it was grouped as ware 10 (Baramki 1944, figs. 6.11, 6.14, 6.15, 8.7, 8.14, 8.25) and was dated by Whitcomb to Period 1, 750-800 (Whitcomb 1988, fig. 1.1g). Such a date was also given in Ramlah (Priel 1999, fig. 157.1). In Kh. ed-Deir it was dated to the Late Byzantine period (Calderon 1998, 142, pl. 4.6), while in Abu Gosh it was dated to 10th-11th c. (De Vaux and Steve 1950, 123, pl. XVI.4). Very few samples were recorded in Yoqne’am (Avissar 1996, fig. XIII.67.2, type 4) and Beth Shean (Fitzgerald 1931, pl. XXXIII.33). In Jerusalem it was dated by Magness to the mid-7th-9th c. (Magness 1993, 193, form 1A) and appears in the Tushingham excavations as well (Tushingham 1985, 105, fig. 33.7). The presence of such types in Caesarea, Yoqne’am, and Beth Shean questions the assumption that this was an exclusively southern type (Gichon 1974, 136).

CATALOGUE 43. Bowl (fig. 7.3) (7/95 TPS0319, L076.001). A wheelmade bowl with an everted, thick rim. Pink ware (5YR7/4), porous, containing white grits, grog, and mica flakes. Orange-slipped interior and red/purplish on the outer upper part. Rim D 35. 44. Bowl (fig. 7.4) (7/95 TPS0313, L076.001). A wheelmade bowl with an incurved body and rim. The ware is like the previous example. Rim D 27.5. 45. Bowl (fig. 7.5) (7/95 TPS0404, L076.001). A wheelmade bowl with a carinated body and a sharp rim. The ware is the same as previous examples. Three rows of roulette ornaments appear on the outer surface. Rim D 17.5. Tableware: Coptic glazed bowls (fig. 7.6) This distinctive group is characterized by its pinkish porous ware that contains small-size white grits and mica inclusions. The vessels are white- or pink-slipped on both sides under monochrome or painted ornaments and a transparent or colored glaze. The term “Coptic Glaze” was given to the type by Whitcomb in Aqaba (Whitcomb 1989, 182), following Rodziewicz’s report from Alexandria, where it was first distinguished (Rodziewicz 1984, fig. 346-1-6). Such vessels were recorded in Pella (Walmsley 1991, fig. 5.5-7; 1995, 664), Tiberias (Stacey 1995, 164), Yoqne’am (Avissar 1996, 75), Fustat (Mason 1997c, 225), Ashmunein (Bailey 1998, 112, pl. 120.C716), Abu Mena (Engemann 1989, 163, group a, Abb. 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7), and Caesarea (Arnon 1996, 46; 1999, 225). Although in Egypt the glaze on the Coptic ware appears as early as the 7th8th c. (Ballet and Scanlon 1991, 483; Rodziewicz 1978, 338-45; 1983, 73-75; Engemann 1989, 165), the date in all the sites mentioned above is not before the second half of the 8th c. There is no doubt that the presence of mica flakes indicates a foreign origin. Considering the archaeological data, the vessel form (resembling the Egyptian redslipped ware), and the petrographic components, the best provenance would be Egypt (Arnon 1996, 86). Stratum VII was the first to yield glazed pottery. The Coptic glaze ware, which comprises the largest group among the glazed ware, could be considered as the first glazed type appearing in Caesarea in the Islamic occupation levels and thus confirms the dates mentioned above. The same date

CATALOGUE 41. Bowl (7/95 TPS0171, L076.001). A wheel-made bowl with a flaring body and rim. Dense pinkish ware (5YR7/4), finely levigated, and well fired. Rim D 17.5. Tableware: hemispherical-shaped “Iron Age II style” bowls (fig. 7.2) This type of ware resembles Iron Age II bowls (Amiran 1969, pl. 13.62), characterized by a hemispherical body, slightly incurved, and a string-cut discus base. The ware ranges from light brown (5YR7/6) to pinkish/buff (5YR8/2 or 8/3). It is well levigated, porous in texture, and usually fired to a buff hue (2.5Y8/3). Examples were unearthed in Caesarea only in stratum VII (Arnon 1996, 37). A similar date has been assigned in Kh. al-Mafjar, Susa, Mevo Modi’in, and Tiberias (Baramki 1944, fig. 12.8, 10,11; Whitcomb 1988, fig. 1.3j; Guilbert 1984, fig. 23.3; Eisenberg and Ovadiah 1998, fig. 14, 2, 3; Stacey 1995, fig. 6.5), while in Hammat Gader it was designated as “a local bowl” and was dated to the Umayyad period (Ben Arieh 1997, fig. VIII.1). CATALOGUE 42. Bowl (7/95 TPS0289, L076.002). Wheel-made hemispherical bowl with a straight sharp rim. Pinkish ware (5YR6/6), containing very small-size white grits. Pinkish/ white slipped, exterior only. Rim D 12.5. 100

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Morgan and Leatherby 1987, fig. 47.24; Northedge 1992, fig. 137.2; Sarre 1925, abb. 6; Rosen-Ayalon 1974, figs. 2, 3; Lane 1937, fig. 3.F, G, pl. XIX:2, 2B, C; Scanlon 1974, pl. XV.9). Molded buff vessels (fig. 7.10), characteristic of the Sassanian/Iranian artistic world, appeared already in Susa and Tel Abu Sherifa in the 7th c. and at the beginning of the 8th (Rosen-Ayalon 1974, 193; Kervarn 1977, fig. 27.1; Adams 1970, fig. 10), while in the Middle East they arrived not before the second half of the 8th c. (Baramki 1944, 74; Lane 1937, pl. XX.2, except D; Grabar et al. 1978, 112; Arnon 1999, 225-26, St.VII; Avissar 1996, 158, type 6; Stacey 1995, fig. 15.14; Yavor 1999, fig. 32.6). This type was found in Ramla together with its molds, which might indicate local production. As far as is known, not a single deposit containing this type has been discovered in a secure Umayyad context. h

is also given in Aqaba and Egypt (Whitcomb 1992, 48; Mason 1997c, 225). CATALOGUE 46. Bowl (7/95 TPS0199, L076). A wheel-made bowl with a flat string-cut base, containing a very shallow ring. Pink ware (5YR7/4), porous, containing small-size white grits, grog inclusions, and mica flakes. White-slipped on both sides under a dark green glaze on the interior only. Base D 13. Tableware: marble ware (fine ware), plain, slipped, or painted (fig. 7.7) For a general description see above, cat. 14-15. As mentioned above, this cup type extends to the 8th-9th c. in Pella, Kh. al-Mafjar, El Muwaqqar, and Aqaba, as well as in Caesarea in stratum VII (Whitcomb 1989, fig. 4a; Walmsley 1991, figs. 9.6 and 7.8; Najjar 1989, fig. 5.8). While stratum VIII in Caesarea yielded only plain specimens, some from stratum VII were found to be decorated with paint or red-slipped. Decorated samples were well recorded in the Negev (Haiman 1995a, 40, fig. 16.4-6; Haiman 1995b, fig. 8.1), Pella (Walmsley 1991, fig. 3.8), Haifa (Yavor 1999, fig. 32.7), Sepphoris, where it was designated as pseudo-Nabataean pottery dated to the Byzantine era (Meyers et al. 1992, 20), and Tiberias (Stacey 1995, fig. 22.2).

CATALOGUE 48. Jug (fig.7.8) (7/95 TPS0171, L076.002). Wheel-made with a relatively high cylindrical neck and an everted beveled rim with a groove below. Buff ware (5Y8/3). Rim D 8. 49. Jug (fig. 7.10) (7/95 TPS0171, L076.003). Mold-made with a funnel neck and a slightly inverted rim. Buff ware (2.5YR8/3). Rim D 7. Tableware: gray or weak red jugs and juglets (fig. 7.9)

CATALOGUE

This type, known also as “metallic gray ware,” is well documented in Late Byzantine period deposits, but it also extends into the Early Islamic era. The color of the ware is gray or weak red due to a reduced firing process. During the Islamic period it seems that potters managed to control the process and to produce “half reduced” ware, so that the inner surface remained red, pink, or brown, while the outer surface was fired to a grayish or weak red hue. Examples were observed in Pella, Jerash, and Tiberias (McNicoll 1982, 141.5; Watson 1992, 236, ware C; Stacey 1995, 157, ware I). The clay is usually finely levigated, dense, and hard. Vessels were thin-formed and well fired at a high temperature, which gave them a distinctive metallic sound. The outer surface is quite often decorated with whitepainted wavy lines or net patterns. This style of decoration is a clear continuation from the Byzantine period and is well represented in such sites. During the Umayyad period the walls tended to be thicker than in the previous era, and they become thinner again in the Abbasid occupation levels. In his survey in Trans-Jordan, Sauer designated this type as a typical Umayyad one (Sauer 1986, 308). The type is well documented in Pella, Tiberias, and Yoqne’am, where it was dated to the Umayyad and Abbasid periods (McNicoll 1982, pl. 3, a bowl; Walmsley 1988, ill. 10.7; 1991 fig. 3, 4; Stacey 1995, fig. 2, 6; Avissar 1996, 120, type 7), while in Pella, Hammat Gader, and Kh. al-Mafjar it was dated to the Umayyad period before the earthquake of 659/60 (Watson 1992, 236; Ben Arieh 1997, fig. VIII.18; Baramki 1944, fig. 151). In Caesarea such vessels were unearthed in stratum VIII and VII, but it must be emphasized that the stratum VIII specimens are thicker than those of stratum VII (Arnon 1999, 225).

47. Cup (7/95 TPS0167, L076.001). A wheel-made cup with an incurved body and rim. The ware is as in cat. 14-15. White painted decorations are applied on the outer surface. Rim D 15. Tableware: fine buff ware jugs and juglets, plain and molded (fig. 7.8, 10) These jugs and juglets are characterized mainly by the hue of their clay, which ranges from light yellowish white or gray to very light gray or greenish/gray. All the examples in TPS stratum VII are of the yellowish white type. The ewers are well and relatively thinly made, finely levigated, and well fired. This type is, by any standard, the largest tableware group in this stratum. The origin of the style lies probably somewhere in the Sassanian Empire (Adams 1970, 95). In the E it appeared in the 7th c. (Rosen-Ayalon 1974, 205; Adams 1970, fig. 6, St. IV, V), but in most of the Middle Eastern sites it arrived only in the second half of the 8th c., following the Abbasid expansion (Arnon 1999, 225-26, St. VII; Avissar 1996, 155, types 2, 3, 4; Eisenberg and Ovadiah 1998, fig. 15.3; Walmsley 1988, ill. 9.7-12; Frierman 1975, fig. 72) and became one of the most popular unglazed ware types. Although in some sites this type was dated earlier than the 8th c. (Umayyad) (McNicoll 1982, 144.1, 145.5; Loffreda 1974, 6; Tzaferis 1983, figs. 7:9-15), it seems as if the dispersal occurred not before the second half of the 8th c. As stated above, this type came to be very popular, and it is well distributed from Syria in the N, through Trans-Jordan and Palestine, to Egypt in the S and Mesopotamia and Iran in the E (Walmsley 1988, ill. 9.7-12; De Vaux and Steve 1950, 27; 101

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CATALOGUE

red ware (5YR5/6) fired to a reddish/gray hue exterior only (5YR5/2). Rim D 8.2.

50. Jug (7/95 TPS0171, L076.004). Wheel-made with a slightly ribbed funnel neck and an everted rim, triangular in section. Reddish gray ware (5YR5/2), dense, finely levigated, and well made. Rim D 8.

Oil lamps: almond-shaped lamp with a raised tongue handle (fig. 7.11) An ovoid pointed mold-made lamp. Characteristics are an almond-shaped base often containing an inner ring within its perimeter, a raised tongue handle, triangular in section, and often decorated with three parallel incisions. Vine scrolls, grape bunches, and two birds near the nozzle comprise the more common decoration. The ware is usually porous and contains small and medium size white grits. Color ranges from buff (5Y8/2-8/3) to light brown (5YR7/4 or 2.5YR6/6) (in such cases the lamp is always buff-slipped).

Basins: hand-made grayware basins (fig. 7.12) The grayware basins first appeared elsewhere in Caesarea in the previous phase. Most of them had been coil made, while probably by the end of that period they were thrown on the wheel. It is often possible to detect the wheel marks. The gray hue was a result of the reduction firing, a process that involved closing the kiln chamber in order to reduce the flow of oxygen to the fire. Such firing and formation techniques were quite common during the Umayyad period and have been well documented in Transjordan (Sauer 1986, 305; Smith and Day 1989, pl. 59.2, 3, 6; McNicoll 1982, fig. 148.5; Franken and Kalsbeek 1975, 155). Hand-made basins dating to the 8th c. are recorded in Tiberias, Yoqne’am, Kh. al-Mafjar, Capernaum, and Bûsra (Stacey 1995, 161; Avissar 1996, 124; Baramki 1944, figs. 10:2, 12:7; Peleg 1989, 54; Wilson and S’ad 1984, 143). Grayware basins first appear at Caesarea in the Late Byzantine occupation levels as they do in Pella (McNicoll 1982, 139) and extend all the way to the Abbasid period, phase VII. They disappear in stratum VI. The same phenomenon is recorded in Tiberias (Stacey 1995, 161). The basins were decorated with thumb imprinting or combing ornaments. As mentioned above, the hand-made basins were still in use during stratum VII but became less frequent. The same phenomena were observed in Pella, El Muwaqqar, and Tiberias (Walmsley 1995, fig. 8.8; Najjar 1989, fig. 9.40; Stacey 1995, 161).

This lamp type was the most popular in the Levant during the Early Islamic period and is well distributed all over the region, dated to the Umayyad and Abbasid periods (Day 1942, 79). Although it was dated in Antioch to the early 6th c. (Waagé 1941, 67) and in Ramat Rahel to the Late Byzantine era (Aharoni et al. 1964, 34 and fig. 10.1), the Caesarea data, based on stratigraphy, suggests a later dating clearly after the 749 earthquake. A similar date was given in Pella (Walmsley 1991, 145), Kh. Mafjar (Baramki 1944, 73 Pl. XII), and Beth Shean, where “in these shops not a single lamp with tongue handle was found, indicating that such lamps were not in use before 749 C.E.” (Hadad 1997, 178). An Abbasid date is given also in Al Mina (Lane 1937, fig. 6), Jerash (Scholl 1991, 65), and Bethany (Sylvester and Saller 1957, 187 pl. 109.20-27). An inscribed lamp which has been recorded by Abdel Jalil ‘Amr in Jerash (‘Amr 1986, 65) bears the production date of 211H/826 C.E. According to the data mentioned above, it seems that a post-earthquake date will be more accurate for the first appearance of this type.

CATALOGUE 51. Basin (7/95 TPS0209, L076.001). Hand-made with a grooved, ledged rim, thumb decorated. Dark grayware (2.5YRN4), dense, containing sand and white grits inclusions. Rim D 43.

CATALOGUE 53. Oil lamp (7/95 TPS0247, L076). An almond-shaped rim with a central filling hole surrounded by two ridges. Pink ware (5YR7/4), porous, containing white grits and grog inclusions. White slipped on the outer surface only. Vine scrolls and grape bunches comprise the decoration on the rim.

Containers: bag-shaped storage jar, gray or weak red ware (fig. 7.13) This type, with minute differences, is the only jar that extends from the northern Palestinian type through the entire Early Islamic Period. Stratum VII vessels are thinner than the previous strata, lacking the ridge on the shoulder, and were fired at a higher temperature, which is the cause of the outstanding metallic sound. Such jars were recorded in Pella (Walmsley 1991, figs. 4.3, 8.3; 1995, ware 12), Gharandal (Walmsley and Grey 2001, fig. 8.19-21), Yoqne’am (Avissar 1996, 149), Tiberias (Stacey 1995, fig. 11.11), and Kh. al-Mafjar (Baramki 1944, 66, ware 1; Whitcomb 1988, fig. 1.1) and are dated to the Abbasid/ Tulunid era.

Summary The excellent stratigraphy as represented in figure 1, and the rich ceramic deposits related to each stratum, accompanied by coins, enable us to study the pottery more accurately than before and to provide solid typological and chronological data. The Transition Period between the Late Byzantine and the first years following the Islamic occupation are clearly presented through sealed floors and the fills underneath. The same of the transition between the Umayyad and the Abbasid regime.

