Uninterrupted excavations will be carried out with the “Heritage to the Future Project” in Boncuklu Tarla, which sheds light on human history with its 12 thousand years of history, in the Ilısu District of Mardin’s Dargeçit district. Mardin beaded field
MARDİN (AA) – HALİL İBRAHİM SİNCAR – In the fifth and last part of AA’s file news regarding the discovery of data dating back to earlier periods than expected in archaeological excavations in Anatolia, the studies in Boncuklu Tarla were discussed.
In Mardin, which has hosted 25 civilizations throughout history, including Sumerian, Akkadian, Babylonian, Hittite, Assyrian, Urartu, Roman, Abbasid, Seljuk and Ottoman, “Ilısu Dam and HEPP Project is aimed at Documenting and Saving the Cultural Assets Remaining in the Interaction Area” Archaeological excavations, which were started in 2012 by the Mardin Museum Directorate in Boncuklu Tarla within the scope of “Studies”, continue intermittently.
Mardin Artuklu University, Faculty of Letters, Department of Archeology, Assoc. Dr. Under the chairmanship of Ergül Kodaş, research assistants at the Department of Anthropology, Dr. Çağdaş Erdem, Dr. Eşref Erbil and Bahattin İpek, archaeologist Stephanie Emra, archaeobotany Hureyla Balcı, archaeologist Assoc. Dr. The excavations carried out by Yunus Çiftçi, Mehmet Şan, Onur Dinç, Charlotte Labedan Kodas, Esra Acar, Mekiye Ekin, Kazım Özkan and Rüstem Cin are being carried out meticulously.
In Boncuklu Tarla, which has an area of approximately 2.5 hectares, many finds belonging to the period from the Late Epipaleolithic period to the Neolithic Age were unearthed.
To date, during the excavations, skeletons of more than 200 individuals and more than 200 thousand beads have been unearthed in houses, private and public buildings and graves.
Excavations in Boncuklu Field, which is included in the “Heritage to the Future Project” of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, will continue uninterrupted as long as climatic conditions allow, with the support of the Ministry and the Governorship.
Provincial Culture and Tourism Director Ayhan Gök told the AA correspondent that the Ministry will provide serious financial support for the project and that the excavations will continue for 12 months as long as the climatic conditions allow.
Stating that very important archaeological findings have been found in the excavations so far, Gök stated that among them, the beads that gave his name are exhibited in the museum.
Gök said, “The excavations here were seasonal. Prolonging the excavations when climatic conditions allow will enable us to be more efficient and reach more finds. In this sense, it is very valuable for us to include Boncuklu Tarla in the Heritage to the Future Project.” he said.
– As excavations continue, there is a possibility that it will go back to an earlier period.
Head of Excavation Assoc. Dr. Ergül Kodaş also reminded that Boncuklu Tarla was discovered during the surface surveys carried out within the scope of the Ilısu Dam and HEPP Project in 2008.
Kodaş stated that Boncuklu Tarla has been granted the status of Presidential excavations as of 2021 and is now included in the Heritage to the Future Project.
– As the excavations continued, older finds were discovered
Kodaş stated that according to the surface research, it is estimated that the area can be dated to the Pre-Pottery Neolithic period between 10 thousand and 8 thousand BC, and said:
“The excavations revealed that this goes back about 1000 years, and that Boncuklu Tarla was inhabited not only in the Neolithic Age, but also in the Late Epipaleolithic period just before it. We had the chance to work in a large area in Boncuklu Tarla. The reason for this is that this is the 8th season of the excavation, and the second reason is that finds are found very close to the surface. Many public buildings, also known as temples, over 200 skeletons and over 200 thousand beads were discovered. “In addition, many finds specific to the period were unearthed, such as stone walking sticks, stone vessels and bones.”
Stating that there is a possibility of going back to an earlier period as the excavations continue, Kodaş pointed out that they have not yet been able to reach the bedrock where Boncuklu Tarla was first inhabited.
Stating that there is another layer dating back to the 11th millennium BC, which is the layer they have been able to date so far, and limited information has been obtained about it, Kodaş said, “No dating has been made yet. Perhaps we will be able to obtain information that can go back to earlier periods. “We can also go back to the 12th millennium BC.” he said.
Reminding that studies related to the same period were carried out in many places in the region, Kodaş said that these were pieces of a puzzle.
Kodaş pointed out that Boncuklu Tarla is one of the settlements, especially in the Southeastern Anatolia Region, where settled life, agriculture was started, and cultural or technical changes took place, and concluded his words as follows:
“It has its own unique characteristics. Due to these features, it provides a lot of new information that we could not understand or detect before. For example, the first use of copper dates back to 8,500 BC. It shows that copper is used more than we thought. It shows that animal motifs, such as the bull-shaped one we see in the Şanlıurfa region, were used in the Boncuklu Tarla as portable beads, rather than on objects, namely stone steles and banquettes. This makes us think that new information that we have not thought of before can be obtained. Boncuklu Tarla, along with other settlements, provides new information about this period. It helps us change history together about this period. Boncuklu Tarla is one of the important settlements. “With the work we have done with our team with the support of the Ministry and the Governorship, the area where Boncuklu Tarla is located will shed light on history.”
