*3.3. Damiyah*

Southeast of Deir Alla and close to the Jordan lies the small tell of Damiyah, near a ford in the river. Excavations in 2014 and 2015 have unearthed a 14 × 6 m mudbrick building with one or two platforms. Its walls were covered by white wash or lime plaster. This partially excavated building and the street south of it so far yielded eight complete unbroken terracotta horse figurines (Figure 3) and four female figurines as well as a pottery stand, two headless terracotta anthropomorphic statues, the head of another statue and fragments of a kernos ring (Petit and Kafafi 2016). On the floor of the building, two cattle skulls had been carefully positioned, looking south and east.

**Figure 3.** Horse figurine found at Tell Damiyah (Photo by Yousef al-Zu'bi. Courtesy Rijksmuseum van Oudheden Leiden and Yarmouk University, Jordan).

The building was located amidst several small houses, of which so far one has been excavated, containing ordinary household wares, bread ovens, grinding stones and loom weights. This occupation phase dates to the late 8th–early 7th century BC. The buildings were destroyed by a fierce fire.

Based on the size of the building, the objects found in and around it, and the lack of ordinary household wares, an identification as a temple or shrine is legitimate. Further excavations may clarify whether this is an isolated building or the uppermost of a series of temples.
