©The Archaeological Settlements of Turkey - TAY Project

Dere Mahallesi Yerlesimi ve Mezarligi

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Dere Mahallesi Yerleşimi ve Mezarlığı
Type:
 Flat Settlement and Cemetery
Altitude:
 350 m
Region:
 Black Sea
Province:
 Tokat
District:
 Erbaa
Village:
 Merkez
Investigation Method:
 Excavation
Period:
 EBA III

     

Location: The mound lies north of Tokat; west-southwest of Erbaa.
Geography and Environment: It was cited as "Horoztepe" in archaeological publications. The site was used as a graveyard of Dere quarter after the earthquake. Imbat stream passes near the site that sees Yesilirmak.
History:
Research and Excavation: It was excavated in 1957 under T. Özgüç and M. Akok following the delivery of some metallic finds; recovered from a grave's pit opened by the treasure hunters by coincidence; to the Ankara Museum of Anatolian Civilizations in 1954. The excavation was carried out in the non-occupied areas without disturbing the graves of the modern cemetery and the pathway on the north of the cemetery by means of a few trenches. The trenchs yielded the northern and western borders of the EBA settlement and revealed that modern Dere Mahallesi stands on a prehistoric settlement and king's graves. Some Horoztepe originated items displayed in the foreign collections brings to mind that illicit diggings were carried out here before the archaeological excavation. It takes place in the registered archaeological sites list prepared by Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
Stratigraphy: The soundings carried out both in the grave pits opened and the non-occupied areas between the modern graves have laid out the presence of an EBA settlement on the top hill followed probably by a Late Chalcolithic Age settlement. The report of Özgüç and Akok indicates that the kings'/rulers' graves were dug into the red colored; cobbled and rigid virgin soil on the northern section of the flat settlement; partly on the northern border of the modern cemetery and on the pathway.
Small Finds: Architecture: As the excavation was mainly concerned with the findspot of the items recovered; no detailed information is provided about the flat settlement. Remains of hearths and small finds expose the presence of a settlement. No architectural remains were uncovered since the excavated area was very small. It can only be suggested that a wooden architecture was employed as it was usual in the vicinity. Pottery: As a result of the analysis of the sherds recovered from the flat settlement of Dere Mahallesi (Horoztepe); samples of the handmade; exteriorly and interiorly red or black washed burnished ware were dated to EBA by the excavators. Some of them are decorated. Decorations were applied on the neck and shoulders of the vessels. The patterns are parallel lines and notches. Strap handles are observed. Forms of teapot; deep bowls; dishes with and without handles; thin-walled vases are common. Intact vessels and sherds of the same ware were recovered from the cemetery. Human Remains: It is amazing to come across a public cemetery without any grave goods in the flat settlement of Horoztepe-Dere Mahallesi. This is an evidence of the intramural public cemeteries during that era [Özgüç-Akok 1958:26]. King's Tombs: The short-period excavation lasted only for one year yielded only two tombs as chamber graves. It is certain that one of them was robbed by the local villagers while interring their burials here or by treasure hunters. The other one was excavated before disturbed. The walls were not built by stone with loam mortar as it was the case at Alacahöyük graves. The excavators; even tough no trace is available; believe that they were wooden. The roofs being flat; the graves were in the north-south and the east-west directions. One measures ca. 8.5x3 m in dimensions and 1.25 m in depth. The short excavation period didn't verify the presence of any other graves. The heads of the kings/rulers was oriented toward the southeast while the feet to the northwest. The position of the burial was not defined in detail. The grave goods were found near the skeletons. Inside or outside the grave; no finds like head and foot of a buffalo were recovered like Alacahöyük. This exposes that the burial ceremony was performed distinctively from Alacahöyük or at somewhere else. As the skeletons were disarticulated; no anthropological information could be provided and even the sex of the burials was not reported. The king/queen tombs yielded weapons in precious metals like gold; silver and electron or copper/bronze; pots and pans; objects like mirror; sun discoid; sistrum; castanet; wooden spindle; belt buckle and figurines. Those finds recovered from a single grave expose that finds particularly like table foot and pots and pans were left as bended or pressed. Two tables in copper/bronze look very aesthetical for its age. The spaces for circular trays on the table are suggested to be wooden. Since the quadrangular table is very small; it is assumed to be used for some other purposes. The fruit-stand with a zigzag decorated pipe-like foot resembles the terracotta samples of its era [Özgüç-Akok 1958:pic.1-2]. The rest of the metallic samples are basket handled teapot; double handled big dish; single handled small dishes; dishes without handles and mugs [Özgüç-Akok 1958:pic.3-18]. The sistrum; castanet and discs employed during the burial ceremony of the kings/rulers and god figurines are the copper/bronze finds.A find that can be called wooden spindle or spindle whorl indicates that the graves do not belong to males only. Curved dagger; dagger and shaft-holed axes are the daily weapons of the buried person or persons. Among the god and goddess figurines; a mother figurine breast-feeding her baby and a bull figurine are interesting [Özgüç-Akok 1958:pic.28]. T. Özgüç states that it is a minimized replica of a big sculpture [Özgüç-Akok 1957:205]. The exposure of the caps belonging to wooden or timber furnitures left in several places of the grave probably indicates that the burial ceremony is not as simple as that and the burials probably were carried with ox-carts covered with cloth curtains accompanied with music-like noises sounded by castanet; sistrum and other objects. The deer figurines probably were inserted into the holes in those carts. The presence of baton and baldahin (?) butts evidence that the burials belong to nobles like king; queen and ruler. Recovering a limited number of finds from the second grave indicates that the grave was probably plundered in our age. Some finds exhibited in the foreign collections most probably come from this grave. Özgüç and Akok believe that they were recovered from the king tombs of Horoztepe [Özgüç-Akok 1957:20l-219].
Remains:
Interpretation and Dating: The excavation of Horoztepe/Dere Mahallesi Cemetery suggested that there are tombs other than the king tombs of Alacahöyük at least in the last phase of EBA given the burial traditions. The excavators propose to date these graves to 2100 BC. Particularly T. Özgüç believes that Horoztepe lasted longer than Alacahöyük. This interpretation should be taken cautiously since it depends on two graves only. The typical characteristics and forms of grave finds suggest that Dere Mahallesi Cemetery/Horoztepe is at least contemporary with Alacahöyük graves. They are very rich graves belonging to the managing class with their magnificent grave goods during the heyday of the Hatti civilization. The sherds collected from its contemporary settlement starting only 4 m far from the graves point out the same dates. Likes of these finds were found in the other EBA settlements of Central Anatolia just like the settlement of Alacahöyük. It can be suggested that a community very good at mining came over to this site to run the mining beds in the vicinity of Tokat and after a short while settled in their wooden dwellings much same as Ikiztepe. It was probably fortified. However; no walls were reported after the excavation. Furthermore; the relationship between the settlement of Chalcolithic Age and EBA was also not clarified as well as if there is a gap between two periods. Limited excavations carried out in this vicinity bring in such problems. Further king tombs were not investigated by partly moving the cemetery of Horoztepe/Dere Mahallesi. EBA settlement and cemetery should be further explored and excavated. However; it is certain that the modern inhabitants will not find it suitable to move the modern cemetery away for the excavations.


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