Unit Book A15
A15 synthetic View / Stratigraphy

Phase 4rA15A within Unit A15

James L. Walker – March 2024

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Stratigraphy

Phase 4r marks the end of the Akkadian period use of the Tupkish palace. This phase corresponds with reign of Hurrian King Ishar Kinum who was the last ruler to hold the title of Enden. There were no new structures added to the phase 4m major remodel of the reception area. Other than a few minor walls (f156), small surfaces such as f93 and one pit (a55), almost all of the features were categorized as buildups, mostly accumlations. The features of this phase were below the bottom of the gullys that eroded higher phases and were more or less intact as deposited.

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Late Akkadian Use

Stratum 420 encompasses the use of the remodeled Tupkish palace done during the reign of Queen Tar'am Agade. It is marked by the appearance (f504) of the pottery Bitumen Use Tradition (ceramic phase 3). There is not clear demarcation between the use by the two successive rulers, but there was no substantial royal activity within the extant palace walls in this phase. The accumulations are rich in ceramics indicating first, the occupation of the space, and later, use as a dumping ground, particularly for broken pottery.


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Surfaces and pit

The surfaces were small, isolated, and not associated with either extant or recently constructed walls. The one pit, a55, is unique in that it is the only one that seemed to have been dug to rob the large stones of Tupkish palace formal couryard. It respects the portion of wall f528 that fell to the north and was not removed and indeed had one of the surfaces ,f599, laid along the top. Ash-filled Khabur period pit a11 stops at the top of the fallen wall and at the top of pit a55.

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Typology

Ceramics sherds were the overwhelming bulk of the items recovered. The analysis is not yet complete, but many are of the Bitumen use tradition. No other items of significance were recovered.

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