AMMAN — The passing of Greek archaeologist Konstantinos “Dino” Politis last week sent a wave of sadness through the archaeological community in Jordan and abroad. For decades, Politis was a familiar and much-loved presence at archaeological sites, conferences and research projects across the country.

 

He leaves behind books, discoveries, excavation reports and scholarly papers, a scientific legacy likely to outlive him. But for many colleagues and students, his most enduring legacy was less tangible: The friendships he formed, the younger archaeologists he encouraged and the enthusiasm with which he approached Jordan’s ancient landscapes.

 

A specialist in the Byzantine and Early Islamic periods, Politis regarded Jordan as a second home. His involvement in archaeological projects in the country began in the 1980s and continued until his death.

 

He studied in Greece, the United States, the United Kingdom and Belgium before building an international career. In 1988, he joined the British Museum, where he worked on several projects, including excavations at Ras Al Hadd in Oman.

 

But Jordan remained central to his career.

 

“Back in 1982, Dino and I were students together at University College London’s Institute of Archaeology, specialising in the Levant,” recalled Professor of Zooarchaeology Louise Martin. “He directed excavations at Deir ‘Ain ‘Abata in Jordan on behalf of the Department of [then] Mediaeval and Later Antiquities, where he was a special assistant.”

 

Politis first came to Jordan in the early to mid-1980s, joining Alison Betts and Svend Helms on excavations in the Jordan Valley. He had also met Professor Burton MacDonald, who showed him a site above Ghor Safi where Byzantine mosaics were being exposed by erosion.

 

That site, Deir ‘Ain ‘Abata, would become one of the defining projects of his career.

 

“He excavated there from 1987 and the rest is history,” Martin said.

 

From the 1990s onwards, Politis continued excavations in the southern Dead Sea region, particularly around Ghor Safi and ancient Zoara.

 

Sanctuary of Lot

 

Ancient Zoara was one of the most important areas of Politis’s work. Among his major achievements was the discovery and excavation of the Sanctuary of Lot at the south-eastern tip of the Dead Sea.

 

The site is centred on a natural cave associated by early Christians with the biblical Lot and his daughters, who, according to tradition, fled there after the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

 

Excavations revealed a triple-apsed basilica decorated with Byzantine mosaic pavements dating from AD 572 to 691. Politis’s research also shed light on monastic life and the economy of Deir ‘Ain ‘Abata.

 

His publications documented decades of research in the region, including “The World of the Nabataeans” (2007), “Holy Footprints across the Jordan” (2010), and the two-volume “Ancient Landscapes of Zoara”, covering surveys and excavations at Ghor as-Safi from 1997 to 2018.

 

The sugar mills of Ghor Safi

 

Another major chapter of Politis’s career was his investigation of the mediaeval sugar industry in Ghor Safi.

 

Launched in 1997, the project examined the remains of a sugar factory dating from the 12th to the 15th centuries. It also sought to develop the site for tourism, education and archaeological training within the local community.

 

Known as Masna‘ as-Sukkar, the well-preserved remains provide a rare glimpse into the organisation and technology of medieval industrial production. The complex contains pressing rooms, water-management penstocks, stone-crushing basins and boiling areas, illustrating the different stages of sugar-cane processing.

 

In a 2018 lecture at the American Centre of Research, “The Origins of the Sugar Industry”, Politis placed the Ghor Safi industry within the wider history of mediaeval commerce.

 

A museum at the lowest point on Earth

 

Politis’s contribution extended beyond excavation and academic publication. He was instrumental in creating a museum at the foothills of Lot’s Cave, which he co-founded and co-directed.

 

Established in 2012, the museum houses thousands of artefacts from archaeological sites around the Dead Sea, including the Bronze Age sites of Bab edh-Dhra and Numeira. Its collections present roughly 10,000 years of human occupation, from prehistory to more recent periods, while a small hostel allows scholars to study material from the region.

 

Designed to reflect the local landscape, the building takes the shape of a fossilised shell. Its exhibitions include Byzantine mosaics, Nabataean-inscribed tombstones, Greco-Roman textiles and medieval tools associated with the sugar industry.

 

Politis also researched Petra and its hinterland, studying Nabataean inscriptions and the transition from the Late Roman and Byzantine periods into the early Umayyad era.

 

His work challenged the idea of a sharp cultural break between these periods. Surveys and archaeological discoveries, he argued, demonstrated considerable cultural, linguistic and structural continuity, with Nabataean traditions persisting well into the Byzantine era.

 

For younger archaeologists, however, Politis was remembered not only for his scholarship but also for his personality.

 

He was admired for his down-to-earth manner, humour and willingness to engage with younger colleagues. Some described him as something of a rock star within the archaeological community.

 

“I met Dino when I was a student on the Pella dig. The rumour flew through the team — ‘Dino is coming to visit!’” recalled Jamie Frazer. “Although I never worked formally with Dino, we were both appointed at one point at the British Museum, and I knew him well from there. And I would see him in Jordan many times each year, the last time in Ghor Safi in early 2025, when he was marching us around the excavations with his typical vigour.”

 

In Greece, Politis served as chairperson of the Hellenic Society for Near Eastern Studies and was an active member of the Palestine Exploration Fund.

 

His professional achievements were considerable, but colleagues repeatedly emphasise that his personal qualities were equally important.

 

“A lot of positive things could be said about Dino Politis regarding his professional capacities as an archaeologist: his rigour, his meticulous documentation, analysis and understanding; his crystal-clear explanations, resulting from his didactic capacities in the interpretation and presentation to the public,” Professor Ignacio Arce said.

 

“But most importantly, I would like to emphasise his personal virtues, his humanity, warmth and generosity, being an extraordinary friend and a white-hearted and nice person.”

 

For Arce, Politis’s death marks the loss of more than an accomplished archaeologist.

 

“In the last few years, I have lost three main academic pillars and irreplaceable friends working on the archaeology of Jordan: Michele Piccirillo, Andrea Zerbini and now Dino Politis,” he said. “All gone in the zenith of their professional careers, all of them leaving behind a vacuum in the academic world of Jordanian archaeology, but most importantly, leaving a huge gap in our hearts.”