The Persian Period Pottery of Tall Al-\u27Umayri

Problem In Transjordan, archaeological evidence found at well-stratified sites and dating to the Persian period (539-330 BC) has been lacking until the publication series of Tall al- ‘Umayri. This dissertation determines a pottery typology of the Persian period by distinguishing between the Iron II/Persian period and the Persian period of Tall al- ‘Umayri. Method The ceramic evidence dating to the Persian period from the site of Tall al-‘Umayri was systematically collected and organized according to the form typology set out in Ancient Pottery of Transjordan. The Persian pottery was then compared to Iron II/Persian pottery in order to discover differences between these two periods. Results Several differences between the Iron II/Persian pottery and Persian pottery of Tall al-‘Umayri were discovered. Differences included pottery forms and characteristics appearing in the Persian period but not found in the Iron II/Persian period as well as decorative treatments. Conclusions Differences between Iron II/Persian pottery and Persian pottery do exist. These differences are tangible enough to be used to separate archaeological finds and define them as belonging to the Iron II/Persian period or the Persian period