Map showing the newly discovered location of al-‘Udhayb and al-Qadisiyyah in southwest Iraq - as well as the wall/canal linking the two sites - and the likely location of the Battle of al-Qadisiyyah(Image: Durham University)

Spy satellite images used by Durham University archaeologists to find centuries-old Iraq battle site

by · ChronicleLive

A team of archaeologists from Durham University and University of Al-Qadisiyah (Iraq) has pinpointed the location of a famous early Islamic battle using declassified American spy satellite images and historical texts.

Dr William Deadman, a specialist in archaeological remote sensing (Durham University), has been able to accurately identify what they believe to be the location of the Battle of al-Qadisiyyah, which took place in 637/8 AD.

The battle was a crucial victory by the Arab Muslims in their expansion beyond Arabia and remains part of the core curriculum for students of Arabic history. Until now its precise location, was not clear.

The team was undertaking a remote sensing survey to map out the route of the Darb Zubaydah, a Hajj pilgrimage route from Kufa in Iraq to Mecca in Saudi Arabia built over 1,000 years ago.

The survey used the declassified US spy satellite imagery from the 1970s and compared these to modern day images and historical texts, to understand the stopping points along the route.

Close-up KH9 spy satellite imagery of al-Qadisiyyah from 1974; the eroded mudbrick settlement and surrounding walls are clearly visible(Image: Durham University)

During their work the team realised they were also able to use sites and structures detailed in the historical texts, such as walls and settlements, which were also visible on the 20th century satellite imagery, to accurately identify the location of the Battle of al-Qadisiyyah.

Their analysis places the battle site 30km south of Kufa in the Najaf Governorate. Their findings are published in Antiquity.

Furthermore, their discovery also allows the team to confidently identify the locations of two stopping points along the Darb Zubaydah – al-Qadisiyyah and al-‘Udhayb.

On-the-ground surveys by colleagues from the University of Al-Qadisiyah (Iraq) support their findings.

Speaking about the findings, Dr William Deadman, Department of Archaeology, Durham University, said: "This discovery provides a geographical location and context for a battle that is one of the founding stories of the expansion of Islam into modern day Iraq, Iran and beyond.

"During our survey work we were able to identify a six-mile-long double wall feature linking a military complex on the desert fringe and a large settlement on the edge of the southern Mesopotamian floodplain.

"This corresponded remarkably well to details within the rich body of historical sources relevant to the battle of al-Qadisiyyah and the stopping points along the Darb Zubaydah.

Annotated KH9 spy satellite imagery from 1974 showing al-Qadisiyyah, a Sasanian fortress to the south, the defensive ditch and the likely location of the battlefield according to historical accounts - between these features and an old Euphrates River channel(Image: Durham University)

"To be able to use our survey work to not only identify a key historical battle site, but also the locations of two key settlements along the Darb Zubaydah, is hugely exciting."

The team at Durham University, worked on remote satellite sensing – using satellite images from past and present day, to assess and understand the region more fully.

This was supported by Dr Jaafar Jotheri and Dr Rajwan Almayali from the Department of Archaeology, University of Al-Qadisiyah, along with Mr Ahmed A. al-Luhaibi of the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage, Baghdad.

The team in Iraq undertook detailed analysis of historical text to help inform the remote sensing work, and carried out rapid assessments on the ground to investigate findings from this work.

Dr Rajwan Almayali , Dean of the Faculty of Archaeology at the University of Al-Qadisiyah said: "I am thrilled that researchers from Al-Qadisiyah University and Durham University were able, through working together, to discover the exact location of the historic Battle of Al-Qadisiyyah, and we hope that researchers and students of the two universities will continue to learn the secrets and mysteries of the archaeology and history of Mesopotamia."

Looking ahead, the team hopes that a full field survey can be carried out to investigate their findings in depth on the ground.

The discovery was made as part of a wider project looking at the endangered archaeology of the Middle East and North Africa. The Endangered Archaeology in the Middle East and North Africa project (EAMENA) is a collaboration between the universities of Oxford, Durham and Leicester, and is funded by Arcadia. The Durham team which is led by Professor Graham Philip, is working to locate, and monitor the condition of, archaeological sites in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, in order to understand what has, and continues to impact on them.

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