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©The Archaeological Settlements of Turkey - TAY Project
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Türbe Höyük |
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For site maps and drawings please click on the picture...  |
For photographs please click on the photo...  |
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Type:
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Mound |
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Altitude:
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480 m |
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Region:
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Southeastern Anatolia |
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Province:
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Siirt |
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District:
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Eruh |
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Village:
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Çiçekyurdu |
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Investigation Method:
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Excavation |
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Period:
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Middle |
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| Location: The mound lies southwest of Siirt; 1.5 km north-northeast of Yokusbaglari (Susik) Village; on the east bank of Botan Suyu stream. Nowadays, the name of the village is Cicekyurdu. |
| Geography and Environment: The mound measuring 100x40 m in dimensions locates 6 km north of the point where Botan Suyu Stream joins Tigris River. The mound locates on a hiil and its surface slopes from west to east; towards a shallow ditch. It is located is at a spot where two high mountain ranges get very close to each other near the end of the Botan Suyu Valley to the south of this deep valley. The mound is located on a natural valley consisting of cobblestone deposits conveyed by the tributaries of Botan Suyu through floodings into the valley. The mound slopes from west to east towards a shallow ditch. The north section of the mound is bordered with a seasonal creek. The alluvial deposit carried by the creek formed a graveled flat area in the northwest section of the mound [Saglamtimur 2004a:463]. |
| History: Habitation in Türbe Höyük begins with the Pre-Halaf culture, dated to the second half of the 6th millennium BC. Above this level there exist remains of the Ubaid Period, which is dated to the 4th millennium BC, according to recent evidence [http://cat.une.edu.au/page/turbe%20hoyuk; 16.11.2009, 17.37]. |
| Research and Excavation: It was discovered during the 1988 Tigris-Euphrates Archaeological Reconnaissance Survey Project; by Algaze. The mound is located 6 km from the junction point of Botan stream to Tigris. In 2000; the site was reinvestigated by a team under the directorship of J. Velibeyoglu during their survey in Botan Valley and Çattepe (Tilli); as a part of the METU TAÇDAM Salvage Project of the Archaeological Heritage of the Ilisu and Carchemish Dam Reservoirs. The site was excavated in 2002 and in 2006, respectively by H. Saglamtimur and Mardin Museum. |
| Stratigraphy: At first the cultural deposit of 3-4 m thick was established at the site. Excavations carried on at 6 trenches and city walls along the Botan River were cleaned. It is suggested that the mound was first occupied in 5th and 4th millennum BC and then used as a cemetery during Medieval. The works in trenches J15-16-17 continued from top to southern skirt in order to understand the stratigraphy. The city wall; which is probably dated to before Roman Period and the buildings behind it wer uncovered in trenches I16-17-18 [Saglamtimur 2004:464]. It is inhabited from the first quarter of the 7th millennium BC to the beginning of the 1st millennium BC [Saglamtimur 2013:135]. The preliminary research showed that the cultural deposit is about 3-4 m thick. It was determined that the mound is inhabited during the 5th and 4th millennium BC. After a long time of abandonment, it was used as a cemetery in the Middle Agess [Saglamtimur 2004:464]. However, the further studies show that the mound is inhabited from the first quarter of the 7th millennium BC to the beginning of the 1st millennium BC [Saglamtimur 2013:135]. The levels are: Pottery Neolithic Early Chalcolithic - Halaf Middle Chalcolithic - Ubaid Late Chalcolithic - Uruk Middle Bronze Age Late Bronze Age Early Iron Age The fortress dated to the 2nd millennium BC completely destroyed the earlier levels and caused the ceramic data mixed one another. The fact that the area was used as a cemetery in the later periods caused the destruction as well [Saglamtimur 2013:135]. |
| Small Finds: During the survey, remains of a 3 m thick wall built with irregular stones were found. This wall, which has no foundation and was built on top of an earlier occupation layer, is dated to the Ubaid Period by Algaze. The following studies show that this wall and Chalcolithic pottery could not be contemporary due to the stratigraphic situation [Velibeyoglu 2002:785]. Velibeyoglu stated that this wall belongs to the second phase of the settlement and is dated to the second half of the first millennium BC [Velibeyoglu 2002:786]. It is revealed that the wall is a part of the LBA fortress in the light of the C14 analysis [Saglamtimur 2013:139]. During the excavation studies, a high density of pottery dated to Halaf and Ubaid periods were found. However, no architectural remains belonging to Chalcolithic Period were determined. The Halaf Period is represented by a great number of pottery and grain pits [Saglamtimur 2013:136-7]. These potsherds should have emerged during the construction of the city wall in the west of the settlement and the medieval graves. The vessel forms are similar to the Halaf painted pottery. The wares are generally in buff color and some of them have thin sand inclusion. The inside and outside of the vessels are generally painted with dark brown or black. The geometric decorations such as diagonal decoration, hatched triangle, lozenges filled with point and horizontal bands are common [Saglamtimur 2004:465]. The Ubaid pottery is highly dense in the central section. Generally, the Ubaid wares were found as mixed with the Halaf pottery. However, this area yielded only the finds belonging to Ubaid Period. In addition to pottery, obsidian finds are also one of the important assemblages [Saglamtimur 2013:137]. The obdisian finds concentrated in an area of 250x300 m in dimension in the fields on southeast of the mound. These finds indicate that the settlement had an important role in the obsidian trace [Velibeyoglu 2002:785-6]. A child burial was found inside a small pot supported with stones. An obsidian mirror was possibly placed as grave goods. MBA structures damaged the grave. A few holemouth bowls that were found together with an "Eye Idol" constitute the Late Chalcolithic finds. However, there are only a few finds dated to the 4th and 3rd millennia BC. This shows that the settlement might have been fully occupied during this period [Saglamtimur 2013:137]. |
| Remains: |
| Interpretation and Dating: Türbe Höyük is seem to protect its strategical position originating from the obsidan trade during 5th and 4th millennium BC. However because of the unstable economic and politic conditions of 3rd millennium BC and EBA this mountainous region is seem to lost its value [Saglamtimur 2004:465]. The mining activities increased and the inhabitants living in a valley, which is poor in agricultural lands, might have adopted a nomadic way of life due to animal husbandry. The ties between the Mesopotamia and East and Southeast Anatolia loosen and this situation affected negatively the settlements in the region [Saglamtimur 2013:137]. |
