# The Eighth Excavation Campaign (2022) in Kunara, Iraqi Kurdistan

Aline Tenu

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## To cite this version:

Aline Tenu. The Eighth Excavation Campaign (2022) in Kunara, Iraqi Kurdistan. 13ICAANE, May 2023, Copenhague, Denmark. pp.i - iv, 10.13173/9783447123761.i. hal-05158606

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13 ICAANE

Proceedings of the 13th International Congress
on the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East

Volume 2

Field and Lab Reports

Harrassowitz Verlag

<figure><img src="image_3.png" /></figure>
Proceedings of the 13th International Congress
on the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East

DOI: 10.13173/9783447123761.i

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Proceedings
of the 13th International Congress
on the Archaeology
of the Ancient Near East

22–26 May 2023

Copenhagen

Edited by

Ingolf Thuesen, Scott Haddow,
and Camilla Mazzucato

2025

Harrassowitz Verlag · Wiesbaden

DOI: 10.13173/9783447123761.i

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# Contents of Volume 2

<table><tr><td>Foreword and Acknowledgements</td><td>I</td></tr><tr><td>Ingolf Thuesen, Scott D. Haddow and Camilla Mazzucato</td><td></td></tr></table>

## Field and Lab Reports

### Chapter 1

<table><tr><td>At the Origins of the Ubaid World: Recent Insights from Tell el-'Uwaili (Southern Iraq)</td><td>5</td></tr><tr><td>Johnny Samuele Baldi, Emmanuel Baudouin and Régis Vallet</td><td></td></tr></table>

### Chapter 2

<table><tr><td>Excavations at Tell es-Samak (Shikmona/Porphyreron) 2010-2012</td><td>17</td></tr><tr><td>Shay Bar</td><td></td></tr></table>

### Chapter 3

<table><tr><td>Excavations at Nazarlebi (East Georgia) 2021-2022: A Late Bronze/Early Iron Age Sanctuary</td><td>31</td></tr><tr><td>Felix Blocher, Paata Bukhrashvili, Zurab Tskvitinidze and Shorena Davitashvili</td><td></td></tr></table>

### Chapter 4

<table><tr><td>Seasons 2019-2022 of the Lebanese-Italian Archaeological Project in the Region of Tyre, Lebanon: An Overview</td><td>43</td></tr><tr><td>Marta D'Andrea, May Haider and Ali Badawi</td><td></td></tr></table>

### Chapter 5

<table><tr><td>Uşaklı Höyük: New Results from a Site in the Heart of the Anatolian Plateau</td><td>59</td></tr><tr><td>Anacleto D'Agostino, Valentina Orsi and Yağmur Heffron</td><td></td></tr></table>

### Chapter 6

<table><tr><td>Recent Excavations at Murad Rasu, Iraqi Kurdistan</td><td>75</td></tr><tr><td>Amanda Dusting</td><td></td></tr></table>
Chapter 7

Survey Data from Aliawa's Post-Assyrian Phases (6th c. BCE to Early 3rd c. CE) 87
*Eleonora M.L. Franco and Rocco Palermo*

Chapter 8

Collaborative Research on the Doghlauri Cemetery, Georgia 99
*Iulon Gagoshidze, Nikoloz Gobejishvili, David Gagoshidze, Elena Rova, Francesco Bianchi, Francesca Bertoldi, Eliso Kvavadze and Allegra Rasia*

Chapter 9

Al Khudairah Necropolis (Sharjah, UAE): Results after the Second Season
of Work (2023) 115
*Paula Gómez Sanz, Carlos Fernández Rodríguez and Carmen del Cerro Linares*

Chapter 10

The Cultural Development of Çine-Tepecik and the Reflection on Aegean
Archaeology 127
*Sevinç Günel*

Chapter 11

Sites of the Living and Sites of the Dead in Wadi Rajib, Northern Jordan:
Two Seasons of Survey by the Wadi Rajib Archaeological Project (2021–2022) 145
*Simon M. Halama*

