Martin Gruber and Michael Roaf Alternative interpretations of the early Mesopotamian building plan on RTC 145 (original) (raw)
Related papers
Alternative interpretations of the early Mesopotamian building plan on RTC 145
M. Gruber - M. Roaf, Alternative interpretations of the early Mesopotamian building plan on RTC 145, RA 110, 2016, 35-52 , 2016
RTC 145, a tablet from Tello in southern Iraq dating to the third millennium BC, bears a building plan in which the names and the dimensions of the rooms were written. The drawing and the dimensions are not in agreement: this article discusses the nature of the building shown on the tablet and suggests possible ways to resolve the inconsistency between the building plan and the measurements of the rooms recorded on it.
The Plano-convex building (PCB) of Kish is a very significant complex from the 3rd millennium in Mesopotamia. This construction was partially exposed and the evidence was sketchily recorded and published by the Anglo-American expedition. Notwithstanding the value of subsequent studies, much work remains to be done to understand the stratigraphy, chronology and function of the building. Thus, the aim of this paper is to understand the architectural and chronological sequence of area P and to reconstruct activities and the use of space in the Plano-convex building. New data have been obtained analyzing the unpublished documentation and materials kept in the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford and the Field Museum in Chicago. Thanks to the new data a stratigraphical sequence ranging from the late Early Dynastic to the early Akkadian period has been recognized. Furthermore different activities such as beer brewing, textile and oil production as well as a shell working atelier, are discernible within the PCB. Those were managed through a multi-step economic system confirmed by the presence of specific finds. Finally, architectural analysis provides hints for suggesting that the PCB might have housed administration of political power by élite or even royal families.
Geometry, a measurement unit and rectangular architecture at Early Neolithic Jerf el-Ahmar, Syria
Paléorient, 2020
Architectural formal analysis of Structure EA53 and Structure EA30 dated to the first half of the 11 th millennium cal. BP at the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A site of Jerf el-Ahmar (Syria) led to the identification of geometric regularities, implying, inter alia, the use of a measurement unit. This new insight into ancient architecture suggests a top-down process in which spatial notions and notions of architectural planning (such as concepts of the architectural floor plan and distance measuring) played a crucial role in the appearance of the earliest rectangular architecture recorded in the Levant and worldwide. Most importantly, the use of the discerned architectural planning techniques illustrates the reflective attitude and awareness that characterised the latest hunter-gatherers of the region. The carefully planned architecture that left no room for improvisation attests to a mind-set aimed at maximising one's control of its own environment. Résumé. L'analyse formelle architecturale des bâtiments EA30 et EA53 du site de Jerf el-Ahmar (Syrie) au Néolithique précéramique (vers 11600-10600 cal. BP) a permis d'identifier des régularités géométriques, impliquant notamment l'utilisation d'une unité de mesure. Ces caractéristiques nouvelles pour une architecture si ancienne suggèrent un processus dans lequel les notions d'espace et de planification architecturale (telles que les concepts de plan architectural et de mesure des distances) ont joué un rôle crucial dans l'apparition de la plus ancienne architecture rectangulaire attestée au Levant et dans le monde. De plus, l'utilisation de techniques de planification architecturale illustre le haut degré de réflexion cognitive dont pouvaient faire preuve les derniers chasseurs-cueilleurs de la région. Cette architecture soigneusement planifiée, qui ne laisse aucune place à l'improvisation, témoigne d'un état d'esprit visant à maximiser la maîtrise de l'homme sur son environnement.
Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy , 2020
The interest in the built environment of Early Bronze Age Eastern Arabia is rapidly increasing with the emergence of new field data from the excavation of settlement sites. However, little is known about architectural planning and spatial patterns in the region. This article explores non-monumental architecture throughout the 3rd millennium BCE. A series of methods (Pythagorean triples, modular grids, interception of circles) were used to assess the geometric and metric characteristics of buildings, and to stress regularities and variation in the long term. The results of these analyses suggest the application of specific techniques in layout and construction works: the intersection of circles during the Hafit occupations, and more sophisticated techniques, combining the properties of circles and triangles, during the Umm an-Nar period. The diachronic approach allowed by the temporal span of the occupations highlights a firm progression of architectural paradigms and building crafts throughout the EBA. The evidence hints at the existence of specialized work force since the dawn of the Bronze Age, and reveals a sharp increase of technicity and standardization towards the end of the 3rd millennium.
During salvage excavations in the Hamrin basin (Central Iraq), archaeologists unexpectedly found a number of monumental circular constructions dating to the early third millennium BC. The most prevalent theory about the function of these sites is that they were defensive outposts where the famous Lower Diyala cities had implanted some garrisons either to control the trade routes or to protect themselves from eastern invasions. However, a closer inspection of all the available information shows that there is not much evidence to support the hypotheses that have been put forward so far. An analysis of the sites, the material culture and the wider archaeological and historical context, indicates first of all that there was an indigenous development in the Trans-Tigridian Corridor instead of colonization by an external polity, and secondly that the impressive structures were storage facilities. It is then argued further that the settlements in the Hamrin region were part of a dispersed, mobile society that made full use of the available resources by exploiting the agricultural potential of the valleys in the otherwise hilly landscape. This study can therefore contribute to recent discussions and case studies dealing with the theoretical aspects of sedentary-nomadic relations, and the socio-cultural potential of dispersed societies.