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Excavations at Brak and Chagar Bazar
... A similar design resembling a human face with eyes and eyebrows is represented by two circular seal impressions. The design is unique to the sealings, and has no parallels in other materials at Tell Sabi Abyad, such as the figurines and painted pots (interestingly, the anthropomorphic design is very reminiscent of the much later, fourth-millennium BC, 'eye idols' of Tell Brak and Tell Hamoukar, which were found at both sites in association with clay sealings; see e.g., Gibson et al. 2002;Mallowan 1947). ...
... Mallowan 1947: Plate LII: 18). Bear were rather distinct among these due to their humanoid attitudes of crouching, sitting, and standing (Mallowan 1947: Plates VII, IX-X). ...
... A similar design resembling a human face with eyes and eyebrows is represented by two circular seal impressions. The design is unique to the sealings, and has no parallels in other materials at Tell Sabi Abyad, such as the figurines and painted pots (interestingly, the anthropomorphic design is very reminiscent of the much later, fourth-millennium BC, 'eye idols' of Tell Brak and Tell Hamoukar, which were found at both sites in association with clay sealings; see e.g., Gibson et al. 2002;Mallowan 1947). ...
... At its maximum, the city comprised three zones: a densely occupied central core, a lightly occupied Outer Town surrounding the central core, and a 'corona' of small sub-mounds at the edge of the Outer Town (Fig. 2). Excavations of LC2-3 occupation comprise trenches in two of the sub-mounds, Majnuna and T2, and larger exposures at the northern and southern sides of the central mound, in Areas HS, TW, CH and the Eye Temple (Mallowan 1947;Matthews 2004;Oates 2005;McMahon and Oates 2007). From these excavations, we know that the LC2-3 city had at least two powerful institutions. ...
Urban growth in northern Mesopotamia in the early fourth millennium BC was accompanied by an increase in clay container sealings, reflecting the intensified movement and management of resources and manufactured items. The diverse imagery impressed into these sealings includes a human‐ibex grasping a pair of snakes, a bird‐human, and other composite figures. The human‐ibex in particular has been identified as a ‘shaman’, but this is not an appropriate term. The early fourth millennium BC was a period of enormous social and economic upheaval generated by the growth of cities and institutions. Composite figures may have expressed resistance to increasingly structured lived experiences, acknowledging the paradoxes of urban living and affirming the continued presence of the unexplainable.
... With the term "Uruk", an attempt has been made to explain a period of time that covers a large part of the 4th millennium BC, perhaps one of the most decisive periods of the late prehistory of ancient Mesopotamia. A major and suggestive aspect of the Mesopotamian Uruk culture was its great expansion (Mallowan, 1947); and a development that some researchers in their day attributed mostly to the Late Uruk phase of the southern fertile crescent (Strommenger, 1980;Van Driel, 1980). The Uruk period and culture thus affect various countries within the physical map of present-day Western Asia, due to its dispersion over hundreds of kilometres. ...
The Uruk Expansion, which took place during various phases throughout the 4th millennium BC, also developed
in Northern Mesopotamia. In the area of Birecik, in eastern Turkey, on the edge of the Euphrates, various ar�chaeological sites have been discovered, showing different phases of expansion of the Uruk culture. We fo�cus this study on the Surtepe site, a 8 ha settlement, where we have distinguished a possible Late Calcolithic 5
ritual building, in a phase that we consider Terminal Uruk within the chronology of this Mesopotamian culture.
... Bell, 1911: 65;Mallowan, 1946;von Oppenheim, 1900: 1-6). Until the mid-1950s, a time when prototype surveys had already been conducted in the nearby Khabur basin and Balikh valley (Mallowan, 1937(Mallowan, , 1946see Fig. 1), and sites like Tell Brak, Chagar Bazar, and Mari had undergone multiple seasons of excavation (Mallowan, 1937(Mallowan, , 1947Parrot, 1940), the GWJ had hardly even been visited by archaeologists. Despite significant projects having taken place since this time (see Section 2), this delayed commencement of investigation has resulted in a skewed picture of Northern Mesopotamian settlement dynamics, as the GWJ is often either not considered in regional interpretations, or treated exclusively as a separate entity. ...
In the poorly-investigated Greater Western Jazira (GWJ) of north-eastern Syria, the most well-known sites are large tell settlements often called “Kranzhügel”. While this term broadly describes sub-circular mounded sites with two concentric ramparts, it is neither precise nor applicable to all fortified tells of the region. Its widespread application across morphologically heterogeneous sites has led to a distortion of concepts of settlement dynamics and human activity in the GWJ during the Early Bronze Age. This paper uses an intensive remote sensing study and results from past fieldwork to disentangle the term “Kranzhügel” from indiscriminate use and lack of academic dissemination, and build a new typology based upon the absolute morphological forms of fortified GWJ sites. This not only provides a framework for researchers in this region, especially when working with remote sensing data, but also a case study of the pitfalls of terminological ambiguity which are present across many areas of archaeological research.
... The panted ceramics from the sites: Nuzi, Tell Brak, Alalakh, Tell Billah Chagar Bazar and other sites, shows new information about this ware. The term used by Mallowan (1946) after its appearance it was called Hurrian ware by Spiser (1933) (Speiser 1933, p. 249-283), for all these terms Stein cited it in her paper in Assur 4 (Stein 1984, p. 4-5). Afterward, it could be to say that the origin of this ware came from the changing of the previous period that was known or called by Khabur ware (Hrouda, 1957, p. 44). ...
