New excavations at the Umm an-Nar site Ras al-Hadd HD-1, Sultanate of Oman (seasons 2016-2018): Insights on cultural interaction

Renewed excavations in 2016-17 and 2017-18 at the Umm an-Nar coastal site HD-1 at Ras al-Hadd, in the Sultanate of Oman, provide new insights on regional and long-distance interactions during the Early Bronze Age. The Italian-American 'Joint Hadd project' is led by Maurizio Cattani from the University of Bologna, and Jonathan Mark Kenoyer from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, under the auspices of the Ministry of Heritage and Culture of Oman. New radiocarbon dates place the site firmly in the mid-third millennium BC. Plant and faunal remains are being examined to determine seasonal subsistence patterns and fishing strategies. The discovery of lithic, copper, and shell manufacturing debris provides new information on local technologies. Fibres and textiles preserved on copper tools and other artefacts reveal the nature of local fibre production and possible long-distance trade of other fibres. Finished stone beads of local as well as non-local materials indicate the importance of both regional and external trade. A wide variety of local as well as Indus-related ceramics reveal connections to regional Umm an-Nar communities and the more distant Indus source areas. Preliminary results of selected artefact analyses are presented here to highlight new directions for research