Michael is an independent conservator of sculpture and architecture based in New York City. Some of the prominent projects he has worked on or participated in recent years are the conservation and restoration of Tullio Lombardo’s Adam, Della Robbia’s Prudence, Michelangelo’s Cupidon at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the sculpture collection at Yale University Art Gallery, and Yale’s Center for British Art. He also was a conservator with George Knight Architects on Louis Kahn’s last building, and the Yale Center for British Art, a project which received a 2017 American Institute of Architects Award. Other museums Michael has worked with include the Brooklyn Museum, the Sackler Museum at Harvard, Dallas Museum of Art, and the Menil Collection in Houston, among others. He occasionally gives lectures for the Institute of Fine Arts archaeological conservation program.

Currently he has projects with the Sardis Expedition, a joint Harvard-Cornell universities project in Sart, Turkey, working on the restoration of the Temple of Artemis, an Asiatic sarcophagus, and the conservation of sector MMS that covers a monumental mud brick city wall dating to the 6^th-5^th century A.D. He also has worked on the monuments in the Eastern Hills in an advisory role, and is now working on the central ravine and western hills for the American Excavations Samothrace (a joint NYU-Emory University project). Other ongoing projects are the restoration of mosaics in the museum in Setif, Algeria, which is under the auspices of U.S. Ambassadors Fund Grant.

After graduating from the University of Oregon with a BFA, Michael moved to New York City to work as a sculptor, having exhibitions in New York, Boston, Cambridge, and Istanbul, including the Istanbul Biennial 1993. He worked as an assistant to Dimitri Hadzi at Harvard and then taught sculpture at the Carpenter Center for Visual Arts at Harvard University as visiting faculty. While at Harvard he received the Hoopes prize awarded for a student thesis and faculty contribution. He was a Fulbright Scholar to Turkey in Sculpture from 1989 to 1992. He taught periodically at Bradford College, the University of Oregon, and Bilkent University in Ankara, while working as an artist.

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Rarely when archaeologists excavate do they set out to find nothing. But this was exactly the goal of the TWLCRM Initiative when the team recently began digging several small test trenches at the site. Our excavations were focused not on making new discoveries related to the temple’s rich Nabataean past, but rather on reaching the level of the natural sandstone bedrock over which the temple was built nearly 2,000 years ago.

Why was it so important for us to reach bedrock? In the temple’s southwest quadrant, amid the arched supports of the building’s monumental foundations, there is a substantial 10 m high wall of loose soil and rubble that was exposed by the earlier American Expedition to Petra (AEP) during the major excavation of the site in the 1980s. After decades of exposure, the wall is now in serious danger of collapse. If this happens, the walls, floors, and columns of the main temple complex above would likely come crashing down as well. As such, a chief goal of the TWLCRM Initiative is to buttress this rubble wall and thereby prevent further destabilization of the site.

The recent excavations in the southwest quadrant hoped to determine if the underlying bedrock—which we initially thought to be just a few meters below the surface—could support our buttressing strategy, whether in the form of stone-filled metal gabions or thousands of sandbags stacked against the wall. Helping us make this determination was the project’s engineering geologist Giuseppe Delmonaco and his colleague Luca Puzzilli, both of Italy’s ISPRA: Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e la Ricerca Ambientale (Institute for Environmental Protection and Research), who arrived during the last week of excavation to conduct a battery of geophysical tests on site.

Ultimately, our limited test trenches in the southwest quadrant did not even come close to reaching bedrock (and for good reason, as Delmonaco and Puzzilli were able to determine; see below). As might be expected, however, the excavation produced fascinating new insights into various phases of the temple’s use and abandonment, while the geophysical survey data are providing tantalizing glimpses of various manmade and natural features that still lie hidden beneath the surface.

The Southwest Quadrant Excavation

The excavation opened several test trenches in different parts of the temple’s southwest quadrant. The team began by excavating a long, narrow trench (16 x 3 m) running parallel to the southwest quadrant’s western section. After just a few days of digging, dozens of large architectural fragments and building stones began to appear just below the surface, scattered across the trench with no perceptible pattern to their deposition. Amid the toppled blocks were fragmentary pieces of painted plaster, as well as the darkened, ashy traces of a small fire pit imbedded with remains of animal bone and egg shell. Based on the jumbled architectural remains and the recovered pottery, all of which dates no later than the earthquake that devastated Petra in A.D. 363, we believe that the southwest quadrant was likely used as a dump area when the destroyed temple above was being cleared of debris following the earthquake. Intriguingly, the fire pit may provide an intimate snapshot of a meal that was enjoyed by some of the workers responsible for clearing the temple.