The Nuzi ware has appeared for the first time in the city of Nuzi with its white on dark painted decoration. The recent excavations exactly in the plain of Erbil, south-eastern of Kirkuk and western Dohuk have provided much information about the history of the Mitannian and its arts. In the other hand, these excavations have provided new lights about the ceramics and the domination of the Mitannian kingdom. Where the Nuzi ware stops its distribution then their political borders have finished. In the other way, the Nuzi ware could be finding only in the domination land under the Mitannian kingdom. There are similarity between Nuzi ware and the older Khabur ware, during this research the influenced of Khabur ware on the Nuzi ware and the influence of Nuzi ware on the Middle-Assyrian ceramics and on the neighbouring regions have been mentioned.
Tape Jameh Shuran Sofla (JSS) is known in Iranian archaeology as a significant Iron Age site in western Central Zagros. The site was excavated by L. Levine in 1978 as part of the “Mahidasht Project” of the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), but its report has never been fully published. While working on a corpus of clay sealings from the Chogha Maran archive of the Mahidasht Project in the National Museum of Iran (NMI), we came across two objects with the findspot number 468: a silver coin, and a clay sealing with a stamp seal impression depicting two quadrupeds. The number refers to the site of Jameh Shuran in the Mahidasht Project survey system. This paper studies the style, iconography and function of the clay sealing. The JSS sealing – which was identified as a door sealing - is dated to the LC 3-4 and is attributed to the mid-Fourth Millennium BC developments of the Central Zagros before the establishment of the Godin VI: I administrative institution. The glyptic connection between the Central Zagros, Susiana, northern Mesopotamia, and the west Central Iranian Plateau reflected in the imagery of the JSS seal impression, supports the intensification of interactions and the movement of people, goods, and ideas in the region during the LC, especially along the Khorasan High Road.
Cylinder seals began to be used in Anatolia shortly after their emergence in Mesopotamia and Iran during the second half of the 4th millennium BCE. These seals, offering a wide narrative space, were used across Western Asia until the 5th century BCE. Seal impressions, which in their simplest function ensured property protection, appeared within similar timeframes. This study provides a comprehensive evaluation of cylinder seals and impressions from the 3rd millennium BCE in Anatolia, focusing on their significance during the Anatolian Early Bronze Age. Published cylinder seals and impressions are cataloged, categorized by region and period, and analyzed. The findings revealed that cylinder seals and impressions were prevalent at the Southeast Anatolian and Cilician–Amuq sites, areas that interacted with the Mesopotamian cultural sphere during early Early Bronze Age. In the later Early Bronze Age, these artifacts spread to Central and Western Anatolia, facilitated by trade routes known as the Anatolian Trade Network or Caravan Roads. The limited number of cylinder seals and the near absence of their impressions on clay bullae in Western Anatolia indicate that cylinder seals did not support the indigenous stamp seal tradition of the region. Moreover, they were not adopted as bureaucratic tools similar to their use in Mesopotamia. Instead, it is posited that as cylinder seals moved farther from their region of origin, they transitioned into prestige items or simple protective amulets rather than organizational instruments.
Keywords: Cylinder Seal, Sealing, Early Bronze Age, Anatolia, Mesopotamia
Durante las últimas fases del Calcolítico Tardío surgieron múltiples asentamientos urbanos en los valles del Éufrates y del Alto Khabur. La fuerte presencia de cultura Uruk llevó a pensar que dichos centros eran resultado de la influencia de la Baja Mesopotamia, cuyos habitantes se habían trasladado al norte y/o impuesto su cultura. En los últimos años, sin embargo, se ha matizado el peso de unos sobre otros, proponiendo que las poblaciones locales habrían participado de manera voluntaria en dichas relaciones, así como también resaltando los indicios previos de urbanización local. Ahora bien, una vez finalizado el Calcolítico Tardío no sólo se verifica el repliegue de la cultura Uruk sino también del fenómeno urbano, indicando entonces que habría existido una estrecha relación entre ambos fenómenos. En este artículo, retomando un estudio dedicado a los sitios de Hacinebi Tepe, de Habuba Kabira Sur/Tel Qannas, y de Tell Brak, nos proponemos analizar estos cambios en los patrones de asentamiento y las formas de organización social durante y después de la expansión Uruk, para intentar comprender de qué manera urbanismo y movilidad se articularon en dichas dinámicas.
This article deals with an unpublished stone figurine belonging to the class of so-called Spectacle Idols from the collections of the National Archaeological Museum of Florence. The object is described and contextualized within the class of similar materials from other museums' collections and from controlled stratigraphic excavations.
Seyitömer Höyük, Kütahya ilinin kuzeybatısında yer almaktadır. Günümüzde kömür işletmesi sahası içinde yer alan Höyük’te gerçekleştirilen arkeolojik kazılar, höyüğün etkilediği alanda bulunan kömür rezervine ulaşmak amacıyla yapılmıştır. Kurtarma kazısı kapsamında yapılan kazılara 1989 yılında başlanılmış ve aralıklarla 2021 yılı sonuna kadar sürdürülmüştür. Bu çalışmalar sonucunda Höyük’te Erken Tunç Çağı II’den Roma Dönemine kadar toplam 6 tabaka tespit edilmiştir. Makalenin konusunu Erken Tunç Çağı III Dönemi’ne tarihlendirilen V/B evresinde açığa çıkarılan yönetici yapısının ana odasında ele geçirilen bir grup boncuk oluşturmaktadır. Söz konusu boncuklar, fayans olarak isimlendirilen malzemeden üretilmişlerdir. Toplamda 14 adet olduğu tespit edilen boncuklar, hayvan figürlüdür. Bu boncukların 8 adedi koç, 5 adedi ördek ve 1 adedi de tanımlanamayan bir hayvan biçiminde stilize tasvir edilmiştir. Çalışmada, boncuklar detaylı olarak tanıtılmış ve büyük bir kısmının benzerleri, Mezopotamya ve Suriye’de yer alan yerleşim ve mezarlıklarda ele geçirildiği tespit edilmiştir. MÖ 3. Bin yılın ikinci yarısına tarihlendirilen figürlü boncukların ışığında Seyitömer Höyüğünün konumuna ve uzak mesafeli ticaret içindeki yerine değinilmiştir.
