Description
Book SynopsisKhirbet et-Tannur is a Nabataean site dating from the second century B.C. to the fourth to sixth centuries A.D. In 1937, Nelson Glueck excavated the site on behalf of the American Schools of Oriental Research but died before completing a report. Now, in two extensively illustrated volumes, the results of Glueck's excavations are finally published.
Trade Review
'This final report on an excavation carried out decades ago is a fine achievement. McKenzie and her team should be congratulated for this important contribution to Nabataean history, architecture and art, and religious practice.'
Joseph Patrich, Journal of Roman Archaeology, Vol 30, 2017
'Rarely has this reviewer seen so useful and attractive an excavation report. This is all the more impressive because of the viscissitudes of attempting to integrate the evidence for an excavation of 80 years ago, performed under the strictures of that era and whose records and material cultuire are widely dispersed, with teh present state of the site - an immense task admirably performed by the principla investigator and her colleagues. The hundreds of plans and illustrations, both contemporary and historic and many in color, enhance the report. The nbarrative is clear, concise and informative, and the cataloges are useuful but not intrusive. This is a model publication about a little-known yet essential part of teh ancinet world, revealing a aite whose interpretation has languished for half a century.'
Duane W. Roller, American Journal of Archaeology, Vol 120 No 3 (July 2016)
'All these studies are extremely useful because they make an enormous amount of old and often unknown material available to scholars, not only those interested in the Nabataeans but also those interested in the ancient Middle East in general, in religion and rituals, in technology and in various sorts of archaeological material.
'The enormous number of documents studied by the authors, their nature (an archive), and the fact that the excavation took place more than seventy years ago added to the complexity of the project and made this publication a real tour de force.' (Laila Nehme, Bryn Mawr Classical Review, June 2015)
Table of Contents
Preface and Acknowledgements Judith S. McKenzie
Abbreviations
PART 1: ARCHITECTURE AND RELIGION
Chapter 1. Introduction Judith S. McKenzie
The Discovery of Khirbet et-Tannur
Glueck’s Methodology
Publication of Khirbet et-Tannur
The Present Study
Appendix 1.1: List of Workmen at Khirbet et-Tannur
Appendix 1.2: The Tell el-Kheleifeh Division and Shipping
Chapter 2. Architecture and Phases Judith S. McKenzie
The Site
Khirbet edh-Dharih
Early Phases
Main Construction Phase (Period 2): Altar Platform 2, Cult Statues, Zodiac, Inner Temenos Enclosure, Temenos, and Triclinia
Repairs ofPeriod 3: Altar Platform 3, Pair of Niches, and Colonnades
Unplaced Architectural and Sculptural Fragments of Periods 2 and 3
Later Worship and Destruction
Appendix 2.1: List of Sculptural and Architectural Fragments in Cincinnati Art Museum by Judith S. McKenzie and Joseph A. Greene
Chapter 3. Iconographic Program Judith S. McKenzie and Andres T. Reyes
Introduction
The Epigraphic Evidence for Qos, and the La'aban Spring
Iconography of the Qos Stele
The Cult Statues
Vegetation Goddess Panel
Tyche
Light at Night: the Moon and Figures with Torches
Nike Caryatid Supporting the Zodiac
The Zodiac
Busts on the Inner Temenos Enclosure Frieze
Free-standing Animals
Period 3 Iconographic Additions
Overall Interpretation
Appendix 3.1: A Note on Attempts to Date the Zodiac by Owen Gingerich
Appendix 3.2: A Note on the Zodiac Lamp from Petra by Kate da Costa
Chapter 4. Religious Practice Judith S. McKenzie and Andres T. Reyes
Introduction
High Place and Pilgrimage Centre: Summary of Local Context and Chronology
Food for the Gods
Offertory Boxes
North-east and West Altars
Personal Dedications: Incense Altars and Stelai / Betyls
Feeding the Worshippers
Lamps
The Lack of Terracotta Figurines
Edomite Heritage: Offerings and Sanctuary Design
Festival Occasions
From How Far Did the Worshippers Come?
The Designs of the Temples at Khirbet edh-Dharih and Khirbet et-Tannur Compared with Other Nabataean Temples
Internal Podia, Platforms, and Adyta
Deities in the Temples of Petra
Positions of Altars
Worshipping Standing Stones: Cult Statues, Altars, and Podia / Thrones
The Nabataean Legacy
Appendix 4.1: Note on a Hand-modeled Terracotta Animal Figurine by Andres T. Reyes
Chapter 5. Iconoclasm at Khirbet et-Tannur and Petra Judith S. McKenzie
Damage to Relief Sculptures at Petra and Medain Saleh
Damage at Khirbet edh-Dharih
Damage at Khirbet et-Tannur
The Nabataean Legacy in Early Islamic Art
Glossary
Maps
Bibliographical Abbreviations
Bibliography
Sources of Illustrations
Index
