Names

Transliterated Name	Source	Name
Sidon	English
Sayda	Arabic	صيدا
Saida	Modern Arabic	صيدا
Ṣaydūn	Classical Arabic	صَيْدونْ
Ṣidon	Syriac	ܨܝܕܘܢ
Sidṓn	Greek	Σιδών
Sidon	Latin
Colonia Aurelia Pia Sidon	Roman colony
Sagittus	Crusader Latin
Saete, Sayette, or Sagette	Crusader French
Ṣīdūn	Phoenician
Djedouna	Papyrus Anastasi I
Ṣīḏōn	Biblical Hebrew	צִידוֹן

Introduction

Marriner (2006) provides the following background information

The Sidone-Dakerman area chronicles a long history of human occupation stretching back to the Neolithic [67]. Canaan’s oldest city according to Genesis, the tell occupies a modest rocky promontory that overlooks a partially drowned sandstone ridge and two marine embayments. During the Iron Age, this geomorphological endowment allowed Sidon to evolve into one of Phoenicia’s key city-states, producing and transiting wealthy commodities to trading partners in Assyria, Egypt, Cyprus and the Aegean. This trading ascendancy is corroborated by the Old Testament’s use of the term Sidonian to encapsulate all Phoenicians. Sidon enjoyed its apogee during the sixth to fifth centuries BC, at which time it superseded Tyre as Phoenicia’s principal naval base.

Issam Ali Khalifeh in Meyers et al (1997) notes that the historical name for Sidon is probably derived from sayd, Semitic for fishing. and that Sidon's history, including the glorious Phoenician period, Assyrian and Persian domination, and Greek and Roman rule, is fairly well known from written sources, local finds, and archaeological work in Sidon and neighboring areas.

Maps and Plans

• Fig. 1 Location of cores from Marriner et al (2006)
  Fig. 1
  
  Sidon’s ancient harbour areas and location of cores
  
  Marriner et al (2006)
• Fig. 2 Sidon’s coastal bathymetry from Marriner et al (2006)
  Fig. 2
  
  Sidon’s coastal bathymetry
  
  Marriner et al (2006)
• Fig. 3 Aerial Photograph of Sidon and Zire from Marriner et al (2006)
  Fig. 3
  
  Sidon and Zire (from [31]). In the foreground, Sidon’s outer harbour lies in the shadow zone of Zire island. The promontory of Sidon separates two coves, the northern harbour and Poidebard’s Crique Ronde.
  
  Marriner et al (2006)

Core Data

• Fig. 4 Sedimentology of core BH I (northern harbour)
  Fig. 4
  
  Sedimentology of core BH I (northern harbour).
  
  Marriner et al (2006)
  from Marriner et al (2006)
• Fig. 5 Molluscan macrofauna from core BH I (northern harbour)
  Fig. 5
  
  Molluscan macrofauna from core BH I (northern harbour).
  
  Marriner et al (2006)
  from Marriner et al (2006)
• Fig. 6 Ostracod microfauna from core BH I (northern harbour)
  Fig. 6
  
  Ostracod microfauna from core BH I (northern harbour)
  
  Marriner et al (2006)
  from Marriner et al (2006)
• Fig. 7 Sedimentology of core BH IX (northern harbour)
  Fig. 7
  
  Sedimentology of core BH IX (northern harbour).
  
  Marriner et al (2006)
  from Marriner et al (2006)
• Fig. 8 Molluscan macrofauna from core BH IX (northern harbour)
  Fig. 8
  
  Molluscan macrofauna from core BH IX (northern harbour).
  
  Marriner et al (2006)
  from Marriner et al (2006)
• Fig. 9 Ostracod microfauna from core BH IX (northern harbour)
  Fig. 9
  
  Ostracod microfauna from core BH IX (northern harbour).
  
  Marriner et al (2006)
  from Marriner et al (2006)
• Fig. 10 Sedimentology of core BH XV (northern harbour)
  Fig. 10
  
  Sedimentology of core BH XV (northern harbour).
  
  Marriner et al (2006)
  from Marriner et al (2006)
• Fig. 11 Molluscan macrofauna from core BH XV
  Fig. 11
  
  Molluscan macrofauna from core BH XV (northern harbour).
  
  Marriner et al (2006)
  (northern harbour) from Marriner et al (2006)

Chronology Notes and Further Reading