URUK POTT RY from the DOKAN AND. SHAHRAZUR DISTRICTS and the Distribution of Ninevite V Pottery As Revealed by Field Survey 'Work in Iraq
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/0 ~ - . URUK POTT RY FROM THE DOKAN AND. SHAHRAZUR DISTRICTS And The Distribution of Ninevite V Pottery As Revealed By Field Survey 'Work In Iraq 1.' Uccurrences in the Dokan Area which are situated on either side of the The fertile plain in the locality of riYer Zab and its lesser tributaTies. Now, Rani,-a in Sulaimaniva is called Dashi- following tbe completion of the Darn, the i-Bit;yuin. It bas an"'area of some 230 plain together with the majority of these squarekilometres and is almost triangu- tells is beneath the woaters of the huge lar in shape, its apex pointing south to- artificial lake, but before this lake carne . \\'ardsthe site of the Dokan Darn on into being the Iraqi Directorate ~eneral the Lesser Zab. The plain is dotted with oaf Antiqnities succeeded not only III con- more than fourty tells of varying sizesl ducting an extensiye sur,eyof the area, but also in carrying out a large number (1) Sayid Mohammad Ali Mustafa and of excanltions throughout the area, thus salnl,o'ino' much yaluable architectural the writer were in charge of an archaeologi- b 0 .. cal suryey on behalf of the Directorate and material eyidenceo General of Antiquities during september At the end of four extCllded seasons 1903. The result ,vas the mapping of some of work ,,-hid) began in the summer of fomty mounds together with a thorough 1056 and continued annuaHy until 1959 examination of their slll'face materials. I ",-\ .. {i.yelargc site;;; had been th;)l'oughJy ex- Among these materials pottery of the follow- cavated and ~eYeral others tested by ing phases was recognized: Hassuna, sJlOrt sOtlmlings." AlDollg' tbese sites Samacra, Halaf, Ubaid, Uruk, Ninevite V, \rhich\H'j'eexpIUlwl Qarashina, Bas- .\kkudiun, Hurriall, Assyrian and Islamic. lllllsian, Shcmshara, I\amariun and ed- These sherds were a!\vays mingled' with a D- em. YieIdec11lt1Hc. r,-tu),. .:if·a,.l.t:nDHoft . the U,ruk eel·tain type of ware which was almost penod, most partlcularly tue .ded, Gr~y uhl-uys red Or reddish-brown in colour, and Plain '\Y;li-es. Ho\ycyer, it Iyas a thick and crudelv made This we have notiecah1e fact that cycrywhere in the thought it best l~ call "J~ocal ·Ware". Dokan (cspe6ally :It (~arashilla) the "~8alillg-\i-"lX" n:(l slipped yanety pre- occurred at QUl'ashina VI (see pI. II, dominated, The \\Titer had in particular Dl. tiU-W5, A little bo\1'l with double .S obsenee! and examined considerable spouts situated near the base was found qUHntiti(;s of slJcrds of this Red -Ware in LeYl~l VI (see pI. II, 1M, (0404). A in the sherd-yunls of Qarashinli and tan slender jar (see 'l'ype 14, pl. 1) ,vith 01 2 j\:amurian during the Summer of 1956 • a high shoulder and lightly curved pro- ii' file occurred at Leyel III (see pI. II, B QaTu.shilla 1M, (0399). The usual crude votive t( bowls with bewl1ed rini{see 'l'ype 8, ill Qarashina is Lt laru:e~ lllound situated _-pI. I) \yere in eyidence as early as Qara- ar on the \I"est bank of the Zab some 15 shine V. continuing to LEwelIII (pI. II, fJ km. to the south of Raniya. The site is Br. G0400 from Lewl III and Q. sh E no,\' entirely submerged. Qarashina 75 from Leyel Y) \yhere it was observable ,tl IIl- VI (in order of descent) produced {}' both l~ed "'and "plain Uruk ,,-ares, the in considerable numbers - mostly from ~ former being by fair the most popular at sher~ls. Similarly cqmp]9F ,yas an open }I the site-eyen as early as level VI. bowl (see type 7Jj)' pE Tr\'t;i-rp-, a folded n Qarashina V sho-wed a few complete glo- ~~rl'(see pI. II, DI. 00.122 '£i:ml] Level ~ bular cOoking pots (cf. PI. II, 1M. d G04S4 and 1M. 60425) in addition to tl mases of fragements. BaS/lUisian ~f .A The Red Slipped Uruk warecontiri- Basmllsian is the largcbt and the ueel through-out the oyerlying strata highest mound in the Dasht-i-Batwain If (IV-lI1) though only as sherds, lllanyof (23 m.)ancl is situated near the west l~ :ft' which belonged to j~rs -with,-bulgi-llg-bek ---bank of the IJesser Zab, some 12 km. to '" .lies and rather high ~e~ks -<see)l:_ p:~ tb.~_.s.ou.thof Raniya. J.Jevels VII-III (in I~1.'60410): The fabn? of these-Is red- order of descent) belong to the Druk l~ dlsh-bro~,vnand _-,up.