Monumentality and the Third-millennium "Towers" of the Oman Peninsula

Abstract

Monumentality and the meaning of monuments have long been important parts of archaeological research into prehistoric complex societies. Over the past century, archaeological perspectives on ancient monuments have ranged from descriptive (formal) to interpretive (functional) to experiential (phenomenological) (e.g. Chapman 2003; Chapman and Grant 1989; Goldstein 1995; Richards 1996; Steadman 2005; Tilley 1994; Trigger 1990). The construction of monuments within the natural and cultural landscapes of a particular region makes them contextually relevant to ancient peoples and to more recent observers (Arnold 2002; Hingley 1996; Williams 1997). For the people who built them, they provided enduring commentary on a particular worldview (see Zimansky 1995). Today, these ancient monuments are frequently employed as material manifestations of cultural heritage (e.g. Abdi 2001; Bender 2002; Creighton 2007; Dodd 2007; Jokilehto 2005).