Settlement Development in the North Jazira, Iraq T.J. Wilkinson D.J. Tucker Methuen & Co Ltd
The original objective of the North Jazira Survey was to unravel the complex sequence of settlement, land use and communications that evolved within a modest-sized enclave of land contained between the Syrian border to the west, the Jabal Sinjar to the south and the river Tigris to the north and east. We thus hoped to describe the events that led up to, and followed, the growth of towns in Upper Mesopotamia and to relate them to changes in land use and systems of communication. The choice of area was not made solely because of its archaeological potential but partly because the area was designated to be a major irrigation project supplied by waters channelled from the recently completed Saddam Dam. Although, in terms of settlement, the north Jazira plain is not as spectacular as, for example, the Assyrian plains to the east of Mosul or the Tel'afar/Sinjar plain to the south, the area was liberally dotted with archaeological sites which focussed on a single major centre, the massive mound of Tell al-Hawa (Plate I .a), excavated in 1987 and 1988 by Warwick Ball for the British Archaeological Expedition to Iraq (Ball, Tucker and Wilkinson 1989; Ball 1991). .....
CONTENTS
Preface / vii Chronological Phases used in the Text / ix List of Figures / xi List of Plates / xiii List of Tables / xv
Chapter 1 Introduction and Background to the Project / 1 The Project / 1 The North Jazira Plain Today / 2 Layout of the Report / 2 Geomorphology / 3 The Soils / 5 Mineral Resources / 6 Climate / 6 The Ecology of Dry Farming ih the Jazira / 7 Flora and Fauna / 9 Water Resources / I 0 Routes / 12 The North Jazira in the 19th and 20th Centuries / 12
Chapter 2 The Archaeological Landscape I: Sites and Artifact Scatters / 15 Introduction / 15 Site Recognition and Definition / 15 Topographical Classification of Sites / 15 Artifact Scatters / 16 Soil Colour / 16 Survey Coverage / 17 Sample Techniques / 17 Tulul al-Biyadir (Sites 104 and 106): An Example of a Non-habitation Site / 18 Interpretation / 18 Off-site Archaeology and "Field Scatters" / 19 Sampling Techniques / 20 Results of the Field Scatter Sample Survey / 21 Dating the Field Scatters / 22 The Distribution of Kiln Slag / 23
Chapter 3 The Archaeological Landscape II: Hollow Ways / 24 Introduction / 24 Hollow Ways in the North Jazira / 24 Radial Systems / 24 Long-distance Systems / 26 Discussion / 26
Chapter 4 Water Exploitation in Relation to Site Distribution and Morphology / 29 Introduction / 29 Stages of Wadi Flow / 29 Water-holes and Related Features / 30 Tell Hilwa: Site 86 / 30 Gar Sur: Site 39 / 31 Discussion / 31 Wells / 3 l Sites with Enclosed Depressions / 32 Mowasha: Site 15 / 32 Distribution and Chronology of Enclosed Depressions / 32 Discussion / 34
Chapter 5 The Prehistoric Village Period: Neolithic to Uruk / 36 Introduction / 36 Natural Environment and Land Use / 36 Early Neolithic Settlement / 37 Hassuna / 38 Halaf / 39 Ubaid / 40 Excavations at Khanijdal East: Site 66 / 41 Archaeological Features and Structures / 41 The Finds / 42 The Faunal Remains from Khanijdal East and Tell Hilwa (Summary) / 42 Discussion / 42 Northern Uruk / 43 Discussion: Settlement Density and Land Use / 45
Chapter 6 The Development of Bronze Age Urban Centres / 48 Introduction / 48 Ninevite 5 / 49 Discussion / 50 The Later Third Millennium BC / 50 Discussion / 52 Khabur (Old Assyrian) / 53 Route Systems / 54 Ninevite 5 / 54 Later Third Millennium / 54 The Khabur Period / 55 Land Use During the Third and Early Second Millennium BC / 55
Chapter 7 Assyrian Decline and Revival (Mid-2nd to mid-lst millennium BC) / 58 The Historical Background / 58 The Nuzi Period and Cultural Continuity / 59 Middle Assyrian Settlement / 59 The Late Assyrian Period / 60 Discussion / 62