CATALOGUE

The Recanati Insitute for Maritime Studies, The University of Haifa

52. Jar (7/95 TPS0247, L076.003). Wheel-made with a cylindrical neck and a beveled, inverted rim. Yellowish/ 102

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h

Acknowledgements Sapir Ad drew the ceramic sherds. The author is grateful for the invitation by the late Avner Raban for the opportunity to work on the material from TPS.

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The Fatimid hoard of metalwork, glass, and ceramics from TPS: preliminary report Ya’el D. Arnon, Ayala Lester, and Rachel Pollak1

During the 1995 season, a hoard was unearthed on the Temple Platform in area TPS. It was found in a small chamber, 1.0×1.5×1.5 m high connected to a well (L 010). The well, related to strata V and IV floors, had been dug through a Byzantine staircase adjacent to the E retaining wall of the Temple Platform, and a chamber had been fashioned in what had been the entrance leading to the steps (see Raban on TPS in this volume). To gain access to the chamber, one had to lower oneself halfway down the well shaft and remove two loose stones sealing the opening to the chamber. Within the chamber, which was sealed when found, were more than 200 items of bronze, ceramic, and glass. The deposit dated between the late 10th and the first half of the 11th c., to judge from the stratigraphic sequence, the stylistic characteristics of the artifacts, and epigraphic evidence (Sharon 1996, 56-57).

with white, hand-painted wavy lines. The volume of the jars with the conical neck was 20.8 liters and of those with the cylindrical neck was 23.8 liters. The white-painted bag-shaped storage jar is known in the Middle East from Late Antiquity (Riley 1975, type 1Y and 3, figs. 4, 16, 17, 18; Loffreda 1974, class B, fig. 8; Delougaz and Haines 1960, pl. 55; Adan Bayewitz 1986, 99-101) and from the Early Islamic period, but with differences in the production technique (Sauer 1982, fig. 3; Uscatescu 1996, fig. 112.808; Walmsley 1988, ill. 7.7; Baramki 1944, fig. 3.1-3 and pl. XIX.1-2; Stacey 1987-88, fig. 4.2; Arnon 1996, pl. 9.4-5 and 1999, 225; Avissar 1996, type 4 fig. XIII.114). However, this is the first time a whitepainted storage jar was found in a definitely homogeneous Fatimid deposit. The only parallels identical in rim shape and ware were found in Burj al-Akhmar where they were dated to the Early Islamic period (Pringle 1986, fig. 44.16, 18, phase A, 5-12c), and in Tiberias where they were dated to 980-1033 C.E. (Stacey 1995, fig. 28.1).

The ceramics The ceramic group was the second largest set of artifacts in the hoard. 25 intact ceramic vessels were recovered and fell into 3 main groups: containers, cooking ware, and tableware.

The single bag-shaped amphora (fig. 1c) was wheel-made, with an omphalos base, carinated shoulders, a high, ribbed cylindrical neck, an everted rim, triangular in section, and 2 grooved loop handles extending from the middle of the neck to the shoulders. The porous ware was pale yellow/buff 5Y8/3 and contained an abundance of small to medium sized white grit. The amphora had a volume of 9 liters. Parallels, all of which have folded rims, are recorded from 12th to 13th c. deposits (Avissar 1996, type 18 fig. XIII.125; Hakimian-Sarkis 1988, type D.11 fig. 13.1-2; Stillwell-Mackay 1967, no. 59). The Caesarea amphora, with its triangular everted rim, was probably a prototype of the Crusader type and appeared almost a century earlier, as did those in Corinth (Stillwell-Mackay 1967, 276 no. 35).

Containers This group was the largest and consisted of 8 storage jars and 1 amphora. The jars had the same general shape, with slight variations in the form of the neck. This type of jar has a bag-shaped body, slightly ribbed on its lower part, a ribbed omphalos base, sloping shoulders, an inverted rim, triangular in section, and 2 vertical, grooved loop handles attached to the shoulders. Two jars had a slightly conical neck (fig. 1b) and the other 6 had a cylindrical one (fig. 1a). All 8 were produced from the same porous reddishbrown 2.5YR6/4 clay and were fired to a reddish-brown 2.5YR5/5 hue on the outer surface. The jars were decorated

Cooking Ware The deposit contained only 1 glazed wheel-made cooking pot (fig. 1d). It had a globular body, a very short neck, straight rim, 2 vertical strap handles, and 2 thumb-decorated ledge handles. The ware was red 10R4/8, porous, finely levigated with small white grits, and thinly potted. The inner bottom was coated with a dark brown glaze. A band

1

Editor’s note: This paper is a slightly updated and corrected version of Lester, Arnon, and Pollak 1999, selected for inclusion here by Avner Raban. This paper does not represent the latest views of the authors on the interpretation of the objects and the occasion of their deposit, for which the reader must await the definitive final report on the hoard, now in preparation.

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Fig. 1. Containers and cookingware (Z. Friedman). of the same type of glaze was on the outer surface just below the rim.

The unglazed group consisted of 4 juglets (fig. 2a-d) made from the same greenish/buff 2.5Y7/2 finely-levigated clay and very thinly potted. The vessels varied in shape and decoration. Two juglets were decorated with white paint. One had a stylized strainer, and the other 2 had 3 loop handles. A similar stylized strainer dated to the 11th century was found in Fustat (Scanlon 1986, type B-I-B-1, fig. 33).

The earliest glazed cooking wares in Caesarea appeared in stratum VI, dated to the first half of the 10th c. (Arnon 1996, pl. 23, and 1999, 226). The open casseroles, which were common throughout Late Antiquity and extended into the Umayyad and Abbasid periods, were replaced by the closed globular glazed types. The dark brown glaze appeared only on the inner bottom of the vessels. Most of the parallels date to the 12th and 13th centuries (Avissar 1996, type 8 fig. XIII.95; Pringle 1985, fig. 2.7; Thalmann 1978, type A form 2 fig. 32.3). From examples recorded at Caesarea and Amman, it appears that this type of cooking pot originated earlier, in the Fatimid Period (Northedge et al. 1992, fig. 137.5; Arnon 1999, figs. 8, 9). Moreover, this type is absent in the report dealing with the Crusader and Ottoman periods in Akko (Stern 1997, fig. 5).

The most frequent type was the glazed vessels (fig. 2e-k). These varied in form, but all were made of the same clay and using the same techniques, except for the lustre wares. The porous fabric was a light red/pink 5YR7/4 and was finely levigated. The interior and exterior surfaces were covered with a thin white slip under alkaline and lead glazes in mustard yellow, turquoise, and manganese. Two bowls were sgraffito-decorated in a free hand floral pattern similar to the Fustat Fatimid sgraffito (Kubiak and Scanlon 1986, 40), and one was decorated with rouletting. All the vessels except for one have a slightly concave shallow ring base, with marks indicating that the outer surface was trimmed with a sharp tool while leather hard. This same technique is found on underglaze-painted bowls from Fustat (Scanlon 1988, 186).

Tableware Two groups of tableware appeared in the hoard, glazed and unglazed. Among the glazed types were 2 plates, one monochrome-glazed and the other lustre ware. There were 8 bowls, 5 of them monochrome-glazed, 2 monochromeglazed with sgrafitto, and 1 with rouletting, as well as 1 underglaze-painted zoomorphic vessel (fig. 2e-k). 106

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Fig. 2. Tableware (Z. Friedman). The fabric of the lustre ware (fig. 2j) was a light brown/ pinkish 2.5YR6/4 clay with white grits, grog, and mica flakes. The combination of tempers, and the hue and texture of the clay, suggested an Egyptian origin (Arnon 1996, 86). The monochrome, golden-brown-painted epigraphic ornament decorating the center of the plate is known in Egypt from the mid-10th to the 11th c. (Jenkins 1968, 120-25). A faded ink mark appeared on the bottom of the unglazed base. Despite the absence of usual accompaniments like Amal, Abu, or ibn-Akhi, we suggest that this was the artist’s signature.

tail. The 4 legs, tail, neck, and ram’s head with 2 spiral horns were all hand made. The nose functioned as a spout. The porous fabric was a 10R4/6 red, finely-levigated clay with small and medium size white grits. The hue and texture resembled cooking ware. The body was decorated with white slip-painted ornaments under a transparent glaze. The ware and decorative technique were common on bowls from Palestine and Syria from the Crusader period (12th-13th c.) and were probably produced locally (Avissar 1996, type 44, fig. XIII.32.3; Stern 1997, fig. 7; Pringle 1985, fig. 5.26-28; Thalmann 1978, fig. 33.2).

The final item in this group was an underglazed, slippainted zoomorphic vessel (fig. 2k). The cylindrical body was wheel-made, and it had a funnel at the back near the

The metalware This assemblage consisted of 118 vessels divided into lampstands, ladles, buckets, braziers, bowls, trays, handles, 107

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Fig. 3. Lampstand parts (a-b), small ladle (c), small bucket (d)(IAA). feet, boxes, and ewers. The vessels were brass, some still retaining their shiny yellowish color. Others had orangebrown tinting and spotted dark-green discoloration. The bulk of the assemblage was in good condition, but some were corroded and exhibited cracks on their walls and bases. The vessels were manufactured using several methods of casting and sheet metal hammering (Shalev 1998). Many of them bore benedictory inscriptions and were decorated with bands of floral and geometric designs.

tray of a lampstand, 30.7 cm in diameter, showing signs of repair. The punched decoration is part of the casting. The second type consisted of a dome-shaped base, shaft, and small tray screwed together. A single example of this type was found in the assemblage. The third type was a miniature version of the first type. Ladles Five ladles were in the assemblage, and their functions ranged from spooning from a cooking pot to medical and cosmetic uses. Fig. 3c shows 3 views of a small ladle, 6 cm in height and 7.2 cm in diameter. All had similarly shaped bodies and long handles with a bud-shaped termination.

Lampstands There were 3 types of lampstand. The first type had a dome-shaped or polygonal base, a heavy shaft, and a flat tray. It was distinguished by its significant height (50-60 cm), mass, and weight, which together contributed to its stability. Fig. 3a shows the base and shaft of a lampstand with fluted decoration, 51 cm in height. Figure 3b is the

Buckets The buckets varied in size and shape. Four large buckets about 30 cm in height had vertical or slanting walls and 108

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Fig. 4. Bowl of a brazier (a), decorated tray (b)(IAA). Trays with supporting feet

heavy cast handles. A second type consisted of a single pear-shaped bucket. The third group consisted of small buckets with flat handles, 5-7 cm in height. Fig. 3d shows a small cast bucket, 5.6 cm in height and 7 cm in diameter, with a flat handle. These buckets were probably used for ablution (Ward 1993, 58-59, 65). However, in one case, the inscription indicates that the bucket was used for food preparation or storage. The small buckets were probably used for household purposes, but their function is not clear.

Eight sheet metal trays were in the assemblage. They had flat bases and shallow walls, and were decorated with compass-drawn circles around the center and over the whole tray. Fig. 4b shows a tray, 36 cm in diameter, made of hammered sheet metal decorated with compass and punch. The trays had low walls and recesses to fit small feet, found separately, with thick bases and ball- or domeshaped terminations (Allan 1982, 103, no. 178). These feet were part of a large group of feet and handles in the assemblage. Another foot type was circular legs with pawshaped feet in various forms and sizes. At first, some of the feet appeared to be scale-weights because of their flat base and squat neck that expanded into a ball-shaped body. In the Staatliche Museen, Berlin, however, is a round box resting on 3 similar feet (Antoine et al.1998, 125, no. 53), and this parallel indicates that the objects in the hoard were feet used to support and raise objects. The handles found were identical to those known from Nishapur (Allan 1982, 52, nos. 157-158). Most of the handles were cast and were round in section with flat teardrop-like endings.

Braziers There were 2 types of braziers. One was a brazier resting on 4 high feet with a large sunken bowl about 32 cm in diameter. The bowl was encased in a metal frame with 4 recesses where the feet were attached. The second type consisted of a sunken plate surrounded by concave walls and resting on small feet that were probably soldered to the base. Fig. 4a shows the bowl of a brazier 4.5 cm high and 25 cm in diameter. On its rim is an inscription divided into 3 parts partially decipherable as “blessing to its owner.” This type occurred in a variety of sizes, but all had a sunken bowl supported by 3 or 4 feet.

Boxes Two cylindrical boxes in the assemblage were similar to a box in the Staatliche Museen, Berlin. The boxes were identical in shape and in the structure of their hinges and clasp, but differed in decor. One box had an inscription and a floral frieze around its lid. The other had 2 hinges and a clasp ending in a scroll design. The center of the lid had a hole for a handle identical to the serrated bucket handles. The function of the boxes is unclear, but they are known as

Basins Basins varied in diameter from 20-60 cm and had concave walls with a splayed rim. They were undecorated and simple in design. Basins were used as common household utensils and today are used in the Middle East for tasks such as sorting rice and washing hand laundry. 109

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“sweetmeat dishes” and may represent a metal version of a type known in the Middle East since 1000-2000 B.C.E. (Rosen-Ayalon 1973)(fig. 5). Other vessels Other metal vessels in the cache were a bell-shaped bottle, a large bag-shaped jar, and 2 spouted ewers. One of the ewers had a long handle running from the neck to the shoulder. Until now, very little has been known about Fatimid metalware (Baer 1983, 295; Ward 1993, 63-64) because of the limited quantity found in excavations and in museums and private collections. The metal finds from the Great Mosque at Kairouan are mainly lighting devices made from lattice-cut metal sheet (Marçais and Poinssot 1952, 412-67). These are typologically and stylistically different from most of the items in the Caesarea cache. Other metal finds include those from Fustat (Scanlon 1966, fig. 11a-b; 1982 figs. 3, 7, 11; 1984, figs. 24-25) and a few household utensils from a dwelling area in Tiberias (Lester 2004). The glass vessels Thirteen glass vessels were found in the hoard, including bowls, lamps, small bottles, and container jars. Most of the glass vessels were intact, and those that were damaged were restorable.

Fig. 5. Bronze “sweetmeat dish” (IAA) vessels as well as glass (Philon 1980, fig. 293).

Bowls

The second decorated bowl was mold-blown. It had a squat, globular shape with an outfolding, flattened rim and a round base with a pontil mark (fig. 7). The glass was a smoky pale purplish color of good quality with few bubbles. The molded decoration consisted of composite geometric patterns, fading toward the rim. This indicated further work on the vessel by blowing and tooling. The pattern developed from the base upward, starting with 2 concentric circles, and above these were ovals with slightly protruding centers. The next pattern was a stripe of rectangles placed vertically side by side. Above the rectangles was a horizontal wavy line containing alternating raised dots above and below the line. The next pattern appeared to be faded rectangles. Mold-blown glass vessels appeared in large quantities in the Serçe Liman shipwreck. Some of the shapes were similar to the Caesarea examples (Jenkins 1986, 6), but parallel patterns have not been found.

There were 5 bowls, 2 decorated and 3 plain. The plain bowls varied in shape and color. One small bowl with vertical walls and a pushed-in base with pontil mark was made of turquoise glass with many bubbles (fig. 6.1). This type was found in large quantities and in various colors in the Serçe Liman shipwreck (not published). The other 2 plain bowls had flaring walls. One had a concave wall and base, and was made of transparent glass with a greenish tinge (fig. 6.2). The other had a slightly convex wall with a pronounced pushed-in base with a pontil mark and was pinkish-yellow in color (fig. 6.3). This type was reminiscent of a tea bowl found in China (Jiayao 1991, 125, fig. 1). Of the 2 decorated bowls, one was a small bowl with an irregular flaring wall and was decorated with lustre painting. Two fragments of the rim and wall were recovered (fig. 6.4). The glass was transparent with a green tinge and contained some bubbles. On the interior the painting was done in brown lustre in 2 phases: first the contour lines were drawn, and then they were filled in. Lamm and Clairmont classified this style typologically to the Fatimid Period and gave it an Egyptian provenance (Lamm 1929, 105; Clairmont 1977, 36-38, 51). The decoration consisted of a thick, uneven stripe on the interior of the rim. Two horizontal lines below the rim probably defined the upper part of the frieze, which contained floral or vegetal ornaments. A wavy line formed the main stem, from which branches extended alternately up and down. The branches carried flowers or leaves of a lobed, half-palmette shape with curling tips. This pattern was fashionable in the Fatimid period and was used to decorate pottery and metal

Lamps The lamp group included 3 types. The first type was stemmed lamps of yellowish glass containing some bubbles and impurities. There was some variation in the cup shape (figs. 6.5, 6), but otherwise these lamps were related to the type of hollow-stemmed lamps ending in a knob (Shindo 1992, 609, pl. IV-6-19.19, 20, 26; PinderWilson et al, 1973, 22; Foy 1999, 181-83, figs. 1.4, 6). This type was a direct continuation of the Byzantine stemmed lamp used in hanging chandeliers. The second type was a small jar of light greenish-tinged glass (fig. 6.7). It had a wide rim and tapering neck, a 110

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Fig. 6. Glassware (Z. Friedman). globular body, and pushed-in base with pontil mark. This vessel was classified as a lamp because of a feature at the connection point between neck and body. The glass was folded in at the bottom of the neck to create a horizontal, loop-shaped tube. Horizontal tubes on the inner side of the body occur in some large bottles in Corinth (Davidson 1952, 118-19, fig. 17.781), at the Red Tower (Burj alAhmar)(Pringle 1986, 161, figs. 53.18, 19, 20), and in Caesarea (not published). The inner tube in the small jar can be interpreted as a ledge, applied to hold a stopper that contained a hole for a wick.

