Protecting the Past: Archaeology, Conservation and Tourism in the North of Jordan

Dr Bala'awi (Hashemite University) presents the results of a project of digital heritage documentation at Petra conducted by the Hashemite University

Dr Addison (SCHEP) talks about SCHEP's approach to engaging host communities in the preservation of cultural heritage resources in Jordan

Dr Clark (LaSierra, Madaba Plains Project) speaks of the issues involved in the protection of Tell 'Umeiri, a multi-period site in the Madaba region (central Jordan)

Dr al-Jaradat (Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, Palestine) speaks of the Palestinian national inventory of cultural heritage sites, for which work began in 2002 and is still ongoing Since the creation of a Palestinian Department of National Register, Palestinian authorities and international partners have work to build a comprehensive database of cultural heritage sites in the West Bank. This database comprises both published and unpublished data, recorded on an ESRI ArcGIS geodatabase. The main purpose of this inventory is to protect the main archaeological sites from ongoing building activities.

Dr Drzewiecki describes how archaeologists interviewed about the impact of Jordanian heritage databases have responded as regards the role of these databases in heritage protection

Mr Haroun (Department of Antiquities, Jordan) tells of how MEGA-Jordan has become the virtual memory of Jordan and the repository of its heritage

Dr Kafafi (Jordan Museum) describes the role that the Jordan Museum had in protecting the remains of the Hijaz railway within the framework of the Great Arab Revolt Project

Dr al-Khasawneh (Jordan Museum) speaks of the challenges facing Jordanian authorities in protecting the country's rich cultural heritage

Dr Drzewiecki has analysed the impact on researchers of online databases of archaeological sites in Jordan Dr Drzewiecki has conducted an opinion poll survey (with more than 100 respondents) of archaeologists with fieldwork experience in Jordan, asking them about the usefulness of resources such as MEGA-Jordan for their research and for the protection of cultural heritage in Jordan. He tells us about his preliminary results in this short speech.

Jeff DeKock (OpenHand Studios) reads a paper by Paul Christians (Stanford University) on the long-term involvement of the local community at Umm el-Jimal with the archaeology of the site

Mr Hazza (Co-director of the Umm el-Jimal project) speaks about the relationship between the modern community of Umm el-Jimal and the archaeological site

Dr Atzori (UNESCO) speaks of the opportunities for the local communities of Mafraq (north-eastern Jordan) as connected to the development of cultural tourism at Umm el-Jimal

Dr Arce (former director of the Spanish Archaeological Mission to Jordan) talks about the Qasr al-Hallabat project, particularly with regard to site conservation and presentation

Mr al-Batainah presents the work of restoration of a Roman-Byzantine winery and an Ottoman water mill, and their significance in the promotion of cultural tourism Amjad al-Batainah (Director, Department of Antiquities, Irbid office) describes the study and reconstruction works conducted on two rural archaeological sites: the Roman-Byzantine winery of Kahf al-Messihi (Beit Idis) and a water mill along the wadi al-Rayyan (previously known as wadi al-Yabis). The watermill of wadi al-Rayyan is also described in a video (in Arabic) to be found here:

Muna Haddad introduces Baraka's initiatives in the field of cultural tourism and community engagement, particularly on the site of Umm Qais Muna Haddad (Managing Director, Baraka) outlines the initiatives developed by Baraka in the field of cultural and ecotourism. In this presentation, Ms Haddad introduces Baraka's new project in Umm Qais. Find out more about Baraka here: http://www.experiencebaraka.com/

Dr al-'Amri describes the Jordan Museum's ethos to protecting Jordan's past

Dr Kouki talks about OSL dating Dr Kouki describes the results of OSL (Optically stimulated luminescence) dating on wadi sediments in the area of Jabal Harun (Petra region). Analyses were conducted as part of the Finnish Jabal Harun Project (2007-2014), which excavated a Byzantine monastery on top of Jabal al-Nebi Harun.

Dr Müller-Neuhof describes findings in the Early Bronze Age site of Jawa and its hinterland Dr Müller-Neuhof describes the results of his projects (2010-2014, 2015-), which aimed at investigating the social and economic background to settlement in the eastern Badia (north-east Jordan) from the 5th to the early-3rd millennium.

Dr Watson talks about the Pella Hinterland Survey conducted in 1994-1996 in the immediate surroundings of the multi-period site of Pella (Tabaqat Fahl) Dr Watson presents the results of the Pella Hinterland Survey, particularly with regard to land-use in the Late Antique Period

Prof. Hourani discusses the Prehistoric landscapes of the Jordan Valley

Dr Lucke describes the results of his work on palaeosoils and its implications for climate change in Byzantine and early-Islamic Abila and Umm el-Jimal

Prof. Abu Jaber describes the results of the EU-funded international Medscapes project Prof. Abu Jaber describes the findings of the Medscapes project in Jordan. Medscapes is based on the application of LCA (Landscape Character Assessment) to map, visualise and understand landscapes. In Jordan, this project has seen the collaboration between the German Jordanian University and the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN) to study the landscapes of the Yarmuk river basin.

Mr Boyer introduces the latest findings of his Jarash Water Project

Prof. Walmsley describes the work of the Danish-Jordanian Islamic Jarash Project The Danish-Jordanian Islamic Jarash Project was begun in 2002 with the aim of excavating a large early-Islamic congregational mosque and the early-Islamic shops and households in its vicinity. Project Director Prof. Alan Walmsley describes the origins of the project, its development and its future. For more information see: http://miri.ku.dk/projekts/djijp/

Dr De Vries and Mr DeKock present their holistic approach to the study, conservation and site display of Umm el-Jimal The site of Umm el-Jimal has been the object of more than 40 years of study by Dr Bert De Vries (Calvin College) and his colleagues. In this lecture, Dr De Vries and Mr DeKock (OpenHand Studios) present their approach to site conservation at Umm el-Jimal, and unveil the main features of the Umm el-Jimal virtual museum (www.ummeljimal.org)

Dr Vila, the director of the American Expedition to Abila,describes the team's work on the site from the 1980s onwards and recent fundraising efforts to protect the site's future

Dr Tidmarsh talks about the Hellenistic period at the multi-period site of Pella (Tabaqat Fahl, northern Jordan)

A talk by Dr R.Bewley (Oxford) introducing the Endangered Archaeology in the Middle East and North Africa project