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The Royal Storehouse of Urkesh: the Glyptic Evidence from the Southwestern Wing

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The Royal Storehouse of Urkesh: the Glyptic Evidence from the Southwestern Wing The Royal Storehouse of Urkesh: The Glyptic Evidence from the Southwestern Wing By Giorgio Buccellati and Marilyn Kelly-Buccellati (Los Angeles) 1. MozanLJrkesh and the Hurrians not the discovery of a single major artifact such as another foundation deposit like the lions of Tish-atal, for It has been a working hypothesis of the Mozan Ar- instance, that gave us the clue we were seeking. It was chaeological Project since its inception that Tell Mozan rather the interpretation of a large and unusual group of might be the site of ancient Urkesh.’ The reasons had fragmentary seal impressions, found scattered over the been articulated in Mozan 1 (Buccellati and Kelly- floor of a fairly large room. This explains the delay Buccellati 1988, pp. 31-38; 89-90). Briefly stated, they between the actual recovery of the fragments and the were as follows: (1) The lions of the foundation inscrip- identification. The chronology is as follows. Excavations tion of Tish-atal refer to Urkesh in such a way that in what turned out to be the Royal Storehouse began in Urkesh was very likely the city where they had been 1990 (our sixth season): only the top of the floor deposits placed originally. (2) Tell Shermola, in the modern town was reached.) In 1992 (our seventh season) we obtained of Amuda, where the lions were presumably sold on the a large horizontal exposure of the south western corner of antiquities market in 1948, could not qualify as the site of the Storehouse, and found a few sealings and a school Urkesh, because its occupation was to be dated primarily tablet.4 Since we anticipated a large number of seal to later historical periods.* (3) Tell Mozan, the largest impressions from the floor deposit in Sector B, we de- third millennium site in the vicinity of Amuda, was a cided to skip the study season which normally comes in good candidate for the place of origin of the Tish-atal alternate years, and devoted our eighth season in 1993 to lions. (4) The general location of Urkesh in the area of a slow excavation of that particular floor deposit. The Amuda, as derived from the Old Babylonian itineraries, total number of seal impressions recovered was more than was well suited for Tell Mozan. Still it was clear that the 600, and the following season (8a, in 1994) was devoted importance of Tell Mozan did not, in and of itself, depend to the documentation of these and the other finds. The on the question of the identification (this was stressed, study of the record during the intervening year 1994-95 e.g., in Mozan 1, p. 38), since the archaeological profile led us to the conclusion already mentioned about the of the site was significant on its own terms, and would identification of Urkesh with our site. At that point we warrant therefore full attention regardless of whether decided to spend a second study season (8b): our purpose Urkesh had been located there or elsewhere. For it had was to collate the inscribed seal impressions (more than become apparent from our work that, whether or not 170) and to complete the full documentation of all the Mozan was Urkesh, it belonged in the same class. material with a view towards a rapid final publication. The study of the seal impressions found in a large We provide here a comprehensive preliminary report storehouse labeled AK has provided now the positive of our findings as they pertain to the glyptic evidence.s It evidence we needed to conclude that Urkesh is indeed to gives us special pleasure to have this report appear in Afo be identified with Tell Mozan. It will be noted that it was since it was while in residence at the Institut fur Orientalistik of the University of Vienna during the Spring ’) The transcription of the name fluctuates in modern litera- ture between Urkish and Urkesh; the former spelling is more Buccellati and Kelly-Buccellati 1991 with Fig. 20, which prevalent and is the one we had used in our earlier publications. shows an aerial view of the central part of the Storehouse. We have opted now for the transcription with e for three major 4, Buccellati and Kelly-Buccellati 1994 (with. Fig. 18) and reasons: the choice of the sign kks’ in the earliest writings of the forthc. a.. city name, the writing ge-es’ attested in Old Babylonian, and the 5, A brief announcement was entered in the ANE Electronic contrastive writing, in our seals, of the city name with kki and Bulletin Board of the Oriental Institute of the University of the king’s name with ki-is. Chicago on November 16, 1995, anticipating the joint paper *) Buccellati and Kelly-Buccellati 1988, p. 36f.; p. 89; G. which we presented at the ASOR meeting in Philadelphia on Bumens and A. Roobaert-Bunnens, ibid., p. 90-92. Faivre 1991- November 20, 1995. In Philadelphia we had the opportunity