The stone and shell beads of the shell-midden settlement of RH5 (Muscat, Sultanate of Oman)

During the excavations carried out by the Italian Archaeological Mission at the shell- midden site RH-5, Muscat, 374 beads of different shapes and sizes, obtained from both stone and marine shell, were recovered. This paper discusses their chronology, typology, raw material, manufacturing technique and circulation along the southern coast of the Arabian sea during the fifth millennium BP. The authors point out the probable exogenous production of the RH-5 beads, given also the scarce number of these items from the large cemetery excavated at the same site. The existence of production centres, and the specialised role played by some of the coastal (shell- midden) sites of this period are also emphasised.