Chapter 12

Houses Divided: The Stratigraphy of Khafajeh's ED III Residential
Neighbourhoods around the Oval Temple 159
*Amaury Havé*

Chapter 13

The Trade and Economy of the Çine-Tepecik Settlement in Western Anatolia
during the Late Bronze Age 177
*Tolga Kaan Kiyak*

Chapter 14

The 2021 and 2022 Excavation Campaigns of the Peshdar Plain Project in the Lower
Town of the Iron Age Dinka Settlement Complex on the Eastern Frontier of the
Assyrian Empire 191
*Florian Janoscha Kreppner, Jens Rohde, Ellen Coster and Tarik Willis*
## Chapter 15

Communities on the Move. A Preliminary Report on the 2021-22 Archaeological Work of the Ganja Region Kurgan Archaeological Project 203
Nicola Laneri, Bakhtiyar Jalilov, Stefano Valentini, Lola Huseynova, Rachele C. Mammana and Alice Mendola³

## Chapter 16

Beads of Memory: Stone Ornaments from the Levant during the EBA III and EBA IV 221
Maéva Lhériteau

## Chapter 17

The Darband-i Rania Archaeological Project, 2016-2021 235
John MacGinnis

## Chapter 18

The Scythian Antiquities in Iran 249
Sergey Makhortykh

## Chapter 19

A New Ubaid Ceramic Assemblage in the Shahrizor Plain, Iraqi Kurdistan 263
Takehiro Miki and Kazuya Shimogama

## Chapter 20

From Site to Tablet: Multiscalar Approaches to SFM at Nineveh 277
Jacopo Monastero, Cristiano Putzolu and Marco Valeri

## Chapter 21

From Symbols to Practice: Reconsidering Ethnic Identity in the Northern Levant during the IA I 295
Dimitris Papageorgiou

## Chapter 22

The 2021-2022 Spanish-Italian Archaeological Campaigns at Jebel al-Mutawwaq: The Early Bronze Age I Site and the Megalithic Necropolis 307
Andrea Polcaro, Juan Ramon Muniz and Alessandra Caselli
## Chapter 26

# The Eighth Excavation Campaign (2022) in Kunara, Iraqi Kurdistan

Aline Tenu<fnref n="1" />

### Abstract

The article presents the results of the 8th excavation season that took place at Kunara in October 2022. Work continued on the three areas excavated in the previous years in the lower tower (B, C and E) and resumed in Area A, in the upper town. The levels excavated in 2022 are mostly dated to the Period V (2200-2100 BCE) that corresponds to the main period of occupation, but some remains are also dated to the very end of the 3rd millennium BCE (Period IV), and to the beginning of the Iron Age (Period II).

### Introduction

In October 2022, the 8th excavation campaign took place at Kunara, a site in the Zagros foothills, close to the modern city of Suleymaniyeh. Kunara is located on the right bank of the Tanjaro river, a perennial stream belonging to the Tigris basin. It is composed by a upper town to the west, a lower to the east and an ultra-lower town that extended eastwards and on which there has been no excavation to date. Kunara covers a little less than 10ha, but its ancient limits are still unclear towards the south that is still intensely cultivated.

Since the first campaign in 2012, five areas have been opened: one in the upper town, Area A, and four in the lower town (B, C, D and E).<fnref n="2" /> They revealed an occupation sequence from the mid-3rd millennium BCE to medieval times. The main occupation of Kunara (period V) dates to the end of the 3rd millennium, around 2200-2100 BCE. The pottery, seals and sealings, tablets, bronze objects and lithics, as well as the quality of the buildings, the ambitious town planning programme and the richness and diversity of the faunal spectrum reveal that Kunara was then a local if not regional, centre.

