up to and including the Islamic periods. The wealth of extremely well preserved and important sites from these periods in Jordan (often due to the lack of continuous occupation at the site in modern times) no doubt contributed to this tendency. Sites such as Petra, Jerash, Gadara, and Amman were obvious attractions for researchers, but some smaller sites also had great appeal, among them Umm el-Jimal, a Roman-Byzantine city on the desert fringe (excavated since 1973 by Calvin College), and the Roman Legionary Fort at el-Lejjun (studied by S. Thomas Parker), a spectacularly preserved fortress of the Roman limes, or frontier. Both projects have contributed to our understanding of life on the fringes of the Roman and Byzantine Empires.

Perhaps the least expected direction of archaeological work in Jordan since 1967 came with the advances of the “New Archaeology” in the 1970s and 1980s, which saw the expansion of anthropological archaeology in the country and an increase in research on the earliest prehistory of the region, from the Paleolithic until the end of the Neolithic period. Up to that point Jordan was known largely for the richness of its numerous well-preserved sites of classical antiquity and the Bronze and Iron Ages. No one could have predicted that so many spectacular prehistoric sites, many in excellent condition, would also be found. The expansion of a scientific and specifically anthropological approach to prehistoric archaeology in Jordan has been one of the most significant advances since the 1980s. This research has been undertaken in the context of a distinctly environmental approach, which has focused on understanding the development of the region in the late Pleistocene and Holocene, the adaptation of early modern humans to the region and its environment, and the development of societies and the transition to settled life.

Projects that have contributed to this research are numerous, but a few of the key efforts are worthy of special mention. These include the pioneering work of English archaeologists Diana Kirkbride (at Beidha) and, more recently, Andrew Garrard. While assistant director and then director of the British Institute at Amman, Garrard oversaw work at sites in the Azraq Basin and at Wadi Jilat (1982–1989), which trained a generation of British prehistorians and environmental archaeologists. Also noteworthy is the work of Gary Rollefson and others at the now famous site at ‘Ain Ghazal, perhaps one of the most spectacular (and largest) Neolithic settlements in the Levant; it has produced spectacular finds, including two groups of nearly life-size anthropomorphic figurines. Still other sites in the vicinity of Petra—such as Basta, excavated by Hans Nissan, Nans Georg Gebel, and Zeidan Kafafi—have shown the wealth and extent of the prehistoric occupation of Jordan in virtually every environmental and geographic zone, from the Mediterranean to the steppe and desert.

The increasing role of survey work in recent years has complemented the part played by excavation in revealing the archaeology of Jordan. Extensive surveys have covered many Jordanian regions, including the Black Desert (A. Betts), the Kerak Plateau (M. Miller), the Wadi al-Hasa and the Southern Ghor and Northeast Arabah (B. MacDonald), and a great many others (see Banning in MacDonald, Adams, and Bienkowski 2001). All of these surveys have been instrumental in helping to piece together the many thousands of archaeological sites in Jordan from all periods, which are in turn recorded in the Jordanian Antiquities Database and Information System (JADIS)—a computer database of all archaeological sites in Jordan. This tool for the management of cultural resources allows for the preservation and conservation of Jordan’s rich cultural heritage.

Last but by no means least is the significant part played by Jordanians in both the Department of Antiquities and the various archaeology departments in the nation’s universities. The hospitality and partnership of Jordanians in the ongoing development of archaeology and the cultural-resource management of archaeological sites in the kingdom has been one of the keys to the vast amount of work undertaken since 1946. In this regard the Department of Antiquities has been fortunate to have had directors of vision and energy who carried on the work of Horsfield and Harding, including (but not limited