The third type of lamp was a small jar of cobalt blue glass. It had a wide, tapering neck, globular body, and tubular base ring with a pontil mark. Three hanging handles were attached from the neck to the body, and on the inside a wick tube was attached to the base (fig. 6.8). This type appears in other contexts at Caesarea, although in a fragmentary state and in different colors (not published). No exact parallels are known, but there are similar types, such as a lamp on display in the Victoria and Albert Museum (item no. 6205 in the glass exhibition), which is larger and has a longer neck and a minute handle. A lamp found in Nishapur 111

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Fig. 7. Mold-blown bowl (J. J. Gottlieb). (Kröger 1984, 182), together with a similar one from the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Jenkins 1986, 34, fig. 41), and some examples from Fustat (Foy 1999, 187-91, figs. 5.4, 6.3) are the closest parallels. These examples are dated to the Early Medieval period (10th to 11th c.), which corresponds to the Caesarea lamp.

indicated that they may have belonged to an affluent merchant family. Since there were no items of a religious nature, the hoard was probably not related to a mosque or a religious endowment. To judge from the stratigraphy and epigraphic finds, the hoard was dated to the end of the 10th or first half of the 11th c. It is bona fide evidence of the wealth of the inhabitants of Caesarea under the Fatimid regime.

Small bottles Two small bottles of different shapes and colors were found in the Caesarea hoard. One is an intact purple vessel with an out-folded horizontal rim, cylindrical neck, and globular body (fig. 6.9). The shape is common, but no parallels were found. A similar bottle of different color and smaller in size was found in Iraq and dated to the third c. A.H./10th c. C.E. (Abdul Khaliq 1972, 50, pl. IV.26). The other bottle was cobalt blue with a narrow horizontal rim, broad cylindrical neck, and barrel-shaped body (fig. 6.10). The bottles had concave bases with pontil marks.

This hoard, together with a hoard of coins from Caesarea from the same period (Levy 1964), leads us to ask what happened during this period to cause Caesarea’s residents to hide their possessions and depart, almost 100 years before the Crusader conquest. There is no direct evidence, but larger events may have affected Caesarea. The Fatimid dynasty belonged to the Isma’iliyya sect in Shi’ite Islam. Even though the Muslim population in Palestine tended to be Shi’ite, the Fatimid rulers were unable to extend their hold over the region. In addition to their continuous struggle with the Byzantine Empire, which entered a period of military and political revival in the second half of the 10th century, the Fatimid rulers were forced to conduct bloody battles against Arab tribes headed by the Banu alJarrah family, the Qaramatians, and the Seljuk army posted in Damascus.

Large container jars Two jars of unusual size were in the hoard. The largest was 43 cm high and had a capacity of 19 liters (fig. 6.11). The smaller was 31.5 cm high and had an 8 liter capacity (fig. 6.12). They were made of a dull, greenish translucent glass of poor quality containing many bubbles and dark impurities. The bubbles were large and elongated in the direction of the blowing spirals. The jars were cylindrical and concave, with a pronounced shoulder. They differed in their rim and neck form. Both jars had concave bases with large, rough pontil marks. They were probably used as household containers. Earlier, only fragments of such jars had been found, as in Caesarea, Serçe Liman (unpublished), and Bet Shean (Hadad 1998, pl. 58.580, 982, 984, 985).

Immediately after the death of the Caliph al-Aziz (996), while his heir al-Hakim was still a minor, internal conflicts broke out in the Egyptian army. The main struggle was between the Kutami, who comprised the greater part of the Fatimid army, and the Turkish Mamluks who gradually had taken over key positions in al-Aziz’s forces. The struggles were mainly for control of the administrative posts and ruling positions in Palestine and Syria. These internal conflicts left their mark throughout the whole Empire. Later, two revolts broke out in Palestine, led by the Banu al-Jarrah family, who were supported by the Byzantine Empire. The first occurred during the reign of

Why was the Caesarea hoard hidden? The domestic nature of the pottery, the large quantity of bronze artifacts, and the way the items were hidden 112

Arnon, Lester and Pollak: A Fatamid hoard of metalwork, glass and ceramic

Bass, G., et al. 1978 “An 11th century shipwreck at Serçe Liman, Turkey,” IJNA 7, 119-32. Clairmont, C. W. 1977 Catalogue of ancient and Islamic glass (Athens). Davidson, G. R. 1952 Corinth 12: The minor objects (Princeton). Delougaz, P., and R. S. Haines 1960 A Byzantine church at Khirbat al-Karak (Chicago). Donner, F. M. 1981 The Early Islamic Conquests (Princeton). Foy, D. 1999 “Lamps de verre fatimides à Fostat: le mobilier des fouilles de Istabl’Antar” in M. Barrucand (ed.) L’Égypte fatimide, son art et son histoire (Paris) 179-96. Gil, M. 1992 A History of Palestine 634-1099 (Cambridge). Hadad, S. 1998 Glass vessels from the Umayyad through Mamluk periods at Bet Shean (7th-14th centuries C.E.) (Ph.D. dissertation, The Hebrew University, Jerusalem) (Hebrew). Hakimian, S., and H. Salamé-Sarkis 1988 “Céramique médiévales trouvées dans une citerne à Tell ‘Arqa,” Syria 65, 1-61. Hazard, H. W. 1975 “Caesarea and the Crusaders” in C. T. Fritsch (ed.), Studies in the history of Caesarea Maritima (BASOR supplementary studies 19, Missoula, MT) 79-114. Jenkins, M. 1986 Islamic glass, a brief history (New York). ead. 1968 “The palmette tree: a study of the iconography of Egyptian lustre painted pottery,” JARCE, 7, 119-26. Jiayao, A. 1991 “Dated Islamic glass in China,” Bulletin of the Asia Institute 5, 123-37. Kröger, J. 1984 Glas, Berlin, Staatliche Museen Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Museum für Islamische Kunst (Mainz/Rhein). Kubiak, W., and G. T. Scanlon 1986 Fustat Expedition final report 2 (Cairo). Lamm, C. J. 1929 Mittelalterliche Gläser und Steinschnittarbeiten aus dem Nahen Osten (Berlin). id. 1941 Oriental glass of medieval date found in Sweden and the early history of lustre painting (Stockholm). Lane, A. 1938 “Medieval finds at al-Mina in North Syria,” Archaeologia 87, 19-78. Lester, A. 2004 “Metal and glass objects” in Y. Hirschfeld (ed.), Excavations at Tiberias 1989-1994 (IAA Reports 22, Jerusalem) 57-68. ead., Yael D. Arnon, and Rachel Pollak 1999 “The Fatimid hoard from Caesarea: a preliminary report, in Marianne Barrucand (ed.), L’Égypte fatimide, son art et son histoire, actes du colloque organize à Paris les 28, 29 et 30 mai 1998 (Paris) 233-48. Levy, S. 1964 “The coin hoard from Caesarea,” EretzIsrael 7, 47-73 (Hebrew). Loffreda, S. 1974 Cafarnao 2: La ceramica.(Jerusalem). Marçais, G., and L. Poinssot 1952 Objetes kairouanais, IX au XIII siècle: reliures, verreries. cuivres et bronzes, bijoux (Tunis). s

al-Hakim (1011) and the second after his assassination at the beginning of the 16-year-reign of al Zahir (1024) (Gil 1992, 335-97). The historical evidence from the period, including the Cairo Geniza documents, paints a picture of anarchy, disturbances, and endless rebellion during these revolts, accompanied by robbery and plunder, destruction, murder, and rape (ib. 384-85). Caesarea is mentioned as one of the cities that suffered from these excesses. A letter from the Geniza that was sent from Palestine to Fustat in 1002 expresses the tragic events occurring during this period: “. . . he tormented the people of Zion, incited against the inhabitants of Acre, expelled the people of Tyre . . . wounded the people of Gaza, and made the congregation of Hasariyya [Caesarea] wander . . . ” (ib. 368). The year 1030 was the first year of peace in the country (ib. 397). There is little doubt that the hoards from Caesarea are mute but vivid testimony to precarious security conditions in Palestine, which also affected the inhabitants of the city. Since no precious metals, coins, or jewelry were found in the TPS hoard, it may be assumed that the family who owned it left the city, taking their gold and silver with them, but hiding other valuables that were too bulky to carry. Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies, The University of Haifa

Acknowledgment We are indebted to the late Professor Avner Raban, director of CCE, for inviting us to study the objects in this hoard, and for providing the stratigraphic sequence. References Abdul Khaliq, H. 1972 “Glass objects newly obtained by the Iraq Museum,” Sumer 27, 47-52. Adan Bayewitz, D. 1989 “The pottery from the Late Byzantine building (stratum 4) and its implications” in L. I. Levine and E. Netzer (edd.), Excavations at Caesarea Maritima 1975, 1976, 1979, Final Report (Qedem 21, Jerusalem) 90-129. Allan, J. W. 1982 Nishapur: Metalwork of the Early Islamic Period (New York). Antoine, E., and M. Barrucand 1998 Trésors fatimides du Caire (Paris). Arnon, Y. D. 1996 The international commerce activity of Caesarea during the Early Islamic II period, according to the ceramic evidence (MA thesis, Haifa)(Hebrew). ead. 1999 “Islamic and Crusader pottery (area I, 1993-94)” in Caesarea papers 2, 225-51. Avissar, M. 1996 “The medieval pottery” in Yoqne’am I, the Late Periods (Qedem 3, Jerusalem) 75-262 Baramki, D. C. 1944 “The pottery from Kh. el-Mafjar,” QDAP 10, 65-105. Baer, E. 1983 Metalwork in medieval Islamic art (Albany). 113

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Northedge, A., et al. 1992 Studies on Roman and Islamic Amman, 1: History, site, and architecture (Oxford). Philon, H. 1980 Early Islamic ceramics: ninth to late twelfth centuries (Catalogue of Islamic Art in the Benaki Museum, Athens 1, London). Pinder-Wilson, R., and Scanlon, G.T.1973 “Glass finds from Fustat: 1964-1971,” Journal of glass studies 15,12-30. Pringle, D. 1985 “Medieval pottery from Caesarea: the Crusader period,” Levant 17, 171-202. id. 1986 The Red Tower: settlement in the plain of Sharon at the time of the Crusaders and Mamluks, AD 1099-1516 (London). Raban, A. 1998 “Caesarea Inner Harbour,” ESI 17, 64-66. Riley, J. 1975 “The pottery from the first season of excavation in the Caesarea hippodrome,” BASOR 218, 25-63. Rosen-Ayalon, M. 1973 “Medieval Islamic compound vessels,” Eretz-Israel: archaeological, historical and geographical studies 11, 258-62. Sauer, J. A. 1982 “The pottery of Jordan in the Early Islamic Period” in A. Hadidi (ed.), Studies in the history and archaeology of Jordan (Amman) 1, 329-37. Scanlon, G. T. 1966 “Fustat Expedition: preliminary report, 1965, part I,” JARCE 5, 85-112. id. 1981 “Fustat Expedition: preliminary report: back to Fustat A, 1973,” Annales islamologiques 16, 407-36. id. 1982 “Fustat Expedition: preliminary report, 1972, part II,” JARCE 19, 119-29. id. 1984 “Fustat Expedition: preliminary report, 1978,” JARCE 21, 1-138. id. 1986 Fustat Expedition final report, 1: Catalogue of Filters (Winona Lake, IN).

id. 1988 “Fatimid under glazed painted wares: a chronological readjustment” in F. Kazemi and R. D. McChesney (edd.), A way prepared: essays on Islamic culture in honor of Richard Bayly Winder (New YorkLondon) 187-95. Shalev, S. 1998 “The hoard of Fatimid metalware from Caesarea,” Archaeology and natural sciences 6, 31-36 (Hebrew). Sharon, M. 1996 “The Caesarea bronze hoard: the epigraphic finds” in I. Ziffer (ed.), Islamic metalwork (Tel Aviv) 56-57 (Hebrew). Shindo, Y. 1992 “Glass” in K. Shakurai and M. Kawatoko (edd.), Egypt Islamic city: al-Fustat excavation report 1978-1985 (Tokyo). Stacey, D. 1987-88 “Umayyad and Egyptian red slip ‘A’ ware from Tiberias,” Bulletin of the Anglo-Israel Archaeological Society 7, 21-33. Stern, E. J. 1997 “The pottery of the (?) Crusader and Ottoman periods,” ‘Atiqot 31, 35-71. Stillwell-Mackay, T. 1967 “More Byzantine and Frankish pottery from Corinth,” Hesperia 36, 249-320. Thalmann, J. P. 1978 “Tell ‘Arqa (Liban Nord), campagnes I-III (1972-1974), chantier I, rapport préliminaire,” Syria 55, 1-152. Uscatescu, A. 1996 La céramica del macellum de Gerasa (Madrid). Walmsley, A. G. 1988 “Pella/Fihl after the Islamic conquest (AD 635-c. 900): a convergence of literary and archaeological evidence,” Mediterranean archaeology 1, 142-59. Ward, R. M. 1993 Islamic metalwork (New York).

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Raban and Yankelevitz: A market complex on the SW flank of the Temple Platform

A market complex on the SW flank of the Temple Platform, 1995 season Avner Raban and Shalom Yankelevitz

Fig. 1. General of the excavated area Z at the end of 1995 (Anna Iamim). Area Z is located on the SW flank of the Temple Platform (see Raban and Yankelevitz, above, 67, fig. 1). Its N limit is the massive retaining wall of the Temple Platform and the S wall of the Crusader cathedral. On the E the staircase leading up to the Temple Platform separated Z from Z2 (Stanley 1999, 37-38). Earlier CCE excavations in Z2 were directed by P. Gendelman and Y. Arnon in 1992 (Gendelman and Arnon 1993, 46-51). The S side of the excavated area is defined by a modern building complex adjacent to the S Crusader wall. On the W the area is adjacent to I14 (see Yule and Barham 1999, 262-84) and to the excavations of the IAA at the SW corner of the Temple Platform (Porath 1998, 45-48). This area incorporates the N part of a polygonal court, about 30 m across, which had chambers adjacent to its E half. In their final phase these chambers were vaulted, and some have survived intact. The westernmost vault (chamber A) was cleaned and restored as a souvenir shop in the early 1960s. Three additional

vaults, D, E, and F, were partly excavated, together with the court area in front of them, during CAHEP’s 1987 season (Raban and Stieglitz 1988, 276-78) and eventually were restored as an art gallery. Early in 1995 S. Yankelevitz renewed and expanded the excavations. Four additional vaults, two on each side of the three excavated during 1987, were to be made ready for restoration and eventual commercial use. The excavations reached the base of the archaeological sequence only in two confined probes, at the back of chamber C and beyond the back wall of chamber H. No excavations were carried out in the court area. Besides the four vaults studied as separate units, the excavations included the triangular sector above and beyond them, to the E and to the N. The following report updates data from the 1987 excavations and presents new material from the expanded later excavations (fig. 1). 115

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Fig. 2. View of area Z at the end of the 1987 season, looking E (Z. Friedman).

Fig. 3. General plan of area Z at the end of the 1987 season (Z. Friedman). 116

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Fig. 4. Lower part of the N wall in chamber C, looking N (Z. Friedman).

is at +0.09 m. At the SE corner of area Z (L220), in a probe beyond the E retaining wall (W116), the bedrock was exposed at +2.33 m. Farther to the E, in area Z2, the bedrock is much higher beneath the staircase which led to the Temple Platform from a N-S street (Stanley 1999, 36-38).