In 2022, we mainly continued the exploration of this occupation level in extension, but we also work on the occupation of Kunara in the Iron Age. Excavations took place on the three areas excavated the previous year (B, C and E) and resumed on Area A, under the direction of Christine Kepinski.

<footnote n="1">¹ National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), Laboratoire Archéologies et Sciences de l'Antiquité (UMR 7041 ArScAn), équipe Histoire et Archéologie de l'Orient cunéiforme, Nanterre (aline.tenu@cnrs.fr)</footnote>

<footnote n="2">² The mains results have been presented at each ICAANE since 2014 (Tenu and Kepinski 2016, Tenu 2018, Tenu 2020 and Tenu 2023).</footnote>
## Area A

Excavations on Area A (Fig. 1), the only one located on the upper town, started in 2012 and stopped in 2013 at the end of the second campaign (Kepinski and Tenu 2014: 8–10; Kepinski and Tenu 2016: 150–151; Kepinski et al. 2015: 67–69).

The area was originally intended to be a stratigraphic trench that would allow us to establish a reference chronology for Kunara and the region through pottery and series of radiocarbon dates. This objective could not be achieved because we uncovered a 3.5m high platform surrounded by an enclosure wall, on which two buildings were successively erected. The most recent edifice (building B. 1105) built on top of the platform is a massive construction with some walls reaching 2.8m in thickness (US 12).

In 2012 and 2013, a very small area of building B. 1105 was excavated: about 100m² of a courtyard covered with pebbles (US 30), and a room located to the north (US 70). The aim of the 2022 season was to continue the exploration of the building, especially to the west of room 70. The architectural remains are deeply buried so we only excavate a limited surface, but we found a stairwell (US 1130), a corridor and its floor (US 1133 and US 1135), two new walls (US 1131 and US 1123). The filling of US 1130 is very compact, made of mud bricks., where those of US 1133 is looser and includes fallen mud bricks as well as ash layers above the floor 1135, covered with sherds and traces of hearth. These different fillings reveal that these two spaces probably had different functions.

We also excavated two new portions of walls already known: US 12 that separates courtyard 30 from room 70 and US 66. In 2012 and 2013, we discovered a terracotta pipe (US 23) that ran from courtyard US 30 through wall US 12, room US 70 and wall US 66. This year we found evidence of a vertical drain (US 1125) at the outlet of this pipe. In addition, a drain (US 1124) delimited by a line of stones parallel to wall US 66 also leads to it and allowed rainwater to drain away along the north façade of the edifice. Drainage systems have been uncovered elsewhere in Kunara on Areas B (Tenu in Tenu et al. 2018: 10-12; Tenu in Tenu et al. 2020a: 35), C (Chiti in Tenu et al. 2020a: 44-47) and E (Marchand in Tenu et al. 2018: 6), showing the care that masons and architects took to ensure the circulation of water, whether rainwater or wastewater.

For the moment, the general organisation of the building B. 1105 still escapes us, but the 2022 campaign has nevertheless provided valuable information, both on the plan of the building, and on the construction methods. The campaign confirmed that the architecture of Area A differs from that of the other Areas in its extensive use of mudbricks for the superstructure of the walls. The ceramic study carried out by Cécile Verdellet also confirmed that the building was dated to Period V (Verdellet in Tenu et al. in press).

## Area C

In the lower town, excavations of Area C (Fig. 2), under the supervision of Barbara Chiti since 2018, started in 2012 in the first campaign. They reveal a complex sequence from the mid-3rd millennium to the medieval times. In 2022, two sectors were opened up.

