Publisher Description

The volume reports the results of four seasons of excavation at Tell es-Sweyhat, an Early Bronze Age urban center located on the margins of the dry-farming zone in Syria. A goal of the project has been to integrate traditional archaeological methods and the applied sciences. Results to date suggest that the site, though several kilometers from the Euphrates River, was well-situated for exploiting upland pastures. Geomagnetic mapping reveals details about the internal site structure. Archaeobotany, zooarchaeology, and geomagnetic mapping, complemented by a substantial pottery study, regional survey, stratigraphic analysis, and discussion of the newly discovered cemetery provide the basis for understanding this inhospitable area.

MASCA Vol. 14

Author Biography

Patrick E. McGovern is Scientific Director of the Biomolecular Archaeology Laboratory for Cuisine, Fermented Beverages, and Health at the University of Pennsylvania Museum. His books include"Ancient Wine: The Search for the Origins of Viniculture, " the 2004 Grand Prize winner in History, Literature, and Fine Arts, Organisation Internationale de la Vigne et du Vin. McGovern's research on the origins of alcoholic beverages has been featured in "Time, The New York Times, The New Yorker, Nature, "and elsewhere.

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