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©The Archaeological Settlements of Turkey - TAY Project
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Surtepe |
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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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490 m |
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Region:
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Southeastern Anatolia |
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Province:
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Sanliurfa |
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District:
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Birecik |
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Village:
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Surtepe |
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Investigation Method:
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Excavation |
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Period:
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Late Iron Age |
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| Location: The mound lies west of Sanliurfa; northwest of Birecik; on north bank of Euphrates; in Surtepe village. |
| Geography and Environment: It covers a total area of 7.2 hectares and measures 250x230 m including the terraces. The cone of the mound has a height of 16 m and a diameter of 120 m. Based on the studies the occupied area of the mound could be from 20 to 50 hectares. The houses of Surtepe village were built over the mound and its eastern and southeastern foots were eroded by the river. The secondary village road has cut the northern and western slopes. |
| History: |
| Research and Excavation: It was discovered during a survey conducted to determine the findspots that would be flooded by the reservoir waters of the Birecik Dam by a team under the direction of Algaze in 1989 [Algaze et al. 1994:40, map 4 findspot 33]. Salvage excavations were initiated with collaboration of the Sanliurfa Museum, Late Prehistory Department of Alicante University in Spain and the Oriental Institute of Prague and Academy of Science in 2000. It takes place in the registered archaeological sites list prepared by Ministry of Culture and Tourism. |
| Stratigraphy: A Late Iron Age/Achaemenian Period is observed at Surtepe. Achaemenian remains were particularly exposed at trenches B1, B2 and B3 [Fuensanta et al. 2002b:197, 204]. |
| Small Finds: Architecture: The 2005 campaign at Surtepe in the trenches E30-E31-E32 yielded a 50 m long, and 3.5 m high mudbrick wall in the northern section of the excavated areas. The building was constructed using standard size bricks that measure 39x15 cm. The wall belongs to a monumental building dating to the Late Iron Age. Thus, the building was inhabited during the Neo Assyrian and Achaemenid Periods based on findings [Fuensanta et al. 2007:463]. The 2005 campaign showed that Surtepe was an important settlement throughout the Late Chalcolithic Age, Early Bronze Age I and Late Iron Age [Fuensanta et al. 2007:465]. Epigraphical Material: The most important Late Iron Age find of the 2005 campaign was a stone tablet. It measures 10.5x6.4x1.9 cm in dimensions, and it has an alphabetic inscription on it. The tablet was inscribed in a Semitic language according to a preliminary study by H. Sauren, a specialist on the ancient Semitic languages. The content indicates that it is a text of a letter or a message. The first line of the tablet reads: "(he/she) the importantÉ", then the second: "because to me it is very important to seeÉ.", which are probably written in bustrofodon technique. The third line is illegible because some letters were erased. Based on the reading "the word of the leader" on the reverse of the tablet, it is assumed to be a letter or message of thanks to a divinity. The oldest parallels of this tablet can be found in the library of Assurbanipal from the 7th century BC, thus, the tablet should be dated to the 5th or 4th century BC at latest [Fuensanta et al. 2007:463-464]. Seal/Seal impression: An originally glass stamp seal, partially burnt, was found in the northern entrance of the building. Reminding the glass stamps seals so called "Royal Style" of the Persian Empire, it is mostly associated with official buildings. The Surtepe seal iconography suggests that a scene is related with praying and fertility. On the other hand, a cylinder seal impression found on a sherd reflects the typical Achaemenid Royal iconography, which is Firhuzvahar [Fuensanta et al. 2007:464-465]. The stone tablet with an uncommon form of Aramaic is a remarkable find also come out in 2005 campaign [http://www.une.edu.au/cat/sites/surtepe.php, 22.6.2011; 14:50]. Pottery: An inscribed ceramic sherd in Aramaic, the official language of the Persian Empire (3.5x3.8 cm), was uncovered from the same place. The sign that reads "I g" on it may be suggesting that the vessel had a volume capacity near half a liter (for wine or water) [Fuensanta et al. 2007:465]. The pottery and the flintstone industry inside the building also reflect the Achaemed typology [Fuensanta et al. 2007:464]. |
| Remains: |
| Interpretation and Dating: |
