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©The Archaeological Settlements of Turkey - TAY Project
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Akarçay Tepe |
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Type:
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Mound |
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Altitude:
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355 m |
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Region:
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Southeastern Anatolia |
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Province:
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Sanliurfa |
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District:
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Birecik |
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Village:
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Akarçay |
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Investigation Method:
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Excavation |
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Period:
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Middle Late |
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| It is located partially in the west and partially below the Akarçay Village, south of Birecik District southwest of Sanliurfa. The mound measures 350x150x2 m. The site was found during the Tigris-Euphrates Archaeological Reconnaissance Survey conducted by G. Algaze in 1989. Some painted Ubaid sherds with the Late Chalcolithic shapes were collected. There is also a small amount of Iron Age sherds (for detailed information about the Ceramic and Aceramic Neolithic Age finds; see Harmankaya et al. 1997:Akarçay Tepe). During surface collection conducted by the University of Istanbul Faculty of Letters Prehistory Section and coordinated by METU TAÇDAM in 1998; a small body sherd of a greenish-beige fabric was found. The sherd; with its decoration of two parallel lines in a dark color; displays characteristics of the Ubaid pottery. A second body fragment without a profile most probably belongs to a bowl with an out-rolled rim; which is a typical form of the Uruk Period. The Chalcolithic Period finds of Akarçay Tepe points to a small settlemet of this period [Balkan-Atlı et al. 1999: 78-79]. Many large pits were found dating to this period during the excavations performed by M. Özbasaran in 2005. Considering the pits found in 2002; it may be assumed that this area is not within the section used for settlement in Chalcolithic Period [Özbasaran et al. 2007:194]. Although very few; some fragments were found dating to Late Chalcolithic Period [Özbaşaran et al. 2007:198]. It takes place in the registered archaeological sites list prepared by Ministry of Culture and Tourism. |
| Location: This site lies west of the city of Sanliurfa; south of the town of Birecik and west and partially under the village of Akarçay. The Elementary School of the village is partially built over the mound. |
| Geography and Environment: The Akarçaytepe mound-site is located south of Su Stream which is a small a tributary of the Euphrates and it lies on alluvial deposits. The dimensions of the mound; which consists of two small hills; are 150 m north-south and 350 m east-west. The mound is only 2 m high. There are nearby water-sources. There are also some flint resources and limestone formations that provide raw materials for the Neolithic Period settlement. |
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