### North-west sector

In the north-west sector, our goal was to continue exploring building B. 862 that delivered in 2019 a sealing (Tenu 2023: 606), but just a few centimetres below the surface, a building (B. 885), oriented north-west/south-east and composed by at least two spaces L. 882 and
L. 883 was found. This level was undoubtedly more recent than the main one (Period V). It yielded a floor (US 883) that has delivered pottery dated to the Iron Age such as carinated bowls with everted rim, cooking pots with beaded rim, or ribbon rim jars (Fig. 3). This is a very valuable indication, because walls showing the same orientation and built according to similar building techniques have already been found during the previous campaigns (Kepinski et al. 2015: 64). But they were so close to the surface that their dating could then only rely upon mixed pottery assemblage. We already knew that Kunara was occupied during the Iron Age (Tenu in Tenu et al. 2018: 64, Tenu in Tenu et al. 2021: 141–142), but thanks to the discoveries made during the last two campaigns (2019 and 2022), it seems very likely that the architectural level 1 attested on both Areas B and C corresponds actually to an Iron Age occupation (Period II).

### North sector

To the north of Area C, the objective was to study the immediate surroundings and north access to building B. 279. There two levels were uncovered. The main one, dated to Period V (i.e. c. 2200-2100 BCE), is, as elsewhere on Area C, covered by a thick layer of destruction. In 2022, two floors (891 and 893) were discovered upon this destruction layer, thanks to sherds dating to the very end of the 3rd millennium (Period IV). Floors 891 and 893 have been recognised over a small surface, and as yet have not been connected to new constructions. The area excavated is too small to determine the condition of the Period V buildings at the time, but the existence of these two floors shows that Kunara was, if not really occupied, at least frequented after the destruction that marked it around 2100.

To the north-west, a new building (B. 1001) has been identified. Its walls are mostly made of schist blocks (a material not attested elsewhere in Area C). Very partially excavated over an area of about 7m², building 1001 consists as-yet of a single room (L. 898), the floor of which was marked by a few pottery sherds, dated to the end of the 3rd millennium but the sample was too small to determine whether the shapes belonged to Period V or Period IV. Building B. 1001 lies just in front of the north-west entrance of B. 279 so we hope future work will help us clarify their stratigraphic relationship.

The 2022 campaign on Area C did not result in the discovery of any spectacular or unexpected objects (as was the case with the tablets in 2015, for example), but it did enable us to determine the sequence of occupation of the area is more complex than the first excavations suggested.

### Area E

To the north of the lower town, under the supervision of Florine Marchand, Area E delivered two buildings: a small house (B. 660) to the east and a public building (B.659) to the west surrounded by pebbled outdoor spaces (Fig. 4). Seven rooms are now known for the public building B. 659, whose eastern facade is excavated over its entire length of 26m. B. 659 was ransacked before being intentionally set on fire. In 2022, work concentrated to the north and to the south of the building.
## Space L, 921

To the north-west, we continued excavations of space L. 921 identified in 2019 (Marchand in Tenu et al. 2021: 152-153). Only a small area of it was excavated in its eastern part. Surprisingly, no wall was found to the north. Did it fall into the slope or was space L. 921 an open area? Given the data available at the present time it is impossible to decide between these two hypotheses. In any case, a threshold (US 931) of about 0.70m wide gave access to another -still unexcavated- room in the building, unlike the neighbouring room L. 911, which did not communicate with any other one (Marchand in Tenu et al. 2021: 151-152; Tenu 2023: 608).

It is difficult to go further, but as the doorway 931 is rather narrow and the wall itself (604-934) is only 1m thick, it is then difficult to imagine that this area could correspond to an entrance to the building, unless one envisages an access of secondary importance, the main doorway remaining to be discovered.

## South sector

To the south we worked in three rooms. In the south-east corner of the building, the room L. 922 measures about 3 x 4m. In its south-west corner, a threshold (US 924), about 1m wide, gives access to another space L. 930. Pottery sherds from large jars covered both rooms as well as the threshold between them. This thick layer of sherds has been completely removed only in L. 922 where appeared, under the sherds, a cobbled floor much decayed. The excavation of L. 930 was postponed to 2023.