Abandonment of the vaulted chambers took place after the Crusader conquest of 1101 C.E., when the topography was altered to establish a gentle slope between two parts of a graveyard. The upper, E graveyard was situated in the stone paved churchyard above and beyond the vaults. The lower one lay to the W, in the former site of the Inner Harbor (I5, I14). This post-1101 alteration truncated the upper parts of chambers G and H. The dismantled building material was dumped over the E part of the polygonal court, blocking the entrances to all of the chambers (fig. 2).

Herodian phase (phase XV, late 1 st c. B.C.E.-early 1st c. C.E.) The Herodian phase is represented in area Z by a broad cut-stone wall 1.5 m in width (W204). This wall is oriented E-W and runs parallel to and 3 m S of the main southern retaining wall of the Temple Platform (W209, Raban and Yankelevitz, above, 67, fig. 1). The lower, external face of wall W204 was exposed in chamber C (fig. 4). Except for the two lowest foundation courses, the wall was built of alternating stretches and headers, 50 cm high, in the same standard order as the major walls in Caesarea built during the Herodian era (phase XV).

Area Z was located at a focal point of the city, at the SW corner of the Temple Platform, adjacent to an E-W street and near the quay of the Inner Harbor. It appears that this building complex had been carefully planned as a group of shops that functioned together as one unit or market. At the base of these units was kurkar bedrock that was leveled and trimmed to above +2 m to accommodate a semi-octagonal market of shops. We exposed the bedrock in four restricted probes. The first was at the bottom of sinkpit L512, in the courtyard just outside chamber D (fig. 3), at +2.87 m. The second was at the inner, rear part of chamber C, over 6 m to the N, where the bedrock was exposed at +2.35 m under the E wall of the vault (W170). The third spot was at +1.55 m under the center of the W wall of chamber C (W155), where the bedrock had been quarried, perhaps for a well or water basin, down to at least 0.3-0.4 m below the freshwater table, which at present

Early Roman phase (XIV, early 1st-early 2nd c. C.E.) In the early 1st c. a building complex, semi-octagonal in plan and facing an E-W street, was added to the SW flank of the Temple Platform. The outer shell of the building consisted of five walls, each about 13 m in length. N-S wall 116 was the E limit of the complex, abutting wall 204 about 35 m E of the SW corner of the Temple Platform. 117

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Fig. 5. The lower part of W116, looking W (Z. Friedman).

Fig. 6. E-W elevation of W204 in chamber C (Z. Friedman).

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Wall W116 is at least 22 m long and just over 1 m wide. The courses are 32 cm high and are laid in a stretcher pattern. The wall originally stood open on the E almost to its base, as a plaster coating over its lower courses demonstrates (fig. 5), and is founded on bedrock at +2.33 m. Wall W204 served as the N wall of the complex. Two diagonal walls, W140 and another wall exposed by the IAA team W of chamber A, were the original fourth and fifth walls. It is possible that in its initial phase (XIV) this complex functioned as a bath. A rectangular basin with a cement floor (F236), a drainage channel (L231), and a floor of stone slabs (F230) were exposed in chamber C (fig. 4). Hypocaust bricks and marble slabs from an opus sectile floor above the hypocaust appeared in a fill covering these features. A series of rectangular holes at +3.6 m along the plastered face of W204, may have held timbers supporting a floor over this possible hypocaust (fig. 6). A protruding stone ledge at the base of wall W116 (fig. 5) may also have been related to the bath complex. Mid-Roman phase (XIVa-XIIIb, 2nd c.) The bath was dismantled by the mid-2nd c., and the semioctagonal structure underwent major alteration with the addition of division walls (from W to E, W154, W155, W170, W243, W244, W196, W007, and W194) that formed a series of trapezoidal chambers. We estimate that each section contained three chambers for a total of 15 rooms. Three of the chambers were partially excavated in 1987 (chambers D, E, F) and four in 1995 (B, C, G, H). In the initial phase each chamber was two stories and had a flat roof. The walls of the chambers rose to a height of c. +7.2 m.

Fig. 7. E-W section E of chamber H and W116 (E. Prisman).

Late Roman Phase (XIIa, 3rd-4th c.) Remains from the Late Roman phase were identified only in chamber C. A stone slab floor (F201) covered the entire inner space of the chamber at +3.7 m. The floor overlay two fill layers (L207 and L209) from +2.7-+3.5 m, which contained ceramics and coins dated to the 3rd-4th c.

Partition walls W155 and W170 forming chamber C overlay, at +1.94, the fill containing the hypocaust bricks and the features related to the presumed bath. Hence the new construction had a different function. To judge from the size and arrangement of rooms, it appears that the semioctagonal complex was converted into a market in the midRoman phase, with shops of various kinds occupying each of the new chambers. We call this the Lower Market.

Late Byzantine Phase (X, 6th c.) The next major phase of renovation in the complex occurred in the 6th c. Narrow leveling courses were added to the top of the division walls in the chambers, raising their height to +7.7 m. New floors composed of medium-sized white tesserae were added to most of the chambers (D, E, G) and to the large open courtyard in front of them. The elevation of the tessellated floors in the courtyard (F515, F518) and in chambers D, E (F514), and G (F210) was about +4.2 m, while in chamber C (F188) the floor elevation was +4.01 m. In chamber D a white plaster floor (F521) at +3.56 m probably laid in an earlier period remained in use in the 6th-c. phase. Three stone steps led down to this floor from the tessellated courtyard to the S. The floors of chambers B and H were not intact, and in chamber F the probes did not reach this level.

To the E of the semi-octagonal complex, wall W178 abutted wall W116 and extended E (fig. 7). Wall W178 was preserved to a height of +6.34 m and functioned as the S retaining wall for a massive fill that was added to the area E of the market in the 2nd c. Probes made 5 m the N of wall W178 in 1993 and 1994 exposed more of the fill. In the N probe, the fill reached a height of +9.0 m and was covered by a broad staircase of well-worn flat stone slabs (F819). The E side was destroyed by later building ctivities, but the staircase was traced at least 6 m E of wall W116, which marked its W limit. This staircase, like its counterpart to the E in Z2 (Stanley 1999, 37-39), was a major access point to the Temple Platform.

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Fig. 8. A typical Byzantine shop in the Upper Market of area Z, looking S (Z. Friedman). Subterranean rectangular bins lined with well cut, tightly fitted stones set in a white water-tight mortar were built in chambers G and H. These bins are similar to those to the south in CCE areas KK and NN (Patrich 1996, 164-68) and in IAA area I (Porath 1998, 44-45). Another set of two subterranean bins of the same type and phase was exposed in CCE area LL during the 1998-1999 field seasons (see Stabler et al., above, 7-8). These bins passed out of use either just before or as a result of the Arab conquest in 640 C.E. The probes in area Z reached the bottom of one bin in chamber H. The bin was cut into the bedrock down to +1.9 m, and only the hard, compact cement subfloor matrix survived. The paving slabs were robbed once the bin went out of use. The upper edges of this bin were at +4.5 m and those of the bin in chamber G at +4.7 m.

replaced by a narrower staircase in the Byzantine period built on top of the older feature. The Byzantine staircase (F825) was 3 m wide and was retained by wall W127/108 on the W and W9328 on the E.

On the thick white plaster on the back wall of chamber H (W116) at +7.5 m was a partly faded red-painted inscription in Greek; over two meters long, it was contained in a tabula ansata.1 The plaster also covered the remains of a vaulted roof with its keystone at c. 12.0 m, attesting to the existence of vaults above these chambers. In wall 170 between chambers C and D was a blocked door, the threshold of which was incorporated into a stone paved floor in chamber C (F153) at + 4.3 m. This floor dated to the last Byzantine period (phase IX, 6th-7th c.). Further, the Early Roman staircase to the E of the market was

The first shop was located to the W of wall 081 and consisted of a back room measuring 4.5 x 7.1 m with a tessellated floor (F076) at +10.3 m. The broad Herodian retaining wall W209 served as its back (N) wall. A doorway in W081 provided access to the room from the main passage to the E. This room could also be entered from the front room through a broader doorway in wall 055. The front room was also paved with a white tessellation (F066, fig. 8). A dolium (L097) was placed below the floor of the back room. The edges of the mosaic floor and the walls of the back room were coated with a hydraulic plaster, an indication that liquid commodities such as olive oil or wine were stored here. Numerous bag-shaped and Gaza storage jars were found in the fill (L060) directly above floor F076.

Alterations were also made in the 6th c. to what we called the Upper Market, located on the high ground to the N of and above the semi-octagonal complex, and in the sector between the W staircase in area Z and the E one in area Z2. Earlier levels were not reached in these locations. At least two shops stood to the W of walls 108 and 081 and to the S of wall W209. These shops were located on top of the vaulted roofs of the chambers in the Lower Market. Each shop had a triangular front room with a broad back room, and both were paved with white tessellation.

1

Editor’s note: Little was apparently visible when the excavators exposed this inscription, and we have been unable to make much out from the photographs.

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Fig. 9. The blocked door in wall 170, looking E (Z. Friedman). The first Early Islamic phase (VIIIa)

The second shop, to the W of the first, consisted of a back room similar in size to its E neighbor and was paved with a white tessellated floor (F029) at +10.11 m. Only the NE corner of the mosaic floor of the front room (F056) survived.

After a short period of abandonment, building activity resumed in area Z early in the 8th c. In the Upper Market, a round lime kiln was cut through the mosaic floor (F029) of the W shop. The kiln was constructed of kurkar stones, had a diameter of about 2 m, and survived to a height of 1 m. It was coated with lime plaster and showed traces of fire on its walls. Pieces of burned marble were recovered from the fill inside. A smaller round feature (L054) on the E side of the kiln probably functioned as a fuel chamber.

The series of shops E of the passage and staircase F825 were included in the area designated Z2, on which preliminary reports have been published elsewhere (Gendelman and Arnon 1993, Stanley 1999). To summarize, this sector contained an additional group of at least four shops of the same type and size as those to the W. These shops also had tessellated floors.

Numerous alterations were observed in the semi-octagonal Lower Market complex. All of the division walls were renovated in this period. It was in this phase that the access through wall W170 between chambers C and D was blocked (fig. 9). A plaster floor (F227) exposed in chamber B at +4.86 m was covered with fills up to +5.90 m, containing ceramic sherds, oil lamps, and coins of Umayyad date. Above the fills was a floor 5 cm thick of pinkish cement that sealed the fills.

Transitional Byzantine/Islamic and Umayyad phase (VIIIb, mid-7th-early 8th c.) After the Islamic conquest in 640 a period of abandonment ensued in area Z as in other areas of the city. The bins in chambers G and H were partially dismantled and covered by a fill containing mostly Byzantine sherds but also some dating to the second half of the 7th c. Coins from the Late Byzantine and Umayyad periods were also recovered from the fill. Extensive layers of ash and charcoal were found at the base of these fills in both chambers. Mixed with the fill were numerous white tesserae and decomposed plaster that may be the collapsed and burned remains of the ceilings of the bins. In the Upper Market numerous storage jars were found abandoned on top of the latest Byzantine floor surfaces (above) and were covered with fill.

In chamber C a tomb intruded into the last Byzantine floor of stone slabs (F153). The corpse of a tall young adult male (T186) was buried with its head to the W and the face turned S towards Mecca in a typical Islamic articulation. The tomb was covered by stone slabs just above the level of F153. A new plaster floor covered the burial and the Byzantine stone floor at +4.36 m. Above the plaster floor was a layer of charred wooden beams mixed with a dark 121

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Fig. 10. Two cursive Umayyad inscriptions from chamber C, from L073 (a) and L152 (b) (Z. Friedman and A. Raban). aeolian sand, probably evidence of a fire and a transitional period of desolation. In this phase, the entrance in W157 was blocked. Above the threshold was a layer (L183) containing the remains of a dismantled slab floor from which pottery and coins of the early 8th c. were retrieved (L183). Within that layer were broken pieces of thin marble slabs with framed Arabic inscriptions painted in ink employing typical Arabic script of early Umayyad cursive type. Eight more pieces were found in the next higher fill layer (L073) at elevations up to +5.55 m (figs. 10a-b). These appear to be curse inscriptions, but they have not yet been definitively read.

was constructed. We exposed only two small sections of parallel walls of cut stone during the 1987 season. W113 extended S of the entrance to chamber E and was laid into the Byzantine tessellation F515 that was altered to accommodate it. W110, about 3 m to the W, also cut through the earlier mosaic floor of the piazza (F518), which was likewise repaired in order to accommodate it. Hence towards the mid-8th c. the Lower Market lost its well-planned layout as a new structure was added. The Abbasid phase (VII, mid-8th to late 9th c.) The Abbasid period is represented in the chambers Lower Market by a series of floors of lime plaster at a higher level set on a compact mixture of crushed kurkar, small pebbles, and loam. These floors were covered by a rich layer of freshly broken pottery vessels and oil lamps, indicating a time of negligence or abandonment toward the end of the period. Floor F193 in chamber B was covered by L185, floor F134 in chamber C by fill L068, floor F173 in chamber G by fill L169, and floor F165 in chamber H by fill L161. Major alterations were also made in the Abbasid period to the piazza in front of the chambers of the Lower Market. A new rectangular building 4.5×5.5 m in size replaced the former one. It was defined by W107 on the W, W106 on the N, and W105 on the E. The S part of the building (outside the excavated area) and was covered later by E-W wall W102. The entrance was from the N through an opening in the E end of W106, facing the entrance to chamber E. A rectangular sinkpit (L512), delineated by W109, W115, W116, and W117, was installed under the floor between W106 and the entrance to chamber D. The bottom of the pit reached bedrock at +2.87 m. The standard elevation of the floors of the Abbasid era within the chambers decreased from W to E, from +5.9 m in chamber B to +4.6 m in chamber H.

In chamber D (excavated in 1987), there were two successive fills containing pottery, oil lamps, and coins dating to the early 8th c. but no architectural remains. In chamber E, this phase was represented in the limited probe at its back by a slab floor at +4.56 m (L522). In chamber G a series of stone floors dated to this phase. The earliest one (F219), at +4.2 m, was built of kurkar slabs over a fill (L233, 234) within the earlier subterranean Byzantine bin. Beneath the floor was a stone-lined drainage channel (L235) leading towards and under the raised threshold of the W entrance. Replacing this slab floor was another slab floor (F210) that incorporated benches 50 cm high along the side and back walls of chamber G. The benches were set on the edges of the Byzantine bin. The fill covering floor F210 contained quantities of iron slag, indicating that during the second phase of the Umayyad period (first half of the 8th c.) chamber G housed a metal shop. Later in the Umayyad period (VIIIa) plaster floor F198 replaced F210 at +4.7 m. In chamber H the first Islamic phase was represented by the renovation of the division walls and addition of a slab floor (F174) that sealed the Byzantine fill at +4.30 m. A second floor (F165) at +4.6 m replaced the earlier one during the first half of the 8th c. Both floors were cut by a later stonelined vertical shaft (L144) that may have functioned as a sinkpit (see below).

In the Upper Market remnants of broad cut stone walls (W062, W063) and a floor (F080) at +10.45 m survived from a large rectangular building of the Abbasid phase. This building used Herodian retaining wall W209 as its north wall and was placed over the former Byzantine passageway to the Temple Platform. A rectangular sinkpit (L049) next to the W wall of the building, may indicate

The tessellated Byzantine piazza in front of the chambers of the Lower Market underwent alteration soon after the Arab occupation when a large rectangular building 122

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Fig. 11. Floor 504 in chamber G, looking down to the W (Z. Friedman). that it was an unroofed interior courtyard. W of wall W063 were the remains of plaster floor 051, into which a circular installation 0.4 m in diameter was inserted, possibly a cooking oven.

new sinkpit was covered by large stone slabs (W104) that survived in situ over its N half. Its bottom was exposed at + 3.07 m, more than 3 m below the floor level of the courtyard (+ 6.2 m) that was dismantled in the following occupation phase.

The Tulunid-Ikhshidid phase (VI, late 9th to mid-10th c.)

The Early Fatimid phase (V, mid- to late 10th c.) In the second half of the 10th c. a new floor of opus sectile (F172) was laid in chamber B at +6.5 m. It consisted of large pieces of reused marble slabs from Byzantine screens, some of which contained Greek letters and parts of decorative elements in bas-relief, as well as broken roof tiles. A stone-lined well (L082) was inserted through the center of the floor to the water table at +0.6 m. The well functioned through the later phases. When found, the well was not filled and the wellhead was still covered by three flat stone slabs. The latest datable find in it was a mid-11th c. green-glazed Fatimid jug (Scanlon 1999, 279-81).

