Islamic archaeology

Islamic archaeology involves the recovery and scientific investigation of the material remains of past cultures that can illuminate the periods and descriptions in the Quran, and early Islam. The science of archaeology [2] grew out of the older multi-disciplinary study known as antiquarianism.

Islamic archaeology

Al Faw Village

Head of a man from Qaryat al-Faw (1st century BC)

Cross section of the Dome (print from 1887, after the first detailed drawings of the Dome, made by Frederick Catherwood in 1833).[1]

Pre-Islamic In-situ examples include south Arabian 4th CE rock inscriptions that evidence fewer pagan expressions and the start in use of the monotheistic "rahmān".[3]

The oldest extant Islamic monument is The Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem which contains some of the earliest extant qurānic text, dated to 692CE. They vary from today's standard text (mainly changes from the first to the third person) and are mixed with pious inscriptions absent from the Quran.[3] During a six-week period in 1833, Frederick Catherwood produced the first known detailed survey.[1]

Early pioneers included Eduard Glaser and Alois Musil. Khaled al-Asaad was principal custodian of the Palmyra site from 1963, overseeing its elevation to a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[4][5] Some of the earliest areas investigated include Al Faw Village and Madain Saleh. Jodi Magness has covered the archaeology of early Islamic settlement in Palestine.

A political dispute in the Uttar Pradesh city of Ayodhya, as noted by academic, K. K. Muhammed, has revolved around archaeologial Issues: whether an archaeological plot, believed the temple birthplace of the Hindu deity Rama was demolished or modified to create the Babri Masjid mosque.[6]

The Museum of Islamic Archaeology and Art of Iran was opened in 1972. It houses tools dating back 30,000 to 35,000 years and crafted by Mousterian Neanderthals in Yafteh. Among the oldest human artifacts are 9,000-year-old and animal figurines from the Sarab mound in Kermanshah Province. The Gaza Museum of Archaeology was opened in 2008. Objects protected from display include Aphrodite in revealing gown, images of ancient deities and oil lamps featuring menorahs.

Fewer archaeological surveys have taken place in the Arabian peninsula and are considered taboo in Mecca (The Noble) and Medina (The Enlightened City). There is no architecture from the time of Mohammed in either city and the battlefields of the Quran have not been unearthed. Known settlements from the time, such as Khaybar, remain uninvestigated.

Archaeologial evidence for existence yet to be uncovered.[3] includes that for the ʿĀd who built and monuments and strongholds at every high point[7] and their fate evident from the remains of their dwellings.[8][9]