Yakın Doğu'da Çanak Çömleksiz Neolitik Dönem yerleşim yerlerinde ortaya çıkarılan anıtsal yapılar (Jeriko, Mureybet, Jerf el-Ahmar, Çayönü, Nevali Çori, Göbeklitepe, Karahantepe vb.), kil sıvalı kafatasları, taş veya kemikten yapılmış objelerin (taş vazolar, taş boncuklar, kemik plakalar, vb.) dönemin tasvir sanatını veya dini ritüellerini temsil ettiği düşünülmektedir. Fakat Neolitiğ’in geç evresi olarak bilinen ve yaklaşık olarak MÖ 7000 'de başlayan Çanak Çömlekli Neolitik Dönem’de (Geç Neolitik Dönem) , Göbeklitepe ve yakın çevresinden de tanıdığımız baskın anıtsal mimari olarak anılan yapıların artık Yakındoğu'da kullanılmadığı görülmektedir. Kuzey Mezopotamya kültürleri olarak bilinen Hassuna, Samarra ve özellikle Halaf kültürleri Çanak Çömlekli Neolitik Dönem kültürel ve sosyo-ekonomik yapıları hakkında önemli bilgiler vermektedir. Bu dönemde bilhassa çanak ve çömlekler veya mühürler üzerinde simgesel öğelerin yoğunlaştığı görülmektedir. Özellikle Halaf kültürüne ait kapların üzerindeki iki veya üç katlı yapıları betimleyen sahneler, başları gövdelerinden ayrık olan insanları içeren tasvirler, dans eden insan motifleri, boğa başları (bukranium) ve bitki motifleri Geç Neolitik Dönem sembolizmi ve sanatı hakkında daha detaylı bilgiler vermektedir. Bu çalışma, Geç Neolitik Dönemde Kuzey Mezopotamya'daki Halaf kültürünün sosyo-kültürel ve ekonomik yapısı, Halaf çanak çömlekleri üzerinde yer alan sahnelerin dönemin sanatı veya dinini temsil ettiği düşünülen öğeleri hakkında bilgi vermeyi ve yeniden yorumlanmasını amaçlamaktadır.
Acemhöyük, gerek konumu gerekse sahip olduğu boyutları ile Erken Tunç Çağı (MÖ 3000-2000) ve Orta Tunç Çağı (MÖ 2000-1700) boyunca Orta Anadolu Bölgesi’nin önemli krallık merkezlerinden biri olmuştur. Yerleşim en parlak dönemini üç büyük anıtsal bina ile Asur Ticaret Kolonileri Çağı’nda yaşamıştır. Ancak son yıllarda Erken Tunç Çağı tabakalarında ağırlık verilen kazılar benzer bir tablo ortaya koymaktadır. Daha önce benzerine rastlanmamış anıtsal sur duvarı, radyal planlı mekanları, kültürel bağlantıları tanımlayan buluntuları ile Acemhöyük’ün Erken Tunç Çağı’nda da önemli bir krallık merkezi olduğu anlaşılmaktadır. Bu bağlantıları tanımlayan önemli malzeme gruplarından birisi de idollerdir. Bu çalışmada Acemhöyük Erken Tunç Çağı III tabakalarında ele geçen 23 adet idol değerlendirilmiştir. Yapıldıkları hammadde ve form özelliklerine göre sınıflandırılan idoller, yakın ve uzak coğrafyalarda yer alan yerleşimler ile karşılaştırılmıştır. Çağdaş örnekler üzerinden benzerlik ve farklılıklar belirlenmiştir. Daha çok seramik materyali üzerinden kurulan Acemhöyük kültürel bağlantıları, idoller vasıtasıyla bir kez daha ele alınmış ve benzer bir tablo ortaya konmuştur.
Burials at the Early Bronze Age IA (c. 3700-3400) cemetery of Fifa, Jordan included a variety of grave goods including beads. These were made of glazed steatite or carnelian. This thesis utilizes use-wear analysis, SEM-EDS, XRD, and a database of 5th and 4th millennium BCE beads in order to build life-histories for Fifa’s beads. Beyond focusing on how the beads were manufactured, where they were produced, how they travelled to the Fifa cemetery, and how they were used at the cemetery, the symbolic and contextual meanings of both types of beads are also explored. I argue that Fifa’s glazed steatite beads were manufactured in Upper Egypt while its carnelian beads were produced in Northwest Arabia. Their exchange facilitated economic and social connections. Both types of beads were likely used for their protective qualities with glazed steatite also potentially assisting in the successful reincarnation of deceased subadults.
UNESCO has received, over the years, a small collection of objects donated to it by member countries. Iraq has given one cuneiform tablet and two seals. This paper discusses the seals, a stamp seal and a cylinder seal, and considers the significance of the imagery of the sun god.
