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Yassıhöyük Excavations in 2011
Masako Omura JIAA
Bird's-eye view of Yassıhöyük.
The 3rd season of the excavations at Yassıhöyük was carried out for nine weeks from 5th September to 4th November 2011.
Considering the result of the 2nd season of the excavations in 2010, the objectives of the 3rd were following two: 1) Excavate and study the architectural remains in Stratum I belonging to the Late Iron Age, which first appeared during the excavations in 2009 and 2010. Also in this stratum, we investigate if there are any layers which belong to the Middle and the Early Iron Ages. 2) Excavate the burnt layer supposed to belong to the period from the late 3rd millennium B.C. to the early 2nd millennium B.C. for the purpose of studying the architectural remains, which had been detected by the geomagnetic survey.
The excavations were conducted in eight grids in total (20m x 40m), including the six grids, which had been set by year of 2010 in the Area 1 at the top of the mound (E8/d9, d10, e9, e10, f9 and f10) and two were newly set grids E8/g9 and g10.
Stratum I
In the new grids E8/g9 and g10, four building levels belonging to the Late Iron Age were found. The digging of this season in these grids was finished after another further old architectural remain shown up.
The architectural remains of Stratum I in grids E8/g9 and g10.
In the grid E8/f10, architectural remains belonging to the fourth and to the fifth building levels were detected under the remains of the 3rd building level of Stratum I which were removed in the last year. Pottery shards from the Late Iron Age were also unearthed in those building levels. Under these architectural remains, a large pit P34 was found, which was broken by the building R29 belonging to the fifth building level. Many pottery shards in Alişar IV style which have characteristic schematized deer and concentric circle patterns and shards similar to those excavated from the IIc Stratum at Kaman-Kalehöyük were found from P34. Considering these pottery shards, it may be appropriate to date the pit to the Middle Iron Age.
Alişar IV style pottery shards with the deer pattern from Stratum I.
Bronze arrow head from Stratum I.
In the grids E8/d9, d10 and e10, after removing the walls belonging to the 2nd and 3rd building levels excavated last year, the layers were dug further down. In the grids E8/d10 and e10, immediately beneath R17, which is a part of a large architectural remain of the 3rd building level, some parts of the large stone-built walls were found. These walls were supposed to have consisted another large building. A fragile remains of a building in the half-basement style R28 was found across the grids E8/d9 and d10. Based on the dug out potteries, all these remains were judged to belong to the Late Iron Age. Under the wall W57 belonging to the 3rd building level at south-western part of the grid E8/d9, a pit P41 and the north wall W78 of a room R33, which was partially broken by the pit, was excavated. Many of the pottery shards found in the P41 were similar to those from Stratum IIc of Kaman-Kalehöyük, and there were some similar to those from Stratum IId of Kaman-Kalehöyük. Therefore, P41 and R33 could be dated to either the Middle or the Early Iron Age. Last year, a small piece of a lead stripe written in hieroglyphics was found in debris of Stratum I near the surface, and in this year from P41 and P34 of the grid E8/f10, pottery shards belonging to the Middle and the Early Iron Age were found. However, there were only small number of objects found in R33. An architectural remain, which provides us with resources enough for the study on the Middle and the Early Iron Age at Yassıhöyük, have not been observed yet.
From Stratum I, a lot of painted potteries and black polished shards belonging to the Late Iron Age and, as mentioned above, shards from the Early and the Middle Iron Ages were unearthed. In addition to the potteries, bronze arrowheads, fibulae, pins and iron knives were also found. From the P41, a couple of unbaked spindle whorls were excavated.
Painted Krater from Stratum I.
Bronze fibula from Stratum I.
Stratum II
During the excavation season of 2011, in Stratum II, the goal was set to understand the whole structure of the architectural remain belonging to the burnt layer of this Stratum in all eight grids. In the six grids where the excavation had been already started in the last season, a brief plan of the remain was obtained. In the two new grids, its top part was able to be observed. As a result, it became clear that this architectural remain is that of a large building running from north-west to south east; each hallway and room were placed symmetrically around the central hall or courtyard R8; and shows a similar plan to that of the remains of a palace at Kültepe.
Remain of the palace from the Stratum II
R8:
In the grid E8/e9, north-west part of R8 was excavated. In the middle of the north-west wall W20, which is preserved with approximately 240 cm high, there is a platform with three steps. Both top and side surfaces of this platform were plastered carefully. Also, the side of a large round hearth in 240 cm diameter, which was placed in the middle of the room constructed over the grids E8/e9 and e10, was plastered. On the floor of the room, although they were broken, twelve large potteries were found at their original positions. In the grids E8/d10 and e10, there was not enough time in this season to dig down to the floor of the room. However, in the grid E8/d10, the wall W80 was found, which crosses at right angle with the southwest wall W47 of R8. The front entrance of the room was supposed to be at this wall W80. At W47, a doorway, which connects the room with the south hallway R27, was also found.
