“The Identification of Urkesh with Tell Mozan (Syria),”
Orient-Express 1995/3, cover page and pp. 67-70.
The paths toward the identification of Tell Mozan with ancient Urkesh represents the topic of this paper.
After a first tentative identification of this ancient site with Tell Shermola (in Amuda plain), in 1983, the authors explain how they decided to move to Tell Mozan [for the specific and articulated reasons for such a decision, see Mozan 1].
After 1993 excavation season in storehouse AK (stratum B12), with many sealings found, it was indeed clear that the identification was effective: seal impressions of Tupkish, endan (i.e., the Hurrian term for ‘king’) of Urkesh, and of his wife Uqnitum definitely confirmed such an interpretation (for a wider publication on this topic, see AfO 42-43 [1995], pp. 1-32).
Moreover, the ‘vault’ in sector B of the same building (where many other sealings were retrieved) is presented, together with the Early-Dynastic LU E tablet (A1.69+ [see Urkesh website/texts]) found in sector B and other 40 fragments of administrative tablets.
The total amount of inscribed sealings resulted in more than 170 items, carrying negative impressions of at least four king’s seals, 6 queen’s seals and three of Urkesh’s courtiers (the nurse Zamena, 2 sealings, the royal cook, one sealing, and a sealing of Innin-šadū).
Explicit correlations between the legends and the sealings’ scenes can be pointed out, exhibiting “stylistic and iconographic idiosyncrasies that set them apart from contemporary southern glyptic” (p. 69).
In general, three iconographic sealing groups can be retraced: 1) seals imported from the south or presenting southern style; 2) ‘schematic style’ sealings, with parallels with Tell Brak, but unattested in the south; 3) dynastic sealings belonging to the royal family of its household, emphasizing the embodiment of royal power (and certainly produced locally).
In the end, this last group helps in defining the existence of a proper ‘Hurrian art’.
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