Excavation of room L. 915, that started in 2019 (Marchand in Tenu et al. 2021: 152-153), could be completed in 2022. Its floor was carefully covered with terracotta tiles. The tiles were made in two sizes (0.40 x 0.40m and 0.20 x 0.40m), but this year it was possible to observe that large ones had been cut to fit as close as possible to the walls (Fig. 5). The floor has a slight slope towards the south-east corner where a drain system had been incorporated into the outer wall of the building (Marchand in Tenu et al. 2019: 23). There, large terracotta tiles were also laid on edge against the stone footings. The waterproofing of the room was reinforced with bitumen which was used between and above the tiles. In some places, the tiles have been removed, revealing that the floor had been carefully prepared with gravel and beige-grey fine sand (Marchand in Tenu et al. in press). Before the building burnt, it was ransacked and tiles were deliberately piled in the centre of the room.

## Area B

Area B was implemented on the basis of the results of a magnetic survey conducted before the excavations started in 2012. Since then, it has been excavated in every campaign. In 2022 work focused on the south-west part of the Area where stood building B. 715. It belongs to a complex with three other edifices built at the same time at the end of the 3rd millennium (Period V). They were erected according to an orthogonal pattern and were separated by carefully planned and organised circulation spaces. The north-east angle of Building B. 715 composed by walls 157 and 160 has been identified in 2015 (Tenu in Tenu et al. 2016: 123) and its excavation started in 2019 (Tenu in Tenu et al. 2021: 138-140, Tenu 2023: 604-605).
### Rooms L, 742 and L, 755

Only the north-east corner of B. 715 is known to date. Two rooms, L. 742 and L. 755, have been identified here, but only partially excavated. In the north-eastern corner of the building, room L. 742 measures 5.40m by at least 8.30m but its southern limit has not yet been discovered. To the west, a threshold (US 760) in wall 747 clearly indicates the existence of another room L. 755, excavated on a very limited surface: 1.5m by 2.40m.

Both rooms were deliberately filled in to a height of more than 1.50m. The filling is more or less regular and horizontal depending on the location. It seems to have been made less carefully in L. 755 than in L. 742. At the core of this filling, we identified, clearly in L. 742 (US 745-752) and less clearly in L. 755 (US 756), a very compact but very fine hardened earthen floor on which were discovered scattered sherds that mostly belong to sophisticated pots finely decorated.<fnref n="3" /> Sherds of the same vessel were sometimes found to the south and north of Room L. 742, but also in Room L. 755.

### Decorated vessels

Three pots in particular caught our attention. Two are pedestal-vases. Both pedestals were largely hollowed out and therefore fragile, which explains their poor state of preservation. The *vase sur piédestal* 1 is very remarkable. Sherds of it were found in 2019 in L. 742, but they were attributed to two different items: a decorated vase, and a fenestrated object (Verdellet in Tenu *et al.* 2019: 156-157). The discovery of new fragments has enabled Cécile Verdellet to restore its original form. The pedestal is c. 55cm high, with three registers, decorated with geometric pattern, combining crescents and circles. The pot itself has a height of a little less than 40cm. It shows a very complex scene patiently reconstructed by Cécile Verdellet and Florine Marchand. The decoration shows hatching triangles that probably represent vegetation as well as several animals: scorpions, snakes modelled or incised, and numerous birds. Birds probably belong to different species because they are of different sizes and the incisions likely represent different plumages. Some are walking, others are swimming as shown by the birds' legs (Fig. 6). Some seems to fly over the vegetation with spread wings. Others are represented diving towards the water or the ground. One may also notice different species of fish differentiated by their size, their scales or the general shape of their body.

The scene is very dense. There is no strict composition in register and the animals sometimes look to the right, sometimes to the left, while others cut across the scene vertically and many interactions between the animals have been shown such as snakes attacking birds or fish. Nor has the potter composed the motif according to the space in which the different animals move: the sky, the ground and the air are closely intertwined. This gives the impression of a representation of wildlife, perhaps on the banks of the Tanjaro river where Kunara is situated.