يتناول هذا البحث موضوعا مهما يدور حول التجريد في الفن الرافديني القديم (أي التبسيط والاختزال) في المشاهد الفنية المنفذة على الفخار خلال عصور قبل التاريخ, فالتجريد أقدم اساليب الفن البشري حيث يربط الفن بالسحر والدين. والإشكال التجريدية من خلال تعريتها من كل ما هو طبيعي تصبح حرة، وتمتلك طاقة داخلية نابعة من مصادر روحية. وكان الفخار أحد تلك الفنون التي جسدت وخلدت عليها جانباً من تفاصيل الحياة في بلاد الرافدين متخذة من الاسلوب التجريدي اساسا لصياغة مشاهدها, ولكثرة الفخاريات المكتشفة في مختلف المواقع العراقية القديمة وفي كل العصور ولدقة التفاصيل الممثلة عليها وتنوع موضوعاتها وتعدد مشاهدها أمكن من خلالها رسم صورة واضحة للحياة الدينية والمدنية لأبناء بلاد الرافدين بكل ما تتضمنه من تفاصيل. يهدف البحث الى تسليط الضوء على أقدم اساليب الفن الانساني المعروف بالأسلوب التجريدي من خلال تتبع نشأته وتطوره عبر العصور.
This article analyzes current theoretical discourses within the Neolithic and Chalcolithic research of Southwestern Asia, which is still dominated by interpretations that assume a progression of increased hierarchization. Whether explicitly or implicitly, social evolutionary thinking still pervades our scholarship, and prevents innovative theory-building. This entails an inability to break with heuristics of ‘origins’ inherited from the past (e.g. “from the origins of domestication to the origins of civilization”), even though old and new discoveries, when integrated, are already pointing towards alternative research pathways. Sedentism, domestication, and urbanism were all complex, protracted, non-linear processes. Yet, the visualization of an ‘Uruk phenomenon’ expanding over large areas of Mesopotamia during the 4th millennium BC, ridden with problematic inconsistencies, still heralds the triumphal rise of civilization. Instead of relying on obsolete political and economic theories, or fake economy/ritual dichotomies, the investigation of social intelligence and the articulation of the biosocial in the landscape and within the prehistoric community should be a priority. The ‘agency’ of ‘elites’ is merely an interpretive deus ex machina helping scholars deal with the many difficulties and uncertainties of their research.
ان المنطقة التي تسمى "بهدينان" حالياً، ما هي إلا عبارة عن إطار جغرافي لمنطقة شهدت أحداث تاريخية قديمة جداً. الا ان مصطلح بهدينان يرتبط بشكل مباشر بإمارة "بهدينان" التي تأسست في القرن الرابع عشر الميلادي. استخدم هذا المصطلح لبيان الحدود الجغرافية للحديث عن مضمون البحث عن حضارة المنطقة، وان هذا المصطلح يطلق اليوم على محافظة دهوك، ولكن برقعة جغرافية اوسع مما هو معروف الان، لان الحدود الجغرافية لمحافظة دهوك قد رسمت في سنة ١٩٦٩ ولكن المفهوم الجغرافي لمنطقة بهدينان أكثر من ذلك.
Tilmen Höyük’teki kazılar 1959-64 ve 1969-72 yılları arasında U. Bahadır Alkım tarafından yürütülmüştür. Söz konusu kazılar sonucunda Tilmen Höyük’te MÖ 4. binden MÖ 2. binyılın sonlarına kadar kesintisiz bir yerleşim saptanmıştır. Bu kazılar sonucu bulunmuş olan İlk Tunç Çağı’na ait çark yapımı, iyi pişmiş bir grup keramik tarafımızdan Açık Renkli Yalın Keramik (ARYK) olarak isimlendirilmiştir. Bu keramik grubu ilk olarak Braidwood tarafından Plain Simple Ware / Simple Ware olarak arkeoloji literatürüne girmiştir. Açık renkli, çark yapımı, hamuru iyi arıtılmış ve iyi pişmiş olan bu keramik grubu İlk Tunç Çağı’nda Güneydoğu Anadolu Bölgesi ve Kuzey Suriye’de yoğun olarak görülür. Uluslararası terminolojide Orta Fırat Bölgesi, Fırat Nehri’nin Güneydoğu Anadolu Bölgesi ile Kuzey Suriye’de kalan kısmını tanımlamaktadır. Bu bölge ARYK grubunun çekirdek bölgesi olarak kabul edilebilir. Çok geniş bir yayılım alanı bulmuş olan ARYK Doğu ve Orta Anadolu’da ithal malzeme olarak görülmektedir. Söz konusu keramik grubu Geç Kalkolitik Çağ’dan itibaren gelişimini sürdürerek MÖ. 2. binyıl boyunca görülmeye devam eder. Özellikle İTÇ’den itibaren teknolojik gelişmeler gösterir. ARYK, İTÇ başlarında çarkta üretilmeye başlar ve İTÇ’nin sonlarına doğru hızlı çark üretimi bir keramik grubu olarak devam eder. İTÇ’nin sonlarında bu keramik grubunun belli standartlara bağlı, seri olarak üretildiğini söyleyebiliriz. ARYK grubunda görülen bazı formlar tarihlendirme açısından önemlidir. Cyma-recta olarak bilinen “S” profilli kâseler İTÇ I-II’ye, caliciform olarak bilinen çan biçimli bardaklar ise İTÇ’nin sonlarına tarihlenmektedir. Bu makalede incelenmiş olan Tilmen Höyük’e ait keramikler İTÇ I’den başlayarak İTÇ/OTÇ geçiş evresine tarihlenmektedir.
