Sakka or Saqqa ( ar, سكا) is a village to the southeast of Damascus, on the edge of the

Ghouta Ghouta ( ar, غُوطَةُ دِمَشْقَ / ALA-LC: ''Ḡūṭat Dimašq'') is a countryside and suburban area in southwestern Syria that surrounds the city of Damascus along its eastern and southern rim. Name Ghouta is the Arabic term (' ...

, north west of

Damascus International Airport Damascus International Airport ( ar, مَطَار دِمَشْق الدَّوْلِيّ, Maṭār Dimašq ad-Duwaliyy) is the international airport of Damascus, the capital of Syria. Inaugurated in the mid-1970s, it also was the country's busi ...

in Syria.

Tell Sakka

Tell Sakka is a man-made tell in the neighborhood that has been excavated by

Ahmed Taraqji Ahmad ( ar, أحمد, ʾAḥmad) is an Arabic male given name common in most parts of the Muslim world. Other spellings of the name include Ahmed and Ahmet. Etymology The word derives from the root (ḥ-m-d), from the Arabic (), from the ...

on behalf of the

Directorate-General of Antiquities and Museums The Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums (DGAM; ar, المديرية العامة للآثار والمتاحف, french: La Direction Générale des Antiquités et des Musées) is a Syrian government owned agency that is responsible f ...

. Remains of a palace was found and dated to between 1800 and 1600 BCE. It has provided evidence of Egyptian influence in the Ghouta, The architectural remains were said to resemble those of

Qatna Qatna (modern: ar, تل المشرفة, Tell al-Mishrifeh) (also Tell Misrife or Tell Mishrifeh) was an ancient city located in Homs Governorate, Syria. Its remains constitute a tell situated about northeast of Homs near the village of al ...

and along with

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 po ...

were dated to the

Middle Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

. A

courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary ...

was excavated measuring by . Columns marked the entrance to the south and four large columns were positioned in a square in the centre of the courtyard.

Tempera Tempera (), also known as egg tempera, is a permanent, fast-drying painting medium consisting of colored pigments mixed with a water-soluble binder medium, usually glutinous material such as egg yolk. Tempera also refers to the paintings done ...

or perhaps Fresco technique Paintings were found on the walls showing ancient Egyptian style and motifs. However, beneath the apparent Egyptian scheme, a Near-Eastern tradition is evident in the ideas of the paintings. The first

cuneiform Cuneiform is a logo- syllabic script that was used to write several languages of the Ancient Middle East. The script was in active use from the early Bronze Age until the beginning of the Common Era. It is named for the characteristic wedg ...

tablet recovered in the Damascus area was found at Tell Sakka. It was suggested resemble the style of cuneiform found in the archives of Mari and speaks of a king called

Zimri-Lim __NOTOC__ Zimri-Lim (Akkadian: ''Zi-im-ri Li-im'') was king of Mari c. 1775–1761 BCE. Zimri-Lim was the son or grandson of Iakhdunlim, but was forced to flee to Yamhad when his father was assassinated by his own servants during a coup. He ha ...

. The cuneiform tablet in Sakka was translated to read ''"To my brother Zimri-lim, say "Thus saith Kanhilesu? Your brothers Samas and Dagan for the rest of the days, My brother sustenance? In front of me (it is) good. In front of my brother that is well! I heard: The enemy of my country brother, My brother has attacked, news of him that sent me! (...) inside a (?) .., The army f my country?">.., The army [of my country? to my brother [(go go)"'' Other finds at the site included a sphinx">f my country? to my brother [(go go)">f my country?">.., The army [of my country? to my brother [(go go)"'' Other finds at the site included a sphinx made out of the scapula of a cow.al Besso, Moussab., Production d'objets en os dans un atelier du Bronze Moyen en Syrie du Sud: Tell Sakka, Paper for the 10th International Archaeozoology of Southwestern Asia and Adjacent Areas, Brussels, June 28th-30th, 2011.
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References

External links

Sakka on geographic.orgSakka on maplandia.comSakka on mapcarta.comFirst report of the looting of the Archaeological mission to Tell Sakka on the Facebook page of Le patrimoine archéologique syrien en danger الآثار السورية في خطر, (Syrian Archaeological Heritage under threat)Photo of Tell Sakka on "Le patrimoine archéologique syrien en danger" Facebook pageLouvre conferences - Tell Sakka, une ville du Bronze Moyen de Damascène (1800-1600), Syrie
{{Rif Dimashq Governorate, douma Populated places in Douma District Archaeological sites in Rif Dimashq Governorate Bronze Age sites in Syria Tourist attractions in Syria