At 50cm in height, the *vase sur piédestal* 2 is smaller, with a pedestal composed of five registers with triangular and rectangular perforations measuring 38cm high (Fig. 7).

The two pedestal-vases are very fragmented and very difficult to reconstruct, but their general appearance was probably close to two examples from Tell Taya (Reade 1968: LXXXVI 23-24). J. E. Reade considers these vessels, produced for use in temples (Reade

<footnote n="3">³ For the complete description of the pottery, see the contribution of Cécile Verdellet in *Tenu et al.* in press.</footnote>
1968: 251), were contemporary with Ištar Temple E at Aššur, i.e. between the Ur III and the Isin-Larsa periods (Reade 1968: 255). The shape of the second one is reminiscent of the ‘fruit stands’ from ED II and ED III graves of Khafajeh (Delougaz 1952: pl. 81).

The third pot is at least 1m high, and its opening diameter is 0.54cm. Its decoration was organised in registers. On the rim are modelled snakes both horizontal and vertical, as well as birds, possibly birds of prey, and scorpions. These are represented in a very schematic way, with a focus on the claws.<fnref n="4" /> Underneath there was a frieze with caprinae that may be-long to two species. They all have long horns, but their size, the general shape of their body and the shape of their snout differ.

Below, the reconstruction of the decor is more complex. A new frieze features caprinae with short, straight horns - these could be gazelles or domestic goats- as well as caprinae with long straight ones.

This latter frieze may be part of a bigger scene, about 25cm high (Fig. 8). A chariot with two solid wheels<fnref n="5" /> has been depicted, on which a single charioteer is standing. He appears to be holding a long rein, but the animal or animals from which the chariot was drawn is uncomplete. The hindquarters resemble those of the equids represented on the vase, but we hope that other sherds will enable us to confirm this hypothesis in the future. Behind the chariot was a bovid, unfortunately poorly preserved.

The scene also shows a rider on the back of an equid. Despite our best efforts, it has not yet been possible to determine whether the rider is standing astride or facing forward, as the sherds we have collected are too eroded.<fnref n="6" /> The equid with a long snout and short ears could be a horse. The remains of horses have been found in Kunara on the Areas B (Seigle in Tenu 2020b *et al.*: 169 and 171) Seigle in Tenu *et al.* 2021: 165 and 171) and A (Seigle in Tenu *et al.* 2020b: 169-170).

Behind riders much taller men occupied the entire height of the register. None of them is completely preserved but due to the different pieces, we can reconstruct them: their upper part is represented in front, *en face*, and the lower part in profile to the right.

Whereas in the friezes in the upper part of the vase, all the animals are looking to the right, with the exception of the snakes which cut across the scene vertically, on the main register the composition is less strict as the bovid<fnref n="7" /> is turned to the left. It is not easy to identify with certainty the species that have been represented, but it is noticeable that the potter has differentiated their size, their horns but also the shape of their body. To date, it has not been possible to determine whether all or some of the animals depicted belong to the domestic sphere, or whether they are all wild animals. Interpreting the central register is also difficult. It may represent a hunting scene, perhaps in a ritual context.

Few parallels to this large vase are known because, as Juliette Mas pointed out in 2017, decorated ceramics were not very common in the Bronze Age and when they were decorat-

<footnote n="4">4 On pottery, the snake-scorpion association is not so frequent (Tenu 2023: 607). We may also mention an example from Tell Brak (Oates *et al.* 2001: n°365).</footnote>

<footnote n="5">5 For the two-wheels chariots dated to the end of the 3rd millennium BCE, see Littauer and Crouwel 1979: 38-40 and Hamblin 2006: 142-145.</footnote>

<footnote n="6">6 For the oldest representations of riders, see Recht 2022: 103-109; Drews 2004: 31-43; Littauer and rouwel 1979: 45-46.</footnote>

<footnote n="7">7 Fragments showing other bovids have been found but it has not been possible to determine their original place in the scene.</footnote>
ed they mainly featured geometric motifs. Decorations associating people and animals are extremely rare (Mas 2017).