Chapter 8 After the Assyrians: Stability and Decline / 63 Historical Background / 63 Post-Assyrian and Hellenistic Settlement / 64 The Settlement Pattern / 64 Routes / 65 Land Use / 66 Excavations at Khirbet 'Aloki: Site l 13 / 66 Discussion / 67 Parthian (100 BC - 250 AD) / 67 Discussion / 69 Sasanian and Islamic Settlement. / 69 Introduction / 69 Sasanian (c. 250 AD - early 7th century) / 69 Discussion / 70 The Islamic Period / 71 Land Use and Communications / 72 Discussion / 72
Chapter 9 Overview: Settlement, Land Use and Communications Through Time / 78 Introduction / 78 Settlement Change Through Time / 78 The Early Bronze Age Settlement Hierarchy / 81 Land-Use Intensity and Settlement Growth / 82 Settlement, Central Places and Travel Time / 85 The Settlement/Land-Use System and Environmental Change / 85 Transport, Trade and External Contacts / 86 Conclusions / 88
Appendix A, Part 2: Type Series Pottery Catalogue / 109 Conventions and Abbreviations / 109 Hassuna / 109 Halaf / 109 Ubaid / 110 Uruk / 110 Local Earlier Uruk / 110 Amuq F Chaff-tempered Wares / 111 Northern Later Uruk Types / 11 l Southern Late Uruk Types / 112 Other Uruk Types / 112 Ninevite 5 / 113 Later 3rd Millennium BC / 114 Khabur (Old Assyrian) / 114 Nuzi (Mitannian) / 115 Middle Assyrian / 115 Late Assyrian / 116 ?Post-Assyrian / 117 Hellenistic / 118 Parthian / 119 Sasanian / 120 Sasanian-Early Islamic / 120 Early Islamic / 121 Undifferentiated Islamic / 121 Middle-Late Islamic / 122
Appendix A, Part 3: Concordance of North Jazira Pottery Types / 123
Appendix B. Selected Surface Finds from Survey / 124
Appendix C. Site Catalogue: Survey Area Sites 1-184 / 125 Introduction and Conventions / 125 Sites Collected in 1986 / 125 Sites Collected in 1987 / 127 Sites Collected in 1989-90 / 129 Cross References to Additional Sites in the Outer Area (Table 17) / 134
Bibliography / 135
Figures 1-81 / 147
Plates 1 a-6b / 223
Arabic Summary / at end
PREFACE
This monograph presents a synthesis of four seasons of survey and excavation conducted within a 475 sq km enclave of NW Iraq. Emphasis is placed upon elements of the landscape that amplify the record provided by more conventional site survey. Archaeological surveys can vary in intensity from general reconnaissance aimed at finding somewhere to dig, to very detailed fieldwalking operations in which teams of people march or crawl across the terrain often as little as 50 m apart. The North Jazira Project was intended to come closer to the latter approach but for the sake of pragmatism it became a rather hybrid operation which entailed conventional survey of sites of all sizes, combined with detailed "control" for off-site archaeological data. Such an approach combined with the eventual access to a range of air photo and related data after the summer of 1990 provided a remarkably consistent record of settlement patterns through some 8000 to 9000 years (summarized chronologically in Chapters 5 to 8). The collection of off-site data was focussed mainly, but by no means exclusively, on the northern and eastern parts of the survey area around the massive mound of Tell al-Hawa. The above record was further refined by the examination of dozens of kilometres of drains and canals dug for a new irrigation project and by the excavation of four small sites. Such excavations inevitably exposed the shortcomings of surface survey and two of the three excavated habitation sites revealed hitherto unrecognized prehistoric levels buried beneath later strata. Nevertheless, although prehistoric sites are under-represented by survey we are still able to provide a large quantity of valuable data relevant to the transformation of Chalcolithic village settlement systems into those of Bronze Age urban hierarchies. This transformation, we should emphasize, does not simply arise from changes in the structure of the settlement pattern but also entails changes in the intensity of land use and in the development of communication systems, traces of all of which can be picked up in the field.
