169 FIVE SEASONS OF EXCAVATIONS IN AREAS 2A AND G OF SARUQ AL HADID (DUBAI, UAE): IRON AGE II EVIDENCES OF COPPER PRODUCTION, WORKSHOP AREA AND CEREMONIAL ACTIVITIES Tatiana Valente (Sanisera Archaeology Institute) Fernando Contreras (Sanisera Archaeology Institute) Ahmed Mahmud (Dubai Municipality – Architectural Heritage & Antiquities Department) Mansour Boraik Radwan Karim (Dubai Municipality – Architectural Heritage & Antiquities Department) Mahra Saif Al Mansoori (Dubai Municipality – Architectural Heritage & Antiquities Department) Hassan Zein (Dubai Municipality – Architectural Heritage & Antiquities Department) ABSTRACT: Within fve years of excavations in Area 2A and G of Saruq al-Hadid, several pit-like structures used in combustion activities were found whose purpose is still unclear. Near these, a rich collection of metal objects from the Iron Age II was gathered, along with evidences of their production at the site. Frequent identifcation of raw materials and working tools, mainly for jewellery production, suggests that the site was also a production centre for these kind of objects, as well as a site with religious connotation as suggested by the votive objects discovered, such as copper anthropomorphic fgurines, snakes, miniature weaponry, and soft stone and ceramic vessels with parallels in other places of worship. KEYWORDS: Saruq al-Hadid, Iron Age II, copper production, workshop area, ceremonial activities RESUMEN: Tras efectuar cinco campañas de excavación en las áreas “2A” y “G” de Saruq al-Hadid, se localizaron más de veinte estructuras de combustión, de las que desconocemos con qué etapa de producción metalúrgica estaban relacionadas. La secuencia estratigráfca se sitúa en la Edad del Hierro II, e integra un conjunto notable de objetos metálicos y de muestras, que evidencian la manipulación del oro y del cobre. Se han documentado, materias primas y herramientas de trabajo para la elaboración de joyas. La distribución espacial de algunos de los objetos, sugieren rituales y ceremonias, con escenifcaciones votivas. Buen ejemplo de ello, pueden demostrarlo los hallazgos de fguritas antropomórfcas, serpientes y armas en miniatura, recipientes en cerámica y piedra blanda que son habituales y representativos de contextos arqueológicos asociados a espacios sagrados. PALABRAS CLAVE: Saruq al-Hadid, Edad del Hierro II, producción de cobre, área de talleres, actividades ceremoniales 1. Introduction The archaeological site of Saruq al-Hadid is located in the fringes of the Rub al-Khali desert, close to the southern border of the Emirate of Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. The site itself, extending longitudinally east to west amidst shifting sand dunes, is of diffcult interpretation giving the geomorphological conditions upon which it sits. Although three main large areas have been under excavation for years – Areas F and G, Area 2A, and Military Area –, the site seems to extend much further in all cardinal directions. From time to time the sand dunes shift and expose new occupation zones, although these remain to be excavated. Isimu 23 (2020): 169-195 ISSN: 1575-3492 ISSN Digital: 2659-9090 https://doi.org/10.15366/isimu2020.23.010