Day 4 - Freedom Fighters blow up railway. Neolithic debris in camp remains.

Two significant sets of very interesting related discoveries today.

Several pieces of explosively fractured rail from the Hijaz line were found today by a small team working on new tent rings in the flat plain between the upper region of Tel el Shahm and the station on that line. We know that there was an attack by Lawrence and Arab forces on this station and these fragments are almost certainly remnants of this. We also know that several large bombs were dropped at this site, and indeed fragments of such dating exactly from the time were found as well.

 In and around the tent rings in this new region an array of metal finds confirmed that Ottoman forces occupied this camp, and the nature of these can be seen in the pictures below. Buttons of the Ottoman Imperial Guard, general uniform buttons, coins and pieces of metal associated with the routine of life in the army such as padlock fragments and lamp wick holders all provide this evidence strongly. This is the first day that significant metal finds have occurred, and this region of the extended site clearly has a different finds concentration from this period than the other region closer to the hilltop and to the North of the rocky outcrop. Theories as to why this is so are being bandied about as I write!

Then, in the area we have been working in up until now known as ‘downstairs’ more discoveries and conclusions were being made.

Jordanian pre-history experts consulted urgently by mobile phone from the site today confirmed the teams suspicions the Ottoman military camp at Tel el Shahm represent re-use of a Neolithic village.

First we had 2000 year old rock art. Then, we get six thousand year old hut circles. The tent rings consisting of large uprights turn out to be deeply embedded and in one case associated with three fragments of worked flint. We now have evidence that this site ws used in the Neolithic, the Thamoudic/Nabatean, medieval, First World War and more recent periods., including recently by the Jordanian Army. The newly discovered Neolithic site at Tel el Shahm is a first for this region of Southern Jordan. The complexity and completeness of the archaeological sequence at Tel el Shahm is truly extraordinary.

Day 3 GARP Aerial Adventure

Today we were visited by a television production crew working for National Geographic, who are making a new documentary about Lawrence. The doc will focus on Lawrence’s role in developing a strategy for modern guerrilla warfare.

One of the excellent side benefits of this visit was that some of us, together with members of the film crew, were privileged to have the fantastic opportunity to fly in a Jordanian Airforce  helicopter from Ma’an right down through central Jordan along the line of the Hijaz railway.  

This incredible trip, was made possible by King Abdullah and Prince Mired, and enabled the lucky team members to view many of the main sites we have been working on for the past five years from the air, which provided a stunning perspective on all of these locations we have been walking, digging, measuring and recording during the times we have been here. Some of these views were hitherto unseen by any of us, and provide a superb data set which will facilitate further understanding of the work for years to come. 

Making the most of this extraordinary opportunity, we took hundreds of photographs, some of which are on the blog tonight, and also some video footage which, due to the nature of the internet connection here is impossible to load at present, but will appear on the blog once we are back in the UK. Together we hope these will provide an altogether different perspective on the work for us and others interested in the project, as well as aiding in the research itself. We now have aerial photographs of many of the sites we have discovered.

The aerial footage will enormously enhance the quality and value of the tv documentary, making it possible to explain to the general viewer the importance of space, distance and mobility in the guerrilla war in Southern Jordan.  We  would like to publicly express our huge thanks  to Captain Mohammed Jamel Qawaqzeh, Captain Issam Olimat and crewman Makram Hussein, the aircrew who were superb professionals and excellent hosts for our trip.

Another significant highlight of today was the wonderful meal which was served to us in the middle of the Desert at Tel El Shahm. This marvellous feast was made entirely by traditional methods with an oven in the sand, and the chicken cooked in eastern herbs and spices together with the accompaniments served to 45 people was an astonishing achievement given the harshness and heat of the desert environment. 

Again great thanks to our Jordanian friends and colleagues for enabling this meal and indeed the whole day, with special thanks to Mansour for being overall in charge and organising everything, Zeyad for his general organisation, Salah and Ahmed, and others, for their provision of the meal itself. 

Day 2 – Forts, camps, viaducts and rock art

First thing this morning after arriving at Tel el Shahm we headed towards the nearby lower portions of the rocky outcrop adjacent to the larger hill where the hilltop fortifications lie.  Zeyad, one of our local academic historians, showed us some amazing rock art, dating from between the 4th century BC and the first century AD. He had discovered this only the day before, and it is previously unrecorded. Later he and Roger spent some time scrambling over the entire north face of these rocks at various levels, sliding and barely staying upright, to find over 40 examples of these incredible pieces of ancient art. And in the middle on the top of the rocky platform there remains an ancient carved gaming table, truly amazing to find in this otherwise conflict landscape.

A four person survey team today walked northwards from Tel el Shahm fort towards back towards Wadi Rutm.  Our aim was to find out whether there were intermediate military posts between the two stations. There were. We found a fort beside each of two viaducts, one of 20 arches, the other of 14. These clearly were vulnerable targets. The first fort, by the 20 span viaduct comprised a rectangular breastwork and rampart located on a slight rise that was intervisible with both Tel el Shahm and Wadi Rutm fort. The second by the 14 span viaduct was also located on a rise and comprised a small square enclosure, a small circular enclosure and a length of about 100 metres of trench between the two. This too was intervisible with both Tel el Shahm and Wadi Rutm forts.

The survey has therefore confirmed that the Ottoman counter insurgency strategy involved a line of intervisible defended points that also between them ensured that the entire railway line was under observation.

Work at the sit at Tel el Shahm throughout the day, in over 90 degrees of heat with little or no breeze to keep the flies away or mitigate its effect. On the top of the rocky outcrop where the remains of the standing buildings are being investigated (the place we now refer to as ‘upstairs’) recording continued apace. Just getting to this part of the site has proved challenging. With the steep, sandy, stony ascent the team arrive breathless at the top, but unbowed. The very nature of the terrain means that every foot placement made is precarious, and the normal recording methodology is made much more difficult for this.

In contrast, the lower portion of the site, (which we now call “downstairs”) also was a day dominated by the recording and closing of excavated features, these being two tent rings. . Down here on the flat portion of the study area the intense heat equally affected the work. Much water was needed and used throughout the day and the short break times underneath the canopy were a huge relief. It is predicted to be even hotter over the next few days.

One great find of the day was a small Ottoman button which probably came from a shirt epaulette, and was made by Nina our latest Jordanian recruit, who found it eyes only while sitting in a tent ring. So far the finds count at Tel el Shahm has been very low, significantly lower than previous years at similar sites and mush lower than anticipated here. However we have found some other Ottoman army uniform buttons, and in an unusually shaped and positioned feature to one side of the main lower camp with direct line of site to the station on the Hijaz line an Ottoman coin was unearthed, confirming together with the button the presence of the counter insurgency foces.