Kurdistan 2014: Archaeology amid Uncertainty

By Michael Danti

War seemed at the doorstep of Kurdistan, but the ASOR-affiliated Rowanduz Archaeological Program (RAP) conducted its second field season of archaeological excavations, surveys, and geophysical prospection in northeastern Iraqi Kurdistan in May and June 2014.

Our team from Boston University, the University of Pennsylvania, the universities of Cambridge and Munich, and the University of Connecticut faced unusual challenges as a result of the unrest in neighboring northern Iraq, but through hard work and dedication RAP made some incredible discoveries in this virtually unexplored part of the Zagros Mountains. RAP would not be possible without the support of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Directorate General of Antiquities and the cooperation of the Soran Department of Antiquities, headed by Abdulwahhab Suleiman, and our capable government representative Dlshad Mustapha.

For many of us, our season began with a series of archaeological workshops in Erbil as part of the Mosul University Archaeology Program. We had a productive and enjoyable time with our Moslawi colleagues. Little did we know that shortly after the workshops Mosul would be captured by ISIL (the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) and the university would be forced to close in the middle of final exams. Our thoughts and prayers go out to our friends and colleagues in northern Iraq and those living as refugees and internally displaced persons elsewhere.

At the request of the Soran Department of Antiquities, we started the field season with rescue excavations and a site assessment at the Halaf period mound of Banahilk (sixth millennium BC). The Oriental Institute briefly excavated the site in 1954 as part of Robert Braidwood’s Jarmo Project, but since then suburban sprawl has engulfed the little mound. Our excavations revealed substantial, well stratified Halaf deposits despite the modern disturbance to its Bronze and Iron Age upper levels. KRG antiquities staff face similar cultural heritage management challenges across Kurdistan given the rapid pace of development.

Remote mountain locations are no exception. We conducted a second rescue excavation and site assessment in modern Sidekan, perched high in the Zagros Mountains near the Iranian border, where the construction of a new bank had disturbed archaeological deposits. Our excavations uncovered the remains of burned wooden structures of the Achaemenid/post-Achaemenid period — our regional research indicates this represents a peak period in ancient settlement.

While one team worked in Sidekan, another oversaw excavations at the mound of Gird-i Dasht in the Diana Plain. While small by comparison to Mesopotamian sites, this prominent, multiperiod mound is the largest in the region and guarded access to the Rowanduz Gorge (Gal-i Ali Beg), an important mountain pass. We uncovered evidence for occupation and fortifications stretching from the second millennium BC to the Ottoman Period.

We were joined midway through the season by a geophysical survey team from Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich headed by Jorg Fassbinder. The incredible results from their geomagnetic mapping at Gird-i Dasht, Qalat Mudjesir, and Mudjesir will guide future excavations. The latter two sites have long been linked to the early Iron Age kingdom of Musasir and its transregional cult center dedicated to the god Haldi. Archaeologists have long sought definitive evidence of Musasir’s location. In 714 BC, King Sargon II of Assyria conquered Musasir and sacked the Haldi temple — a famous inscribed relief-carved slab from Khorsabad details this event. The geomagnetic surveys revealed tantalizing evidence for monumental architecture in the modern fields and gardens of Mudjesir, and we hope to test these results with the Soran Department of Antiquities in 2015.

Work in Kurdistan required a great deal of extra effort and patience. The ISIL capture of the Iraqi refinery at Baiji led to alarming fuel shortages and price increases throughout the KRG. Perhaps our biggest surprise occurred during the final stage of the excavations at the remote site of Gund-i Topzawa (GT). The Soran Department of Antiquities alerted us to this early Iron Age site in 2013. Road construction along the Topzawa River — an important ancient route linking Iran and Iraq — had uncovered numerous archaeological sites like GT.

In 2013, we began initial work at the Achaemenid tomb of Ghabrestan-i Topzawa with the Soran Department of Antiquities. Excavating parts of the incredible burned settlement at GT was our main objective in 2014. Similar to traditional architecture in northeastern Iraqi Kurdistan — and ancient depictions of Musasir on the aforementioned Assyrian relief — multiple levels of stone-built architecture were terraced into the hillside looking out across the fertile Topzawa valley. While the settlement appears to have been inhabited during most of the early Iron Age (1250– 550 BC), its destruction level can be tentatively dated to the Iron III/eighth century BC. The sudden destruction of the buildings by fire resulted in incredible preservation, including a wealth of in situ ceramics, faunal material, and botanical remains.

As we worked to excavate down through the deep layers of stone collapse and ash to the destruction surfaces in late June, we occasionally could hear the echoing rumble of Iranian airstrikes on the KRG border regions of Sidekan. While we were in no apparent danger, we were constantly reminded of the turbulent history of this remote mountain stronghold wedged between northern Iraq and northwestern Iran.

Michael D. Danti is Assistant Professor of Archaeology at Boston University.

~~~

All content provided on this blog is for informational purposes only. The American Schools of Oriental Research (ASOR) makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this blog or found by following any link on this blog. ASOR will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information. ASOR will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information. The opinions expressed by Bloggers and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions of ASOR or any employee thereof.