Neolithic till 1999

Light in a dark era

The prehistoric research at Tell Sabi Abyad focusses on the Late Neolithic (ca. 6800 to 5300 BC), a period which has for a long time remained more or less outside the archaeologists' field of interest. Archaeologists were more interested in the two major 'revolutions' in the Near East: the introduction of agriculture in the 9th millennium BC and the establishment of the first cities and states in the late 4th and 3rd millennium BC.

But many of the achievements of later periods turn out to have had their roots in the Late Neolithic, the period between the two 'revolutions'. At present Tell Sabi Abyad is one of the very few Late Neolithic settlements in the Near East that are being excavated extensively. These excavations provide a unique opportunity for acquiring a picture of this dark, obscure era.

In the case of Tell Sabi Abyad, we distinguish between two phases:

(1)   an early phase, dated between 6800 and 6200 BC

(2)   a late phase, dated between 6200 and 5800 BC.

The research presented in these pages primarily concerns the late phase. Between 1986 and 1999 large-scale excavations were carried out in the southeastern area of Tell Sabi Abyad, resulting in a long sequence of occupation layers from the period between 6200 and 5800 BC. The early phase has been investigated over a very extensive area in the seasons of excavation after 1999; see for details yearly excavation.

The economy shows more diversity and specialization. Part of the community seems to be concentrating on nomadic husbandry. In this period we find the first evidence for administrative activity; by means of stamp seals goods are sealed against unauthorized interference.

For the first time pottery is decorated. The style of the decoration shows that, by the end of the 7th  millennium, the inhabitants of Tell Sabi Abyad are becoming part of a new culture that is present all over the North-Syrian steppe: the Halaf culture. Tell Sabi Abyad enables us to keep close track of the development of Halaf culture.

Spectacular is the 1991 find of an occupational layer that was destroyed by fire around 6000 BC. The unique find-circumstances of this 'Burnt Village' allow us to reconstruct the spatial organization and the material culture of this Neolithic settlement in remarkable detail. Each year we have been excavating more of this Burnt Village; by now we have uncovered a large surface area.

Some centuries after the destruction of the Burnt Village there is a large central building at Tell Sabi Abyad, with a peculiar exterior wall with niches. This building is situated next to a central large and empty space, maybe a 'plaza'.

Our field survey shows us that at that time Tell Sabi Abyad, covering a surface area of about 4 hectares, was one of the larger villages in the region. It is likely that at Tell Sabi Abyad those large, communal festivities and rituals took place that went with the part of a central settlement. Are the dancing human figures, depicted on a pottery jar, perhaps participating in such a festival or ritual?

Around 5800 BC the mound was abandoned, after a thousand years of continuous occupation. The inhabitants left for a new settlement, a few hundred metres north of Tell Sabi Abyad. The ancient hill remained deserted for thousands of years, until the arrival of the Assyrians in the late 13th century BC.