Stone Beads in Oman during the 3rd to 2nd millennia BCE: New Approaches to the study of Trade and Technology

This paper focuses primarily on ancient stone beads found in Oman at sites dating to the 3rd to 2nd millennium BCE, generally dated to the Umm an-Nar and Wadi Suq periods. Archaeological collections were documented to determine the range of variation in the finished objects and if there is evidence for local production of carnelian and other hard-stone beads. A comparative analysis with published materials from other regions was also undertaken to document the bead types in Oman that might have been obtained through trade networks that linked this region to Mesopotamia, Iran, the Indus Valley region, Afghanistan, Egypt, and Anatolia. The overall outcome of this study is a more comprehensive understanding of the types of interactions that were carried out between communities in Oman and adjacent regions during the prehistoric period