“The Place of Children in the Ancient Society of Urkesh (Tell Mozan, Northeastern Syria) in the Middle Bronze Age (2000-1600 BC): An Archeothanatological Approach,”
Paléorient 40.1, pp. 135-147.
As funerary culture usually provides us with many information about ancient people, the present paper presents a discussion about children’s burial at Urkesh, dating to the Khabur Ware period (ca. 2000-1600 BC).
The osteological observation of these human remains “has provided evidence of age-related characteristics. Indeed, the funerary treatment of the children has proven to have been different from that of the adults” (p. 59, abstract).
After an introduction about Urkesh itself, the authors move to describe the two main burial strategies of children, i.e. the ‘jar burials’ (sub-paragraph II.1), such as A16.47 [see also UGR], and the ‘earth pits’ (sub-paragraph II.2), such as A10.39B and A15.51, insisting on/around the Palace area AA [see also UGR].
In conclusion, “mortuary practices reflect a society’s social organization and cultural values. The analysis of Middle Bronze Age mortuary practices regarding children at Tell Mozan has shown specific characteristics linked to age. Children received proper funerary treatment that distinguished them from adult individuals. These mortuary patterns were probably socially selected and do not represent random acts.
[About this topic, see also a poster presented at the 8thICAANE, in 2012].
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