•  
  •  
 

Abstract

Ten squares were excavated in four areas (A–D) at Miska, revealing a long and detailed stratigraphic sequence, from the Late Roman to the late Ottoman periods. In Area A, a large refuse pit was revealed, containing a considerable amount of glass shards and debris of a glass furnace, dating from the Late Roman–Byzantine periods. Glass production was an important activity in the region of Miska, likely related to the local availability of sand and fuel. Miska served as a station in the Roman road system, which expanded during the Byzantine period, with the Christian pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and eventually inherited by the Muslim authorities of the region. The existence of a good road system connecting the coastal and the inland settlements would have been an important prerequisite for the local development of a glass industry, as for the transportation of other goods.

Keywords

south Sharon, glass production, industrial activity, trade, road system, architecture, bag-shaped storage jars, double-stamped jar handle, Gaza Ware, Marseille roof tiles, zooarchaeology, camel bones

Share

 
COinS