Sparse remains from the Tulunid-Ikhshidid phase were identified in the Lower Market. In chamber B a stone slab floor F148 was laid at +6.08 m over a compact muddy layer. A shallow drainage channel was installed under the floor, leading from a stone-lined trough next to chamber B’s W wall W154 towards the facade of the chamber. A clay-lined oven (tabun) was placed in the chamber’s SW corner next to the channel. In chamber C a fill (L068) with pottery and coins dating to the Tulunid-Ikhshidid phase was found containing quantities of plaster fragments and scattered flagstones of a floor that was disturbed during the next phase. A similar fill was found in chamber D. The occupation levels of this phase are missing in the other chambers having probably been removed during the Fatimid era.

A similar floor (F045) was found at about the same elevation in chamber C. This floor had been dismantled at a later date, probably prior to the Crusader conquest. The subfloor matrix of crushed kurkar and gray cement (L123) was found almost intact across the chamber at +6.3 m. Between chambers B and C was a doorway 0.7 m wide and 1.4 m high through W155, with its lintel at +7.9 m. The lower part of the doorway was later blocked, turning the opening into a square window.

The rectangular building in the former Byzantine courtyard of the Lower Market, was renovated in this phase, and its E wall (W105) was widened to about 1 m, probably to support a second floor. A second sinkpit (L513) was built just S of W170, replacing the former one (L512). This 123

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Fig. 12. Floor 150 in chamber H, with the opening of shaft L144 visible in the foreground (Z. Friedman). In 1987 no remains of this phase were exposed in chambers D, E, or F. In chamber G, however, inside the entrance, a composite floor was made of two levels of tessellation, probably a result of repeated restorations at the same elevation (+5.8 m). The upper level consisted of small, even-size tesserae (F504) and the lower one of marble opus sectile (F169 at +5.68 m). A double row of broad stone slabs confined the tessellation along the side walls (W109/196 and W007) and across the center of the chamber (fig. 11).

Water was drawn through a wellhead, fashioned from a reused marble column, on its E side. The wellhead was set into an opus sectile floor, at + 5.8 m (fig. 14). Mid-Fatimid Phase (IV, 1st half of 11th c.) The Mid-Fatimid phase is characterized in many areas of Caesarea by the replacement of the opus sectile floors of the former phase by stone slab floors. In chamber B a plaster floor covered the slabs of F148 and well 082 continued to function. No floor of this phase was identified in chamber D. In chamber E a new stone-paved floor was laid. Two large zirs (pithoi), probably for the storage of oil or water, were built within a retaining structure of rubble and mortar in the SE corner of the chamber (L510). A similar installation containing one zir (L147) was found in a corresponding location in the neighboring chamber F. The metal shop in chamber H was eliminated, and a new stone slab floor (F150) established. A stone-lined rectangular shaft was dug into the front part of the chamber (fig. 12). This shaft (L144) descended only as far as +3.6 m, well short of the freshwater table, so its function remained uncertain.

In chamber H the scattered remains of the Early Fatimid phase were altered radically around the turn of the millennium. Among the finds were remains of a tessellated floor. A large zir (pithos) within a large stone-lined feature (L147), was placed in the SW corner of the chamber. A similar installation (L146) was exposed on the N side of the room. Quantities of slag and broken metal pieces were found throughout the chamber, indicating that it was used as a metal shop in this phase. A subterranean cistern (L509) was built in the Early Fatimid phase in the courtyard area of the Lower Market in front of chamber G. It measured 2.5×2.6 m and was covered by a vault with a maximum height of about 3 m. The cistern was intact and almost empty except for some soil on the bottom. Its walls and ceiling were coated with several layers of hydraulic plaster, an indication it remained in service at least until the Crusader conquest of 1101. Water was channeled into the cistern through clay pipes leading from the roofs of surrounding buildings.

The most significant change in the Mid-Fatimid phase was the alteration and renovation of the piazza. The central square building of the Early Islamic phase was dismantled and leveled down to the elevation of the newly paved stone-slab courtyard, at about + 5.8 m. The courtyard was confined on its S by E-W wall 102. This wall was used as the N facade of a series of unexcavated rooms or shops to the S. Wall 102 and its E continuation (W104) defined the S edge of an open pie-shaped paved court entered from the 124

Raban and Yankelevitz: A market complex on the SW flank of the Temple Platform

large jug was inserted on the W side of chamber E below the plaster floor with its mouth incorporated into the floor surface to serve as a draining device for the liquids. Similar clay vessels were found installed in the center of the last floor of chamber F. The W entrance into chamber H had been narrowed in the previous phases by construction of wall 104. Now it was restricted even more by the addition of wall W111 in this phase, leaving an opening onlfloor (F023) was laid inside chamber H at + 5.81 m. Quantities of glass slag and unfinished glass vessels appeared above the floor, suggesting that chamber H housed a glass factory in the Late Fatimid phase. The stone-lined shaft (L144) was used as refuse dump for much of this period and contained scores of late 11th-c. pottery vessels. A rectangular cut stone installation (L507) just outside of chamber H that blocked entrance W103 may also have been related to the glass shop (fig. 14). The stone pavement of the Lower Market courtyard was covered by plaster at +6.2 m (F506, F520) and the area above cistern 509 by a new opus sectile floor at the same elevation (F505, fig. 14). Remains of a similar floor (F508) were found next to W102. All of the openings in wall W102 were blocked in the Late Fatimid phase, so it became a solid wall. In the NW corner of the courtyard, a new sinkpit (L517) expanded the earlier one (L513), with its base close to bedrock at +3.07 m. The Crusader phase (II, 12th-13th c.)

Fig. 13. Chamber F looking NE at the end of the 1987 season. Note the herringbone decoration of the phase III plaster and the paved piazza with tessellation on the right (phase III), ashlars (phase IV), and the earlier ashlars of phase VI (Z. Friedman).

The higher E sector in area Z became a cemetery during the Crusader period. Most of the burials were found in stone lined cists that were usually aligned with the remains of earlier stone walls on an E-W axis. The cists are defined by parallel rows of stones laid on their sides and are covered by stone slabs, some of which are incorporated into the paved church yard. This cemetery was the W end of the one spread over most of area Z2, which was excavated in earlier seasons by P. Gendelman (Gendelman and Arnon 1993, 46-51, with fig. 5). Most of the burials were extensively disturbed, either by later ones of the same period, or by modern Bosnian settlers reclaiming building stones. All the deceased were lying on their backs with the head to the W, hands resting on their chests. In some instances two persons were buried in the same cist (T010, 065, 074). One double burial (T077) contained a woman in her early 20s and a baby two-three years old, probably a mother and her child. No burial gifts were found in any of the tombs. The only artifacts found were small iron nails with bent tips, probably remnants of wooden caskets.

W. On the N and E sides eight chambers of the original Lower Market complex kept functioning. On the S side beyond W102/104 were probably four or five additional chambers. Portions of their blocked entrances, such as wall W103, were exposed in the excavations (figs. 2, 3). The presence of vertical ceramic drain pipes embedded in the plaster on the facade of these walls, provided evidence for roofed structures to the S. Two rectangular, stone-lined subterranean installations (L520 and L506) were found adjacent to W102 on its N side. The last Fatimid phase (III, 2nd half of 11th c.) The floors inside of the Lower Market chambers continued to be renovated in the Late Fatimid phase. In chamber B a crude floor of opus sectile (F088) was laid at + 6.59 m. A parapet wall W196 was added on the W side of chamber B, partly bisecting the space W of the well 082 and the side wall W154. The latest Islamic floors of chambers C and D did not survive, probably having been robbed by the Crusaders. In chamber E the slab floor was covered by a thick lime plaster that also covered the walls and the zir stand in the SW corner, as well as the external facade, where it was decorated in a herringbone pattern (fig. 13). A

In area Z, as in area Z2 (Gendelman and Arnon 1993, 47), some Crusader burials intruded into earlier ones of the same era. Some pits contained dismembered and redeposited human bones. This indicates a rather long period of use of the burial ground, which may have been in use from the construction of St. Peter’s cathedral in the 12th c. (Pringle 1993, 166-70). 125

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Fig. 14. Chambers G (504) and H during 1987 excavations, looking S. Visible are tessellation F505 and the stone installation of the glass factory (W507)(Z. Friedman). The only other structure in area Z attributed to the Crusaders was a rectangular well (L128, fig. 1). Its 40×60 cm opening was adjacent to the E end of E-W wall 005. Wall 005 was bonded with the paving slabs on the W side of the church yard, of which only a few segments survived above the burials (W090, F091, and F094). The top of the well was preserved to a height of +10.67 m. The ceramics from the fill inside indicate that the well went out of use at the end of the Crusader era, about 1265. The well was not excavated to its base, but it presumably reached the freshwater table, which was just below the present mean sea level during the 13th c. (Toueg 1996: 123).

in which the structures retained the same general function through most of the city’s history. Finally, among casual finds retrieved from the fill above the courtyard in front of the Lower Market complex were two complete marble tombstones displaying beautifully executed Kufic epitaphs of the early 10th c. (fig. 15, cf. Sharon 1996, 418-22, nos. 4, 5). Their provenience, unfortunately, is unknown. The Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies, The University of Haifa

Conclusions As stated above, the excavation project of 1987 was initiated to facilitate commercial use of the relatively wellpreserved vaulted chambers of the Lower Market complex. The later excavation, in 1995, was likewise conducted according to the policies of the sponsoring agencies. For that reason research in area Z, as elsewhere in Caesarea, was affected by considerations other than purely scientific ones. We trust that one day an opportunity will appear for us, or for future archaeologists, to finish excavating this fascinating site of urban Caesarea, apparently the only one

Acknowledgements A. Raban and R. R. Stieglitz directed the 1987 season (Raban and Stieglitz 1988), with R. Ziek serving as area supervisor and surveyor, and the late M. Niamir as registrar and ceramicist (see Niamir 1999). The 1995 season was conducted by S. Yankelevitz, as area supervisor and Z. Friedman as surveyor and photographer. 126

Raban and Yankelevitz: A market complex on the SW flank of the Temple Platform

Fig. 15. A Kufic epitaph of 923 C.E., found near W111 (Z. Friedman).

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References Gendelman, P., and Y. Arnon 1993 “Area Z/2,” in A. Raban, K. G. Holum, and J. Blakely, The Combined Caesarea Expeditions: field report of the 1992 season (University of Haifa, Recanati Center for Maritime Studies Publications 4, Haifa) 46-51. Holum, K. G. 1999 “The Temple Platform: progress report on the excavations,” in Caesarea papers 2, 12-34. Niamir, M. 1999 “A corpus of Islamic ceramics (area Z, 1987 season), in Caesarea Papers 2, 41-67. Patrich, J. 1996 “Warehouses and granaries in Caesarea Maritima,” in Caesarea retrospective, 146-76. Porath, Y. 1996 “The evolution of the urban plan of Caesarea’s Southwest Zone: new evidence from the current excavations,” in Caesarea retrospective, 105-20. Porath, Y. 1998 “The Caesarea Excavations Project–March 1992-June 1994, ESI 17, 39-49. Pringle, D. 1993 The churches of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem: a corpus, 1: A-K (excluding Acre and Jerusalem) (Cambridge). Raban, A., and R. R. Stieglitz 1988 “Notes and news: Caesarea, ancient harbour, 1987,” IEJ 38, 273-78.



Raban, A., K. G. Holum, and J. Blakely 1993 The Combined Caesarea Expeditions. field report of the 1992 season (University of Haifa, Recanati Center for Maritime Studies Publications 4, Haifa). Scanlon, G. T. 1999 “Fustat Fatimid Scraffiato: less than lustre,” in M. Barrucand (ed.), L’Égypte fatimid, son art et son histoire (Paris) 265-84. Sharon, M. 1996 “Arabic inscriptions from Caesarea Maritima: a publication of the Corpus inscription arabicarum Palastinae,” in Caesarea retrospective, 401-40. Stanley, F. H. Jr. 1999 “The south flank of the Temple Platform (area Z2, 1993-95 excavations),” in Caesarea papers 2, 35-40. Toueg, R. 1996 “The stratigraphy of the Inner Harbour occupation levels at Caesarea Maritima (MA thesis, The University of Haifa)(Hebrew, English summary). Yule, B., and A. J. Braham 1999 “Caesarea’s Inner Harbour: the potential of the harbour sediments,” Caesarea papers 2, 262-84.

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Underwater excavations in the Herodian harbor Sebastos, 1995–1999 seasons Avner Raban

Fig. 1. Underwater probes 1995–1999, general plan. within a cylindrical metal caisson (see e.g., Hohlfelder 1993, Reinhardt and Patterson 1999), or within trenches otherwise artificially retained; and 3) water jet probes for tracing the bedrock.

CCE underwater excavations from 1995–1999 took place within the Herodian harbor Sebastos (fig. 1). Three major research goals guided the excavation strategy: 1) to improve understanding of the use of hydraulic concrete (pozzolana) in the construction of the breakwaters of Sebastos; 2) to establish the chronology and causes for the demise of the harbor and the subsidence of its main basin; and 3) to delineate land/sea relations (the paleotopography) and the scope of maritime activity in the E part of the harbor during Late Antiquity and the Medieval period. We used three main excavation strategies to achieve these goals: 1) exposure and sampling of structural components made of pozzolana, including lab analyses of the material extracted; 2) controlled probes through the harbor’s sediments, usually

The hydraulic concrete and first phase of the harbor’s demise Study of the hydraulic concrete in the harbor’s construction and the first phase of its demise began in the 1993 season. During the 1995–1998 seasons further excavations were conducted to collect better samples of the various types of hydraulic concrete (Raban, Reinhardt et al. 1999, 159–65; Brandon 1996; 1999; see also Oleson and Branton 1992). In area K the 1995–1998 study combined two techniques. 129

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scoured, causing the form to tilt and displacing its sleeper beam. The scoured trench was blocked by laminas of wellsorted single deposition sediments that contained quantities of water-worn sherds and a few coins dating to the late 1st and early 2nd c. C.E. (fig. 4; Raban 1996b, 10–11; Brandon 1999, 176–78). This evidence and the eventual settling of displaced chunks of pozzolana from the upper parts of K3, K5, and K7 led us to conclude that a catastrophic upheaval had occurred some time before the end of the 1st c. C.E., causing the displacement, segmenting, and tilting of the structural units in area K (during which considerable subsidence affected the entire W half of Sebastos, cf. Raban 1992; 1999, 187–88; Reinhardt and Raban 1999). This structural trauma enabled the surge to flush back and forth through the spaces created between the caissons, rapidly eroding the wooden sides and eventually the middle layer of less coherent concrete (fig. 5). Some timbers from shipwrecks, presumably post-dating the subsidence of the breakwaters, came to light in the gap between K3 and K5. Samples were dated at the radiocarbon labs of the Weizman Institute in Rehovot to the late third (RT-2039) and mid fourth (RT-2037) centuries C.E. (Segal and Carmi 1999). Stamped lead ingots from a nearby wreckage site at K8, however, correlate with an earlier terminus post quem for the suspected tectonic upheaval (Raban 1999). Area U In area U we continued the probes excavated in the 1994 season (Raban et al. 1999, 166–68), adding six deeper probes (nos. 15–20, see fig. 1). In four of the probes chunks of displaced pozzolana were exposed, some exhibiting the same three-layered sequence as those in area K, thus indicating that the concrete had originally been set in wooden caissons. No wooden forms, however, appeared in association with the blocks. Many plaster-coated kurkar blocks were found buried in the sand more than 10 m below the surface. These were components of structures that had once stood above the main mole, probably the warehouses built there according to Josephus (BJ 1.413, AJ 15.337). The present position of these blocks deep below the sea surface may indicate that the original sea floor has now subsided along the W mole of Sebastos more than elsewhere and that the rate of vertical displacement in this area has been greater. This conclusion corresponds with the geological data of the 1976 survey, with coring probes (Neev et al. 1978), and with the theory of a second fault line (F2) parallel to the main one and c. 300 m to the W (see also Reinhardt and Raban 1999). The pottery from this deep context is relatively early in date. Among the finds was the upper half of a 2nd c. B.C.E. Rhodian amphora with stamps on both handles bearing the names of the fabricant and of the eponym Lelegian, probably from Myndus in Caria (fig. 6).

