
The iconic minaret of Jām stands in a remote mountain valley in central Afghanistan, the finest surviving monument of the enigmatic 12th-century Ghūrid dynasty. The rediscovery of the minaret half a century ago prompted renewed interest in the Ghūrids, and this has intensified since their summer capital at Jām became Afghanistan’s first World Heritage site in 2002.
Two seasons of archaeological fieldwork at Jām, the detailed analysis of satellite images and the innovative use of Google Earth have resulted in a wealth of new information about known Ghūrid sites, and the identification of hundreds of previously undocumented archaeological sites across Afghanistan.
Drawing inspiration from the Annales school and the concept of an ‘archipelagic landscape’, David Thomas has used this data to reassess the Ghūrids and generate a more nuanced understanding of this significant Early Islamic polity.
Some supplementary appendices for this title can be found at
David C. Thomas is an honorary associate in archaeology at LaTrobe University.
List of figures Introduction 1. The nomadic empire of the Ghūrids : Architectural details of sites and structures recorded by MJAP in 2003 and 2005
List of plates
List of tables
Abstract in Dari
Acknowledgements
Preface
Note on transliteration and dates
Abbreviations
2. The Ghūrid landscapes
3. The rise, expansion and demise of the Ghūrids under the Shansabānīd dynasty
4. The archaeological remains of the Ghūrids
5. Exploring Jām
6. Re-defining Jām: an archaeological eye in the sky
7. The Ghūrids: an unsustainable Early Islamic polity
Plates
Appendix 1: Google Earth study areas
Appendix 2: less well-known ethnies and dynasties
Works cited
Index
Supplementary appendices
: MJAP robber holes
: Small finds, MJAP 2003 and 2005
: Environmental data
: Descriptions of selected Ghūrid sites analysed using upgraded satellite images available through Google Earth
: Summary data for all the ASAGE sites
‘This book is very well researched and draws on a wide range of sources, both written and archaeological, and does a great deal to place Ghurid studies into the historiographic continuum.’Richard McClary ‘ … this work of synthesis is quite significant, constructing an interdisciplinary image of Ghūrid urbanism at Jam as well as the broader material footprint of Ghūrid territorial politics through
multiple Afghan landscapes.’
Size: 250 x 176 mm
Pages: 414
Illustrations: 153 b&w ill., 35 col. ill., 27 tables
Copyright: 2018
ISBN: 9781743325414
Publication: 15 May 2018
Series: Adapa Monographs