Archaeologists find origins of 1st century settlement beyond damage of bulldozing carried out during conflict

© University of Leicester / American University of Beirut

© University of Leicester / American University of Beirut

High in the central Biqa’ Valley of Lebanon, investigating the Graeco-Roman temple and village site of Hosn Niha, an archaeologist from Leicester says there is hope among the dispiriting pictures of damage caused to archaeological sites by military conflict.Decades of civil war, heavy looting and turmoil have caused severe damage to historic sites in the 1st century settlement, where an international team has reported evidence of an early medieval reoccupation – possibly in the form of a fortified farmhouse – at a site established by the 1st century. Their early findings focus on the post-early Islamic period, when permanent occupation of the area was thought to have ended.“Rather than simply ignoring sites that have been badly damaged by conflict, we have taken on the challenge of investigating a site previously considered too badly damaged by conflict to warrant systematic archaeological investigation,” says Dr Ruth Young, of the School of Archaeology and Ancient History at the University of Leicester.“Using a range of up-to-date surface survey methods we were able to answer some important questions about the site.“The first of these was an accurate assessment of site damage, what had been done and where, and the effects of various actions, be it bulldozing or clandestine looting of the site.“Through this exercise, we learned that bulldozing and other damage actions had effectively erased the heart of the settlement, but significantly sized sections of settlement beyond it remained quite well preserved.“From recording and collecting surface finds from across the settlement area as a whole we were able to begin to understand both the morphology and development history of the settlement.“Our research at Hosn Niha has shown that with the right methods and questions, it is possible to obtain a great deal of original and important information from sites that have suffered badly through conflict.”Writing in a report for the archaeology journal Antiquity, Dr Young and her co-author, Dr Paul Newson, from the American University of Beirut, suggest that damaged archaeological sites represent a chance to preserve precious information, helping to rebuild damaged communities and create employment and reintegration opportunities for displaced residents.“Aerial photographs of living ancient cities such as Homs and Aleppo in Syria taken before the war have been compared to images from the last few months, and the extent of damage to houses, mosques, and heritage structures is brutal and widespread,” says Dr Newson, ruing “shocking” footage from archaeological sites in Iraq, including the apparent bulldozing of “irreplaceable” buildings.“Of course, the human cost in any conflict is the first and highest priority. However, archaeology and heritage are extremely vulnerable to attack and damage during conflict.”