The best comparanda for this vessel come from Tell Basmusian, where Behnam Abu al-Soof discovered two large sherds decorated with snakes, goats and leopards (Temple 2, level IV) (Abu al-Soof 1970: Pl. XV, IM. 60276) and dated to the Middle Bronze Age. We may also mention two large vats found in the Snake Shrine at Tell Asmar (Delougaz 1952: 121-122) dated to the Larsa Period.<fnref n="8" />

*A deconsecrated cultic space?*

These vases are exceptional pieces, intended for a very specific use, probably ritual. It is therefore not surprising that there are so few parallels, but we can nevertheless highlight the particularly elaborate nature of the decoration on the large, decorated jar and the pedestal vase I.

The floor on which these pots were found is also pretty intriguing because it was absolutely impossible to see it in section but was clearly visible in plan during the excavation. In addition, we discovered a pit measuring approx. 80 x 40cm which presents three or four different phases (US 751a and b, 753 and 758). The pit dug from floor 752 had burnt walls and the sediment inside was very red. It was used several times, but probably only for a very short time.

We also observed that the deliberate filling below and above the floor is homogenous, that may confirm that it does not separate two different occupation phases. Pots were intentionally broken and the pieces were then thrown out and spread around the two rooms. This event may be part of a ceremony, that marked the material and symbolic closure of building B. 715 that probably housed cultic activities. This hypothesis is reinforced by the discovery of a huge number of mouflons and wild goats horncores, as well as deer antlers. Other buildings testify to this practice of ritual closure, of “de-consecration” (Bjorkman 1999: 111-113). At Tell Brak, the closure of the two monumental buildings in Areas FS and SS, level 5, went through several stages, with ritual actions, marked by the deposit of valuables, particularly metal, and fire manipulations (Oates *et al.* 2001: 389-390).

On the basis of the pottery references, we initially dated this assemblage to the Middle Bronze Age (Period III) (Verdellet and Tenu in press, Tenu 2023: 605), but three ¹⁴C dates carried out by the Beta Analytics laboratory and the *Centre de datation par le radiocarbone* de Lyon have led us to revise this proposal. The floor and filling are dated to the last centuries of the Early Bronze Age, to Period V. This discrepancy in dating can be explained by the fact that these highly decorated jars were unique pieces made for very specific activities, disconnected from everyday life. They therefore have few parallels. They are best known from the Middle Bronze Age, which explains why most of the comparanda we have found date from this period.<fnref n="9" />

<footnote n="8">⁸ OM I period in the ARCANE chronology, around 2000 BCE (Quenet 2014: 239, no. 37 and table 1).</footnote>

<footnote n="9">⁹ Snake decorations are not unusual in the late 3rd millennium pottery (Quenet 2014), but other animals are rather rare. Some body sherds with lions' appliqué have been found at Assur, in the Istar temple, in levels G, H, and F (Beuger 2013: taf 54-3, 4, 7.).</footnote>
## Archaeobotanical Analysis

Along with excavations, Carolyne Douché started the archaeobotanical analysis. A total of 46 samples deriving from the four excavation areas were processed by flotation. Preliminary results show that wild taxa constitute a high proportion of the Kunara assemblage (40-60%). They reveal a high taxonomic diversity, which probably reflects the exploitation of various environments. They also indicate an agriculture based on cereals (barley, glume and free-threshing wheat) and pulses (mainly lentil). The economy was completed by fruits either cultivated like grape, or collected in the surrounding environment of the site, such as wild pistachio or almonds.

## Faunal Analysis

In 2022, the faunal study, under the supervision of Michaël Seigle, was only one-week long. The results confirm those of previous years, with a predominance of goats and pigs in the meat consumption and a real diversity of wildlife: the remains of red deer, grey goose and gazelle were identified.

