Paul Yule Books

Der Band vereint fünf Beiträge über Ausgrabungen, die das Department of Antiquities des Sultanates Oman und die Deutsche Archäologische Oman Expedition in den 70er und 80er Jahren durchführten. Die Untersuchungen betreffen die Gegend von Muskat, ein prähistorisches Grabinventar von Aztah, einen Vorbericht über die Grabungssaison 1996, späteisenzeitliche Gräberfelder von Amla/al Zahirah und Grabfunde im Osten von Ibra. Im Hauptteil werden die Grabungen in Muskat behandelt, wobei die Ökologie und Kultur des Wadi Bawshar diskutiert werden. Ein Katalog der Gräber und Funde, darunter ein früheisenzeitlicher „Bienenwaben“-Friedhof (ca. 600 v. Chr. bis 0), wird präsentiert. Es folgen Erörterungen zur Chronologie, zu Grabbräuchen, zur vorislamischen Grabarchitektur und zu anthropologischen Befunden. Abschließend liegen ein Restaurierungsbericht, das Molluskenmaterial und weitere Gräber vor.

The accidental discovery of the hoard of metal weapons, bangles, and vessels in the desert plain called Selme in August of 1979 evoked a complicated chain of events which led to the final publication. The Department of Antiquities and foreign experts cooperated to preserve the finds, which were threatened by progressive corrosion, and see the documentation and publication through to its end. The finds were restored and studied metallurgically in the German Mining Museum. Other projects on the archaeology of Oman which took place at the same time yielded much additional information on the hoard and its historical importance. 508 metal artefacts comprise the hoard itself and 82 stone and ceramic vessels belong to the tomb in which the hoard was hidden. This is the largest metal hoard ever found in the ancient Near East. It is studied from the standpoint of the metallurgy of the finds and their prehistoric context. The Selme hoard is a main source for the prehistoric metalwork of South-eastern Arabia.

In 2007 Paul Yule published a monographic study of the Himyarite empire for specialists and non-specialists alike. By means of large amounts of newly acquired data, especially from the annual field-seasons at the Himyarite capital, Zafar, it was possible to re-cast the blossoming of the tribal confederacy until the advent of Islam. New colour high-resolution photos and drawings made the text lucid and interesting. After its publication, the text attracted much discussion, and new archaeological finds came to light, the most striking of which were two 1.70 m relief representations of what seem to be a Christian or even Aksumite king, part of a 10 m long relief from about the 1st century CE, which is printed in the supplement in 3D and can be viewed with the 3D spectacles included.