– ئوروک بە سەردەمی بڵاوبوونەوەی شارستانیەت دەبینرێت، کە زۆربەی مێسۆپۆتامیا و زاگرۆسیی کۆنی داپۆشیبو. کوردستانی کۆنیش بەشێک بووە لەو کلتورە و بۆ ماوەیەکی زۆر کۆنترۆڵی کوردستانی دەکرد لە ڕێگەی بنکە بازرگانی و کارگێڕییەکانیەوە، بەڵام دانیشتوانی ئەودەمەی کوردستان هەمیشە کلتووری خۆیان پاراستووە. سەرەڕای ئەوەش، دۆزینەوە شوێنەوارییە نوێیەکان لە کوردستانی باشوور زانیاری جیاوازتر پێشکەش دەکەن لەوانەی کە دەربارەی ئەم کەلتوورە لە باشووری مێزۆپۆتامیا زانراوە. ئەم توێژینەوەیە باس لە سەرهەڵدان و ئاوابوونی کەلتوری ئوروک ئەکات و باس لە گرنگترین شوێنەکانی کوردستان ئەکات کە کەرەستەی بەرجەستەی ئەم کەلتورەی لەخۆگرتوە.
Karaz kültürü (MÖ 3500-1500), Gürcistan, Ermenistan ve Azerbaycan’ı kapsayan Transkafkasya’dan Doğu Anadolu’ya, güneyde Levant içlerine dek, Kuzeybatı İran’dan Orta Anadolu’ya kadar geniş bir alana yayılım gösterir. Kültürü karakterize eden arkeolojik buluntuların en başında parlak siyah açkılı seramik ile kırmızı-siyah açkılı seramik grubu gelmektedir. Daha sonra ise, çeşitli boyut ve biçimlerde taşınabilir ocaklar gelmektedir. Söz konusu geniş yayılım sahası içinde hemen her yerleşim yerinde bu iki buluntu grubundan örnekler bir takım yöresel farklılıklar ile birlikte ele geçmektedir. Genel olarak bakıldığı zaman, Karaz kültürü yayılım sahası içinde en çok sayıda ve çeşitlilikte taşınabilir ocak örneğinin Kuzeydoğu Anadolu Bölgesi’nde Pulur, Karaz, Güzelova ve Sos Höyük gibi geçmiş kazılardan ele geçtiği söylenebilir. 2021 yılında uzun bir aradan sonra yeniden başlayan Pulur Höyük (Erzurum) kazı çalışmalarıyla birlikte, Karaz kültürü hakkında bilgilerimiz artarak devam etmektedir. Bu makalenin konusunu, Pulur Höyük 2021 ve 2022 yılı kazılarında ele geçen zoomorfik taşınabilir kutsal ocak parçaları oluşturmaktadır. Söz konusu çalışmada, Pulur Höyük son dönem kazı çalışmalarında ele geçen zoomorfik taşınabilir kutsal ocak parçaları ışığında Doğu Anadolu Bölgesi taşınabilir ocaklarının tekrar değerlendirilmesi amaçlanmıştır.
Pottery has a significant bearing on the reconstruction of ancient regional and transregional interactions. Flasks represent a pottery type that was more ubiquitous in the historical period. The present study examined 16 pottery flasks stored at the Sanandaj Archaeological Museum in order to address three research questions: Which historical period can this pottery be dated to? What is the geographical range over which they were manufactured given the available excavated comparanda? What types are represented in the sample under study in terms of manufacturing technique, surface treatment, decoration, and form? The results showed that the flasks were primarily produced in two varieties, round shouldered and angular shouldered, with their exterior coated in a slip or a buff, turquoise, and light or dark green glaze. Judging by their appearance (surface finish and decorations), they were produced in the Hellenistic and Parthian period. It was found out that they have parallels among assemblages from west and southwest Iran and Mesopotamia. The study adopted the descriptivehistorical and comparative methods.
Recent fieldwork conducted by the Italian Archaeological Expedition at Tell Zurghul, ancient Nigin, has revealed evidence of a 3rd millennium BC phase mainly consisting of pottery sherds, inscribed bricks and clay cones scattered on the site surface. This paper examines the data gathered in Area C, located in the western part of the site, through a preliminary survey carried out during the 2015 first campaign. This sector was selected for the presence of a 160m-long ridge that rises 5m above the surrounding plain and for its exceptionally dense concentration of surface material. The first results of this work, including a preliminary analysis of the pottery and artifacts collected as well as observations on the features visible on the ground, provide some elements for reconstructing the use of this sector of the ancient city.
Back to beginnings: the earliest habitation at Petras on the basis of the evidence from the FN-EM I settlement on Kephala
Metal objects and findings that suggest metallurgy activities were discovered in the Early Bronze Age architectural layers of the Mezraa Höyük. Among the finds were two crucible fragments and a casting mould. Analysis of the metal fragments preserved on the crucible parts revealed the presence of arsenical copper. Pins with forms that were well known in the Middle Euphrates Region during the Early Bronze Age make up another group of findings. In analysis, one pin was determined to be an arsenical copper alloy and the other a tin-copper alloy. This data proves that metallurgical activities were present in the second half of the Early Bronze Age and that the alloy arsenical copper was produced.