## Conclusion

The eighth excavation campaign at Kunara was short, just over three weeks, but it brought many results. Since the first excavation campaigns, we know that Kunara was a major site at the end of the 3rd millennium around 2200-2100 BCE and discoveries made each year have unambiguously confirmed this initial assessment. What the last campaign indicates, however, is that the history of the site did not end around 2100 BCE when the buildings were ransacked, burnt, destroyed or abandoned. After this destruction, which is particularly visible on the Area E, Kunara continued to be 'frequented' at the very end of the 3rd millennium and occupied during the Early Iron Age.

Period V, which is attested on all the Areas, remains the best documented. The resumption of excavations at Area A confirms the particularly massive nature of the building found there, which was also built using original construction methods. Building B. 715 from Area B is characterised by its exceptional figurative decorated pottery, but also by its history. It probably bears witness to a multi-stage ceremony leading to the desecration of a building that was originally used for religious activities.

## Acknowledgements

I dedicate this work to the memory of my PhD director, Jean-Louis Huot (1939-2023). In 2022, the French Archaeological Project in Peramagron have received support from several public and private institutions we would like to warmly thank: the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, the Gerda Henkel Stiftung, Eveha Archaeological research and investigations, the University of Liege, the team Histoire et Archéologie de l'Orient cunéiforme (CNRS), the Khéops Fund for Archaeology and our partners in Kurdistan. We are especially grateful to the Directorate of Antiquities in Suleymaniyah, and the General Directorate of Antiquities for the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. During the field season, the team in 2022 was composed by Aline Tenu (director, archaeologist, CNRS, UMR 7041), Barbara Chiti (archaeologist, UMR 7041), Carolyne Douché (archaeobotanist, university of Oxford), Christine Kepinski (archaeologist), Florine Marchand (archaeologist, University of Liege), Perween Yawer Minda (archaeologist, representative, Directorate of Antiquities), Michaël
Seigle (archaeozoologist, Eveha), Julien Soichet (topographer, Eveha), Cécile Verdellet (archaeologist and pottery specialist, UMR 7041), Felix Wolter (archaeologist, 3D and drone). Due to administrative constraints, the mission was very short, from 5 to 28 October.

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<figure><img src="image_5.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 1.** Topographic map of Area A (Eveha International – Mission archéologique française du Peramagron)</figcaption></figure>
<figure><img src="image_6.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 2.** Drone view of Area C (Felix Wolter – Mission archéologique française du Peramagron).</figcaption></figure>

DOI: 10.13173/9783447123761.359

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<figure><img src="image_7.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 3.** Iron Age pottery from Area C (Mission archéologique française du Peramagron)</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_8.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 4.** Plan of Area E (Eveha International – Mission archéologique française du Peramagron)</figcaption></figure>

DOI: 10.13173/9783447123761.359

This is an open access file distributed under the terms of the CC BY-SA 4.0 license.

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© by the author
<figure><img src="image_9.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 5.** The tiles are cut against the eastern wall of room L. 915 (Area E) (Mission archéologique française du Peramagron)</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_10.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 6.** Part of the pot of the pedestal vase 1 showing different species of birds, both incised and modelled as well as a long fish attacked by a bird (Mission archéologique française du Peramagron)</figcaption></figure>
<figure><img src="image_11.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 7.** The pedestal of the pedestal vase 2 (Mission archéologique française du Peramagron)</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_12.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 8.** Scene showing a rider, a chariot, a bovid (?) and the lower part of a tall man (Mission archéologique française du Peramagron)</figcaption></figure>

DOI: 10.13173/9783447123761.359

This is an open access file distributed under the terms of the CC BY-SA 4.0 license.

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en

© by the author
DOI: 10.13173/9783447123761.359

This is an open access file distributed under the terms of the CC BY-SA 4.0 license.

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en

© by the author