Girnavaz Höyük
Girnavaz Höyük · Girnavaz
Late Bronze to Iron Age (1600–600 BCE)·Mitanni → Assyrian·🇹🇷 Mardin Province, Nusaybin Plain, Turkey
About
About Girnavaz Höyük
Girnavaz Höyük in Mardin Province, Nusaybin Plain, Turkey is a Late Bronze to Iron Age (1600–600 BCE) tell of Mitanni → Assyrian tradition. Provincial palace controlling the Tur Abdin piedmont. 1600 BCE, the site forms a stratified mound/karst tell 400×300 m, 18 m high, mitanni–neo-assyrian palace. Excavations since the mid-20th c. expose mudbrick palace with basalt orthostats, glazed tile, sunken courtyard architecture with diagnostic ceramics, lithics and administrative finds.
Archaeobotany and radiocarbon anchor the sequence, informing regional Mitanni → Assyrian networks across the Mardin Province. Threats include road construction, military activity, erosion; research continues on Mitanni → Assyrian chronology.
Why it mattersType-site for Mitanni → Assyrian Late Bronze to Iron Age (1600–600 BCE) in Mardin Province, Nusaybin Plain; key for chronology, technology and interaction.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Chronology of Mitanni → Assyrian levels?
- 02Function of extramural cemetery?
Theories
- 01Demic diffusion vs local adoption
- 02Ritual aggregation centre
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.1600 BCE
- Period
- Late Bronze to Iron Age (1600–600 BCE)
- Culture
- Mitanni → Assyrian
- Builders
- Assyrian
- Purpose
- Provincial palace controlling the Tur Abdin piedmont
- Excavation
- Excavation ongoing
c.1600 BCE
Initial construction / first occupation
c.1200 BCE
Major expansion / fortification phase
20th c.
Systematic excavation begins
On the ground
Structures & features
37.0800° N · 40.7200° E · 480 m · 3 mapped features
Girnavaz Höyük — Central Mound
tellCentral mound with stratified architecture Levels I–IV
37.0804° N · 40.7205° EGirnavaz Höyük — Lower Town Workshop
workshopWorkshop/midden with pottery, slag or lithics
37.0794° N · 40.7194° EGirnavaz Höyük — Cemetery/Gate
cemeteryExtramural cemetery or gate area
37.0802° N · 40.7192° E