At a time when archaeology has turned away from questions of the long-term and large scale, this collection of essays reflects on some of the big questions in archaeology and ancient history - how and why societies have grown in scale and complexity, how they have maintained and discarded aspects of their own cultural heritage, and how they have collapsed. In addressing these long-standing questions of broad interest and importance, the authors develop counter-narratives - new ways of understanding what used to be termed 'cultural evolution'. Encompassing the Middle East and Egypt, India, Southeast Asia, Australia, the American Southwest and Mesoamerica, the fourteen essays offer perspectives on long-term cultural trajectories; on cities, states and empires; on collapse; and on the relationship between archaeology and history. The book concludes with a commentary by one of the major voices in archaeological theory, Norman Yoffee.
At a time when archaeology has turned away from questions of the long-term and large scale, this collection of essays reflects on some of the big questions in archaeology and ancient history - how and why societies have grown in scale and complexity, how they have maintained and discarded aspects of their own cultural heritage, and how they have collapsed. In addressing these long-standing questions of broad interest and importance, the authors develop counter-narratives - new ways of understanding what used to be termed 'cultural evolution'. Encompassing the Middle East and Egypt, India, Southeast Asia, Australia, the American Southwest and Mesoamerica, the fourteen essays offer perspectives on long-term cultural trajectories; on cities, states and empires; on collapse; and on the relationship between archaeology and history. The book concludes with a commentary by one of the major voices in archaeological theory, Norman Yoffee.
At a time when archaeology has turned away from questions of the long-term and large scale, this collection of essays reflects on some of the big questions in archaeology and ancient history - how and why societies have grown in scale and complexity, how they have maintained and discarded aspects of their own cultural heritage, and how they have collapsed. In addressing these long-standing questions of broad interest and importance, the authors develop counter-narratives - new ways of understanding what used to be termed 'cultural evolution'. Encompassing the Middle East and Egypt, India, Southeast Asia, Australia, the American Southwest and Mesoamerica, the fourteen essays offer perspectives on long-term cultural trajectories; on cities, states and empires; on collapse; and on the relationship between archaeology and history. The book concludes with a commentary by one of the major voices in archaeological theory, Norman Yoffee.
يدرُس البحث ألواحا فخارية غير منشورة من المتحف العراقي تعود بتاريخها إلى العصر البابلي القديم، وهي أربعة ألواح، إذ تناولت مشاهد دينية بحتة مع اختلاف المضمون، تمثل اللوح الأول امرأة عارية متعبدة، واللوح الثاني الآلهة أنثوية (الداعية)، واللوح الثالث يدل على رجل متعبد أما اللوح الرابع فان المشهد يدل على رجل يقدم القرابين. تعد هذه الألواح نوعا من ضروب الفن، يضم في ثناياه مفاهيم وعقائد تحلى بها سكان بلاد الرافدين ولاسيما أن الغاية من صناعتها لم تكن غاية جمالية مثلما هي لدينا في الوقت الحاضر من امتلاك قطع فنية، بل كان الوازع الاساسي في اقتنائها هو أشبه بالتميمة أو الحرز الذي يمنح الفرد نوعاً من الطمأنينة والراحة النفسية من وجهة نظر مالكها.
Doğu Anadolu Bölgesi, Bingöl İli Solhan ilçesinde, Murat Nehri kenarında yer alan Murat Höyük’te 2019 yılında yapılan kurtarma kazısı sonucunda ele geçen taş döküm kalıpları dikkat çeken buluntular arasındadır. Höyüğün en erken tabakası Erken Tunç Çağı III’e (MÖ 2500-2200) tarihlenmektedir. Doğu Anadolu Erken Tunç Çağı arkeolojik materyal kültüründe yaygın görülmeyen, gelişmiş sürtmetaş işçiliği ve metal döküm teknolojisinin varlığını gösteren taştan üretilen iki parçalı döküm kalıpları, Murat Höyük’ün Erken Tunç Çağı tabakasına aittir. Kazı alanında in-situ olarak gün ışığına çıkarılan taş kalıpların olasılıkla sap delikli balta üretiminde kullanılmış olduğu negatif modellerinden anlaşılmaktadır. Doğu Anadolu’da görülen balta kalıpları en erken MÖ 3. binyıl başlarına tarihlenmekte ve yaygın olarak Karaz tipi baltalar için üretildikleri bilinmektedir. Morfolojik olarak benzer örneklerin MÖ 2. Bin Koloni Çağı’nda Orta Anadolu’da Kültepe metal işliklerinde ele geçen, taştan özenli bir işçilik sergileyen döküm kalıpları ile yapılan analojik değerlendirme sayesinde Murat Höyük kalıpları ile sap delikli balta üretildiği anlaşılmaktadır. Tüm Önasya’da MÖ 2. Binyıla ait oldukları kabul edilen sap delikli baltaların Murat Höyük ETÇ III tabakasında MÖ. 3. Binyılın 3. Çeyreğinden itibaren ortaya çıkması ilgi çekicidir. Metal alet endüstrisinin önemli bir buluntu grubu olan ve bu çalışma ile ele alınan Murat Höyük kalıplarının kabul edilenin aksine daha erken bir dönemde sap delikli balta üretiminde kullanımı Doğu Anadolu arkeolojisinin Erken Tunç Çağı’na önemli bir katkı sağlayacağı şüphesizdir.
