Page 138 - Life & Land Use on the Bahrain Islands (Curtis E Larsen)

5. Environmental Perspectives

Overview
An environmental background statement
is frequently included in archeological
analyses to present the
main points of the geology, geo morphology, and
paleoenvironmental settings, but it usually fails
to assess the processual nature of
environmental change. This critical
perspective is ofte_n clouded by the writer's
emphasis on cultural
process. As Renfrew (1975) points out from the position of
archeology and Butzer (1976) emphasizes from
a geomorphological perspective, it is
impossible to divorce natural environmental
process from an ecological model,
While it is informative from
specialized viewpoint to amplify either the cultural
or paleoenvironmental subsystem for detailed analysis, the researcher must be
mindful of this conscious decision.

This chapter seeks to accomplish two purposes, (1) to gain a more
complete understanding of the environmental systems of Bahrain and the Arabian
coast than is normally portrayed in cultural studies and (2) to make a
If conscious assessment of the potential natural and cultural processes behind
observed patterns in land use on Bahrain during the Middle and Late Holocene.
Of particular interest are physical phenomena that may have interacted to bias
settlement patterns. TTie geologic fabric of the region serves as the primary
control on settlement. Foremost among the geologic controls are fracture networks
and fault systems which contribute to the location of artesian springs and the
distribution of arable lands. Also important is the record of past changes in other
environmental variables such as climate, sea level, and groundwater. One must
also consider the evolution of the landscape under these same forces. TTius, an
assessment of natural environments for archeological purposes should be

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