Zooarchaeological analysis of two dromedaries (Camelus dromedarius L.) from late Iron Age graves in Wādī ʿUyūn at Sināw (al-Sharqiyyah, Sultanate of Oman) (poster)

Abstract

This paper presents the preliminary results of the zooarchaeological study of two complete skeletons of one-humped camels or dromedaries (Camelus dromedarius), found buried in two separate graves in part of a large necropolis excavated in Wādī ʿUyūn at Sināw (al-Sharqiyyah, Sultanate of Oman). Archaeological explorations in the area were supported by the Ministry of Heritage and Culture of the Sultanate of Oman, in collaboration with the Ministry of Transport and Communications, in light of the planned construction of the Sināw–Mahut-Duqm road. Excavations brought to light the exceptional deposition (Grave 58 [G.58]) of an adult male camel buried with a Greek kopis-type iron sword and two iron daggers, which date the grave to the last three centuries BC. Two burials (G.50 and G.59), each including the complete skeleton of a dromedary, were found in close proximity to G.58, and formed a single funerary cluster. Both animals, one adult and one subadult, were found in close proximity to G.58, and formed a single funerary cluster. Both animals, one adult and one subadult, were found in a kneeling position and were probably sacrificed during a funerary ritual for the deceased. Logarithmic size index (LSI) statistics, based on a comprehensive morphometric analysis of the two skeletons, provide important data to the debate about the exploitation of camels in the Arabian Peninsula during the first millennium BC.