The history as told by the pottery: an insight into the last occupation phase of the citadel of al-Balīd

This paper presents some of the most interesting results of the research work conducted between 2016 and 2018 on the ceramic findings of the Islamic period collected at the citadel of al-Balīd during the most recent excavations (Pavan et alii 2020, 173-174).1 Studies on the pottery from the site were carried out before 2016 by other scholars within the framework of previous archaeological missions (Fusaro 2019, 130-131); they have been essential for this new research project, which is meant to be in continuity with the past efforts, although with necessary revisions. A multidisciplinary approach has been chosen as the methodological base for the study: the archaeological work, comprising stratigraphic and quantitative analysis of the assemblages and stylistic-morphological-technological examination of the pottery, is supported by ethnoarchaeological research on modern Dhofari pottery tradition carried out in 2017-2018 and archaeometric analyses, that are currently ongoing (Fusaro 2019, 131-132). A number of published manuscripts have been already dedicated to the presentation of the whole pottery corpus of the Middle and Late Islamic period from the citadel and the first results of this research work (Fusaro, 2018, 2019, 2020a, 2020b). For this reason, only a brief overview of the main wares circulating at al-Balīd is provided. Most of this paper will be devoted to the last occupation phase of the citadel. This is a largely unknown and often neglected period of al-Balīd, as it has been usually defined as a phase of decline of the city, also according to the available historical sources and the architectural remains. Nonetheless, the ceramic evidence depicts a different and quite unexpected scenario, suggesting that al-Balīd was a still lively site, largely involved in manufacturing and trading activities.