Identifying Cultural Habits and Economical Preferences in the Islamic Period, Mount Zion, Jerusalem

Linoy Namdar, Jennifer Zimni, Omri Lernau, Dieter Vieweger, Yuval Gadot, Lidar Sapir-Hen

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Archaeological and historical sources describe differently the course of events that occurred during the Islamic conquest of Jerusalem. Was the transition from the Byzantine to the Islamic period a short and dramatic event or a long and steady process? This study aims to examine the Islamic cultural influences over Jerusalem during the Byzantine/Umayyad period and later post-earthquake of the 8th century CE. Thus, we carried out a study of Mount Zion’s (seasons 2018 and 2019) faunal assemblages, analyzing the species discovered at the site, their demography and distribution between the different architectural contexts. The focus was on evaluating the cultural identity and economic preferences of the local population. The remains we found indicate that the economy was based mainly on caprines, pigs and fish. As the site was located inside the Jerusalem walls, the locals gained their meat supply from the local markets and might have been involved in agriculture outside the walls. Although the site experienced architectural alterations between the two periods, the Christian population remained, and their faunal economy did not change from the Byzantine period till after the earthquake.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)175-194
Number of pages20
JournalJournal of Islamic Archaeology
Volume10
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - 2023
Externally publishedYes

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© Equinox Publishing Ltd. 2024, Office 415, The Workstation, 15 Paternoster Row, Sheffield, S1 2BX

Keywords

  • Islamic period
  • Mount Zion
  • animal economy
  • earthquakes
  • fish remains
  • zooarchaeology

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Archaeology
  • Archaeology

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Identifying Cultural Habits and Economical Preferences in the Islamic Period, Mount Zion, Jerusalem'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this