Bash Tapa and its Environment. Third Millennium Pottery from the First Excavation Campaign.

Bash Tapa is a circa 8 ha settlement, located 35 km South of Erbil, in Iraqi Kurdistan. Its exploration was began in September 2013 by a french archaeological mission, led by L. Marti (CNRS, Paris). The stratigraphical step trench excavated on the southern slope of the tell revealed six phases of occupation dating to the 3rd millennium BC, from the Ninevite 5 to the Early Dynastic III periods (ARCANE ETG 1 – 5). A first evaluation of the pottery material recovered in this operation revealed that there are different traditions represented at the site. In fact, while the material dated from the beginning of the Early Bronze Age is clearly related to the Northern tradition, the most recent 3rd millennium levels identified so far have provided us with pottery which could be connected to Central Mesopotamia, and more specifically to the Diyala region. This paper will give a first overview of 3rd millennium pottery from the two first campaigns of excavation at Bash Tapa, its links with the other regions of Near East and its significance for chronology.