The Qurayyat Project

QURAYYAT 

Building upon prior work conducted in the Sharqiyah region, and particularly at Ras al-Jinz, our investigations into the Muscat governorate, specifically in the wilayat of Qurayyāt, consist of an integrated programme combining aerial and pedestrian surveys with stratigraphic excavations. 

According to the explorations carried out in the 70s and 80s of last century, the Qurayyāt area was occupied from the Late Neolithic onwards. While the Neolithic was fairly well documented by these initial surveys, which were focusing on early prehistoric occupations, the Early Bronze Age and Iron Age periods in the area are less well known. Besides, even the Neolithic remains have undergone very little investigation. With our project, we aim to expand our knowledge of the prehistoric remains in the area through survey and small- or large-scale excavations of the detected sites, depending on the potential shown by the occupations.    

Among the already known occupations, two large shell middens, Khawr Milh 1 and 2 (KM 1 and 2), are almost in the centre of a coastal plain formed by three major wadis. KM 1, in particular, was briefly investigated in 1986 by a team from Tübingen University. The artefact scatter spans a dune measuring approximately 300 × 150 m, and. limited soundings revealed shell layers up to one metre thick.  

Given the scanty diachronic and synchronic data from the Qurayyāt region and the threats posed by ongoing infrastructural developments, especially to the site of KM 1, the documentation and preservation of this archaeological heritage is key. By gathering new data from these sites, our project reintegrates these crucial but understudied settlements into current archaeological narratives. Comparative analysis across the Muscat and Sur regions will further elucidate site organisation, inter-group interactions, and the local dynamics of economic diversification.