Funerary variability and long-term reuse in Daba collective grave from I millenium B.C.

The site of Daba is a burial complex of great importance formed by numerous large collective graves containing hundreds of individuals, accompanied by thousands of valuable artifacts. It is located on the east coast of Musandam Peninsula (Oman). Currently, we are excavating the second large collective grave (LCG2), dated from the Middle Iron Age (1000-800 BC) to the PIR (Pré-Islamique Recént) (300 BC-300 AC). Many phases of usage have been recognized, including different phases of restoration and reorganization of the grave. LCG2 burial site shows an intense and prolonged use characterized by changes in deposition typology. The most recent and superficial phases of the site are characterized by scattered and fragmented bones that cannot be interpreted as intentional depositions. This may signal a probable abandonment period of the site. The underlying layers of the site have yielded groups of human bones, deposited at the site as voluntary secondary deposition. These archaeological features are referred to as Bone Clusters (BC). We also found different primary depositions located in small stone-chambers at the bottom and in the walls of the larger grave complex. The Daba site is configured as a unique case for observing the phenomenon of prehistory funerary variability.