to 2, 14ff.; 1992, 133ff., also comes to the same result. Curiously, show our material to Jeanny V. Canby, Machteld J. Mellink and Faivre seems to imply that our own conclusions with regard to Pauline Albenda who were very generous with their comments, Tell Shermola depended on the French excavations there, see for which we are most grateful. The first printed report from the especially 1992, p. 135. In fact, our decision to excavate at Tell writers appeared in Orient-Express 19993, cover page and pp. Mozan was based in part on the results of our first visit to Tell 67-70. Other articles on specific aspects are in preparation for Shermola in 1983. The fieldwork conducted in 1984 by Bunnens various journals and series, including Wiener Zeitschriji fir die and Roobaert-Bunnens on our behalf confirmed our initial obser- Kunde des Morgenlandes, Studies on the Civilization and Cul- vations. All of this clearly precedes by several years the French ture of Nuzi and the Hurrians, Subartu. The final report will campaign reported on in Faivre’s publication. appear in the Fall of 1996 in the Mozan series. 2 Giorgio Buccellati and Marilyn Kelly-Buccellati 1995 that we developed the argument we are presenting Pietro Pozzi, Emmanuelle Besson, Claudia Wettstein, here. We found there a most congenial atmosphere and Julian Spykerman, Rollin Kennedy, Christopher Henson; the enthusiastic support of colleagues and students. In for photography, Federico A. Buccellati, Marie-Louise particular, Dr. Erika Bleibtreu shared very generously her Eagleton, Anwar Abdel-Ghafour and Samer Abdel- knowledge of ancient glyptic and her insights about the Ghafour, Mark Brawner, Charles Hartness; for the study interpretation of our material, allowing us to see at the of the sealings as objects, Jason N. Craig; for the study of same time a number of new seals which she is preparing figurines, Rick Hauser; for ceramic analysis, William R. for publication; Dr. Renate Rems-Wernisch stimulated Shelby, Alice Frigerio, HClhe Cooper; for registration, our thinking in a number of ways, for instance by bring- Sofi Tsantefskis and Claudio Peno-Brichetto; for metal ing to our attention the presence of positive seals in the analysis, Sharyn Crane and Achot Pilipposian; for Old Assyrian period; and Dr. Michael Jursa suggested an palaeozoology, Sandor Bokonyi; for palaeobotany, Judith important alternative reading of the Zamena seals, plus Thompson-Miragliuolo; for soil analysis, Gabriel Pesce; providing, with Mag. Michaela Weszeli, constant invalu- for physical anthropology, Rouzan Mkrttchian. The final able support as our bibliographical mentors. Professor publication will give ample credit to each individual Hans Hirsch was our official host, and ever the close contribution. friend: we are grateful that he made it possible for us to It goes without saying that the responsibility for the spend such a fruitful period in his Institute. content of this article rests with us, since neither the As a result of our research in Vienna we prepared a members of the staff nor the various colleagues we have preliminary position paper which we circulated among a mentioned have reviewed the final draft of our paper. few colleagues asking for the benefit of their comments As already indicated above, the identification with and criticisms. Their response was uniformly supportive, Urkesh is neither a surprise nor a pre-condition for estab- and for this we wish to express our gratitude to them. In lishing the importance of Mozan. It is, nevertheless, a particular, we will mention Mirjo Salvini, Piotr Steinkeller window that opens up many new perspectives and allows and Gernot Wilhelm, who provided detailed observations us to draw significant conclusions. We have here the only on various aspects of our paper, many of which are known instance of an ancient Hurrian city which (I) incorporated in this article, and will of course be credited occupied a position of prime importance in the idealized in the proper place. Some of their remarks improved very landscape of Hurrian mythology; (2) had reached a sig- substantially our argument, and contributed to provide nificant political status by virtue of being the seat of final certainty to our conclusions. several kings whose names have come down to us; (3) is One particular benefit that residence at the Institut fur now identified with a specific archaeological site. So far, Orientalistik afforded us was the possibility for a kind of in fact, Urkesh is the only Hurrian capital to have been joint research that we had not conducted before: a pro- positively identified, whether for the early or the later tracted joint lecturing on Mozan. The argument for the periods, since the identifications of cities like WaSSukanni identification of Urkesh rests on a very close integration with Fakhariya or Ta’idu with Hamidiya, though likely, of specialties: our joint work on an ongoing common are still hypothetical (see map on Fig.
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