The density of collapsed blocks, however, made it impossible to probe for the underlying bedrock in this area. As such, two additional test trenches were opened in the eastern part of the quadrant, in an area directly abutting the west wall of the main temple complex where the earlier AEP project had already excavated to considerable depth. In addition to finding more evidence of architectural debris cleared from the temple following the A.D. 363 earthquake, including large chunks of painted plaster that once adorned the temple’s interior, the excavation revealed puzzling new details about the temple’s architectural history and stratigraphy. Most perplexing was the discovery that the temple appears to have been built without proper foundations, with the bottom courses of its west wall laid down directly on a thick layer of compacted soil and rubble. What is more, there are indications that the temple was built atop earlier structures, evidenced most clearly by a fragmentary stone pavement that was laid down before the west wall of the temple was built. Below the level of these structures, and after passing through the soil and rubble upon which the temple was built, the excavation finally reached virgin soil. The bedrock we had been searching for, however, still eluded us. With time running short, it was time for the project’s geophysical survey team to take up the challenge.

A Glimpse Below the Surface

During their week on site, Delmonaco and Puzzilli used the latest geophysical survey methods to investigate the presence of both natural and manmade features that lie buried well below the present surface. These methods, in addition to detecting the depth of bedrock, were able to identify the presence of previously unknown archaeological remains, as well as intriguing geological features that may help explain why particular areas of the temple are more susceptible to the damaging effects of weathering and salt efflorescence.

The first method, known as geoelectical resistivity tomography, involves deploying a series of electrical currents deep into the ground to measure the electrical resistance of buried features relative to the surrounding geology. In general, archaeological remains have a higher resistivity (i.e., present more of an obstacle to the passing electrical current), while natural soil, sediments, and geological formations all have lower, more predictable resistivity signatures. The second method involves studying the behavior of subsurface seismic vibrations, whether caused by “microtremors” created through everyday geological, atmospheric, and human processes (passive seismic survey) or by simulating a small seismic event that sends shockwaves directly into the earth’s surface (active seismic survey). By measuring the relative velocity of the seismic waves, geologists can then obtain detailed information about the depth and makeup of subsurface features, including buried archaeological deposits.

In all, 11 different geoelectrical resistivity surveys were conducted on site. For the tests, two dozen current-emitting electrodes connected by a cable and attached to a resistivity meter were laid out across the site in various linear, L-shaped, and U-shaped arrangements. The surveys consistently detected clearly defined, higher resistivity anomalies to a depth of 2 m below the surface, suggesting the presence of a lower layer of previously unknown structures, walls, and pavements associated with the temple. Particularly intriguing and worthy of further investigation are several chamber-like voids identified beneath the temple’s inner sanctuary. Furthermore, survey data from below the level of the archaeological deposits revealed uniform but lower resistivity readings associated with a minor geological fault running almost directly beneath the eastern portion of the temple. Such features tend to promote the accumulation, circulation, and percolation of underground water, and therefore likely explain why the eastern columns and walls of the temple so rapidly develop encrusted layers of destructive water-driven salts that have to constantly be cleaned.

Both passive and active seismic tests taken around the site furnished similar results, with slower wave velocities—indicative of obstructive archaeological features—occurring to a depth of 2 to 3 m. Below this depth, however, wave velocities increased significantly, as the waves moved through layer upon layer of silt and clay deposited by millennia of fluvial and geological action. Then, at a depth of around 45 m, the seismic waves gained even greater velocity, nearly doubling in speed as they passed through endless depths of porous sandstone… the bedrock we had been searching for beneath the temple had finally been reached, though at depths far deeper than anyone would have imagined.

Seeking Stability

In addition to conducting geophysical surveys of the temple’s subsurface, Delmonaco and Puzzilli also developed an analytical model for assessing the structural stability of the southwest quadrant’s exposed soil and rubble wall. The model, developed using high-resolution topographic survey data and advanced computer software, evaluates how the wall will behave under varying conditions, such as soil-saturating rain events or destabilizing earthquakes. The model predicts that while the wall will likely remain stable under normal dry conditions, a particularly heavy winter rain or a modest-size earthquake would cause the lowest, weakest part to buckle, resulting in the full-scale collapse of the entire slope. According to the simulation by Delmonaco and Puzzilli, however, adding a stepped sandbag buttress (measuring roughly 2 x 2 m) against the base of the wall, together with reinforcement measures on the upper slope, would preserve its overall structural stability except in the most powerful of earthquakes. Delmonaco will continue working with the TWLCRM team in the coming years to assess this buttressing strategy and finally resolve one of the main obstacles to the temple’s long-term preservation.

Adapted from Glenn J. Corbett and M. Elena Ronza’s article “What Lies Beneath—New Insights into Petra’s Temple of the Winged Lions,” in the Winter 2014 ACOR Newsletter (Vol. 26.2). Glenn and Elena are the co-directors of ACOR’s TWLCRM Initiative in Petra.

