Hungarian Archaeological Expedition in the Mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan. Excavations Undertaken by the Faculty of Humanities, Eötvös Loránd University, at Grdi Tle (Rania Plain) By Gábor Kalla

https://www.academia.edu/84169156/Hungarian_Archaeological_Expedition_in_the_Mountains_of_Iraqi_Kurdistan_Excavations_Undertaken_by_the_Faculty_of_Humanities_E%C3%B6tv%C3%B6s_Lor%C3%A1nd_University_at_Grdi_Tle_Rania_Plain_?nav_from=b66100c6-6156-4515-bec2-6f2e6a9401ce carried out fieldwork in Kurdistan since 2016, at the tell settlement in Grd-i Tle. The tell (hill) is situated in the autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan, in the Rania Plain, surrounded by mountains, and it is one of the most important archaeological sites in this region. During the four, one-month long excavation campaigns, it was possible to clarify the basic topographical characteristics of the settlement, as well as historical and chronological details of its development. In addition to recovering significant archaeological remains dating from the Islamic and Hellenistic-Parthian periods, our preliminary assumptions were confirmed: the remains of an important administrative centre of the Neo-Assyrian Empire were found on the spot of this 30 metres high hill. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES AND SITE SELECTION The main goal of the research program was to study a peripheral administrative centre of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (9th-7th century BC). It is only by looking at the emergence and expansion, both at the centre and the occupied territories, that one would be able to understand the functioning of the Empire. Although some of the centres of Assyrian provincial administration have already been studied, these were predominantly located in the western territories (MacGinnis-Wicke-Greenfield 2016). Until about 5 years ago, the eastern confines had scarcely been studied archaeologically, and even the localization of places mentioned in written sources was extremely difficult, despite the importance of this borderland defending the Empire from its enemies beyond the high mountains, and supplying soldiers for the army and food for the core territories. Grd-i Tle seemed a suitable choice for multiple reasons. The hill is a spectacular landmark, towering over the surrounding landscape, which is the northwest parts of the Rania Plain (Fig. 1), and the surface finds, dating from the Neo-Assyrian period, already hinted on its chronology. In 2016, the war between the soldiers of the Islamic State and the Peshmerga forces of Iraqi Kurdistan was still going on, thus, for security reasons it was also advisable to choose a site distant from the frontline. THE TOPOGRAPHY OF GRD-I TLE Fieldwork began in 2016, when a geodetic survey was conducted and a 10×10 metres reference grid was established across the whole site, to which the trenches could be oriented (Fig. 2). 1 A 3D model of the hill was pro-1 The topographical survey was prepared by Attila Weisz (Salisbury Ltd). Salisbury Ltd also provided other services assisting our excavations.