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©The Archaeological Settlements of Turkey - TAY Project
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Gürcütepe |
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For site maps and drawings please click on the picture...  |
For photographs please click on the photo...  |
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Type:
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Mound |
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Altitude:
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530 m |
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Region:
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Southeastern Anatolia |
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Province:
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Sanliurfa |
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District:
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Merkez |
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Village:
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Gürcütepe |
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Investigation Method:
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Excavation |
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Period:
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Aceramic |
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| Location: This site lies 4 km southeast of the city of Sanliurfa; near the village of Gürcütepe. It is possible to get to the site via the road from the city center to the village of Gürcütepe. |
| Geography and Environment: The four adjacent mounds known as Gürcütepe lie in the northern part of the Harran Plain. The excavators have labeled these four low-lying mounds (not represented on a 1:100;000 map) as Gürcütepe I; Gürcütepe II; III and IV. The mounds are aligned along Sirrin Stream which originates from a spring in the Sanliurfa city center. The mound of Gürcütepe II is 8 meters high and has a 200 m diameter. The dimensions of the other mounds have not been provided. |
| History: |
| Research and Excavation: The Gürcütepe mounds were discovered by the members of the Turkish-American Kazane excavation team. Excavations at Gürcütepe II; one of the four aligned mounds oriented east-west; began in 1995 under the direction of H.Hauptmann of the Istanbul German Archaeology Institute; A. Misir; the director of the Sanliurfa Museum and the University of Heidelberg; Institute of Prehistory. These excavations at Gürcütepe II continued in 1995 and 1996 [Schmidt 1996:3]. A systematic surface survey was conducted on all four mounds. |
| Stratigraphy: Of the Gürcütepe mounds; Neolithic pottery was found only on Gürcütepe I. All the rest are Aceramic Neolithic sites [Schmidt 1995:9; Schmidt-Beile Bohn 1996:10]. The first two years of excavation determined that the Aceramic Neolithic Layers at Gürcütepe II are at least 4 m thick. Virgin soil could not be reached in the currently continuing excavations. Similarly; the stratigraphy of the mound has not been determined. From the top; so far; there appear to be two levels/occupational phases. |
| Small Finds: Architecture: Three large rectangular structures were found in the upper levels of Gürcütepe II. Two of them are stone lined or have stone foundations; the upper parts of the buildings have been made with pisé while there is no stone foundation in the third. Stone stele probably used as supports were found in a large building with walls over 140 cm in thickness. This structure is not a habitation area but was probably built for some special purpose. In terms of chipped stone the building is contemporaneous with the Large Roomed Buildings Sub-phase of Çayönü. It has been determined that there is another underlying occupational phase with burned structures also built using pisé technique. Pottery: No ceramics were found at the site except for those at Gürcütepe I. Chipped Stone: All of the mounds were rich in flint and obsidian chipped stone finds. Perhaps the most important examples of the flint and obsidian are the flint Byblos points and the obsidian Çayönü tools [Schmidt 1995:9; Schmidt-Beile 1996:10; Gerber 1996:43]. Ground Stone: The ground stone tools found at Gürcütepe II include stone bowls and limestone figurines. |
| Remains: |
| Interpretation and Dating: It is certain that all of the mounds have had Aceramic Neolithic habitation. Gürcütepe I is the only mound that yielded a small amount of ceramics; indicating that there was a Ceramic Neolithic habitation of this site as well. Excavations at Gürcütepe II yielded some structures with special; maybe religious; functions. This site is the first Neolithic site to have been found in the Harran Plain so far. The fact that the depositional fill is thick suggests that there are earlier Aceramic Neolithic levels beneath. Future excavations conducted on the other Gürcütepe mounds and Göbeklitepe will help in understanding the relationship between these two sites. |