Fig. 2. Area K, plan of concrete blocks at the end of the 1995 season (C. Brandon). We employed percussion-corer drills in order to sample the added layers of concrete in the blocks formed by wooden caissons of K3 and K5 (fig. 2). Divers also conducted deeper probes below these blocks to study the sequence of sediment deposition. During the 1998–1999 seasons the study area was shifted N, to the twin towers just outside the N tip of the main mole (cf. Raban Habours 1, 149–51; Vann 1991). The main probe was made in the triangular gap between K3 and K5 (fig. 3). During 1995, in K3 and K5, the probe reached well below the sleeper beams of both forms and continued underneath their wooden floors. Both floors were tilted, sloping gently towards the NNE. We studied carefully the treenails over the exposed external face of the wooden floor of K5 in an attempt to find evidence for an inner chamber, similar to the one found in K2. None appeared in K5, so we assume that this caisson lacked this sophisticated feature (see also Brandon 1996).

The area K towers The twin towers of area K, initially studied by CAHEP in 1981 (Vann 1989, 149–51), were reevaluated by CCE during the 1998–1999 seasons. The new excavations aimed to expose the bases of these artificial structures, constructed

During the following 1996 season we extended and deepened the probe next to the S sheer face of K3 below its lower corner sleeper beam. The wooden caisson originally rested over a cushion of large pebbles that the surge later 130

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Fig. 3. The gap between K3 and K5 during the 1996 season, looking W.

Fig. 4. Area K3, probe below the S sheer face, looking NW. 131

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Fig. 5. Area K, hypothetical sequence showing demise of the caissons (A. Raban). of hydraulic concrete within wooden caissons, much like the Roman piers (pilae) in the bay of Puteoli (Gianfrotta 1996). In 1998 we dug a deep probe, designated KE, along the S half of the E tower (fig. 7). After removing the rubble and chunks of pozzolana redeposited here from the nearby excavations in K2, we exposed the undisturbed sea floor at -8.2 m. Down to -9.1 m there was a mixture of coarse sand, shells, eroded undiagnostic sherds, and marine encrusted rubble, an indication that the sea recirculated deposits throughout the centuries up to the modern era. At a depth of -9.1 m the base of the tower was undercut and the surrounding scour-eroded trench was filled with compacted coarse gray sand, shingles, and boulders. Beneath the tower was a large eroded rectangular block of concrete 1.1×1.7×2.1 m. This lay at an angle below the tower, and its upper external edge rested on another large and flat kurkar boulder that was well integrated with the

Fig. 6. Probe U20, amphora from the lower part of the probe. 132

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During the summer of 1999 an extensive trench was excavated across the gap between the twin towers, exposing the lower parts of both and the sediments adjacent to the scourings under each (fig. 9). The layers of sediments exposed in the area between the twin towers were similar to those in the 1998 probe. A careful controlled excavation enabled us to define several distinctive units of successive layers. The upper layer (-9.4 to -10.1 m) consisted of an uneven and mostly coarse sediment in which cobbles and evenly encrusted boulders were embedded. This layer and the two below it were interrupted by huge chunks of pozzolana that originated in the nearby towers. The chunks of pozzolana had become detached from the towers prior to the deposition of the sediments around them. The 2nd layer (-10.1 to -10.6 m) was less disturbed, though it still contained marine-encrusted cobbles and waveeroded sherds of mostly Early Roman and Late Byzantine date (5th-early 7th c.). All 56 coins retrieved during the season came from the upper part of this layer (L002). Except for one that dated to the mid-3rd c. (Philip II, Akko mint) and one of the mid-4th c., all were of the 2nd half of the 6th c., with coins of Maurice dominating. The 3rd layer (-10.6 to -11.3 m) represented a rather long period during which local topographic changes, diversity of water depth, and exposure to the full force of the waves had been altered more than once. The evidence was a scoured-out trench half-filled with sloping layers of wellsorted fine sediments that had been scoured out and refilled again, as curtailed lenses of fine mud. This stratum was almost devoid of artifacts except for a few eroded pieces of pottery dating to the 1st and 2nd c. along with some lead net weights. The base layer (L007) consisted of a fine, clear, ill-sorted sand that was detected to a maximum exposed depth of -11.8 m and seemed to continue much deeper. It probably represented the type of sea floor that predated Sebastos.

Fig. 7. Aerial photograph showing locations of CCE working areas in the NW part of Sebastos. rubble layer to the S. The base of the rectangular block lay at -10.4 m, and below it was a series of thin singledeposition layers of alternating finer and coarser white sand. Within the lower part of these laminas was some uneroded pottery dating to the 1st and 2nd c. C.E. At the top of these depositions, on the SE side of the block’s base, a number of metal objects were found, including net weights, a complete lead box, pieces of lead sheathing, bronze ship nails, spikes, and a clump of 29 corroded but well preserved coins. Most of the coins were of imperial mints dated between 161 C.E. (Marcus Aurelius) and 244 C.E. (Gordian III). The later ones were less worn, almost in mint condition. Six coins were earlier issues from provincial mints such as Beirut (Antoninus Pius). Two coins were of Trajan, two were Flavian with 2nd c. countermarks, and one was Seleucid of the 2nd c. B.C.E. These metal artifacts may be the residue of a shipwreck dated not long after 244 C.E.

The exposed data, including results of systematic recording of all rectangular recesses and lost timber voids across the sides of the towers, corresponded with the hypothesis that both towers are at present in displaced locations and that KE had probably capsized to the SW in the direction of the N tip of the main mole. The catastrophic event that caused the towers to capsize probably occurred rather early in antiquity and prior to the mid-3rd c. C.E. A block of cut limestone 3 m long, 1.7–1.9 m wide, and 1.5 m high was exposed a few meters to the SSE of KE (fig. 10). It was found lying on its side, and its N side appears to have been its original upper face. The N (upper) side of the block contained two grooves for dovetail iron clamps suitable for joining the block to an adjacent one, and indeed remnants of one such clamp were still in place. Close to the a block’s center were two eroded recesses that may have functioned to anchor a column that supported a colossal statue upon it, one of three such colossal statues that Josephus locates on the right of ships as they entered

At the end of the 1998 season, the lower part of the W face of the tower (KE) was exposed, revealing two distinct types of vertically aligned concrete. One type was bright gray with dark pyroclastic particles embedded in it. The other type, to the S, was composed of a much darker volcanic tuffa with white lime aggregates (fig. 8). The situation of the concrete layers in the block suggest that the tower had capsized and landed on its side.

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the harbor. According to Josephus the columns and statues stood upon twin towers that were indeed “joined together” (synezeugmenoi, BJ 1.413, cf. AJ 15.338). During the 1998 season the team undertook a large-scale survey of all the dislocated architectural blocks strewn across area K using computerized triangulation based on special software developed by Nick Rule and processed by the London architectural firm Pringle and Brandon. The final product is to be a three-dimensional plan of the structural components in situ and a reconstruction of the building they came from, either the lighthouse suggested by Vann (1991) or some other major building on tbe N tip of the main mole of Sebastos.* Area G In the fall of 1995 a ten-day underwater field session concentrated on area G at the NW tip of the N mole of Sebastos (see fig. 7). CAHEP had studied this area in the early 1980s, and the E external tower was exposed then, next to the first wooden-formed 12×15 m block of pozzolana found in Caesarea (see Oleson in Raban 1989, 127–30). The renewed investigation focused on the SE corner of that block, probing below its base, which was found to be tilted slightly toward the NNE much like the blocks in area K. Below the block were stratified, single-deposition laminas of coarser and finer sand within an extensive scour trench, embedded within which were a number of early *

Editor’s note: This plan has not yet been published. For further discussion see Pringle 2002.

Fig. 8. Area KE, close-up of the lower W sheer face.

Fig. 9. Areas KW and KE, SW elevation at the end of the 1999 season (S. Cave). 134

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Fig. 10. Area KE, N elevation of stone block (1998). 2nd c. sherds and some well-eroded earlier ones. These data corresponded with the results from area K. They also indicated that the suspected late 1st-c. upheaval in area K extended all over the W part of Sebastos and caused so much structural damage that it was probably the result of tectonic displacement (see also Mart and Perecman 1996, Mart and Raban 1996).

apparent offsetting of the bedrock affected the structures of the mole itself. One might still argue that the alleged tectonic upheaval had occurred prior to the construction of Sebastos. Among the casual finds from the H7 probes were a massive golden necklace and a badly eroded bronze statuette of a naked Apollo. Sedimentological probes

Area H

We conducted sedimentological probes, generally within cylindrical metal caissons, all over the area of the main and intermediate basins of Sebastos, extending them also outside the harbor entrance channel (see fig. 1, probes D11–12 and G11). Our geoarchaeologist, Eduard Reinhardt, directed this project. Several controlled stratified samples of sediments, containing micro- and macro-fauna and artifacts, were carefully extracted and processed. Some preliminary observations concerning the environmental history of Sebastos and its historical implications have already been published (see Reinhardt and Raban 1999 and bibliography there).

During the 1999 season CCE opened area H7 on the E part of the N mole (fig. 7). CAHEP’s studies in 1988 had revealed that the mole was constructed over sand-filled compartments (Raban et al. 1990, 245–47). The new probes attempted to expose the bedrock at the base of the sand along an E-W trench that crossed a suspected N-S fault line (F1) bisecting the main harbor basin. The trench was excavated for more than 20 m below a concreted layer of rubble and collapsed building materials (fig. 11). Loose sand began to drift into the trench from the balks, preventing the excavators from reaching sufficient depth. Thus we employed jet probing across the exposed area. This procedure exposed the bedrock from -7.5 m on the E side of H7 to -10.4 m just E of the center line of the trench. Jet probes to the N and S of the N mole also identified a drop-off of the bedrock from E to W. The data retrieved from the excavations in H7 did not clarify how the

Later maritime data: excavations on the E side of Sebastos Much of the underwater work during the 1995–1997 seasons concentrated on area T along the separating wall between the intermediate and the inner basins of Sebastos 135

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Fig. 11. Area H7, diver at work on W side, looking NE. (see Holum et al. 1992, 79–83; Raban, Harbours 1, 177–84; Raban, Reinhardt et al. 1999, 154–56). The two trenches excavated in 1994 in the S part of the area (TS1 and TS2, see ib. 155–56 with fig. 1) were expanded during the 1995 season, this time about 10 m to the W but still E of the sunken Medieval seawall and the square tower (T2). The trenches were positioned over the estimated N edge of the navigation channel that led to and from the inner basin. The probes encountered an extensive fill of stone blocks and other building materials deliberately deposited there, as well as a quantity of domestic pottery and other artifacts dated exclusively to the last Byzantine phase in Caesarea (7th c.). In both trenches we reached the crumbling kurkar bedrock in several places, at a consistent elevation of about -2.5 m across the entire area of the inner basin as far W as the Medieval seawall. At the S edge of both TS trenches the bedrock sloped down at least another 1.5 m. No retaining wall appeared in situ, but the deeper area might have served as the entrance channel and was probably dredged in antiquity. During the Early Islamic era the channel was deliberately filled in. We opened TN1 to the N of the towers in 1996 season as the W continuation of trench TN, excavated in 1993 (Raban, Reinhardt et al. 1999, 153–55). The trench crossed the Medieval seawall and extended 15 m to the W. The goal was to study and possibly date the construction of the Medieval wall, thought to be part of the 13th-c. refortification carried out by the Crusaders under King Louis IX of France (Raban, Harbours 1, 181–84). Another research goal was to elucidate the causes for the differential

Fig. 12. Area TN1, divers probing below base of the Medieval seawall, looking W. 136

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subsidence of the wall. We dredged a trench about 5×30 m in 1996, exposing the entire width of the seawall, and reaching in probes the bedrock beneath its foundations. The stratification was consistent along the entire length of the trench and on both sides of the seawall. A disturbed upper layer, down to about -1.8 m, consisted of scattered stone blocks, marine-encrusted building materials, and pottery mixed with recent debris. The second layer, down to about -2.3 m, was a massive deposition of terrestrial building materials, with quantities of plaster-coated stones and domestic pottery, including cooking vessels and tableware, mostly from the last Byzantine phase in Caesarea, but also a few later 7th-c. items such as coins and Umayyad artifacts. The third layer was a compact mud with striations of coarser sand and shells. The sherds in this layer dated mainly to the later 5th and 6th c. and were devoid of wear and marine encrustation. Mollusks recovered from this mud were types that typically live in calm, brackish water (Reinhardt and Raban 1999, 811). Below the mud layer, at -2.4 to -2.7 m, we exposed the crumbly kurkar bedrock, and above it a thin layer of dissolved lime, large limestone pebbles, basalt, and a few Early Roman sherds. We uncovered the seawall itself c. 10 m N of the N probe made in 1978 (Raban 1989, 181–82). The three courses remaining in situ were set within the second stratigraphic layer described above, at about -2.1 m (fig. 12). The wall was about 7 m wide and consisted of a narrower high wall above its W side and a rampart or quay on its lee side over 5 m wide. The base of the wall on the W was constructed of reused marble and porphyry columns laid parallel to each other with their ends protruding W, thus resembling the base courses of the nearby Crusader citadel. Many of the columns had been displaced and tilted W at an elevation just below the present sea floor. Several wooden planks were exposed below the columns and the base of the seawall.

Fig. 13. Area TN2, E part at end of 1996 season, looking E. and Raban 1999). Evidence of deliberate infilling from terrestrial sources in the Early Islamic period has been published in several previous preliminary reports (e.g. Raban, Reinhardt et al. 1999, 153). The additional data from TN1 and other probes (TN2, SW) provided evidence for the spatial extension of that fill. Trench TN2 was positioned next to and the W side of the seawall, some 20 m N of TN1 (fig. 1). We cleared the top rubble and scattered blocks manually during the latter part of the 1996 season, exposing a series of badly eroded reused columns tilted to the W at the base of the seawall. Under a thin layer of coarse sand containing quantities of Late Byzantine pottery, an extensive layer of wooden boards and partly decomposed organic materials (including mats and ropes) appeared at -2.3 m. This organic deposit covered an area of about 3×6 m within the trench and extended E below the base of the seawall. A covering of fine cloth overlay some of the upper boards. We extracted a sample for analysis conducted by David Samuels in the laboratory of Shenkar College for Design in Herzliyya, who found it to be interwoven silk and linen. A C14 analysis of the cloth gave a surprisingly early date of mid-2nd c. B.C.E. (see Appendix, below, RT-2739). The timbers underneath the cloth were analyzed at the Radiometric laboratory of the Weizman Institute in Rehovot and found to be of local and European pine and of European oak dated to the 2nd half of the 6th c. There were at least two additional layers of wooden timbers below the top one (fig. 13), some of which

The stratigraphic sequence was similar on either side of the seawall. To the W, however, there was less of the deliberate fill, the bedrock was deeper (nearly -3.5 m), and the mud layer was much thicker (more than 1.5 m). The findings did not support the theory that scouring and settling caused the subsidence of the seawall. They corresponded more closely with our earlier hypothesis, that the sea level when the seawall was built was nearly a meter lower. Other available data, including the apparent water level of datable coastal wells in the nearby Inner Harbor, likewise indicated a lower sea level during the 13th c. (see Raban, Harbours 1, 293–96; Toueg 1996, 51–55). The lack of finds dated between the 2nd c. and the 5th suggested repeated dredging of the harbor basin during that period (Raban, Reinhardt et al. 1999, 155–56). The thick, compacted mud layer, however, and the brackish fauna within it may indicate that through most of this period the E section of the Intermediate Basin was silted up and almost land-locked (Raban 1996a, 652–62; Reinhardt 137

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floor in area T was deliberately dumped there by the Arabs during the latter part of the 7th c. In the 1997 season we fixed and leveled a 6×10 m grid of 1×1 m squares above area TN2 adjacent to the 1996 trench on its S edge (figs 1, 15). The solid grid permitted better control of the stratigraphy and served as a reference platform (at –2.3 m) for a survey and for preventing divers from disturbing the exposed bottom of the trench. The stratigraphy was as follows (top to bottom): From -1.76 to -2.3 m the contemporary sea floor lay undisturbed, with recirculated sand and redistributed artifacts covering a well-encrusted spill of rubble and cut building stones mixed with eroded sherds. From -1.8 to -2.5 m we found a spill of medium-size stones, several composite threehole stone anchors, and pottery dated to the 10th to 13th c. The seawall belonged to this stratigraphic phase. From -2.3 to -3.5 m (on the W side) was a deposit of rubble from terrestrial buildings more than 1 m thick together with angular sherds of 6th-7th c. vessels, mainly jars and amphoras. At the base of this deposit were many complete vessels and three hoards of bronze coins (several hundred altogether) dating from the time of Anastasius I (c. 500) to the early years of Heraclius (c. 620 C.E.). Six gold coins dating from Constans II (660) to the 11th c. had probably intruded from higher strata. Two of the gold coins were minted in Tunisia during the early days of the Aghlabids

