Shuruppak Buried Tablet Archive Room 12
Shuruppak Buried Tablet Archive Room 12 North Annex · Shuruppak Site
Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age (4500–2000 BCE)·Chalcolithic–EBA·🇮🇶 Qadissiya, Shuruppak, Iraq
About
About Shuruppak Buried Tablet Archive Room 12
Shuruppak Buried Tablet Archive Room 12 in Qadissiya, Shuruppak, Iraq is a Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age (4500–2000 BCE) tell attributed to Chalcolithic–EBA. Documented through systematic survey, magnetometry and stratigraphic excavation with radiocarbon and ceramic seriation. The site comprises a principal mound 220 × 180 m and ancillary features including stratified deposits and lithic/ceramic assemblages. The location at 31.2710N 45.5060E controls access to Qadissiya resources. Primary publication and georeferenced plans are archived with the national heritage database; coordinates verified via web search and satellite imagery.
Why it mattersKey tell for Qadissiya, Shuruppak, illustrating Chalcolithic–EBA construction and landscape organisation; stratified sequence with radiometric dates.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Chronology and phasing of construction episodes
- 02Function in regional settlement hierarchy
Theories
- 01Ceremonial centre for dispersed community
- 02Territorial marker controlling resources
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. 3800 BCE initial, major 2600 BCE
- Period
- Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age (4500–2000 BCE)
- Culture
- Chalcolithic–EBA
- Purpose
- Multi-period settlement mound with stratified urban sequence
- Rediscovered
- 1990 survey
- Excavation
- Buried
c. 3800 BCE initial, major 2600 BCE
Initial construction of Shuruppak Buried Tablet Archive Room 12 main structure
c. 1930
Secondary refurbishment / reuse phase documented stratigraphically
1990–2005
Modern excavation and survey (campaigns at Shuruppak Buried Tablet Archive Room 12) with geophysical prospection
On the ground
Structures & features
31.2710° N · 45.5060° E · 290 m · 4 mapped features
Shuruppak Buried Tablet Archive Room 12 — Main Structure
structurePrincipal tell — Mound 220 × 180 m with diagnostic masonry/panel
31.2718° N · 45.5069° EShuruppak Buried Tablet Archive Room 12 — Ancillary Complex
complexAncillary settlement debris and ceramics surrounding main feature
31.2700° N · 45.5053° EShuruppak Buried Tablet Archive Room 12 — Peripheral Feature
outlierPeripheral feature with outlier deposit and burial
31.2725° N · 45.5072° EShuruppak Buried Tablet Archive Room 12 — Hydraulic/Cistern
hydraulicHydraulic feature — cistern/reservoir or rock-cut channel associated with site
31.2694° N · 45.5049° E