Abstract:The new data from the sites of Girdi Qala and Logardan (Iraqi Kurdistan) are starting to change the picture of Uruk culture expansion. In the Central Zagros Piedmont, it began as early as the second half of the local Late Chalcolithic 2 (LC2), contemporary with South Mesopotamian Early Uruk. The Uruk presence is documented not only by a large ceramic assemblage, characterized by a broad range of shapes and techniques, but also by numerous production facilities which show that Uruk pottery was made on-site by r… Show more
“…4.2; Postgate & Moon 1982: 105, 120). A major complex of large pottery kilns with comparable dimensions, albeit better preserved and with thicker surviving walls, is found in several Uruk Period levels at Girdi Qala, in the Qara Dagh region (Vallet et al 2017: 69–74). These parallels leave little doubt that the feature at Gurga Chiya is the combustion chamber of a pottery kiln.…”
Section: Lc4 Period (Late Middle Uruk) At Gurga Chiyamentioning
confidence: 99%
“…However, we are confident that the majority of vessels in this ware are LC4 in date. Further work is required to compare the wares assigned at Gurga Chiya with those recently defined (although slightly earlier, LC2–3) at Girdi Qala, including the relationship between fabric groups and manufacturing techniques (Vallet et al 2017: 75–76). Fig.…”
Section: Lc4 Ceramics: Ware and Form Frequenciesmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Parallels are common at Tell Hassan in the Hamrin (Nannucci 2012: fig. 6: 76–81), and in the Qara Dagh region at Girdi Qala near Chamchamal (Vallet et al 2017: fig. 20: 1–2).…”
Section: Lc4 Ceramics: Ware Categories and Parallelsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…At Begum Ubaid and LC pottery is reported, but in situ levels have not yet been identified (Nieuwenhuyse et al 2016: 113, 120). Outside the Shahrizor Ubaid levels were identified at Girdi Qala and Logardan, 100 km to the west-northwest near Chamchamal (Vallet et al 2017: 65, 67; Vallet 2016: 9, 13; Paladre et al 2016: 95), but so far they have not been investigated. Kani Shaie, c. 100 km northwest in the Bazyan region, also has remains of the LC, including material contemporary with the LC4 levels at Gurga Chiya, i.e.…”
Section: Affinities and Chronological Discrepancies With Southern Andmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Southern Uruk style material is becoming increasingly apparent in the region, with the most pertinent parallels in Uruk pottery and industrial installations found at Girdi Qala, c. 100km to the northwest in the Qara Dagh region, with related material nearby at Logardan, and other examples at Kani Shaie (Tomé et al 2016). The excavators assign Girdi Qala and Logardan to the Early Uruk, on the basis of the presence of local LC2–3 types accompanying the dominant element of southern style Uruk pottery (Vallet et al 2017: 76–80). They have not yet identified a clear LC1 horizon.…”
Section: Role Of Shahrizor and Qara Dagh In The Uruk Phenomenonmentioning
The Shahrizor Prehistory Project has targeted prehistoric levels of the Late Ubaid and Late Chalcolithic 4 (LC4; Late Middle Uruk) periods at Gurga Chiya (Shahrizor, Kurdistan region of northern Iraq), along with the Halaf period at the adjacent site of Tepe Marani. Excavations at the latter have produced new dietary and environmental data for the sixth millennium B.C. in the region, while at Gurga Chiya part of a burned Late Ubaid tripartite house was excavated. This has yielded a promising archaeobotanical assemblage and established a benchmark ceramic assemblage for the Shahrizor Plain, which is closely comparable to material known from Tell Madhhur in the Hamrin valley. The related series of radiocarbon dates gives significant new insights into the divergent timing of the Late Ubaid and early LC in northern and southern Mesopotamia. In the following occupation horizon, a ceramic assemblage closely aligned to the southern Middle Uruk indicates convergence of material culture with central and southern Iraq as early as the LC4 period. Combined with data for the appearance of Early Uruk elements at sites in the adjacent Qara Dagh region, this hints at long-term co-development of material culture during the fourth millennium B.C. in southeastern Iraqi Kurdistan and central and southern Iraq, potentially questioning the model of expansion or colonialism from the south.