Fig. 14. Area TN2, solidus of Constans II. terminated to the W in a scarfed joint. If these boards were remnants of a ship’s hull, a “skeleton first” technique was probably employed in its construction, since no treenails, frames, mortises, or other fastening features were observed. Among the small finds in this context were some intact glass and pottery vessels of Byzantine types, and a lump of over seventy bronze coins. All the coins were Byzantine nummi types, dated from c. 550 to 608. A gold solidus of Constans II, dated to 641–654, was found just above the timber layer (fig. 14). This coin, minted at least twelve years after Caesarea fell into Arab hands, might help to confirm our view that the extensive debris littering the sea

Fig. 15. Area TN2, divers at work in 1997 season, looking N. 138

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(early 9th c.). Marine fauna such as vermetids and ostreae encrusted some of the sherds from this layer, indicating that there was ample flow of oxygen-rich seawater in the area, much as at the present but with much less wave energy. From -2.5 to -3.7 m there was a thick and compact layer of mud containing angular sherds dating from the 4th-5th c. At the top of this mud, on its NE side, were several thin laminas of timbers and compressed fragments of wood and other organic remains, similar to those exposed in 1996. Hence during the 4th and 5th c. area TN2 was probably a lagoonal body of brackish water about 1 m deeper than the present mean sea level. The compact mud covered a layer of fine sand with a few eroded sherds dated to the 3rd to 4th c. (fig. 16). The basal deposition, directly above the bedrock at -3.5 m on the E side of the trench and at -4.3 m 10 m away, represented an entirely different environment. It consisted of coarse, well-rounded, lime-encrusted rubble and boulders of basalt, gabro, and dolomite, of non-local origin (fig. 17). Within this rubble were some marine-encrusted jar and amphora fragments dated 4th c. B.C.E.-2nd c. C.E. This type of deposition is typical of a high energy environment (much like the present one) and probably represents two chronological phases, the phase that preceded Sebastos and the phase that followed its initial demise. In the latter phase the main moles of Sebastos could not prevent the surge from flushing its basins (cf. Raban 1992) and from removing the finer sediments that accumulated when the harbor was intact. We excavated six confined probes during the 1996 and 1997 seasons on the sea floor W of TN (fig. 1, SW1-SW5) in order to study the stratigraphic sequence in the central part of the intermediate basin. The sea floor lay at different elevations in these probes, ranging from relatively shallow in the NE (SW4) to deeper in the SW (SW5), but the overall stratification correlated with the data from TN2 (fig. 18, cf. summary in Reinhardt and Raban 1999).

Fig. 16. Area TN2, 1997 season, close-up view of layers 4 (compact mud) and 5 (fine sand and calcium). remained elusive. In 1998 we dug additional probes along the N edge of the spill (N3a and N3b, fig. 1) and on its W side (N5). Sediment and faunal samples were selected from the stratigraphic contexts.

Six more probes were excavated in area QN on the W side of the intermediate basin, NE of the present-day fisherman’s wharf (fig. 1). Because of existing land-sea relations, the topographic setting, and coastal processes the sea floor in this area was littered with bulky components well-cemented to each other by marine encrustation. The excavators found that the sea floor here had been dredged as late as the Crusader era, and once earlier during the Abbasid period. We had to clear 2–3 m of debris, mainly from the destruction of the Crusader citadel, in order to reach bedrock in about 4–5 m of water. There was almost no stratification and only a few well-eroded medieval and modern sherds.

We positioned probe N3b at a topographic depression within the spill. The rubble there, at -7.1 m, was somewhat smaller than usual and bound together by marine encrustation. After removing the surface rubble, we laid a round metal caisson on the site, and excavation continued within it. The probe penetrated a deposit of coarse sand and shingles and a thin coherent layer of compact mud at -8.1 m. This mud corresponded closely with previous probes in N1 and elsewhere. Below the mud was a layer of sterile sand down to c. -11.2 m. The next layer contained small pebbles overlying a compact mud at -11.8 m. The lower mud layer may have represented the Early Holocene coastal trough.

The 1998 probes in areas N and B Area N was a rectangular spill over the sea floor on the SW side of the main basin of Sebastos protruding inwards from the S mole. This sector was first studied by CAHEP in 1983 (Raban, Harbours 1, 157–60) but its interpretation

N5 was in a void between the rectangular spill and the collapsed rubble from the S mole. We excavated two 139

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Fig. 17. Area TN2, lime-encrusted basalt and gabro stones lying upon bedrock at the bottom of the trench.

Fig. 18. Stratigraphic sequence of the intermediate basin probes (E. Reinhardt).

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fine sand. Thus the overall stratification resembled that of N5 and the CAHEP probes of 1980. The three large blocks had probably been displaced from their original location further W within or on top of the main S mole by a superstorm or other traumatic event. This event may have occurred early in the process of the harbor’s demise, since the stones were resting directly on and even within the mud layer marking the level of the sea floor within the main harbor basin during the Herodian era. The location of the vertical inner wall of the quay on the S mole remains uncertain.

The W trench was located at the base of a series of tilted stone blocks, the top of which (on the S side) was at -6.1 m and the base of the lower ones on the N at -8.2 m. Using air bags we floated off eleven stones weighing several hundred kilos each. Some chunks of pozollana and modern debris appeared beneath the stones. Of the few datable sherds, one large piece of North African red slip ware was recovered, type 106 in Hayes’ catalogue (5th-early 7th c.). From -7.8 to -7.9 m there was a thin layer of small pebbles above a 0.34 m layer of coarse sand mixed with fine particles of broken shells. Below the coarse sand, down to at least -12.5 m, was a deposit of ill-sorted, fine, sterile sand.

Appendix: radiocarbon-dated samples from the intermediate basin

s

continuous trenches in the area. The E one indicated little, yielding circulated top sand mixed with cobble-sized rubble to a depth of -7.9 m and only a few undiagnostic eroded sherds mixed with modern debris. The extensively encrusted stones and coarse sand represented a highenergy environment of modern date. The layer below was a compact fine sand with some differentiated laminas of well-sorted sand, an indication of single depositions. Some recirculation occurred in the upper portion but not deeper than -8.6 m. Below this layer was another sand layer with no interbedding down to at least -12.5 m.

All samples were analyzed at the Radiocarbon Laboratory of the Weizman Institute, Rehovot, Israel, by D. Segal and I. Carmi, to whom we are grateful for the following data. For former radiocarbon dated samples from Caesarea and its harbor, and for the technical data see Segal and Carmi 1999. 1. RT-2631, (sample from) area TN1, 1996, timber at -2.36 m, W of and below the seawall (L018), cedrus libani (cedar wood), YBP (years before present) = 1445±40, calendric age 602–653 C.E. (100 percent probability). 2. RT-2650, probe SW1, 1996, worked timber from L003 at -3.4 m, European pine, YBP = 1520±40, calendric age 532–617 C.E. (94 percent probability), 464–474 C.E. (6 percent). 3. RT-2651, area TN2, stratum 3, wooden knee, below layers of planks at -2.65 m, European oak, YBP = 1645±40, calendric date 348–530 C.E. (100 percent probability), 376–453 C.E. (81 percent). 4. RT-2652, area TN2, 1996, plank from top of L003 at -2.56 m, European pine, YBP = 1515±40, calendric age 537–616 C.E. (100 percent probability). 5. RT-2653, area TN2, 1996, bottom of L002 (the upper layer of planks) at -2.52 m, Jerusalem pine (pinus brutia), YBP = 1515±25, calendric age 549–595 C.E. (100 percent probability). 6. RT-2654, probe SW1, 1996, at the base of the mud layer (L003) at -3.65 m, round wooden beam, European pine, YBP = 1575±40, calendric age 444–538 C.E. (100 percent probability). 7. RT-2739, from Area TN2, 1996, bottom of L002 at -2.34 m, cloth, two-thirds silk, one-third linen, YBP = 2025±100, calendric age 127 B.C.E.–82 C.E. (92 percent probability), 158–134 B.C.E. (8 percent).

The evidence suggests that the displaced stones were originally located at the base of the main mole on the lee side just inside its perimeter wall of the now missing quay. These blocks, out of position and tilted, may thus have been part of the foundation of the mole’s promenade that Josephus mentions (BJ 1.413, AJ 15.337). The missing stones of the quay wall may have been robbed in later antiquity and the remaining stones displaced through redeposition into the robber trench. This evidence matched that retrieved in 1983 (see Raban, Harbours 1, 159). To double-check the information retrieved from N5, and to match it with the data of CAHEP probes of the early 1980s, we also excavated probe B3 in 1998, further to the W, next to the 1980 probes in area B (ib. 108–10). We positioned B3 to the SE of probe 3 in area B2. A dredge cleared the sand, and we removed cobbles manually from between the large stone blocks, just inside (E) of the stone paved area of B2. The information gathered from this probe matched the published data from 1980. The top of the large blocks was at c. -7 m and the surrounding sandy sea floor at -7.6 to -7.8 m. After clearing away the upper 0.8 m of loose, coarse sand, we exposed the base of the blocks at about -8.4 m, with patches of mud on their SW side, toward the edge of the main mole. The sand yielded four unidentifiable sherds as well as modern material. Some 15th-c. pottery appeared directly on top of the mud layer. The layer below the mud consisted of coarse sand mixed with broken shells and no artifacts. This layer was only 0.2 m thick (-9.3 to -9.5 m), and below it was sterile, compacted

The Recanati Insititute for Maritime Studies, The University of Haifa

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Acknowledgments

Gianfrotta, P. A. 1996 “Harbor structures of the Augustan age in Italy,” in Caesarea retrospective 65–76. Hohlfelder, R. L. 1993 “An experiment in controlled excavation beneath Caesarea Maritima’s sea, 1990,” BASOR 290–91, 95–107. Holum, K. G., A. Raban, C. M. Lehmann, D. le Berrurier, R. Ziek, and S. F. Sachs 1992 “Preliminary report on the 1989–1990 seasons,” in Caesarea papers 79–111. Mart, Y., and I. Perecman 1996 “Caesarea: Unique evidence for faulting patterns and sea level fluctuations in the Late Holocene, in Caesarea retrospective 3–24. id. and A. Raban 1996 “Caesarea,” CMS News 23, 7–10. Neev, D., E. Shachnai, J. K. Hall, N. Bakler, and Z. BenAvraham 1978 “The young (post Pliocene) geological history of Caesarea structure, Israel Journal of Earth Sciences 27, 43–64. Oleson, J. P., and G. Branton 1992 “The technology of King Herod’s harbour,” in Caesarea papers 49–67. Raban, A. 1992 “Sebastos: the royal harbour at Caesarea Maritima, a short-lived giant,” IJNA 21, 111–24. id. 1996a “The inner harbour basin of Caesarea: archaeological evidence for its gradual demise,” in Caesarea Retrospective 628–66. id. 1996b “The underwater excavations in Caesarea–1995–1996,” CMS News 23, 10–13. id. 1999 “The lead ingots from the wreck site (area K8),” in Caesarea Papers 2, 179–88. id., R. L. Hohlfelder, K. G. Holum, R. R. Stieglitz, and R. L. Vann 1990 “Caesarea and its harbours: a preliminary report on the 1988 season,” IEJ 40, 241–56. id., E. G. Reinhardt, M. McGrath, and N. Hodge 1999 “The underwater excavations, 1993–94,” in Caesarea Papers 2, 152–68. id., R. Toueg, S. Yankelevitz, and and Y. D. Arnon 1999 “Land excavations in the Inner Harbour (1993–94),” in Caesarea Papers 2, 198–224. Reinhardt, E.G., and R. T. Patterson 1999 “Foraminiferal analysis of three stratigraphic sections from the Inner Harbour, Caesarea Papers 2, 252–60. id., and A. Raban 1999 “Destruction of Herod the Great’s harbor at Caesarea Maritima, Israel–geograchaeological evidence,” Geology 27.9, 811–14. Segal, D., and I. Carmi, I. 1999 “Radiocarbon dates from samples taken in the harbors,” Caesarea Papers 2, 430–32. Toueg, R. 1996 “History of the Inner Harbour in Caesarea” (MA thesis, University of Haifa, Hebrew with English summary). Vann, R. L. 1991 “The Drusion: a candidate for Herod’s lighthouse in Caesarea Maritima,” IJNA 20, 123–39.

The writer served as the director of the underwater studies at Caesarea on behalf of the Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies (RIMS) at the University of Haifa. He expressed his gratitude to the hundreds of devoted dive volunteers from all over the world for their excellent efforts, skills, and endless goodwill. The professional staff through these five seasons included Dr. Eduard G. Reinhardt of McMaster University, co-director and in charge of all geoarchaeological studies. The operations manager and chief diving officer was S. Breitstein of the RIMS (formerly the Center for Maritime Studies) at the University of Haifa, assisted by G. Shahaf, R. Yizraelov, and A. Yurman. Also of the RIMS staff were Y. Tur-Caspa (administration, underwater survey, and geotechnology), Z. Friedman (underwater draftsperson and photographer), J. J. Gottlieb (underwater photography), S. Ovadiah (area supervisor and underwater photographer), Y. Arnon (ceramicist), and the other Israelis: A. Iamim (computerized survey) and S. Rodan (deck officer in 1999). Area supervisors and their assistants were J. Owen (N1, N2), N. Hodge (U, QN), D. Threinen (U), C. Westfahl (R and SW), G. Karovitz (N2, 1997), A. Lacovara (U20 and others), B. Goodman (N, K, and H7), T. Hughes (N, K), J. Latham, and U. Teigelake. R. Crawford, D. Warshawsky, and E. Van Velzen served as underwater operating officers. M. J. Collins, H. DevineReinhardt, and J. Kenworthy served as deck officers and registrars, and C. Nixon as assistant in geoarchaeology. Christopher Brandon was diving architect, surveyor, chief investigator of pozzolana and of single-mission barges. Thanks are due to our financial and moral supporter, the dive volunteer N. Krischer and the supporting foundations: Baron Edmond de Rothschild, Caesarea Foundation, the Joseph and Mary Keller Foundation, and the Frankel family from California. References Brandon, C. 2002 “Herod’s concrete barges at Caesarea Maritima: an update on the research carried out in Area K, in Pylos 1999: proceedings of the 7th International Symposium on Ship construction in antiquity (H. Tzalas [ed.], Tropis 7; Athens), 181–87. id. 1996 “Cements, concrete, and settling barges at Sebastos: Comparisons with other Roman Harbor examples and the descriptions of Vitruvius,” in Caesarea retrospective 25–40. id. 1999 “Pozzolana, lime, and single mission barges (area k),” in Caesarea papers 2, 169–78.

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The Caesarea Ancient Reservoir Project (CARP): preliminary results Richard J. Fitton, Eduard G. Reinhardt, and Henry P. Schwarcz

Dam Mediterranean Sea Haifa Caesarea Tel Aviv

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Fig. 1. Location of Caesarea, Israel, and study site (Reinhardt et al. 2002).

Introduction

authorities created an artificial reservoir NE of the city in a low-lying area in between a coastal kurkar ridge and the Carmel mountain range, in an area formerly occupied by a swamp. By damming the river and creating the reservoir they raised the water-level so the low-level aqueduct would allow water to flow into the city.

