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This paper assesses a typical Ammonite terracotta figurine discovered during the rescue excavation conducted at Umm Sweiwineh in the periphery of Amman in 2014 by the Department of Antiquities of Jordan (DoA). During the past few decades, excavations in Transjordan, in particular central Jordan, have produced a large corpus of anthropomorphic figurines from various sites dated to the Iron Age. Their excavation contexts varied from funerary to domestic. Male figurines are usually slipped or painted to show a beard or moustache and are characterised by a conical headdress. Although foreign cultural influence is apparent, they show a local stylistic tradition. This paper will discuss the figurine and its findspot, including a description and the forming technique employed to produce it, its typological classification, chronological framework, comparisons, cultural influence, iconography and potential function. The chronology of the figurine was determined by its archaeological context and accompanying pottery assemblage, as well as comparative examples from well-stratified sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper draws on the preliminary results of the rescue excavation conducted by the Department of Antiquities at Umm Zweitineh in central Jordan in 2012. The goal of the excavation was to take urgent action regarding protecting the site as far as possible. Due to budget constraints, the excavation work lasted for only twenty days. The aim of the article is that of providing a clear regional picture of the Islamic settlement through the seventh/eighth and fourteenth centuries AD through retrieving information from the architectural remains and material culture. The architectural relics and material culture were unearthed under a dense layer of wreckage and accumulated debris because of previous construction work at the site. The accumulation deposits yielded a ceramic assembly of daily life vessels dating primarily to the Umayyad and Mamluk periods. Earlier pottery sherds belonging to the Roman and Byzantine periods have been also uncovered. Ceramic sherds from the Iron Age II sporadically appeared on topsoil. Besides the ceramic, other metal artifacts, including bronze vessels from different periods, have been unearthed. The Umayyad and Early Mamluk settlements were distinguishable because of the distinct corpus typical of both periods. Possible evidence of a religion building belonging to the Umayyad-period Christianity have been unearthed in Area B. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a preliminary but a comprehensive examination of a terracotta juglet retrieved from the Islamic site of Umm Zweitineh, in central Jordan. This article attempts to pinpoint a fresh addition to our knowledge of the Mameluke period pottery assembly known elsewhere in the Levant. Since neither coherent architectural remains were exposed nor stratigraphic sequence was discerned, however, the unearthed archaeological objects, including the juglet being studied, have not been attributed to specific contexts (e.g., rooms), or loci or strata. Due to budget constraints, there was no possibility to conduct a petrographic analysis. Instead, the authors set out to explore the fabric and decorative scheme of the juglet by the naked eye and to describe the fabric and decoration colours according to the Munsell Chart. We presented it typologically and dated it based on parallels from well-dated sites, especially Hesban, since its decorative scheme, production technique and shape were commonplace in the region of Syria–Palestine from the 12th through the 14th centuries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]