Promoting Women's Rights,Hiding the Empire: Marie-Hélène Lefaucheux,an Imperialist Woman at the United Nations

This contribution examines the role of Marie-Hélène Lefaucheux, the French representative in the UN Commission on the Status of Women between 1948 and 1953. By focusing on Lefaucheux's activism and connection with the French government, this article intends to analyse how French post-imperial policy carried out by reformist women's organisations pursued the expansion of women's and human rights whilst supporting the empire. Using a range of archival sources and the Commission's reports, this work argues that the role of reformist imperial women and organisations was crucial in influencing the Commission which was both a place of contestation and protection of the gendered and colonial order.     

The nature of third-millennium settlement: The example of al-Tikha (Rustaq) an Umm an-Nar site on the Batinah coast of Oman

al-Tikha is a mid to large Umm an-Nar (c. 2700–2000 BC) settlement situated near Rustaq at the back of the Southern Batinah coastal plain in the Sultanate of Oman that was discovered (or rediscovered) in 2014. The site is unique because its layout and spatial organisation are very largely (possibly completely) visible on the surface. This includes two separate areas of stone-built housing, a large pottery scatter of varying density, three or four typical Umm an-Nar round towers and a small cemetery consisting of at least four tombs, along with a few other features. The layout of the site is described and discussed in detail, in particular, in relation to what it might tell us about the nature of Umm an-Nar settlement and social organisation more generally. The location of the site within a pattern of repeating Umm an-Nar settlement along Wadi Far (Wādī al-Farʿī) is also described and discussed.     

Religion and ideology in the constitutional revolution

Ideologi‐ye Nahzat‐e Mashrutiyyat‐e Iran. By F. Adamiyyat. Tehran: Payam, 1976/1355.

Shi^cism and Constitutionalism in Iran, A Study of the Role Played by the Persian Residents of Iraq in Iranian Politics. By A. H. Hairi. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1977.     

Al-Ghoryeen: An Early Bronze Age settlement in central Oman peninsula

Al-Ghoryeen, located 95 km southwest of Muscat, is a unique settlement dating to the Umm an-Nar period and is built upon a Late Hafit period settlement. It was found in 2004 and excavation began in 2018. Preliminary analysis of the results revealed two major occupation phases with an occupational gap in between. A change occurred between the earlier and later phases of the settlement system reflected mainly in the difference in building sizes and plan. We excavated either partially or completely a stone round tower and more than 10 domestic structures. The distribution of the architectural features including the round tower, domestic structures and burials showed some kind of organised settlement structure. The Hafit period settlement was tested in two trenches where ¹⁴C analysis dated the earliest occupation to the late Hafit period.     

Hafit tombs in ash‐Sharqiyah,Oman: assessing the accuracy and precision of Google Earth remote‐sensing survey and analysing their distribution in the landscape

Google Earth and high‐resolution satellite imagery provide a means of carrying out remote‐sensing survey of Hafit tombs able to cover large areas in short periods of time. While the potential of such research has already been demonstrated in the Wādī Andam area, the accuracy and precision of the methodology are not yet clear. A ground survey carried out by a Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) team in western Ja'alan provides an excellent control to assess the efficacy of the method. The study area was surveyed using Google Earth, and the two datasets were compared. Hafit tombs were identified to a high level of accuracy, but approximately 50% of the structures were not visible, with badly preserved tombs more likely to be missed than those in good condition. Remote sensing can be used in the preliminary stages of survey or more generally to discover and analyse broad patterns of Hafit tomb distribution. Comparisons of the distribution of Hafit tombs in western Ja'alan and Wādī Andam reveal clear similarities: the structures occupy elevated positions adjacent to sizeable wadi channels. The density of tombs is much greater in the western Ja'alan study area, which may suggest that Wādī Batha supported a larger Hafit population than Wādī Andam.