Caesarea was furnished with two aqueduct systems, a high-level aqueduct and a low-level aqueduct, that brought water into the city from different source regions (Oleson 1984, Holum et al. 1988, Porath 2002, Peleg 2002). The low-level aqueduct was built after the high-level aqueduct, sometime in the 3rd-4th c. C.E., and probably reflected an increased demand for water in the expanding city during the Byzantine period (Oleson 1984). Waters for this aqueduct originated from springs that fed the Crocodile River which flows into the Mediterranean Sea about 5 km N of the city (fig. 1). At this distance, the delivery of water via an aqueduct required the water source to be at a higher elevation than was afforded by the springs. Therefore, the

Recent excavations have contributed much to knowledge of the dams and related structures (Porath 2002, Peleg 2002). Little is known, however, about the hydrology of the system before creation of the reservoir and during its use. The focus of the preliminary study discussed here was to test the feasibility of a combined stable isotopic and micropaleontological methodology based on foraminifera to study the paleohydrology of the ancient 143

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reservoir at Caesarea. Such an investigation might provide insights into the quality of water reaching Caesarea and the extent of time during which the system operated. A water-supply system provides the life-blood of any city, carrying water for a multitude of uses including water for drinking, washing, agriculture, and industrial purposes. It is important that we continue study of the paleohydrology of the Caesarea reservoir in order to comprehend the interelationship between the water supply and the economy of the ancient city, but also to gain information for future water management issues in Israel.

in the environment, the analysis of ostracod shells can be used for paleoenvironmental reconstructions of past lakes. Variations in these isotope ratios are expressed using the δ values, defined as follows: δ13C= ({[13C/12C]sample / [13C/12C]standard} - 1) x 1000 in per mil (‰). δ18O is similarly defined. The standard for both δ18O and δ13C is VPDB. Oxygen In a closed basin under relatively stable climate conditions, the δ18O values of ostracod shells are affected mainly by environmental changes in evaporation/precipitation and temperature (Lister 1988). Therefore, fluctuations in the oxygen isotope signal throughout the history of the basin will reflect changes in these environmental parameters. In general, increased evaporation (or decreased precipitation) will act to increase the value of δ18 O in the water, while decreased evaporation (or increased precipitation) will act to decrease the δ18O value (Hoefs 1997, Faure 1986). δ18O decreases with increasing temperature because of a decrease in the isotopic fractionation between calcite and water (O’Neil et al. 1968). It is difficult to separate the effects of temperature from those of evaporation/ precipitation. Large isotopic shifts over a short period, however, are more attributable to changes in evaporation/ precipitation than to large fluctuations in temperature. In deep, thermally stratified lakes, bottom waters can assume an almost constant temperature and thus not be affected much by atmosphere temperature fluctuations (De Dekker and Forester 1988). Shallow lakes or marshes, however, can be profoundly affected by changes in atmospheric temperatures, which can in turn influence the isotopic composition within the shell (Lister 1988, De Dekker and Forester 1988).

We collected a core within the area once covered by the reservoir in order to study changes in the aquatic environment at this site before, during, and after the period of the reservoir’s use and thus to learn about its history. Our study focused on the microfauna of the sediments, and specifically on variations in presence and abundance of species of foraminifera, as well as variations in the isotopic composition of the tests of ostracods. Foraminifera Foraminifera are protozoans that live in saline waters of varying concentrations ranging from hypo- to hypersaline. They construct a mineralized test or shell that is preserved in the sediment record, and many species have narrow ecological niches that make them a useful paleoenvironmental tool. Most foraminifera inhabit the coastal and deeper marine environments, although foraminifera have also been found in saline continental settings (e.g., Patterson 1987, Patterson et al. 1997). In areas of intense evaporation and/or in areas where older saline brines are being discharged onto the surface salinities may be high enough for survival (ib.). Colonization of these environments occurs through avian and wind transport of the foraminifera. In these brackish systems, freshening or salinization of these waters can be reflected by corresponding decreases and increases in foraminiferal abundances or by the presence or absence of certain species. Although not many studies have used foraminifera as an indicator in continental settings, they can be a useful tool for detecting salinity changes in continental settings (e.g., Patterson et al. 1997).

Systems that are characterized as open, however, usually have relatively short residence times, and therefore the isotope composition of the basin is mainly controlled by the composition of inflow waters (Talbot 1990, Holmes 1996). If no significant changes in climate or catchment hydrology occur, the composition of the inflow waters should remain relatively fixed (Lister 1988).

Stable Isotopes The stable isotopic composition 18O/16O and 13C/12C of ostracods (microscopic crustaceans with CaCO3 valves or shells) has been widely used in paleoenvironmental reconstruction (e.g., Schwarcz and Eyles 1991, Holmden et al. 1997, Hodell et al. 1995, Chivas et al. 1993, Rogers 1993, Palacios-Fest et al. 1993, Curtis and Hodell 1993, De Deckker et al. 1988, De Dekker and Forester 1988, Lister 1988, Delorme 1969). Most ostracods have been found to precipitate their shells in isotopic equilibrium (Chivas et al. 1993). Thus the isotopic composition of the shell material is a function of the temperature at the time of precipitation of the shell and the 18O/16O ratio of the water, and of the 13C/12C ratio of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) in the water. Since the distribution of O and C isotopes in natural waters is a function of many factors

Carbon The carbon isotope composition (δ13C) in biogenic carbonate is not readily influenced by temperature, but is principally related to the isotopic composition of the total dissolved inorganic carbon (TDIC) in the water (Rogers 1993, Holmes 1996). δ13C of DIC is controlled in turn by the local productivity of the basin, decay of organic material (of both detrital and local origin), rate of CO2 exchange with the atmosphere, and inputs associated with carbonate rock dissolution (Hoefs 1997, Rogers 1993, Holmes 1996, Palacios-Fest et al. 1993). During photosynthesis, 12C is preferentially incorporated into plant material, resulting in an enrichment of 13C in the water, and this enrichment will be reflected by increased δ13C values in ostracod shells 144

Fitton, Reinhardt and Schwarcz: The Caesarea Ancient Reservoir Project

A. beccarii "tepida" Abundance 0 1 2 3 4

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Fig. 2. Stratigraphic, isotopic, and foraminifera results. Depths in section are measured positively downward. Carbon and oxygen isotopic values are reported in standard delta (δ) notation relative to PDB standard. Foraminiferal (A. beccarii “tepida,” E. translucens) abundances are reported in categories, where 0=absent, 1=sparsely abundant (average abundance from counted samples=20 specimens/cc), 2=moderately abundant (average abundance from counted samples=200 specimens/cc), 3=very abundant (average abundance from counted samples=500 specimens/cc). Methods

(Lister 1988, Hoefs 1997, Rogers 1993, Holmes 1996, Palacios-Fest et al. 1993). The decay of plant material, on the other hand, releases 12C into the water, lowering δ13C of DIC and consequently lowering δ13C values within the ostracod shells (ib.). Equilibrium exchange between atmospheric CO2, dissolved bicarbonate, and carbonate of marine limestone tends to shift δ13C ostracod carbonate to values near 0 ‰ (Hoefs 1997).

The core site was located within the boundaries once occupied by the reservoir (fig. 1). This location allowed us to investigate the changes to the wetland before and after the creation of the reservoir. We chose the site in part because it had already been excavated to a depth of 2 m below the modern surface. This allowed us to describe the stratigraphy and sample the trench, and then to core at its base and recover 2.5 m of sediment core, providing evidence for a long history of deposition.

In closed, evaporative basins δ18O of the water tends to increase due to evaporative fractionation, while δ13C of DIC tends to increase due to photosynthetic production from the closed carbonate reservoir. Talbot (1990) has suggested that correlation of δ13C and δ18 O can thus be used to distinguish between open basins and closed basins. A correlation coefficient (r) of 0.7 suggests that a basin is closed. The correlation of δ13C and δ18 O from ostracods has been used to distinguish between open and closed basins (Palacios-Fest et al. 1993).

We took sediment samples of approximately 10 cc from each interval and washed them through a 45 m sieve to remove the silt/clay portion of the sediment. We then examined the washed samples under a low-power binocular microscope (x60) and recorded abundances of foraminifera in four categories ranging from absent to very abundant, as described in fig. 2. Only two species occurred within the section: Ammonia beccarii “tepida” (Cushman 1926) and 145

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

Depth in Section (cm) 36 46 49 53 64 67 73 77 104 110 117 139 199 215 223 256 266 270 277 283 291 303 309 315 330 340 349 355

δ13C (‰) PDB -7.72 -2.98 -10.13 -6.40 -9.66 -7.85 -7.54 -9.76 -9.73 -9.84 -9.70 -11.54 -10.15 -9.92 -10.94 -11.32 -11.83 -10.92 -10.25 -10.81 -11.18 -11.20 -11.04 -11.04 -10.84 -11.30 -12.10 -11.11

University using a common 100% phosphoric-acid bath at 90º C. Precision was  0.07% for δ18O and  0.10% for δ13C, and all values are reported relative to VPDB table 1.

δ18O (‰) PDB -1.72 -1.10 -4.44 -3.73 -2.91 -2.88 -2.73 -5.40 -4.50 -3.79 -3.28 -3.82 -4.83 -3.83 -4.42 -5.27 -2.48 -5.37 -4.94 -5.06 -5.12 -5.23 -5.45 -5.20 -4.80 -3.51 -4.59 -4.85

Radiocarbon Dates To determine the chronology of the sediment sequence, we attempted radiocarbon dating of organic materials from within the core. The analyses were conducted at Beta Analytical Inc., Miami, Florida (table 2). The gastropod shell (Beta-133127) was analyzed using AMS, and the other two samples were analyzed by beta-counting. The age of the shell (803040 years B.P.) was clearly outside of the stratigraphic sequence and was probably due to equilibration of spring water with the limestone of the bedrock, which can introduce “dead” carbon into the DIC which is then taken up by aquatic organisms. The result is an age that is much older than the true age of the shell. The organic sediment from near the top of the core also seemed to produce an anomalous age (1285-1040 years B.P.), giving a date that was too old in relation to its depth in the section. This date is probably not accurate. The sediment was very close to the upper surface and may have been disturbed by earlier excavation. The marsh had been drained between 1926 and 1930 and has been used for agriculture since that time. In general, the usefulness of soil for obtaining reliable radiocarbon dates is limited (Taylor 1987). The sample that produced the most reliable date was the wood fragment, which was taken from 374 cm down the section and gave a conventional radiocarbon age of 301060 years B.P. with a 2σ (95% probability) calibrated age range of 3360 CAL B.P. to 2990 CAL B.P. Assuming a zero age for the top of the core, and a constant rate of sedimentation, the average rate of accumulation was 0.12 cm/year. Alternatively, if we accept the age for the upper organic sediment and assume that rates of deposition slowed considerably in the recent past, then we obtain a rate of 0.16 cm/year. The radiocarbon dates provide only maximum values and approximate rates of deposition in the basin.

Table 1. d18O and d13C values relative to VPDB standard. All values expressed as per mil (‰). Depths are taken, in cm, from the top of the section downward.

Results Crocodile River

Elphidium translucens (Natland 1938). Ostracod valves of Cyprideis torosa (Jones 1980) were selected for stable isotopic analysis. The valves were manually cleaned of organic detritus and then washed in an ultrasonic cleaner with deionized water. We performed stable isotope analyses on a SIRA gas-source mass spectrometer at McMaster Depth in Section (cm) 50 306 374

Lab # Beta Analytical Beta-133125 Beta-133127 Beta-133126

For comparative purposes the modern Crocodile River (Nahal Tanninim) was also studied. Although these results have been published separately (Reinhardt et al. 2002), we summarize the important findings here because they pertain to the interpretation of our core. Salinity measured

Material Organic Sediment Gastropod Shell Wood Fragment

Conventional Radiocarbon Age (yrs BP ± 1σ) 1240 ± 60 8030 ± 40 3010 ± 60

Calibrated Age Range (yrs BP at 2σ) 1285 - 1040 9020 - 8770 3360 - 2990

Table 2. Summary of radiocarbon data showing field ID, dated material, depth within section, conventional radiocarbon age, calibrated results (95% probability; INTCAL98 calibration, database used: Stuvier et al. 1998). 146

Fitton, Reinhardt and Schwarcz: The Caesarea Ancient Reservoir Project

Mediterranean Sea

in July 1999 (approx. 3.5-3.7‰) was constant from the mouth of the Crocodile River to locations upstream (fig. 3), indicating that stream outflow dominates the small estuarine system and there is little seawater influence in the estuary. Therefore, the river water entering the Mediterranean is already slightly saline, as noted by Herbst and Mienis (1985) who reported that the Crocodile River is fed by a number of saline springs in the upper reaches of the drainage system. However, this pattern would be different during the stormy winter months, when waves and marine water could penetrate into the estuary.

N

Station 15

Station 13 Sal. 3.7ppt

Station 10 Sal. 3.7 ppt. D18O: -5.33o oo D13C:-10.23 o oo Station 7 Sal. 3.7 ppt. D18O: -4.47 o oo D13C:-10.37 o oo Fish Pond

Fish Pond

Fish Pond

Fish Pond

Station 1 Sal. 3.5 ppt. D18O: -4.87 o oo D13C:-10.58 o oo

Fish Pond

Nahal Tanninim (Crocodile River)

 JISR EZ ZARKA

KM 3CALE

Abundances of foraminifera from surface samples collected in the estuary followed a clear trend (fig. 4). Ammonia beccarii “tepida” was found to dominate the upper reaches of the river, while Elphidium translucens had a maximum abundance in the mid-section where average salinities are likely to be slightly higher on a yearly basis due to marine stormwater incursion. The Pararotalia spinigera and other Mediterranean shelf species (milioilds, etc.) dominate the intermediate area of the estuary area closest to the sea and were transported into the estuary by the same winter storms. Analysis Isotope, foraminiferal, and stratigraphic results are summarized in fig. 2. The data was divided into three zones (zones 1, 2a ,and 2b) on the basis of the calculated sedimentation rate (0.12 cm/yr.) and distinctive changes observed in the isotopic, formaniferal, and sedimentological data. The division between zones 1 and 2a is based on the sedimentological and micropaleontological characteristics of the stratigraphy and on the calculated sedimentation

Fig. 3. Map of Crocodile River showing salinity measurements and ostracod oxygen isotopic compositions at selected stations. The water depths along the transect are variable but generally range from 1.5 m in the upper reaches to approx 0.5 at the mouth of the river (Reinhardt et al. 2002).

100 80 A. beccarii "tepida"

P. spinigera

60 Abundance (%)

40 increasing marine influence

20 E. translucens

0

1

3

4

7 8 5 Station Number

9

10

13

15

Fig. 4. Distribution of three dominant foraminiferal species in the Crocodile River (see text for details; Reinhardt et al. 2002). 147

Caesarea Reports and Studies: Excavations 1995-2007

the zone is dominated by organic rich muds with shell laminations, while further up the section interbeds of clean mud become thicker and start to dominate. The presence of organic muds with abundant shell material indicate that waters were relatively shallow at this time.

D18OO OO (PDB) -6

-5

-4

-3

-2

-1

0

-2 -3 -4

-6 -7 -8

D13C O OO (PDB)

-5

Abundances of A. beccarii “tepida” are the highest in zone 1. E. translucens is also relatively abundant in this zone, although never as abundant as A. beccarii “tepida.” In addition, E. translucens are not as persistent as A. beccarii “tepida,” being absent in the lower sections and upper sections of the zone. The presence of the same foraminifera species in the reservoir section studied here and in the upper-middle reaches of the Crocodile River is a good indication, as discussed previously, that in the past waters were also saline in the Crocodile River at a similar concentration (approx. 3.5 ‰) or possibly higher.

-9 -10 -11

Zone 2a

-12

Zone 2b (r 2 = 0.71)

This zone is also characterized by minor fluctuations in carbon and oxygen isotopic values (fig. 2, table 1). δ18 O values within this zone range from –4.83‰ to –3.28‰, for a maximum variation of 1.55‰. The average δ18 O value for this zone is –4‰, with a standard deviation of 0.56‰. δ13C values within this zone range from –11.54‰ to -9.7‰, for a maximum variation of 1.84‰. The average δ13C value for this zone is -10.14‰, with a standard deviation of 0.7‰. Again, these mean values are similar to the modern values of ostracods measured from the Crocodile River (mean δ18 O = 4.89 and δ13C =10.39‰, fig. 3). This indicates that the isotopic values of zone 2a (like zone 1) have not varied significantly over time, and the isotopic composition of the inflow waters has been relatively fixed even with significant hydrological modification.

-13

Zone 2a (r 2 = -0.02) Zone 1

(r 2 = -0.48)

Fig. 5. Correlation of d18O and d13C for zones 1, 2a, and 2b. rate (0.12 cm/yr.) indicating that this point in the section coincides with the archaeological date for the creation of the reservoir. The division between zones 2a and 2b is primarily based on distinct changes in isotopic behavior. We discuss each zone separately below. Zone 1

Correlation of δ13C and δ18O in this zone produces a correlation coefficient (r) of –0.02 (fig. 4). This value indicates that at this time the basin was open (r