R37:
In the grid E8/d9, among the rooms in the south of R8 and the narrow hallway R27, the room R37 was dug down to the floor level. In the R37, there is a round hearth, which is similar to the one excavated from the R8 but smaller than it and was partially broken by the room R33 and the pit P41 of Stratum I. Large broken jars were found all over the floor at their original positions.
Remain of the palace from the Stratum II (R37)
Remain of the palace from the Stratum II (R19)
R19:
In the grid E8/f9, among the rooms behind the R8, of which the excavations were started in the last year, one room R19 was dug further down to the floor level. The south part of the R19, about 30 to 40 cm from the floor, was filled up with carbonate timbers, which were supposed to have constructed the building.
Funnel shape pottery from Stratum II.
Clay bulla sealed with a stamp seal from Stratum II.
Most of the large potteries excavated immediately above the floors of R8 and R37 are red slipped ware, and many of them are handmade. There are varieties of shapes including jars with pointed bottom and beaked pitchers. Among pottery shards, there are also some shards supposed to belong to the 3rd millennium B.C., such as painted potteries similar to those called as intermediate ware and small cups with clear string cut traces on their bottom. On the other hand, some pieces of clay bullae with seal impressions, whose pattern are characteristic to the Period of Assyrian Trade Colonies (the first quarter of the 2nd millennium B.C.), were found close to the wall W47 of Stratum II. Additionally, a bronze stamp seal in the shape which clearly belongs to the first half of the 2nd millennium B.C., was excavated from the pit P34 breaking the burnt brick wall W58 of Stratum II.
Questions in Stratum II
In Stratum II at Yassıhöyük, as mentioned above, the large building which had obviously collapsed with a conflagration could have been a palace. On the view of plan this building show the similarity with the building in the Level 11b at Kültepe, though the building of Kültepe was not excavated or preserved as a whole. Bothe buildings provide the similar plan that hallways and rooms are placed symmetrically around the courtyard with a big hearth at the center. Beside many of finds and installations unearthed related to this building showing the characteristics of the Early Bronze Age, there are also some showing the characteristics of the Middle Bronze Age as mentioned above. Therefore is it possible to date this building to the period of transition from the Early Bronze Age to the Middle Bronze Age ? The C14 dating of the carbonized wood remains unearthed from R8 and R19 in E8/f9 grid provided us the date 2261-2201 B.C. It seems to be earlier than the date which has been accepted as the date for the period of transition until now. Should we draw up the transition period earlier ? These questions are followed by other questions such as 1) How far was the cultural tradition of the Early Bronze Age kept with the emergence of a new culture? 2) In the latter half of the 3rd millennium B.C., the foundation of the new culture had already been ready being influenced by Mesopotamia and the move of the Indo-European? 3) In such periods, how were the cities in Anatolia formed, which were supposed to have played a large role to found the Hittite Kingdom later in the 2nd millennium B.C.? They are all questions that need to be considered through the excavations at Yassıhöyük.
Preservation of the Remains
In the last season, a preservation method applied on a part of a wall turned to be efficient. Therefore in this season too, along the excavation work, the same method was applied to consolidate the plastered brick walls. However, this is a provisional method. The team of the Yassıhöyük excavations intends to keep the site, particularly the remains in Stratum II in the most useful way both for the archaeological studies and for the welfare of the local people. Now it is necessary to start planning a restoration and preservation project in order to determine the final preservation method.
Remain of the palace from the Stratum II Preservation treatment for the sun-dried brick walls.
The 3rd season of excavations was finished by covering all the eight grids (20m x 40m) with a protective roof and storing excavated objects at the Kaman-Kalehöyük Archaeological Museum.
Yassıhöyük excavations in 2011 was conducted with the aid of Grants-in-Aids for Scientific Research (B) from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.
Yassıhöyük Excavations in Progress (2011)
The excavation surveys at Yassıhöyük in 2011 started on 5th September. In this season, the survey is being carried out in eight grids (each grid is 10 x 10m): two new grids were opened in the north of the six grids, which had been set by last year. In the north two grids, the architectural remains of the Stratum I have been surveyed, and in the other grids, removing architectural remains from the Iron Age, it aims at reaching the burnt layer of the Stratum II.
