Tel Abu Shusha, located in the Jezreel Valley of Palestine, is a large-scale archaeological site possibly identified as the cities of Biblical Gaba or Roman Gaba Hippaeon/Gaba Philippi. Surface archaeological survey of the surrounding area, conducted by the Jezreel Valley Regional Project during 2017, revealed extensive assemblages of visible settlement features dating primarily to middle and late Islamic periods. This research seeks to answer questions of settlement decision-making and societal organization, by integrating archaeological, textual, environmental, and geospatial data sources. In addition to visual interpretation, Kolmogorov-Smirnov nonparametric tests are used to gain insight on environmental settlement preferences; Ripley’s K analysis aids in interpretation of multiscalar point patterning; and pure locational (k-means) and unconstrained clustering methods provide information regarding social organization, on both a larger scale and within four smaller case study areas. Results suggest that residential neighborhoods were often located with easy access to resources, in open areas to accommodate larger populations, and with some defensive advantages. Production centers, in contrast, were placed in high, flat areas with plentiful sunlight, likely near raw materials. Lifeways differed greatly, with a central residential hub centered on Abu Shusha, a northern region with intensive agricultural activity, and a more varied southern area with heavy production and a more household-based settlement style. Additionally, low-density magnetic susceptibility measurements were taken within the four focused case study areas, with mixed results. Local correlation methods aid in identification of settlement soils in certain areas, particularly near production centers, while other grid blocks exhibit more confused magnetic patterns.
","abstract_html":"<p>Tel Abu Shusha, located in the Jezreel Valley of Palestine, is a large-scale archaeological site possibly identified as the cities of Biblical Gaba or Roman Gaba Hippaeon/Gaba Philippi. Surface archaeological survey of the surrounding area, conducted by the Jezreel Valley Regional Project during 2017, revealed extensive assemblages of visible settlement features dating primarily to middle and late Islamic periods. This research seeks to answer questions of settlement decision-making and societal organization, by integrating archaeological, textual, environmental, and geospatial data sources. In addition to visual interpretation, Kolmogorov-Smirnov nonparametric tests are used to gain insight on environmental settlement preferences; Ripley’s K analysis aids in interpretation of multiscalar point patterning; and pure locational (k-means) and unconstrained clustering methods provide information regarding social organization, on both a larger scale and within four smaller case study areas. Results suggest that residential neighborhoods were often located with easy access to resources, in open areas to accommodate larger populations, and with some defensive advantages. Production centers, in contrast, were placed in high, flat areas with plentiful sunlight, likely near raw materials. Lifeways differed greatly, with a central residential hub centered on Abu Shusha, a northern region with intensive agricultural activity, and a more varied southern area with heavy production and a more household-based settlement style. Additionally, low-density magnetic susceptibility measurements were taken within the four focused case study areas, with mixed results. Local correlation methods aid in identification of settlement soils in certain areas, particularly near production centers, while other grid blocks exhibit more confused magnetic patterns. </p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Price, Seth"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts in Anthropology (MA)","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Vining, Benjamin R.","Lockhart, Jami J."],"advisors":["Kvamme, Kenneth L."],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2018,"date_issued":"2018-05-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2018-05-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T00:59:08Z","subjects":["Archaeology","Geospatial","Israel","Magnetic Susceptibility","Palestine","Statistics","Archaeological Anthropology","Geographic Information Sciences","Near and Middle Eastern Studies","Social and Cultural Anthropology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/2777","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Vining, Benjamin R.","Lockhart, Jami J."]},{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Kvamme, Kenneth L."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Price, Seth"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2018"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2024-02-06T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts in Anthropology (MA)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Archaeology","Geospatial","Israel","Magnetic Susceptibility","Palestine","Statistics","Archaeological Anthropology","Geographic Information Sciences","Near and Middle Eastern Studies","Social and Cultural Anthropology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/2777"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Tel Abu Shusha, located in the Jezreel Valley of Palestine, is a large-scale archaeological site possibly identified as the cities of Biblical Gaba or Roman Gaba Hippaeon/Gaba Philippi. Surface archaeological survey of the surrounding area, conducted by the Jezreel Valley Regional Project during 2017, revealed extensive assemblages of visible settlement features dating primarily to middle and late Islamic periods. This research seeks to answer questions of settlement decision-making and societal organization, by integrating archaeological, textual, environmental, and geospatial data sources. In addition to visual interpretation, Kolmogorov-Smirnov nonparametric tests are used to gain insight on environmental settlement preferences; Ripley’s K analysis aids in interpretation of multiscalar point patterning; and pure locational (k-means) and unconstrained clustering methods provide information regarding social organization, on both a larger scale and within four smaller case study areas. Results suggest that residential neighborhoods were often located with easy access to resources, in open areas to accommodate larger populations, and with some defensive advantages. Production centers, in contrast, were placed in high, flat areas with plentiful sunlight, likely near raw materials. Lifeways differed greatly, with a central residential hub centered on Abu Shusha, a northern region with intensive agricultural activity, and a more varied southern area with heavy production and a more household-based settlement style. Additionally, low-density magnetic susceptibility measurements were taken within the four focused case study areas, with mixed results. Local correlation methods aid in identification of settlement soils in certain areas, particularly near production centers, while other grid blocks exhibit more confused magnetic patterns.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Social Organization and Environmental Patterning at Tel Abu Shusha: An Integrated Spatial Approach to Survey Archaeology"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Vining, Benjamin R.","Lockhart, Jami J."],"dc:contributor.advisor":["Kvamme, Kenneth L."],"dc:creator":["Price, Seth"],"dc:date":["2018"],"dc:date.available":["2024-02-06T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Tel Abu Shusha, located in the Jezreel Valley of Palestine, is a large-scale archaeological site possibly identified as the cities of Biblical Gaba or Roman Gaba Hippaeon/Gaba Philippi. Surface archaeological survey of the surrounding area, conducted by the Jezreel Valley Regional Project during 2017, revealed extensive assemblages of visible settlement features dating primarily to middle and late Islamic periods. This research seeks to answer questions of settlement decision-making and societal organization, by integrating archaeological, textual, environmental, and geospatial data sources. In addition to visual interpretation, Kolmogorov-Smirnov nonparametric tests are used to gain insight on environmental settlement preferences; Ripley’s K analysis aids in interpretation of multiscalar point patterning; and pure locational (k-means) and unconstrained clustering methods provide information regarding social organization, on both a larger scale and within four smaller case study areas. Results suggest that residential neighborhoods were often located with easy access to resources, in open areas to accommodate larger populations, and with some defensive advantages. Production centers, in contrast, were placed in high, flat areas with plentiful sunlight, likely near raw materials. Lifeways differed greatly, with a central residential hub centered on Abu Shusha, a northern region with intensive agricultural activity, and a more varied southern area with heavy production and a more household-based settlement style. Additionally, low-density magnetic susceptibility measurements were taken within the four focused case study areas, with mixed results. Local correlation methods aid in identification of settlement soils in certain areas, particularly near production centers, while other grid blocks exhibit more confused magnetic patterns.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/2777"],"dc:subject":["Archaeology","Geospatial","Israel","Magnetic Susceptibility","Palestine","Statistics","Archaeological Anthropology","Geographic Information Sciences","Near and Middle Eastern Studies","Social and Cultural Anthropology"],"dc:title":["Social Organization and Environmental Patterning at Tel Abu Shusha: An Integrated Spatial Approach to Survey Archaeology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts in Anthropology (MA)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T00:59:08Z"}