Unfortunately, the events of August 1990 and those that followed, meant that fieldwork could not be completed, and that only summary records of much of the field data were available for most of the writing up period. The first draft of this report was therefore written using only that data that had been selected for final publication in June 1990, as well as some valuable air photo and satellite image data that became available after that date. The remaining more detailed records were then incorporated when they became available in May I 992. The result is therefore inevitably slightly uneven but we hope that most of the inconsistencies have been removed. However, given the general lack of published data from surveys in the region and the substantial amount of data that is now available, it seems logical to proceed with the publication now rather than wait until it may be possible to complete the final part of the survey.
In Iraq, we are particularly grateful to the following officials of the Baghdad and Mosul offices of the Directorate General of Antiquities for providing permits, labour and field accommodation as well as help and advice during the project: Dr Mu'ayyad Sa'id Damerji, Director General of Antiquities and Heritage, Baghdad; Manhal Jahr, Director of the Mosul office; Salem Yunis in charge of the Saddam Dam and related rescue projects; Moslem Mohammed of Tel'afar office, our representative and enthusiastic colleague during fieldwork. The project started as a wing of the Tell al-Hawa excavations and we are particularly grateful to Warwick Ball for encouraging us to undertake the project and providing us with advice, equipment and field helpers during the first field seasons. We also wish to thank the Directors of the British Archaeological Expedition to Iraq, Ors Jeremy Black and Roger Matthews, for help with numerous administrative and related matters. Core team members were as follows: Imogen Grundon (1986), Helen McDonald (1987 and 1988), John Salvatore (1989), Dave Schofield (1989-90), Bettina Stoll (1987) and Judy Wilkinson (1987-90). They formed a small team that made up for their lack of numbers by their enthusiasm and skill. Illustrations were by Dave Schofield, Andrew Fisher and T.J. Willcinson; photographs by Judy Wilkinson and T.J. Wilkinson. We are also grateful to a number of people who provided help and advice in the field or during the process of post-excavation work: Stuart and Bronwen Campbell, St John Simpson, Wendy Matthews, Pierre Bikai, Stephen Lumsden, David Warburton, Joan and David Oates, Julian Reade, Paul Zimansky and Elizabeth Stone, Nicholas Postgate, Stephanie Dalley, John A. Brinkman, Trevor Watkins and Douglas Baird. Special thanks must go to Michael Roaf who provided a considerable amount of advice on pottery matters and on ways of improving the final version of this text. In addition we wish to thank Leri Davies and Stuart and Bronwen Campbell for help during the final stages of editing and production of the final monograph.
Funding for the four seasons of fieldwork was provided by the British School of Archaeology in Iraq, the British Academy, the Stein-Arnold Fund, the Society of Antiquaries of London, the Wainwright Fund for Near Eastern Archaeology and the National Geographic Society (grant no. 3935-88). In addition we wish to thank the following private companies for their financial support for work at Tell al-Hawa and in the North Jazira: Binnie and Partners, British Petroleum, Netherlands Engineering Consultants (NEDECO), International Computers Ltd and Societe Grenobloise d'Etudes et d'Application Hydrauliques (SOGREAH). We are also grateful to HE Terence Clark (British Ambassador and Honorary Vice-President of the British School of Archaeology in Iraq), Peter Elborn and staff of the British Council in Baghdad, and engineers of the China State Construction Engineering Corporation for help during our work in Iraq. In addition we would like to thank the British School of Archaeology in Iraq for supporting us personally by giving us various grants and fellowships during the period of the project. Part of the fieldwork as well as most of the writing up of the work was undertaken when one of us (TJW) was employed full time by the British Archaeological Expedition to Iraq as Assistant Director. Without the consistent support provided by the School this publication would have been impossible. We also wish to thank the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago for providing facilities during the final stages of this work.
Please note that since this text was written two articles have appeared that either amplify or supersede some of the material contained in Chapter 9. These are: Wilkinson, T J. 1993 "Linear hollows in the Jazira, Upper Mesopotamia", Antiquity 67: 548-62. Wilkinson, T.J. 1994 "The structure and dynamics of dry-farming states in Upper Mesopotamia", Current Anthropology 35: 483-520.
T.J. Wilkinson, Oriental Institute, University of Chicago.
DJ. Tucker, Nürnberg.
