Iraq
name: label: Collection Creator
content: Watson, Patty Jo, 1932-
setName: label: See more items in
content: Patty Jo Watson papers
label: See more items in
content: Patty Jo Watson papers / Series 1: Research / 1.2: The Near East
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1954-1989
label: Date
content: undated
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: National Anthropological Archives
objectType: label: Type
content: Archival materials
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The Oriental Institute's Iraq-Jarmo Project (1948-1959) was headed by Robert J. Braidwood and focused on excavations at Jarmo, with soundings taken at other locations, including Banahilk and M'lefaat, and was brought to a close as a result of the political unrest in Iraq following the 14 July Revolution in 1958. The main goal of the project was to discover evidence of prehistoric food production. Watson headed the soundings at Banahilk in her first field season (she had previously only worked in the field during her field school at the University of Arizona) in 1954-1955. The goal of the soundings at Banahilk was to define a Halafian assemblage; Watson's notes and illustrations of the pottery excavated at the site are included in the collection. Although portions of the findings from the excavation had been published previously, the full findings were published in Linda and Robert Braidwood, Bruce Hose, Charles A. Reed, and Patty Jo Watson,  eds., Prehistoric Archaeology Along the Zagros Flanks (Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, 1983). This section includes correspondence and drafts related to this publication as well as notes on pottery excavated at Banahilk and other correspondence. Of particular interest are the letters written by Watson to her then fiancé Red Watson during her first field season at Banahilk, which include detailed observations on the people of the region as well as the work being conducted.