Paleoenvironmental reconstruction of an urban archaeological of Jurash, Southwest of Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Jurash is located in the governorate of Ahad Rufaida, 15 km south of Khamis Mushait, which is part of Asir region in the southwest of Saudi Arabia. The site contains the remains of large buildings, some of them are of stone and some of clay, and dates back to the pre-Islamic period and successive Islamic periods that indicate the human settlement in the city. Where the city of Jurash is located on the trade route and the next pilgrimage from Yemen, and thus became an important commercial center at that time. Hence, the importance of the study in redrawing the maps of the city and working on an ecological perception that highlights the urban development and the old environmental conditions and determining the archaeological value of the city of Jurash because of its geographical (natural / human) and tourism investment. This will enable the orienting of the future course of the city and the appreciation of its heritage as well as the study of the archaeological and archaeological value of Jurash and its possibility of being included in the list of World Heritage sites. This will also enable obtaining physical evidence to prove the heritage value and tourism importance of the city and its economic role in achieving the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Vision 2030. Pedostratigraphy applied to urban archaeological sites, combined with geomorphological and archaeological data, provide important information for interpreting the complexity of urban geoarchaeology areas and their environment. This paper applies this methodology in the case of Jurash city and presents geomorphological and geoarchaeological data (stratigraphy, physicochemical soil properties, radiocarbon dating and pottery) for the study area where these remains are located. Geoarchaeological work is essential in archaeological excavations of urban areas, as demonstrated at Jarash where the study of pedostratigraphy provides crucial information on past environmental changes and human activities. Pedostratigraphic records and archaeological remains should be considered part of the geological and cultural heritage of urban areas.