Chapter 1
Introduction and Background to the Project
The Project
The original objective of the North Jazira Survey was to unravel the complex sequence of settlement, land use and communications that evolved within a modest-sized enclave of land contained between the Syrian border to the west, the Jabal Sinjar to the south and the river Tigris to the north and east. We thus hoped to describe the events that led up to, and followed, the growth of towns in Upper Mesopotamia and to relate them to changes in land use and systems of communication. The choice of area was not made solely because of its archaeological potential but partly because the area was designated to be a major irrigation project supplied by waters channelled from the recently completed Saddam Dam. Although, in terms of settlement, the north Jazira plain is not as spectacular as, for example, the Assyrian plains to the east of Mosul or the Tel'afar/Sinjar plain to the south, the area was liberally dotted with archaeological sites which focussed on a single major centre, the massive mound of Tell al-Hawa (Plate I .a), excavated in 1987 and 1988 by Warwick Ball for the British Archaeological Expedition to Iraq (Ball, Tucker and Wilkinson 1989; Ball 1991).
The main techniques employed during the project were: 1) Field survey, in which recognizable archaeological sites are described and dated by their surf ace pottery. 2) Off-site archaeology, which examines features and artifact distributions that occur between the obvious mounded sites in order to establish whether smaller settlements may have been present and to detect traces of ancient land use and communications. 3) The excavation of selected sites and the examination of numerous pits or canal sections in order to establish some "control" on the survey and off-site data. Emphasis is placed upon viewing sites within their regional context, first by relating them to each other within a local area (basically that surveyed in detail, some 475 sq km), and then by relating various settlement systems to a larger area of interest stretching south and west from the Tigris to the Jabal Sinjar and the Syrian border (Fig. I).
The project continued for four field seasons during the autumns of 1986, 1987, 1988 and 1989, coming to an end in February 1990. It commenced during the later stages of the Iran-Iraq war and came to a premature end in 1990 because the 5th and final season, scheduled to begin in September 1990, was thwarted by the events following the invasion of Kuwait in August 1990. Of the thirteen months spent in the field, about eight were occupied in survey. During five months in 1987 and 1988, when survey permission was not granted, control excavations and limited off-site pottery sampling were conducted instead. Altogether 184 sites, distributed over approximately 475 sq kms, were recorded and collected, four sites were partially excavated, (Khanijdal, Site 66; Tell Hilwa, Site 86; Tulul alBiyadir, Site 106; Khirbet 'Aloki, Site 113) and a total of 500 off-site sample squares were collected. In addition, the project benefited considerably from Warwick Ball's excavations at Tell al-Hawa, the dominant tell on the plain. This work, together with a programme of rescue excavations previously conducted by Mr Ball within the Saddam Dam rescue area, provided a wealth of archaeological data with which to compare the results from the north Jazira plain (Ball et al., forthcoming).
Although conceived as an intensive survey, the actual results of the project can be viewed as a hierarchy of survey intensities ranked as follows (from most to least intensive): A) Site survey and pottery collection, with a moderate density of off-site pottery sampling. (Sites 1-89, Figs. 2 and 6) c. 130 sq kms. B) Site survey and pottery collection with little or no off-site pottery sampling. (Sites 90-184, Figs. 2 and 6) c. 345 sq kms. C) Mapping of sites without on- or off-site pottery collection. (Un-numbered sites on Figs. 2 and 6) 275 sq kms. D) General landscape mapping from air photographs. Within this area only a small number of key sites have been visited by a …
T.J. Wilkinson D.J. Tucker
Settlement Development in the North Jazira, Iraq
British School
British School of Archaeology in Iraq Iraq Archaeological Reports - 3 Settlement Development in the North Jazira, Iraq A Study of the Archaeological Landscape T.J. Wilkinson D.J. Tucker
British School of Archaeology in Iraq Department of Antiquities & Heritage, Baghdad
Typeset by Campbell Archaeological Services, Oxton, Lauder, Berwickshire Printed and published in England for the British School of Archaeology in Iraq and the Department of Antiquities & Heritage, Baghdad, by Aris & Phillips Ltd, Teddington House, Warminster, Wiltshire, England
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