Case Studies:Case study 42

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[edit] Geoarchaeology of Phoenicia’s buried harbours

Nick Marriner

[edit] Abstract

5000 years of human-environment interactions at Beirut, Sidon and Tyre harbours is investigated. All three sites grew up around easily defendable pocket beaches during the Bronze Age. Medium grain sand units and concomitant coastal faunas concur the predominance of environmental determinism at this time. Towards the end of the Bronze Age and early Iron Age, expanding Mediterranean exchanges and developments in naval architecture entrained artificial modification of the natural anchorages. Although Roman and Byzantine dredging has paradoxically created archiveless Iron Age harbours, fine-grained sediment pockets at Sidon and Tyre evoke advanced harbourworks at this time. During the Roman period, age-depth anomalies and sediment hiatuses are consistent with pronounced harbour dredging. The port sediments are characterised by fine silty sands with a marine lagoonal fauna. The harbours’ apogee is recorded during the Byzantine period, comprising a plastic clay with lagoonal and marine lagoonal faunas.

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Paléoenvironnements littoraux du Liban à l'Holocène Géoarchéologie des ports antiques de Beyrouth, Sidon et Tyr 5000 ans d'interactions nature-culture.

Keywords: Bronze Age, Iron Age, Roman, Byzantine, coastal stratigraphy, environmental determinism, Holocene, Lebanon, Mediterranean, Phoenicia, Beirut, Sidon, Tyre