This paper presents a multidisciplinary approach in geoarchaeological survey of a prehistoric oasis settlement at Al Arid South 1 in the interior of Oman. The site was discovered by in-the-field observation, and then high-resolution satellite images were employed for detecting the layout of surface features and for planning the detailed survey, including (1) systematic and intensive collection of artifacts, (2) field observation of surface deposits, (3) soil sampling and (4) mapping of features by means of GPS, laser range finder (LRF) and field GIS. These studies revealed the origin and development of an oasis village in southeast Arabia: The earliest occupation is probably dated back to the Neolithic period, evidenced by low cairns on the end of hill ridges, associated with lithic workshops. Then, a number of truncated-cone-shaped cairns were built on the top of hills during the earlier stage of the Bronze Age (Hafit period; ca. 3100–2750 BC). In the subsequent Umm an-Nar period (2750–2000 BC), at least five stone-walled circular platforms, called as “towers”, were built in the marginal area between hills and the alluvial plain, associated with the residential area. In this period, the lowland between two wadi drainages also came to be used for crop fields, evidenced by grid-pattern cobble alignments as boundary and anthropogenic soil including shell fossils (Melanoides tuberculata). The settlement moved through time towards the present-day village in accordance with the geographical shift of watercourses, for which people built channels (falaj) for underground water transportation and stonewalls for preventing flood hazards.
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