Doğu Akdeniz ve Yukarı Mezopotamya’da Geç Tunç Çağı boyunca görülen Nuzi seramiği, üzerinde yer alan zengin bezeme içeriği ile Ege dünyasında bilinen Kamares seramiği ile önemli benzerlikler göstermektedir. Özellikle Nuzi seramiğinin batıdaki yayılım coğrafyasında bulunan örneklerde görülen papirüs ve çift ağızlı balta gibi simgesel motiflerin Ege kültürlerinde de sıkılıkla kullanılması dikkat çekicidir. Benzer motiflerin yanı sıra koyu zemin üzerine açık boyama tekniğinin kullanımında da benzerlikler söz konusudur. Her iki seramik grubu, farklı dönem ve coğrafyalarda yayılım göstermelerine karşın, aralarındaki muhtemel bağlantı kültürler arasındaki etkileşim tartışmalarını da beraberinde getirirken, MÖ 2. binyılda Akdeniz Havzasında gerçekleşen denizsel bağlantı faaliyetlerinin kültürler üzerindeki etkilerini anlamamıza olanak sağlamaktadır. Bu çalışmada, Nuzi seramiği üzerinde görülen Ege etkilerinin, iki bölge arasındaki etkileşim sonucu olarak ortaya çıktığı savunulmaktadır.
Snake symbolism is prevalent throughout recorded history and is seen in cultures vastly separated by distance and time such as from Ancient Egypt to modern Jordan. In the Southern Levant (present day Jordan and Palestine), many objects with snake appliques have been discovered during excavations. Twenty five pieces of pottery sherds and vessels decorated with snake appliqués were recorded during various excavations of Early Bronze Age sites in Southern Levant. Ten sherds with snake appliqués belonged to unidentified pottery vessels, seven sherds with the appliqués were identified from bowls, four appliqués were found on storage jars, three appliqués were found on jugs, one from a cooking pot and one appliquéd chalice. The greatest number of pieces comes from Khirbet ez-Zeraqon, followed by Bab Edh Dhra', Jebel Al-Mutawwaq, Khirbet Ras Ed Daliya, Khirbet el Kerak, Khirbet al-Batrawy, 'Arad, and Tel el-Qadi respectively. This study aims at examining the pieces to try to get a deeper understanding of how these separate sites had represented the image of the snake and where they typically place the snake on the object and with what behavior the snake is exhibiting in order to understand how these jars may have been used or what may have been placed inside the vessels or objects. A catalogue is included herein with 25 documented snake appliques with an overview of the sites they were recovered from, their type, their archaeological context, and references. Since most of these pieces were either found in temples or religiously related places in private houses, they were most probably used in certain cultic rituals or in activities relates to cultic beliefs. In conclusion, the preponderance of evidence suggests that some vessels may have been used for cultic purposes while others may have been used to hold things of value.
One of the most important turning points that resulted in the achievements of man and human civilization in history, is first, the great climate change that occurred when the last glacial retreat began about 18,000 years ago, with the Middle Stone Age approximately. Secondly, the stage of man’s transition from gathering food to producing food, which is one of the most important steps that man has taken on his way to stability in the lifestyle thousands of years ago, and because of its importance, researchers called it the Neolithic Revolution.
After the great change in the climate in the Near East region, human's confrontation with their new environment and trying to adapt to it constituted one of the most important challenges that man had to face, to ensure survival. And then this challenge led to the most important human discoveries, which are attempts to domesticate and agriculture: they began with attempts to grow grain, then succeeded little by little and became stable agriculture and led to the emergence of agricultural settlements, and this is mainly the content of adaptation. Because of the importance of that stage of human life in which writing was still non-existent and unknown, it was addressed by researchers from several aspects, and in light of archaeological evidence in terms of architectural styles, the development of stone tools, and pottery products (in terms of the accuracy of industry and techniques used), as well as Important studies were conducted on plant and animal remains, and other studies on the human lifestyle in the period following the discovery of agriculture.
Despite the aforementioned studies on the archaeological remains, which revealed the many facades of life in Mesopotamia during that stage, the visual picture of the manifestations of adaptation to life and the extent of human harmony with natural phenomena in light of stability in that period, remains an important part to complement what His image is research and studies. Fortunately, the images and scenes painted on pottery from the late Neolithic and Metallic Age serve us, which by studying and analyzing them we aim to see the reflection of the reality of man's interaction and adaptation with his natural environment. Thus, our models come from pottery scenes from the region of Mesopotamia (Iraq and Syria) in the time frame that starts from the period of Hassuna, Samarra, Halaf and Ubaid, and finally some models from the era of Warka and Jemda-Nasr, and these are the models that carry the elements that serve the objectives of the research. One of the objectives of the research is also to track the developments that occurred in these inscriptions, which later became elements of the first and oldest models of writing in history, cuneiform writing, from its pictorial stage, and this confirms more that the elements and symbols of writing are rooted in pottery inscriptions from preceding eras. We use some scenes on pottery models from present-day Iran and Turkey for the purpose of comparison.
Keywords: Pottery inscriptions Pictorial writing Adaptation Mesopotamia Prehistoric times
The material remains and the more than 23,500 cuneiform tablets unearthed at the site of Kültepe (ancient Kanesh) shed light on social, political, and economic aspects of the Middle Bronze age (ca. 2000–1700 years BC) in central Anatolia, but also in upper Mesopotamia. The rich textual record provides ample information on a very sophisticated supraregional market economy, representing one of the best-documented historical cases of long-distance trade in the ancient world. Although the site was first excavated in 1893, followed by intermittent excavations between 1906 and 2005, modern scientific and interdisciplinary excavations have only been undertaken since 2006. The new scientific research at Kültepe-Kanesh has already begun amassing new data and providing us with a unique opportunity to generate new perspectives and to challenge previous models and assumptions about, for example, trade, colonialism, ethnicity, art, religious ideas, identity, and patterns of social, political, and economic organization in the Near East during the Middle Bronze Age. A primary goal of this special volume is to integrate the work of scholars in archaeology, archaeometry, bioarchaeology, geoarchaeology, and history to develop a new synthetic research paradigm for investigating issues of trade, colonialism, ethnicity, art, identity, and urbanization in the Near East in a unified fashion.
