Facts on the Ground: Archaeological Practice and Territorial Self-Fashioning in Israeli Society

368 Pages·2002·48.13 MB·English

by  Nadia Abu El-Haj

FACTS GROUND
ON THE
Archaeological
Practice and
Territorial
Self-Fashioning
in Israeli Society
NADIA ABU EL-HAJ
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29931
Facts on the Ground

Nadia Abu El-Haj
Facts on the Ground
Archaeological Practice and
Territorial Self-Fashioning
in Israeli Society
QH~
The University of Chicago Press
Chicago & London
NADIA A au EL-HAJ is assistant professor of anthropology at
the Uni,·ersity of Chicago.
THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO PRESS, CHICAGO 6o637
THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO PRESS, LTD., LONDON
© 2001 by The University of Chicago
All rights reserved. Published 2001
Printed in the United States of America
10 09 o8 07 o6 05 04 03 02 01 5 4 3 2 1
ISBN (cloth): 0-226-00194-6
ISBN (paper): 0-226-00195-4
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Abu El-Haj, Nadia.
Facts on the ground :archaeological practice and territorial
self-fashioning in Israeli society I Nadia Abu EI-Haj.
p. em.
ISBN 0-226-00194-6 (cloth : alk. paper)-ISBN 0-226-00195-4 (pbk. :
alk. paper)
1. Excavations (Archaelogy)-Israel. 2. Ethnoarchaeology-Israel. 3. Israel
Antiquities. 4. Archaeology and history-Israel. 5. Archaeology-Political
aspects-Israel. 6. Archaeology-Methodology. I. Title.
05111.1 .A28 2001
933-dc21
2001004432
@The paper used in this publication
meets the minimum requirements of the
American National Standard for Information Sciences
Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials,
ANSI Z39-48-1992.
Contents
List of Illustrations vii
Acknowledgments ix
Author's Note xiii
1. Excavating Archaeology 1
2. Scientific Beginnings 22
3. Instituting Archaeology 45
4. Terrains of Settler Nationhood 73
5. Positive Facts of Nationhood 99
6.ExcavatingJerusalem 130
7. Extending Sovereignty 163
8. Historical Legacies 201
9. Archaeology and Its Aftermath 239
10. Conclusion 277
Notes 283
v
vi CONTENTS
Bibliography 321
Index 345
Illustrations
4.1 Map of Palestine 80
7.1 The Old City ofJerusalem 168
7.2 Tower of David Museum: Ramparts and Archaeological
Garden 171
7.3 Tower of David Museum: Early Islamic Room with Mil)rab 172
7.4 Tower of David Museum: "Arab Arch" in the Archaeological
Garden 175
7.5 Tower of David Museum: "Migdal David" 177
7.6 Design by Moshe Safdie for the Western Wall Plaza 184
7.7 Restored Crusader Cardo 187
7.8 Herodian Quarter: Basement-level Museum 188
7.9 Arch of the Hurva Synagogue 189
7.10 Jewish Quarter: "Old-New" Buildings 190
7.11 MinaretadjacenttoHurva'sArch 192
7.12 "The Border" 198
8.1 Herodian Quarter Museum: Room Displaying Mosaic and
Household Wares 205
8.2 Preserved Excavation Site 206
8.3 Ash: Evidence of Roman Destruction of Jerusalem
in First Century c.E. 213
8.4 The "Secret Passage" 218
8.5 A Descriptive Panel 221
8.6 Model of the Herodian Temple with Muslim Quarter 222
8.7 Model of the Herodian Temple without Muslim Quarter 223
8.8 Chamber for Prayer 226
8.9 Chamber for Prayer 227
vii

Acknowledgments
It is my pleasure to thank the people and institutions who helped me
complete this book. Research and writing were made possible by fel
lowships from the Social Science Research Council-MacArthur Foun
dation Grants in International Peace and Security, the Fulbright-Hays
Training Grant for Doctoral Dissertation Research, the Harvard Acad
emy for International and Area Studies, a Mellon Fellowship in the Hu
manities at the University of Pennsylvania, and a Research and Writing
Grant for Individuals from the Program on Peace and International Co
operation of the MacArthur Foundation.
Various people helped me throughout my research, and I would like
to thank them here. Eyal Ben-Ari and Naomi Chazan helped me get set
up and affiliated with the Truman Institute at Hebrew University. Jona
than Boyarin, Smadar La vie, and Neil Silberman offered advice and con
tacts at the start of this project. I would like to thank Don Handelman
with whom I discussed my work and who pointed me in the right di
rection at several points along the way. Ibrahim Dakkak, Mahmoud
Hawari, George Hintilian, Aharon Kempinski, Salim Tamari, Raid al
Malkki, and Elie Zureik were all helpful at various points and in various
ways. Special thanks go to Lee Dvir, who taught me Hebrew and became
a true friend during my two years in Jerusalem. Both the British School
of Archaeology in Jerusalem and the Palestine Exploration Fund in Lon
don welcomed me into their libraries and archives, for which I am grate
ful. Rema Hamami was both a good friend and interlocutor, and of
course I would like to thank Lisa Hajjar, without whom I'm quite sure I
would never have gotten through the fieldwork.
During the years I have been engaged in this study, many colleagues
and friends have read all or parts of the work. Special thanks go to fac
ulty members at Duke University: Richard Fox, Eric Meyers, Naomi
ix