~h)i)P~A'"_e~terna~~¥~>[email protected] quantity of "vhole ves- (Qarashma VI) . .ofthe plam Druk W.are sels of Red, Grey and plain wares, to- there are d9uble-mouthedglobular ]~rs -ue-ther with-a larD'e collection of sherds f t ~see Type ~::>, PI.- I ~. PI. II; ;111•_.6Q4Q9} <:-'--6rtlfestnvares wa~ recoyered from these ( ~n Qa~ashma VI. ..Sp01!ted Jars of ,v.ar- levels. A shallow carinate-dbowl (see pIs. I lOUS shaJ?e-s occuned 1~1 all the UI~k _III-IV, 1M. 61001) occured uniquely in IJevels (vI-III). -Such vessels-are usually:- - . -.. --.' - .' 1 ' d f b ff 1 - f S - t a dark glel (almoot black) shpped ware. f p am ~n 0 a u co_ouralOll.,qua It was hig~hly burnished and came from ~t Jars WIth a shoulder spouts (see 'Iype 16 -I '-l VII A fi exa 11'le of tl R d b,-Pl. I) but with moie-curved profiles .J~,e . ne ""I'p. .le e ! and flaring nech (see pI. II, Il\i~ 60412-- shlJP.ed :-vare .at B~sl.nusIan IS a rather ~ in Level ill; 1M: 60~02in Level V and- _~UJgll:g pI' WIth a mde ll10u~h and flar- Q. sh. 72 in Level V)-were aLso-folmd. _ mg l~lln. .It .has two knobs chke handl~s Little jars ,vith -long tubular shoulder on e:ther SIde of the bell)'. It also IS spouts point:ingdiagolliilly:--up"'afd· (see_-~_~Ul'~lsL~clandc~me~ from Le\'~l VII Type 15 a, pI. 1) and short flaring necks - (see pIs. lIIT\-, HI. _6.0990). F~'om -----, -.. - .~-,-- -. - J..Jeye]s-VI-'lIII at BasmusIan came lIttle '"(2)?n~fri. in;-ents ti~~!Q.J:!gchieflY-J_oJsiig,e,.~,,-,_j~apOrs :lJ(steede Type 15 a, pI. I PL. _globutar jars_of TYI)e 12;'see _pI._I, _cL alsei_-_1II;_~IlVIJ.U038 from Level VIII and - pI. II; IM.6Q425_and I~1.-~042t~T!Ie~w.~~tel'---r¥::-(,(q?Ufrom Level VII), while from was at the lime in charge of the excavafiQns __Level VII came seyeral fragments of at Basmusion (First-season)-., - -_--" ~r -\lotive_bowls with bevelled rims. -lL'--,--~,~•• $00 '- --- f1{J ,;~ :. -- '<~1 '"< II, ilble '" Shemsham Dark grey slip burni8be(r Level III.- ~_~-~_. --- ,- .. nnd ~ Shemshara is a cone-shaped mound Red-slipped burnisheq-Level JY=:-.~~.:-=-•c.:~. _.:. ~.A '" \,lith on the west bank of the Lower Zab, a Red-Orange slip not burnished 1.Je:-_ ",1 )1'0- :i little south of Darbandi-i-Ramkan, vel IV. ~ II, Raniya ,yas visible some four kilometres _ 9 -RedOrange slip burnish-E;dLevel IV. i to the north-west. Not much information tive <l 10 . Red-Orange slip· Levels III-IV. ~ 8, ~ could be obtained from the published J Lra- ~ account of the Danish Expedition , nor 11 Red-slipped hurnished- Le~el~- III:- from the Field Note-books of the Iraqi IV. II, -,- 4 sh Expedition relating to the subject of 12 Brown clav. with a band of alterna- gble this article. Al-Tikriti did mention, ho,v- ting tria~gular incised patterns rom ever, that a few Jamdat Nasr sherds Level III. were found at the adjacent mound of J,3 Red-Orange slip Level-IV. -- ---.. !pen Brusti mingled with E.D.I pottery. No· tded note was made as to whether these sherds 14 Red-Orange slip Level IV. e:ve1 were painted or plain. In the Store-rooms 15 Red-Orange slip Leyels. Ilr::~:;~~'·-.--,~--.o_---~·- of the Iraq Museum the writer was able to discern a Ilumber of orange-slipped 16 Red-Orange slip Level III-IV. sherds among the Shemshara materiaL 17 Red-Orange burnished- Lev.ekIX.-=-<~-;-=.:--.- A description and sections of these sherds the 18 R-ed-slipped, burnished Leyel-IX. _. -_. _:_ is given below and oil plate V. The ain . writer is inclined to the opinion that 19 Dark red slip burnished ~e'~et.I:Vc::. _. _ __ . vest these sherds are the ones described as V. - . to "Jamdat Nasr". ¢in . 20 Dark red slip burnished Level IV- :uk V. BS- Dark red slip bui=nished Level IV- to- 1 Red Orange slip burnished Levels V. rds III-IV. ~se 2 Red brown slip· burnished Levels Ka11la11an ~ls. II-III. Kamarian is a comparatively small In 3 Red-Orange slip burnished IJevel mound situated imediatelv on the east., reo IX. ern bank of the riYer Zab. "An abundance lm 4 Buff-reddish clay no slip Level of plain Urllk potsherds together with ed YIII-IX probably belong to handled se"eral complete Yessels was found in the cups. lower levels at this sit-e. The upper 5 Red-Orange slip burnished 1.-1evel strata, ho\\'eyer, ~'ielded in addition to IV. pottery of the Akkadian and Isin-Larsa Periods an admixture of red, grey and -(3) The Danish Expendition to Shem- plain Uruk sherds, plus even earlier shara carried out a single season's work 'In wares (Hassnna, Samarra and Ubaid).