The Dating of Shivta in Light of the Numismatic Finds from New Excavations at the Site

The following paper presents the numismatic finds reveled during four recent excavations held over the last two decades at Shivta (UNESCO World Heritage Site), an agricultural rural site located in an arid desert area on the fringes of the Byzantine Empire. Although extensive archaeological excavations were conducted at the site in the 1930s and its remains are among the most impressive of the desert Negev sites from the Roman and Byzantine periods, a detailed numismatic report has not yet been published from Shivta. The following research presents the largest numismatic assemblage so far published from the site, clarifying the periods in which coins circulated at Shivta and the information that can be gleaned from this evidence. In this article we will present new insights into the history of Shivta and suggest that the almost total absence of Nabataean or other early Roman period (1^st – 2^nd cent. C.E.) coins strengthens the suggestion that Shivta was established later than the Roman annexation of Arabia (105/106 C.E.). The small number of coins from the 3^rd cent. C.E. might indicate the beginning of the settlement at that time, although the extent of its size has not yet been clarified. The majority of numismatic finds from all seasons corroborate the claim that the settlement significantly expanded in the Late Roman period (4^th cent. C.E.) and flourished during the Byzantine period (5^th – 6^th cent. C.E.), while the very small number of Early Islamic coins suggests a rather short period and a relatively small area which was inhabited during the Early Islamic period (mid-7^th – late-8^th cent. C.E.). Several numismatic issues, such as the find of coins attached to bronze chains, the find of coins under floors and in middens (refuse dumps) and the use of deliberately cut coins are discussed as well.