Carchemish in Context

by Edgar Peltenburg, T. J. Wilkinson, Eleanor Barbanes Wilkinson

Overview

The city of Carchemish in the valley of the Euphrates river can be regarded as one of the iconic sites in the Middle East, a mound complex known both for its own intrinsic qualities as the seat of later Hittite power and Neo-Hittite kings, but also because its history of excavations included well known historical figures such as Leonard Woolley and T. E. Lawrence. However, because of its location within the military zone of the Turkish-Syrian border the site itself has been inaccessible to archaeologists for more than 90 years. Carchemish in Context summarises the results of regional investigations conducted within the Land of Carchemish Project in Syria, as well as other archaeological surveys in the region, in order to provide a regional, historical and archaeological context for the development of the city.

A synthesis of the history of Carchemish is presented and a regional overview of the Land of Carchemish as it is defined by archaeological features and key historical references through to the early Iron Age. Insightful snapshots of the dynamics of an ancient state are revealed which can now be seen to have fluctuated dramatically in size throughout 700-800 years, in part depending upon the power of the king of Carchemish or the aggressions of external powers.

The results from the Project provide an overview of the main trends of settlement in the region over 8000 years, using a combination of survey databases to both north and south of the Syrian-Turkish border and with a focus on the earlier phases of settlement from the Neolithic until the end of the Bronze Age when Carchemish became an outpost of the Hittite empire. The Iron Age is a period blessed by numerous historical records some of which can be traced in the modern landscape. Further chapters explore site-specific aspects of the regional archaeology, including a series of important sites on the Sajur river, some of which were positioned along the main campaign routes of the Assyrian kings. The close relationship between the nearby Early Bronze Age site of Tell Jerablus Tahtani and Carchemish are examined and the results from the 40 ha Carchemish Outer Town survey described, providing important new data sources regarding the layout, defenses and dates of occupation of this significant part of the city. The Classical, Roman, Byzantine and Early Islamic occupations are also discussed in relation to what is known of occupation in the surrounding region.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781785701122
Publisher:	Oxbow Books
Publication date:	05/31/2016
Series:	Banea Monograph , #4
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	288
File size:	10 MB

About the Author

Edgar Peltenburg joined the staff of the University of Edinburgh in 1978 and was appointed Professor of Archaeology in 1994. During that time he published nearly 20 books and 150 journal articles, testimony to his distinguished career in archaeology. After his retirement in 2006 he continued to pursue an active program of fieldwork and research devoted to the investigation and interpretation of small-scale societies in Cyprus and the ancient Near East. The excavations at Souskiou Laona, which he directed from 2001-2011, was the final field project he completed prior to his premature death in 2016.
Tony Wilkinson (deceased) was Professor of Archaeology in the Archaeology Department at the University of Durham. He was widely recognised as one of the world’s leading experts in landscape archaeology and, amongst other things, specialised in the ancient landscapes of Mesopotamia and the broader Middle East.
Eleanor Barbanes Wilkinson is Honorary Research Fellow in the Archaeology Department at the University of Durham where she specialises in the archaeology of the Middle East, particularly Carchemish, and is director of the Digital Ninevah Archives.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1. Introduction, by T.J. Wilkinson and Edgar Peltenburg
Chapter 2. Sketch History of Karkamish in the Earlier Iron Age Iron I-IIB, by J.D. Hawkins and M. Weeden
Chapter 3. The Land of Carchemish and its Neighbours During the Neo-Hittite period (c. 1190-717 BC), by Michael Brown and Stefan Smith
Chapter 4. Long-term Settlement Trends in the Birecik-Carchemish Sectors, by Dan Lawrence and Andrea Ricci
Chapter 5. The Landscapes of Carchemish, by T.J.Wilkinson
Chapter 6. The Scent of Empire on the Sajur, by Jesper Eidem
Chapter 7. Carchemish in the Third Millennium: A View From Neighbouring Tell Jerablus Tahtani, by Edgar Peltenburg
Chapter 8. Investigations of Iron Age Carchemish: The Outer Town Survey of 2009 and 2010, by Eleanor Wilkinson and Andrea Ricci
Chapter 9. The Carchemish Region Between the Hellenistic and Early Islamic Periods, by Paul Newson
Chapter 10. Sixty Years of Site Damage in the Carchemish Region, by Emma Cunliffe
Chapter 11. Discussion, by T.J. Wilkinson and Edgar Peltenburg
Appendix. The Land of Carchemish Survey (Syria), 2006-2010: Site Gazeteer, by T. J. Wilkinson, Dan Lawrence and Andrea Ricci
 

Editorial Reviews

This is an important monograph…will be of interest not just to specialists—Hittitologists, Assyriologists, Near Eastern and landscape archaeologists—but to anyone with an interest in the archaeology of the ancient Near East, as well as the wider heritage community and cultural resource managers.

Ancient Near Eastern Studies

It represents a true interdisciplinary undertaking that now has become the standard for understanding past social and ecological landscapes. The volume presents a great deal of new information about a fascinating region and why it developed the way it did during different periods, and it helps us to make sense of the context in which Carchemish is located. I highly recommend this volume as a resource not only for understanding this region, but also as an example of how interdisciplinary research can be conducted in order to improve archaeological understanding.

Mark Altaweel