Idu, also Idum, (modern Satu Qala in the
Sulaymaniyah Province of Iraqi Kurdistan) on the
Lower Zab
The Little Zab or Lower Zab (, ''al-Zāb al-Asfal''; or '; , ''Zâb-e Kuchak''; , ''Zāba Taḥtāya'') is a river that originates in Iran and joins the Tigris just south of Al Zab in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. It is approximately long and dr ...
was an iron-age town.
History
The site was occupied in the Middle Assyrian period, based on an inscribed brick, an excavated palace, and a cylinder seal. Idu was part of the
Neo-Assyrian
The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the fourth and penultimate stage of ancient Assyrian history and the final and greatest phase of Assyria as an independent state. Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BC, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew t ...
Empire in its early days. It later gained independence and survived until the
Parthian Parthian may be:
Historical
* A demonym "of Parthia", a region of north-eastern of Greater Iran
* Parthian Empire (247 BC – 224 AD)
* Parthian language, a now-extinct Middle Iranian language
* Parthian shot, an archery skill famously employed by ...
period.
Archaeology
Excavations were conducted in 2010 and 2011 involving researchers Diederik Meijer and Wilfred van Soldt from
Leiden University
Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince o ...
,
Leipzig University
Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December ...
and
Salahaddin University. Finds included 52 inscribed bricks dated 1050–850 BC. Further work awaits agreement with the locals of town of Satu Qala, which Idu sits beneath.
See also
*
Cities of the ancient Near East
The earliest cities in history were in the ancient Near East, an area covering roughly that of the modern Middle East: its history began in the 4th millennium BC and ended, depending on the interpretation of the term, either with the conquest by ...
References
External links
Illuminating a Dark Age: New Work at Satu Qala, Iraq - Expedition Magazine
* ttps://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/news/2013/01/pilot-excavation-in-iraqi-kurdistan 2010 Pilot excavation in Iraqi Kurdistan - Leiden Leipzig University - Shelby White and Leon Levy Programbr>Archaeological Excavations at Satu Qala, the Ancient Idu, Fieldwork 2010-20135,000-year-old Iraqi city discovered under a 10 meter-deep mound - Archaeology World 2020
Idu
Ancient cities of the Middle East
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