Shibaniba
Tell Billa is an archaeological site near Bashiqa in Nineveh Province (Iraq). It is the ancient city of Shibaniba, not far from Assur. The name Shibaniba comes from the Middle Assyrian sources. History of archaeological research. After some minor soundings done by Austen Henry Layard around 1850, Tell Billa was excavated between 1930 and 1934 by a team from the University of Pennsylvania and the American Schools of Oriental Research. The excavation was led by Ephraim Avigdor Speiser with Charles Bache. The work was complicated by the fact that the mound was divided up among 18 owners including a  Jacobite church. At the same time, these scholars explored the related nearby ancient site of Tepe Gawra, which is located about northeast of Billa. Tell Billa and its environment. The site consists of a large mound and covers around . Occupation history. There is some evidence of occupation as far back as the Uruk period, including some Hurrian presence in the middle second millennium. The majority of excavated material, however, is from the Middle Assyrian and Neo-Assyrian times, including glyptic and epigraphic material. 91 Middle Assyrian tablets (ca. 1400-1000 BC) are attested from Tell Billa/Shibaniba. The name "Shibaniba