“…4.2; Postgate & Moon 1982: 105, 120). A major complex of large pottery kilns with comparable dimensions, albeit better preserved and with thicker surviving walls, is found in several Uruk Period levels at Girdi Qala, in the Qara Dagh region (Vallet et al 2017: 69–74). These parallels leave little doubt that the feature at Gurga Chiya is the combustion chamber of a pottery kiln.…”
Section: Lc4 Period (Late Middle Uruk) At Gurga Chiyamentioning
confidence: 99%
“…However, we are confident that the majority of vessels in this ware are LC4 in date. Further work is required to compare the wares assigned at Gurga Chiya with those recently defined (although slightly earlier, LC2–3) at Girdi Qala, including the relationship between fabric groups and manufacturing techniques (Vallet et al 2017: 75–76). Fig.…”
Section: Lc4 Ceramics: Ware and Form Frequenciesmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Parallels are common at Tell Hassan in the Hamrin (Nannucci 2012: fig. 6: 76–81), and in the Qara Dagh region at Girdi Qala near Chamchamal (Vallet et al 2017: fig. 20: 1–2).…”
Section: Lc4 Ceramics: Ware Categories and Parallelsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…At Begum Ubaid and LC pottery is reported, but in situ levels have not yet been identified (Nieuwenhuyse et al 2016: 113, 120). Outside the Shahrizor Ubaid levels were identified at Girdi Qala and Logardan, 100 km to the west-northwest near Chamchamal (Vallet et al 2017: 65, 67; Vallet 2016: 9, 13; Paladre et al 2016: 95), but so far they have not been investigated. Kani Shaie, c. 100 km northwest in the Bazyan region, also has remains of the LC, including material contemporary with the LC4 levels at Gurga Chiya, i.e.…”
Section: Affinities and Chronological Discrepancies With Southern Andmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Southern Uruk style material is becoming increasingly apparent in the region, with the most pertinent parallels in Uruk pottery and industrial installations found at Girdi Qala, c. 100km to the northwest in the Qara Dagh region, with related material nearby at Logardan, and other examples at Kani Shaie (Tomé et al 2016). The excavators assign Girdi Qala and Logardan to the Early Uruk, on the basis of the presence of local LC2–3 types accompanying the dominant element of southern style Uruk pottery (Vallet et al 2017: 76–80). They have not yet identified a clear LC1 horizon.…”
Section: Role Of Shahrizor and Qara Dagh In The Uruk Phenomenonmentioning
The Shahrizor Prehistory Project has targeted prehistoric levels of the Late Ubaid and Late Chalcolithic 4 (LC4; Late Middle Uruk) periods at Gurga Chiya (Shahrizor, Kurdistan region of northern Iraq), along with the Halaf period at the adjacent site of Tepe Marani. Excavations at the latter have produced new dietary and environmental data for the sixth millennium B.C. in the region, while at Gurga Chiya part of a burned Late Ubaid tripartite house was excavated. This has yielded a promising archaeobotanical assemblage and established a benchmark ceramic assemblage for the Shahrizor Plain, which is closely comparable to material known from Tell Madhhur in the Hamrin valley. The related series of radiocarbon dates gives significant new insights into the divergent timing of the Late Ubaid and early LC in northern and southern Mesopotamia. In the following occupation horizon, a ceramic assemblage closely aligned to the southern Middle Uruk indicates convergence of material culture with central and southern Iraq as early as the LC4 period. Combined with data for the appearance of Early Uruk elements at sites in the adjacent Qara Dagh region, this hints at long-term co-development of material culture during the fourth millennium B.C. in southeastern Iraqi Kurdistan and central and southern Iraq, potentially questioning the model of expansion or colonialism from the south.
The Late Chalcolithic (LC; c.4500-3100BCE) was an important period in the developmental history of ancient Mesopotamia (modern Iraq, north-eastern Syria and south-eastern Turkey). New forms of sociopolitical and economic organisation are observed, characterised by household/settlement hierarchies, centralised production, craft specialization and redistribution. The Uruk Phenomenon of the latter 4th millennium BCE (LC3-5 in northern Mesopotamia and Middle-Late Uruk Period in southern Mesopotamia) coincides with the world's first urban societies in northern and southern Mesopotamia. This phenomenon includes the extension of long-distance trade and the spread of material culture (including pottery), architectural elements and administrative devices from southern Iraq across Mesopotamia. Nevertheless, the reasons for the spread of this material culture are a major point of contention in archaeological debate. Within this paper, we apply a combined quantitative and qualitative methods featuring macroscopic observations, ceramic petrography and pXRF to a selection of 38 pottery sherds from Gurga Chiya, a small site located within the Shahrizor Plain, Iraqi Kurdistan. Results demonstrate that the pottery analysed was all locally produced, perhaps at Gurga Chiya itself. Potential reasons for the transmission of the Uruk Phenomenon and its appearance at Gurga Chiya are discussed. We suggest that frequent, low-level contacts between Gurga Chiya and communities of the Shahrizor and adjacent regions as a prospective reason for the transmission of this cultural package into the region.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
