TELL
ABADA
![](tellabada.jpg)
Tell
Abada shown within Iraq
Location
: Diyala Governorate, Iraq
Region
: Mesopotamia
Coordinates
: 34°6'0 N 45°7'12 E (approximate)
Type
: tell
History
:
Periods
: Ubaid period
Tell
Abada is a tell, or archaeological settlement mound, in Diyala Governorate
(Iraq). Abada was excavated as part of the archaeological salvage
operation to excavate sites that would be flooded by the reservoir
of the Hamrin Dam. Excavations revealed occupation levels dating
to the Ubaid 1-3 periods. The site is important because it was one
of the few where an Ubaid period settlement could be excavated in
its entirety.
The
site and its environment :
The site lies in the foothills of the Zagros Mountains in the Hamrin
region, east of the Diyala River and 12 km (7.5 mi) southeast of
Sadiyah. It measures 190 by 150 m and rises 3.5 m above the surrounding
plain. Another nearby Ubaid period site is Tell Rashid, which is
located 12 km (7.5 mi) north of Tell Abada.
History
of research :
Tell Abada was excavated for a single season from December 1977
until July 1978 under the direction of Sabah Abboud Jasim. The excavation
was part of a large archaeological salvage operation to excavate
sites in danger of being flooded by the reservoir of the Hemrin
Dam, which was being constructed at the time. Some 80% of the site
has been excavated and virgin soil (undisturbed by human activity)
was reached in two locations. The fact that Tell Abada was excavated
almost in its entirety makes it an important site in the study of
the Ubaid period.
Occupation
history :
Three different occupation levels were recognised, dating to a transitional
phase between the Samarra and Ubaid periods (level III), late Ubaid
2 (level II), and early Ubaid 3 (level I).
The
architectural remains of level III consisted of two houses with
multiple rectangular rooms, with gypsum plastered walls. These buildings
have been interpreted as a pottery production location based on
the presence of large storage jars, red ochre and three nearby kilns.
The kilns were located in an open area and were of different types
and shapes. In one case, it has been suggested that it could have
been used both for firing pottery as well as food production. Large
quantities of painted Samarra and Ubaid 1 were recovered with a
wide array of different decorative geometric motifs, including ceramics
with both Samarra and Ubaid 1 characteristics. There seems to have
been a clear break in the occupation history between levels III
and II.
Level
II consisted of 11 buildings which were separated by streets and
narrow lanes. The buildings share a distinct design with a tripartite
plan with rooms arranged around a T-shaped courtyard. The walls
were constructed of mudbricks. One of the largest buildings (building
A), in the center of the site, had exterior walls decorated with
buttresses, indicating that it may have had a special function.
Designs on the painted pottery included geometric motifs as wells
as more naturalistic depictions. Pottery decorated with incisions
and impressions was also common. Other finds included animal and
human clay figurines, stone tools such as querns, mortars, mace
heads, and bone tools such as needles and spatulas.
A
certain degree of continuation existed between the architecture
of level II and level I. Painted pottery was common and often wheel-thrown,
and decorations shared characteristics with those observed on both
Northern and Southern Ubaid sites. Decoration was both geometric
as well as naturalistic.
Burials
:
A large number of child burials (127) have been recovered from the
upper 2 levels of the site. Most of these children were below the
age of 2. The bodies were placed in a shallow bowl covered with
a second bowl, which in turn was buried below the floors of the
houses. Almost half of the burials came from building A, reinforcing
the apparent importance of this building that is also evident from
its wall decorations and size. The excavators have searched the
environment of the site for evidence of a burial site for adults,
but did not find any.
Source
:
https://en.wikipedia.org/
wiki/Tell_Abada