New Research on Old Collections in Southwest Asian Archaeology : Proceedings of the Workshop Held at the British Museum, London, 31 July - 2 August 2023. / Edited by Mette Bangsborg Thuesen and Guilia Russo.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Thuesen, Mette Bangsborg, editor.

Russo, Giulia, 1948- editor.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Archaeological museums and collections.

Conservation and restoration.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (132 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Bicester : Archaeopress, 2026.

Summary:

This volume compiles studies by early‑career scholars on reinterpreting legacy collections from Southwest Asia. Focusing on object biographies, provenance and archival research, it highlights the value of overlooked materials and promotes their use as a sustainable approach in archaeology.

Contents:

Cover

Title Page

Copyright Information

Contents

List of Figures

Chapter 1: Introduction

Figure 1. Group photo of workshop participants in front of the board with terms defining sustainability

Chapter 2: Writing the biography of artefacts retired in museums. A methodological approach to the study of Mesopotamian statuary

Figure 1. Examples of sets of mutilated statuettes unearthed at Mari. Top left: Temple of Ishtar (1934) © Mission Archéologique de Mari - Archives André Parrot. Top right: Temple of Ninizaza (1952) © Mission Archéologique de Mari - Archives André Parrot.

Chapter 3: A Multidisciplinary approach to the study of Zoomorphic figurines from Ur

Figure 1. Chart showing the distribution of the represented species. Data taken from The British Museum's database, Ur Project website and direct observation of the material.

Figure 2. Object number 1931,1010.485 © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Figure 3. Object number 1931,1010.483. © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Figure 4. Object number 1924,0920.400. © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Figure 5. Object number 1931,1010.502. © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Figure 6. Extract from Woolley's field diary with example of use of question mark for unclear species. © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Figure 7. a) Extract from Woolley's field diary. b) Object number 1935,0113.71 © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Figure 8. Object number 1935,0113.84 © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Figure 10. Object number 1928,1009.490 © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Figure 9. Object number 1927,0527.244 © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Chapter 4: Gaining clarity from old glass: Some surprising results from heritage collections at the British Museum.

Figure 1. A selection of glass bangle fragments from Siraf, Iran (c. 14th-15th century). Photo C. Nash-Pye © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Figure 2. Selection of glass bangle samples at the British Museum from Kawd am-Saila, very similar to those previously assessed by Monod (1978). Photo C. Nash-Pye © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Figure 3. Major comparative compositional glass groupings representing regional provenance. Data: Tyre in Lebanon (10th-11th century) and Banias in Israel (11th-13th century) (Phelps 2016), al-Raqqa 1 in Syria (8th-11th century) (Henderson et al. 2004), c

Figure 4. Major comparative compositional glass groupings, indicating the 'High Ti, High Zr' bangles have a closer composition to Siraf A and B types but are of a different unknown silica source. Data: Old Cairo in Egypt (c. 1350), Tyre in Lebanon (10th-1

Figure 5. Major comparative compositional glass groupings representing regional provenance with the Kawd am-Saila (Yemen) composition added, representing a new regional grouping. Data: Tyre in Lebanon (10th-11th century) and Banias in Israel (11th-13th ce

Chapter 5: Plain yet significant: the making of a new typology of unglazed pottery from Takht-e Suleiman

Figure 1. General plan of Takht-e Suleiman during the Sasanian period. Based on drawing by D. Huff (2008: 7).

Figure 2. Overview of registered variables.

Figure 3. Example of Schnyder's notes. These drawings feature rim fragments from a type of bottle with upright rim occurring within Horizon V and VI that date to the Late Sasanian and Early Islamic periods.

Figure 4. Example of body sherd with the original find code "PW 850" preserved, seen here below the object no. "1.50/71.64.489." Photo M. Bangsborg Thuesen.

Figure 5. Find locations of sampled sherds marked in green. The map is based on drawing by D. Huff kept at the German Archaeological Institute.

Figure 6. Forms exclusively associated with Horizon VI.

Figure 7. Vessels with combed strokes decoration.

Chapter 6: New Approaches to Old Stratigraphy: The Sequence-of-Events Analysis

Figure 1: Sequence-of-Events during the squatter occupation at Godin Tepe, based on the northwestern tower.

Figure 2: Iron Age occupation of Godin Tepe. Phase II:2 represents the citadel and Phase II:1 represents the subsequent squatter occupation.

Figure 3: Page from the excavation diary of Sqaure A1, written during the 1967 campaign, describing the excavation of the northwestern tower.

Figure 4: An example of the database created for this study with features that I found in the original documentation that were not yet published.

Preface

St John Simpson

Mette Bangsborg Thuesen &amp

Giulia Russo

Section I: Understanding the production and use-life of objects in museum collections

Imane Achouche

Enrica Inversi

Chapter 4: Gaining clarity from old glass: Some surprising results from heritage collections at the British Museum

Charlotte Nash-Pye

Section II: Re-assessing old documentation and perspectives on archival and collection practices

Mette Bangsborg Thuesen

Georg Cyrus.

Chapter 7: 'Basements with insatiable appetites' - Archaeological collections, museum storerooms, and sustainability

Giulia Russo.

Notes:

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

Part of the metadata in this record was created by AI, based on the text of the resource.

ISBN:

9781805832829

OCLC:

1608208822