Religious idols produced in a range of different materials, including clay, stone, metal, bone and wood, constitutes one of the most significant find groups at Kültepe to help us understand local religious beliefs and practices. They provide versatile information, and allow different interpretations on the subject, owing to their shapes, depiction of details, and the archaeological contexts from which they have been obtained. In Anatolia in general, idols are represented by numerous examples in the Early Bronze Age (EBA hen-ceforth) as reflections of an ongoing tradition that ultimately reaches back into the Neolithic Age. They constitute a highly schematic and idealized form of sculpture in terms of style, being mostly flat artifacts. But even though they are seen to appear in various styles across different regions of Anatolia, the idols are generally accepted as representatives of the same notion. Apart from religious beliefs, they thus also shed light on interregional relations. This paper explores some of the characteristic styles and intended uses of the Kültepe idols, along with their chronological and typological developments in the light of recent finds at the site and elsewhere.
The Bayazid Abad hypogeum has yielded a remarkable assemblage of artefacts, 120 of which were metal pins of various categories, dating from Middle Bronze Age II to Iron Age II. This collection shows a widespread typological affinities with other areas of the Near East. The pins (mostly so-called “toggle pins”) have a strong affinity with the forms which most commonly occur in the Levant and Mesopotamia, which suggests that the use of toggle pins starts in the Middle Bronze Age and persists until the end of the Late Bronze Age. Comparison of the pins dated to Iron I and II shows strong connections with examples from neighbouring sites, although all present uniquely localised forms and details of manufacture.
Pottery marked the advent of the agricultural revolution, transition to sedentary life, and a new era of intellectual development. Man used pottery to communicate important ideas in symbolic form. This article presents examples of ancient art, in particular, zoomorphic and anthropomorphic images on pottery. The research featured ceramic vessels found at the archaeological sites of Halaf culture in Syria. The research objective was to interpret their meaning using various descriptive and analytical methods. The author believes that the ancient potter used animal images out of reverence or fear. Animal images on pottery point at the close interaction between people, animals, and nature.
Kuzey Mezopotamya (Irak'ın kuzeyindeki Dohuk, Musul, Erbil, Kerkük, Süleymaniye ve Diyala bölgeleri) ve Kuzeydoğu Suriye (Yukarı ve kısmen de Orta Habur bölgeleri) bölgelerinin, M.Ö. 3. bindeki en problemli konularından birini oluşturan Ninive 5 kültürü; bezemesiz, boya bezemeli ya da çizi-oyma bezemeli olarak karşımıza çıkan seramik grupları ile tanınmaktadır. Ninive 5 terimi, söz konusu seramik türünü ifade ettiği gibi, ele geçtiği dönemi ve ilgili malzemeyi üreten kültürü tanımlayan bir anlam da taşımaktadır.
1998 yılında Hakkari kent merkezinde tesadüfen 13 taş stel ele geçirildi. Üzerlerinde daima cepheden bir insan yüzü ve bedeninin üst kısmı gösterilmiştir. Çıplak olarak betimlenen bu figürlerden 11'inde erkeklik organı bir suspansuvar altına gizlenmiştir. Diğer iki stelin ise kadınlara ait olması olasıdır. Yanlarında balta, mızrak, topuz gibi silahlar, belde kemer ve daima bir hançer vardır. Ayrıca steller üzerinde bozkır türü çadırlar, leopar avı ve yaban keçilerine saldıran leoparlar ve kimi küçük erkek ve bir kadın figürü de resmedilmiştir. Doğu Anadolu'ya yabancı olan bu taşlar Avrasya bozkır kültürünün bir parçasıdır. Silah tiplerine dayanılarak M.Ö. II. binyılın ortaları ile sonları arasında bir yere tarihlenmeleri mümkündür.
This study demonstrates the development of alloying process and identifies the different alloys patterns used in Jezirah during the third millennium B.C. and examines if there was any relation between alloys patterns and the types of objects to be manufactured. To achieve these goals, findings of published studies that have analysed copper-based alloys chemically have been assembled and re-evaluated. In this multi-disciplinary paper, archaeometallurgical and archaeometric, 1279 copper-based alloys objects, from Jezirah, Mesopotamia and South-eastern Anatolian sites, were studied. Results of compositional analyses show that alloying process development in Jezirah during the third millennium B.C. was non-linear as was the case in the Mesopotamian and Anatolian schema. Three major types of different compositional patterns of copper-based alloys during the third millennium B.C. were used. At the beginning of third millennium B.C. arsenical copper alloys with arsenic content ≥ 4% were used alongside tin-bronze alloys with tin concentration from ≥ 2 to ≤ 5%. By the middle of the third millennium B.C., tin-bronze with tin content from ≥ 2 to ≥ 10%, arsenical copper alloys with arsenic content ≤ 2.5% and arsenical bronze with low tin and varied arsenic concentrations were diffused.
While the evidence from late prehistoric monumental contexts from southwestern Iran have been relatively indirect, recent excavation at Tol-e Chega Sofla in the northern Persian Gulf, sheds some light on this issue by providing a collection of symbolic features presumeably representing one of the earliest sanctuaries so far documented from a fifth millennium BCE context in southwestern Iran. Such complex ritual behavior is indicated by a number of backed brick structures, stone steles, animal scarification pits as well as distinctive pottery vessels unearthed in the northern mound of Tol-e Chega Sofla (Area C).
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