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©The Archaeological Settlements of Turkey - TAY Project
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Nigde - Tepebaglari |
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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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1285 m |
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Region:
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Central Anatolia |
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Province:
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Nigde |
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District:
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Merkez |
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Village:
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Aydinyurt |
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Investigation Method:
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Excavation |
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Period:
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Late Iron Age Middle Iron Age |
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| Location: This site lies east of the mosque of Tepebag; at Tepebag Meydan street; 1 km southeast of the village of Aydinyurt (also called Fertek); which is 4 km west of the city of Nigde. It lies 1;600 m northwest of the Bor-Nigde highway. |
| Geography and Environment: The mound is 75x60 m at the base; 28 m high and lies in the orchards and vineyards west of the village of Nigde. Not to confuse the site with the other "Tepebaglari" sites; in all archaeological publications it is referred to as Nigde-Tepebaglari. The stream which springs from the southeastern part of the Melendiz Mountains flows by the village of Fertek and west of the mound. |
| History: |
| Research and Excavation: It was surveyed in 1962 by D.H. French, and in 1966 by I.A. Todd, and an excavation was carried out for a short period of time in 1972 under the direction of N. Özgüç on behalf of the General Directorate of Monuments and Museums of the Ministry of Culture. It is listed among the registered archaeological sites by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. |
| Stratigraphy: The building level V was reached. The Byzantine, Roman, and Hellenistic levels are followed by the Late Hittite level. The surveys revealed presence of the Late Neolithic Age, Chalcolithic Age, Early Bronze Age, Middle and Late Bronze Ages, Iron Age and later settlements. However, excavations conducted under the direction of N. Özgüç also yielded three Hellenistic and Medieval levels. |
| Small Finds: Architecture: The inhabitants of the mound during the Hellenistic Period disturbed the levels belonging to the first half of the 1st Millenium BC to a great extent, and they built their own buildings over them. Thus, no architectural plan is available in the Iron Age levels of Tepebaglari except the fortress. The 1976 campaign revealed that the site was surrounded by a city wall, which was built with undressed large blocks attached in the cyclopean style, extending in two rows and enclosing the mound at a level of 12 to 16 m below the summit. These large blocks in the shape of two main walls were cornered in accordance with the topography of the land. Only Iron Age sherds were uncovered during the excavations on the city wall. Pottery: The Iron Age pottery of the building level IV -also belonging to the late phase- is divided into three groups: The first group consists of grey ware while the second and third groups include grey and black ware, and monochrome painted ware, respectively. The monochrome red-grey slipped pottery in the first group has a thick wall. The paste is coarsely sand-tempered. The rims are always inverted or everted with a thick curve. No carinated vessel was found. The grey and black ceramics of the second groups are abundant in number. In addition to the ones which are polished, carinated imitating the metalic ware such as Cara, sherds of very large vases with rims ribbed on the inside were also found. The number of black washed and burnished ceramics is very high in proportion to the area excavated on the mound. The ones with fine wall has a well-sieved and nonporous paste while the paste of the thick walled ware is porous and sand-tempered. Mica grains are observed in the slip and paste of such ware. In the third group of painting decorated ware, majority are decorated with more than one colors. The decorations are mainly in black, dark brown and red. The area covered by a panel with a light colored second slip in addition to the main slip of the vessel or its surroundings are decorated with various colors and geometric figures. Reserved technique is common. In addition to these, monochrome decorated sherds are observed as a continuation of the earlier phase. Strong slip and glossy burnish of the late period vessels give vividness to the colors. Fragment of a rhyton head decorated with a fish pattern bear specific features of this level. The animal decorations on the vessels of this level were described natural and real-like style. The sherd of a spouted mug bearing depiction of a long necked bird on the inner part of the rim is unique. The building level V was the lowest level reached during the 1976 campaign. This level includes pottery of the former Iron Age group. Local, red-grey pottery is more abundant in this level. It is believed that this local ceramic developed from the 2nd Millennium BC pottery in the same region. The grey and black ceramic of the building level V is less compared to the building level IV, and they have thicker walls. They are not carinated. The third group of paint decorated ware is invariably decorated with a single color. The fragment of vessels are slightly thicker than the ones in late phase. Second slip is never observed. Some are decorated with schematized animal motifs. With this building level, the site can be dated back to the 8th century BC. |
| Remains: |
| Interpretation and Dating: |
