Tell al-Fakhar ( ar, تل الفخار "Pottery Mound") is a '' tell'', or archaeological settlement mound, in Kirkuk Governorate, northeastern

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

. Excavations were carried out at the site between 1967 and 1969 by the Directorate-General of Antiquities of Iraq. The site measures and is high. Excavations revealed two occupation phases that were dated to the

Mitanni Mitanni (; Hittite cuneiform ; ''Mittani'' '), c. 1550–1260 BC, earlier called Ḫabigalbat in old Babylonian texts, c. 1600 BC; Hanigalbat or Hani-Rabbat (''Hanikalbat'', ''Khanigalbat'', cuneiform ') in Assyrian records, or '' Naharin'' ...

Kassite The Kassites () were people of the ancient Near East, who controlled Babylonia after the fall of the Old Babylonian Empire c. 1531 BC and until c. 1155 BC (short chronology). They gained control of Babylonia after the Hittite sack of Babyl ...

and Neo-Assyrian periods, or mid-second and early-first millennia BCE. The mid-second millennium phase consisted of a large building, dubbed the "Green Palace", where an archive of circa 800

clay tablet In the Ancient Near East, clay tablets (Akkadian ) were used as a writing medium, especially for writing in cuneiform, throughout the Bronze Age and well into the Iron Age. Cuneiform characters were imprinted on a wet clay tablet with a sty ...

s was found.

History of research

The site was excavated by the Directorate-General of Antiquities of Iraq under the direction of Yasin Mahmoud al-Khalesi during one season in the winter of 1967–1968 lasting from 22 October to 27 January. The excavation was prompted by the fact that the site was threatened by the development of an irrigation project in the region and because illegal digging activities had been carried out there, after which children had found

s on the surface of the mound. A second season was carried out in 1969.

The site and its environment

The mound measures and is high. It is located in an area where rainfed agriculture is possible and north of the site is a

wadi Wadi ( ar, وَادِي, wādī), alternatively ''wād'' ( ar, وَاد), North African Arabic Oued, is the Arabic term traditionally referring to a valley. In some instances, it may refer to a wet (ephemeral) riverbed that contains water ...

that carries water during the winter. There are numerous other tells in the region that show evidence for occupation from prehistoric periods up to the Islamic era. The important and contemporary site of Yorgan Tepe, ancient Nuzi, is located east of Tell al-Fakhar.

Occupation history

The excavation revealed two main occupation phases, termed Stratum I and II. In the oldest phase, Stratum II, a large structure with at least 17 rooms was uncovered. The walls had been

plaster Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of buildings, while "re ...

ed up to six times and the plaster was covered with green paint, hence the building was dubbed the "Green Palace". Based on architectural details such as the presence of drains and toilets, and the size of the different rooms, the building was divided in a private and public wing. In the public wing was a large room with benches along the walls that has been interpreted as a "reception hall" where the ruler could receive his guests. In front of the building was a large terrace paved with

mudbrick A mudbrick or mud-brick is an air-dried brick, made of a mixture of loam, mud, sand and water mixed with a binding material such as rice husks or straw. Mudbricks are known from 9000 BCE, though since 4000 BCE, bricks have also been ...

s. At least 34 skeletons were found in the palace. The majority were located in 2 rooms and were associated with

arrowhead An arrowhead or point is the usually sharpened and hardened tip of an arrow, which contributes a majority of the projectile mass and is responsible for impacting and penetrating a target, as well as to fulfill some special purposes such as sign ...

s and pieces of armour, suggesting that they died a violent death while defending the palace. This is also indicated by the fact that several doorways in the palace had been blocked, and that the palace was destroyed by a conflagration, as indicated by the burned walls and thick ash deposits on the floors. An archive of circa 800 clay tablets was found in the Green Palace, many of them also bearing seal impressions. Because the tablets were found in all of the rooms of the palace, it has been suggested that the archive was scattered during the pillaging of the building. Other finds included

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and ...

, gold and silver adornments, bronze armour scales, copper leaf-shaped spear and arrowheads, glazed and glass bottles and cylinder seals. After the end of Stratum II, the site was abandoned for some time. The next occupation phase, Stratum I, was badly preserved. Parts of three different structures were excavated, but the walls were only preserved up to a height of three or four rows of mudbricks. In one building with rooms grouped around a courtyard, several

kiln A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, a type of oven, that produces temperatures sufficient to complete some process, such as hardening, drying, or chemical changes. Kilns have been used for millennia to turn objects made from clay int ...

s were found but their purpose is unclear. In the second building, two ovens were found while one room in the third contained a basin built of baked mudbricks. Except for pottery, no other finds were recorded from this occupation phase. Strata II and I are dated to the

and Neo-Assyrian periods, or mid-second and early first millennia BCE, respectively. The proposed ancient name of Tell al-Fakhar is ''Kuruhanni''.

History of research

The site and its environment

Occupation history

See also

References

Further reading