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219 A NABATAEAN AND/OR ROMAN MILITARY MONITORING ZONE ALONG THE SOUTH BANK OF THE WADI EL HASA IN SOUTHERN JORDAN 1 • Introduction Between the years 1979 and 1982 the Wadi el ':Iasa Archaelogical Survey (WHS) covered an area of approximately 300 km 2 along the south bank of the Wadi el ':Iasa in Southern Jordan 2 (Fig. I) . During the course of this work certain patterns began to emerge as far as the sites surveyed were concerned. One such pattern is that of a possible Nabataean and/or Roman military monitoring zone along the south side of the Wadi. May and June of 1983 provided the time necessary to re-examine most of the sites forming this hypothetical zone in an attempt to see them as a unit. Thus the present paper" is written with the intention of drawing to the attention of Nabataean and Roman scholars the possibility of such a zone. The evidence here is based on the archaeological features studied: architecture, pottery, and the relationship of these sites to one another and to the system of associated roads and routes in the region. 1, wish to thank Professor G. W. Bowersock for his interest in this work and for his comments on a preliminary draft of this paper. I wish also to thank the members of the WHS team. Funds to carry out the work were provided by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada 2B . MacDonald, E. B. Banning, and L. A. Pavlish, liThe Wadi el I:lasa Survey 1979: A Preliminary Report, II ADAJ XX IV: 169-183, Pis. CIII-CX. B. MacDonald, G. O. Rollefson,----ana D. W. Roller, liThe Wadi el fjasa Survey 1981: A PreliminClry Report, II ADAJ XXVI: 117-131, Pis. XXVIII-XXXIV, #1-14. B. MacDonald, G. ~ollefson, E. B. Banning, B. G. Byrd, and C. D'Annibale, liThe Wadi el fjasa Survey 1982: A Preliminary Report," ADAJ XXVII (in press). 220 BURTON MACDONALD The sites that make up this hypothetical zone will be descrihed individually and generally in a west-to-east order. The order followed in this description is set forth in Table I. Attempts will be made to see how one site is related to another or others in forming a distinctive pattern. This discussion will also include, where available, details supplied by previous explorers of the sites under study. Des~r.iption of the Sites: The most westerly located of the sites pertinent to this hypothesis is Rujm Karaka, WHS Site 24 3 (Plate I). What strikes one about this relatively small watchtower, built of chert blocks, is its visibility from almost any point on the plateau south of the Wadi el Hasa. It provides an excellent vantage point from which to view the surrounding terrain, and even the Dead Sea can be seen on a clear day to the northwest. The site, now a burial place, with many human bones visible among the stones, is in a ruined state, with a preserved height of ca. 3 m. It gives the impression of having been built in a steplike fashion, but we were ahle to establish dimensions. at one level of ca. 8.50 m 2 . A large cistern, cut into bedrock, and stone aqueducts, which at one time channelled rain run-off into it, are located immediately north of the site. The identifiable pottery collected at the site dates to several different periods, including the Late Roman and Byzantine (Table I). Just down the slope to the southeast of Rujm KClraka, and clearly visible from it, at a distance of 500 m, is a small site built of chert blocks measuring ca. 20 m 2 called Rujm QiHah, WHS Site 100 3MacDonald, Banning and Pavlish op. cit. (note 2) 176; N. ~~u4~~~3~~:at~oan:e~~ EA~~e:~a:a~~~~~r; 0;I or~e~1~R Re~~~~c~\V 16~~ 108. R. E. Brunnow, and A. von Domaszewski Die Provincia Arabia auf Grund Zweier in den Jahren 1897 und 1898 Unternommenen Reisen und der Berichte Fruherer Reisender. (Strassburg: Karl J. Trubner, 1904-1909}, 108. A. Musil, Arabia Petraea. II: Edom. (Wien: Alfred Holder, 1907) II: 2:242. - - 222 BURTON MACDONALD (Fig...

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