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In the early 1990s, a Byzantine church on a hillside above the city center of Petra with beautiful mosaic floors was excavated by the American Center of Oriental Research (ACOR) in Amman. In the process of preparing to build a shelter to protect the church, a probe made in a back room in December 1993 uncovered carbonized papyrus scrolls. Through the painstaking efforts of archaeologists, conservators, and papyrologists, 140 scrolls have been identified.

The scrolls are part of a sixth-century archive of the family of Theodoros, son of Obodianos, who was deacon and then archdeacon, presumably in the Petra Church (the name in current usage although the papyri tell us that the church was dedicated to the Virgin Mary). These documents are essentially economic and refer to property matters, such as dowries, divisions of estates, boundaries, and loans. One text published in Petra Papyri I (2002) gives a list of stolen goods claimed by a landlord priest after his tenant, another priest, departed and is accused of taking certain items with him. The insights gained about Petra and the region at this time are considerable. For example we learn that laws promulgated in Constantinople by the Emperor Justinian were put into effect in Petra virtually within the year. The written language of the scrolls is Greek (there are a few lines of Latin). However reflected in the personal names is the Nabataean ancestry of many individuals. Many place names as well as personal names are based on Arabic and bear witness to the fact that members of the family who owned the archive communicated in Arabic.

This discovery represents the largest cache of documents ever found in Jordan and in terms of papyrology is the largest group found in context and thus able to be studied as an archive. Most of the plates assembled from the brittle fragments are currently housed at ACOR as they are still under study by scholars from the University of Michigan and the University of Helsinki. However, Papyrus Petra H.M. King Hussein bin Talal and H.M. Queen Noor al Hussein (P. Petra 39) is a settlement of a dispute by arbitration and is now housed in the Jordan Museum.   ACOR is honored to take care of the papyri and assist the scholars who have expended much time and effort to make them accessible to the world.

ACOR is responsible for the actual publication of these important documents, which have in many ways re-written the history of the sixth century in the eastern Mediterranean, and have certainly brought to life an extended family of late antiquity.

Written by Barbara A. Porter

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This story is adapted from the original article that appeared in the ACOR Newsletter, Winter 2013, Volume 25.2. To read the entire newsletter, or any of ACOR’s previous newsletters, please visit the ACOR website.

Naif Zaban, ACOR’s long-time conservation technician whose talents now support the ACOR Conservation Cooperative, first became involved with archaeology as a young man because he lived near the Amman Citadel. In 1988 he came to the attention of Mohammed Najjar, one of the co-directors of the joint expedition of the Department of Antiquities (DOA) and the École Biblique et Archéologique Française (EBAF) on the citadel, along with Fawzi Zayadine and Jean-Baptiste Humbert. Beginning in 1990, Najjar worked with the ACOR Temple of Hercules project funded by USAID, and Naif was part of the core technical team that Najjar assembled.

Naif was also an integral part of ACOR’s Petra Church ex­cavations which began in 1992. Robert Schick, a Petra Church co-director, and Naif were responsible for fixing up Nazzal’s camp in the basin area of Petra for the dig house before the excavations started. During the excavations, Naif remembers observing Tom Roby and Livia Alberti on site during the mosaic stabilization and conservation, and in the afternoon, Noël Siver conserving objects in Nazzal’s camp where Khairieh Amr was working on the pottery. Much of his learning was through careful observation. Zbig Fiema, another co-director of the Petra Church excavations, noted that Naif was a great help to him and was always very resourceful. Naif was a witness to the discovery of the Petra papyri in early December 1993. He recalls the moment when Hammoudi Nuweija said, “Stop! There is writing on them!”

Another project that Naif was involved in was at Humayma under the direction of John Oleson. He worked with conservator Judy Logan and archaeologist Rebecca Foote and was able to dem­onstrate his extraordinary skill when he restored several delicate Abbasid-period (8th century) ivory furniture panels, which will be on display in the Islamic section of the Jordan Museum. I was told that one person working on these minute ivory fragments did not think anything could be done but Naif persisted in his quiet methodical way and produced miracles—indeed virtually complete carved panels.

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Naif continued to work in the field in Petra with Patricia Bikai on the North Ridge project and due to the extensive amount of ceramic material uncovered, he started working continuously in 1998 in the ACOR lab to restore that pottery. Patricia Bikai commented that during her subsequent excavations in Bayda until 2007, Naif was her right-hand person and foreman. He also undertook various projects in that location including consolidating the grand walkway in the Amti Canyon.

In 2007, the ACOR Conservation Cooperative (ACC) was created, based on Naif’s talents, in order to help other projects in Jordan with their conservation needs. It seems appropriate that the first major endeavor for the ACC was to restore ceramic material from the 1988 Amman Citadel excavations. As part of the ACC, Naif was also secunded to the Jordan Museum for several major projects, during which time he worked closely with Fatma Marii, then head of conservation. At the Jordan Museum, Naif helped on many things, such as Byzantine mosaic floors and furnishings (i.e., pulpits, chancel screens, walls) and even completely new projects, such as early 20th century Hijaz railway cars and a railway track.

