Otto Bagi, M.A.

Urban Water Management in the Ḥijāz during the Middle and Late Islamic Periods

Despite the significance of the Ḥijāzī coastal plain in the Islamic world, urban water management in this arid region remains understudied in Western academia. This project examines water subsistence strategies and urban resilience during the Middle and Late Islamic periods, using Jeddah as the primary case study. Despite having no direct access to potable water, the city not only survived but flourished throughout this period. The project is aimed to analyse the distinctly local water management strategies, which enabled this expansion within a marginal environment, through archaeological and historical evidence.

Furthermore, shifts in water management strategies over the centuries illuminate the changing power dynamics between local and imperial authorities. The interplay between merchant elites, the Sharīf of Makkah, and Mamluk or Ottoman administrations reveals how the control of water manifested political authority. By situating Jeddah within a broader regional context, the project aims to illuminate the complex dynamics between environmental scarcity, economy and sociopolitical governance.

2025 - Present: Ph.D. Candidate, University of Bonn, Islamic Archaeology Unit

2018 - 2020: M.A. in Archaeology (Distinction), University of Durham

2014 - 2018: B.A. in Archaeology (Distinction), University of Warsaw

May – Jun 2025: Surveyor, Wadi Hisban, Jordan, University of Bonn

Nov 2023 – Nov 2025: Senior Project Manager, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, JHD Ministry of Culture

Nov 2020 – Nov 2023: Project Director, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, ArcheoConsultant

Jul – Aug 2023: Surveyor, Akkar, Lebanon, Polish Academy of Sciences

Oct 2022: Survey Project Manager, Metsamor, Armenia, University of Warsaw

Jun – Jul 2022: Surveyor, Akkar, Lebanon, Polish Academy of Sciences

May 2020: Surveyor and 3D Documentation Specialist, Jumeirah, UAE, ArcheoConsultant

Mar – Apr 2020: Surveyor and 3D Documentation Specialist, Saruq al-Hadid, UAE, ArcheoConsultant

Sep 2019: Survey Project Manager, Metsamor, Armenia, University of Warsaw

Apr – May 2019: Surveyor and 3D Documentation Specialist, Saruq al-Hadid, UAE, ArcheoConsultant

Apr 2018: Surveyor and 3D Documentation Specialist, Mustis, Tunisia, University of Warsaw

Jan – Mar 2018: Surveyor and 3D Documentation Specialist, Saruq Al-Hadid, UAE, PCMA

Nov – Dec 2017: Surveyor and 3D Documentation Specialist, Saruq Al-Hadid, UAE, PCMA

Oct 2017: Surveyor and 3D Documentation Specialist, Qumayrah Al-Ain, Oman, PCMA

Sep 2017: Photographer and 3D Documentation Specialist, Tell El-Retaba, Egypt, University of Warsaw

Aug 2017: Survey Project Manager, Metsamor, Armenia, University of Warsaw

Feb – Mar 2017: 3D Documentation Specialist, Khirbet Al-Minya, Israel, Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Sep – Oct 2016: Survey Project Manager, Metsamor, Armenia, University of Warsaw

Apr 2016: Aerial Surveyor, Dzalisi, Georgia, University of Warsaw

Sep – Oct 2015: Archaeologist, Metsamor, Armenia, University of Warsaw

Apr 2015: Volunteer Archaeologist, Bornholm, Denmark, University of Warsaw

Oct 2014: Volunteer Archaeologist, Tiberias, Israel, Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Sep 2014: 3D Documentation Specialist, Cobham, UK, Kent Archaeological Society

Jul 2014: Volunteer Archaeologist, Cobham, UK, Kent Archaeological Society

Sep 2013: Volunteer Archaeologist, Cobham, UK, Kent Archaeological Society

Jul 2013: Volunteer Archaeologist, Tiberias, Israel, Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Sep 2012: Volunteer Archaeologist, Tiberias, Israel, Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Aug 2012: Volunteer Archaeologist, Cobham, UK, Kent Archaeological Society

Sep 2011: Volunteer Archaeologist, Tiberias, Israel, Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Jul 2011: Volunteer Archaeologist, Ockham, UK, Surrey Archaeological Society

Sep 2010: Volunteer Archaeologist, Ockham, UK, Surrey Archaeological Society

Aug 2010: Volunteer Archaeologist, Teston, UK, Swale and Thames Archaeology

Dec 2025 – Present: Heritage Consultant, Jeddah Historic District Program, Ministry of Culture of Saudi Arabia

Nov 2023 – Nov 2025: Senior Archaeology Project Manager, Jeddah Historic District Program, Ministry of Culture of Saudi Arabia

Nov 2020 – Nov 2023: Project Director, ArcheoConsultant

Jan 2019 – Jun 2020: Senior GIS Specialist, ArcheoConsultant

Jan 2018 – Jan 2019: Survey Specialist, ArcheoConsultant

2014 – 2018: Freelance Archaeologist

Wygnańska, Z., Bagi, O., Rądkowska, J., Zych, I., Rempel, S., Juchniewicz, K., & Boraik, M. R. (2022). Reconstructing a changing landscape of human activities in the Iron Age II at Saruq al-Hadid (Dubai). Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies, 51, 449–464

Bagi, O. (2017). The ancient landscape of Metsamor. Metsamorian Readings I, 190-204

Bagi, O. (2017). 3D documentation in archaeological fieldwork: A case study from the site of Metsamor. Polish Archaeology in the Mediterranean, 26(1), 795–808

Truszkowski, M., & Bagi, O. (2017). Aerial survey of the cemetery and surrounding fields at Metsamor. Polish Archaeology in the Mediterranean, 26 (1), 570–578

Bagi, O., Juchniewicz, K., Socaciu, D. Alfaleh, A. A. (2025). Historical and archaeological perspectives on the development of Jeddah's fortifications from the 10th to the 20th Century CE. Islamic Archaeology Conference 2025

Juchniewicz, K., Bagi, O., Socaciu, D., Bystroń, A., Ochnio, K., Rongies, P., Nawar, S., Wasilewska, O. (2022). Uthman bin Affan mosque in Jeddah. 57th Seminar for Arabian Studies

Juchniewicz, K., Bagi, O., Socaciu, D., Bystroń, A., Ochnio, K., Rongies, P., Thaarup, G., Wasilewska, O. (2022). Rescue excavations in historic Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. 55th Seminar for Arabian Studies

Wygnanska, Z., Bagi, O., Rądkowska, J., Zych, I. Karim, M. B. R., & Mahmoud, A. (2021). Reconstructing a changing landscape of human activities during Iron Age II at Saruq al-Hadid (Dubai). 54th Seminar for Arabian Studies

Bagi, O. (2021). Metsamor Survey Project: The results of three years of fieldwork. Poles in the Near East

Bagi, O. (2019). Three-dimensional documentation, reconstruction and visualization of site stratigraphy: A case study of Saruq al- Hadid (Emirate of Dubai, UAE). CAA International

Bagi, O. (2018). The Landscape Survey of Metsamor: Phase Two. Poles in the Near East

Bagi, O. (2016). Metsamor: The Potentials of 3-D Documentation during Archaeological Fieldwork. Poles in the Near East

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