Most of his ACC efforts, however, take place in the ACOR Conserva­tion Lab, created with a grant from ASHA (American Schools and Hospitals Abroad) in the early 1990s and for which upgrades to the equipment are funded by ACOR’s USAID “Petra” Endow­ment. Since the start of the ACC, Naif has conserved material from more than three dozen projects and for several museums. Thanks to permissions granted by the Department of Antiquities, he has restored ceramic vessels of a wide range of periods and locations, i.e. Iron Age (Amman, Khirbet Ataruz, Khirbet Mudayna, Pella); classical periods including Nabataean and Roman (Humayma, Petra, Tall Abu Sarbut); and Islamic and medieval (Bayda, Pella, Khirbet Sheikh Issa, Tawaheen al Sukkar). Naif has also cleaned coins from a multitude of sites and this work will ultimately assist final excavation publications.

In recent years, he worked again at the Petra Church, helping with renewed conservation efforts at the site. Another past project recently revisited was the Byzantine Church at Darat Al Funun, the center which showcases art, archaeology, and architecture in Amman. During a brief period in summer 2012, Pierre Bikai and Naif returned, at the request of Suha Shoman, to place a capital on top of one of the church’s columns. Naif again undertook the stabilization of the remaining sections of the mosaic floor that he had consolidated during the excavations directed there by Pierre Bikai in 1993. From Darat Al Funun at the tip of Jabal Luweibda he could look across to the Amman Citadel where his unconventional and intriguing career started.

Written by Barbara A. Porter

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The Roman temple on the Citadel (Jabal al-Qal’a) in Amman is popularly known as the Temple of Hercules. There is no conclusive evidence that it was dedicated to Hercules, but it is securely dated by its dedicatory inscription to the term of the Roman governor Geminius Marcianus (A.D. 161–166). The temple is on the middle terrace of the Citadel within a colonnaded temenos or courtyard. It was oriented along an east-west axis with its facade to the east. The temenos was once connected to the Roman city below by a monumental staircase. The temple had a hexastyle (six columned) facade on a podium measuring 43 x 27 m. The height of the columns, including the bases, is 13.5 m. Each column consists of five or six drums, each weighing up to 11 tons. Detailed analysis of the material remains indicates that while the temple may original have been planned to have columns all around, it was probably not actually built that way.

The ACOR-directed restoration of the temple began in 1992 under the supervision of Chrysanthos Kannelopoulos and engineer Mohammed Tayyem, with funds from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The temple on Jabal al-Qal’a is the most poorly preserved Roman temple in the area. Most of the material of the temple was already robbed out before the earthquake of A.D. 746/47, when the remnants of the structure, including the four remaining columns at the front, collapsed. Over the next nine centuries, the building of fortifications on the Citadel resulted in the reuse of more of its material. It would therefore be impossible to restore the whole monument.

Restoration work focused on the only three areas which were restorable: the portico of the temple, the northwest corner of the platform or podium on which the temple rested, and part of the west temenos colonnade. Fortunately, the temple had a numbering system carved on the drums of the colonnade by the ancient builders; this made it possible to understand the original placement of the drums. Three columns of the temple were found to be preserved and these were restored. One section of the inscribed architrave was restored in its original place as determined from the sequence of the inscription.

The fourth shaft from the south, shaft K, was erected in is original position. Its bottom drum, although preserved, was replaced by a replica. The ancient drum has large cracks, severely flaked edges, and cavities—all caused by the excessive stress during the tilting and oscillation of the shaft in the earthquake. A rough cylinder with eight bosses or knobs, to ease lifting, was shaped out of a block measuring 1.7 x 1.7 x 3.2 m and weighing 27 tons.

The manufacture of the four new drums and their final carving in place is considered one of the major achievements of ACOR’s restoration project. Most of the material was carved with modern equipment, but one drum was shaped from the rectangular block mainly with chisels and hammers. The drum, with a diameter of 1.6 m and a height of 2.1 m, was roughly shaped from a rectangular block by six stone cutters in 40 days.

The restored columns of the Great Temple of Jabal al-Qal’a, together with the sections of the inscribed architrave, now create a focal point for the skyline of Amman. Thanks to ACOR, the capital of Jordan, deprived of the plethora of columns that one can see at other sites such as Jerash, has a reminder of her ancient glory.

ACOR’s Amman temple restoration project was published in C. Kanellopoulos, The Great Temple of Amman I: The Architecture (1994) and in Anthi Koutsoukou, Kenneth W. Russell, Mohammed Najjar, and Ahmed Momani, The Great Temple of Amman II: The Excavations (1997).

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