TASMASOR LATE IRON AGE BURIALS

TASMASOR

Editör/Edited byS. Yücel Şenyurt

ISBN: 978-605-62041-3-5

© 2011 Bilgin YayınlarıSelanik 2 Caddesi No. 68/406640 Kızılay/ANKARA

Tel.0.312. 419 85 67

Kapak Dizaynı/Cover DesignTasmasor’dan Buluntular/Tasmasor Finds (Atakan Akçay)

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İÇİNDEKİLERSUNUŞ..................................................................................................................................... vii-viii

GİRİŞ ............................................................................................................................................1-4

BÖLÜM ITASMASOR KURTARMA KAZILARI S. Yücel Şenyurt .....................................................................................................................7-36 BÖLÜM IITASMASOR GEÇ DEMİR ÇAĞI MİMARİSİ S. Yücel Şenyurt ...................................................................................................................39-64

BÖLÜM III TASMASOR GEÇ DEMİR ÇAĞI MEZARLARI Atakan Akçay .......................................................................................................................67-90

BÖLÜM IVTASMASOR GEÇ DEMİR ÇAĞI KÜÇÜK BULUNTULARI Yalçın Kamış.......................................................................................................................93-114

BÖLÜM VTASMASOR GEÇ DEMİR ÇAĞI ÇANAK ÇÖMLEK BULUNTULARI S. Yücel Şenyurt, Yalçın Kamış, Atakan Akçay ..................................................................117-258

BÖLÜM VITASMASOR ORTAÇAĞ YERLEŞMESİ VE BULUNTULARI V. Macit Tekinalp, Yunus Ekim .........................................................................................261-326

BÖLÜM VIITASMASOR YAKINÇAĞ NEKROPOLÜ VE İSKELETLERİNİN ANTROPOLOJİK AÇIDAN DEĞERLENDİRİLMESİ Y. Selim Erdal ...................................................................................................................329-458

BÖLÜM VIIITASMASOR GEÇ DEMİR ÇAĞI İSKELETLERİNİN ANTROPOLOJİK AÇIDAN DEĞERLENDİRİLMESİ Y. Selim Erdal ...................................................................................................................461-494

EKTASMASOR KAZISINDA ELE GEÇEN SERAMİK ÖRNEKLERİNİN X-IŞINI FLORESANS (XRF) TEKNİĞİ İLE İNCELENMESİ Pervin Arıkan, Burcu Ender, S. Yücel Şenyurt, Reşat Kasap .............................................. 497-504

CONTENTSPREFACE ................................................................................................................................ vii-viii

INTRODUCTION .........................................................................................................................1-4

PART ITASMASOR SALVAGE EXCAVATIONS S. Yücel Şenyurt .....................................................................................................................7-36 PART IITASMASOR LATE IRON AGE ARCHITECTURE S. Yücel Şenyurt ...................................................................................................................39-64

PART IIITASMASOR LATE IRON AGE BURIALS Atakan Akçay .......................................................................................................................67-90

PART IVTASMASOR LATE IRON AGE SMALL FINDS Yalçın Kamış.......................................................................................................................93-114

PART VTASMASOR LATE IRON AGE POTTERY S. Yücel Şenyurt, Yalçın Kamış, Atakan Akçay ..................................................................117-258

PART VITASMASOR MEDIEVAL SETTLEMENT AND ITS FINDING V. Macit Tekinalp, Yunus Ekim .........................................................................................261-326

PART VIIANTHROPOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF HUMAN SKELETAL REMAINS FROM POST-MEDIEVAL CEMETERY OF TASMASOR Y. Selim Erdal ...................................................................................................................329-458

PART VIIIANTHROPOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF LATE IRON AGE SKELETONS FROM TASMASOR Y. Selim Erdal ...................................................................................................................461-494

APPENDIX ANALYSIS OF CERAMIC SAMPLES FROM TASMASOR WITH X-RAY FLUORESCENCE (XRF) TECHNIQUE Pervin Arıkan, Burcu Ender, S. Yücel Şenyurt, Reşat Kasap ................................................497-504

BÖLÜM III

PART III

67TASMASOR

---

1

2

-

(Tablo I) -

3

-

(Resim 1A) --

-

--

-

* -

-

-

Part III: Tasmasor Late Iron Age Burials

Atakan Akçay*

In the salvage excavations conducted

in Tasmasor1 seven kilometres northeast

of Erzurum under the framework of the

Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Crude Oil Pipeline

Archaeological Salvage Excavations Project a

total of seventeen Late Iron Age burials2 were

unearthed. These burials considered in this

study comprise twelve simple inhumations

and five pithos burials (Table 1). Fourteen

of the burials were uncovered in the Central

Excavation Area, two in the Eastern Excavation

Area and one in the Western Excavation Area.3

Some burials in the Central Excavation

Area (M-2, M-41, and M-49) were found to

be heavily damaged by the construction of

the Late Iron Age buildings. Likewise, human

skeletal remains (Figure 1A) discarded in the

garbage pits in the vicinity of these buildings

are evidence of this destruction. Also in Trench

B-36, two skulls in close proximity to the south

eastern corner of Building A and scattered

bones within the garbage pits are worth noting.

In Trench B-37, human and animal bones were

found mixed within the garbage pits just east of

Building B.4 The construction of the modern

cemetery on the Tasmasor hill heavily damaged

the Late Iron Age architecture as well as the

burials from earlier periods.5

*

68 TASMASOR

Resim 1: Figure 1:

Tablo 1: Table 1:

Burial NoKonteksContext

Mezar TürüGrave Type

Gömü TürüBurial Type

Gömü YönüOrientation

M-1 B-36 Basit ToprakSimple Inhumation Hocker South-North


M-8 B-35 Basit ToprakSimple Inhumation Hocker Southeast-Northwest

M-44 B-37 Basit ToprakSimple Inhumation Hocker -

M-49 B-37 Basit ToprakSimple Inhumation Hocker East-West

M-66 A-40 Basit ToprakSimple Inhumation Hocker East-West

M-80 A-39 KüpPithos Hocker East-West

M-100 A-35 KüpPithos Hocker East-West

M-108 B/C-35 Basit ToprakSimple Inhumation Hocker South-North

M-120 C-37 KüpPithos Hocker East-West


M-131 C-37 KüpPithos Hocker Southeast-Northwest


M-169 C-36 Basit ToprakSimple Inhumation Hocker East-West

M-207 B-27 KüpPithos Hocker East-West


M-230 B-21 Basit ToprakSimple Inhumation Hocker Southeast-Northwest

69TASMASOR

Plan

1:

Plan

1:

70 TASMASOR

Simple Inhumations

A total of twelve simple hocker inhumations

comprise the most common group of Late Iron

Age burials. Of these, ten were explored in the

Central Excavation Area and only one each was

found in the Eastern and Western Excavation

Areas.

Three burials (M-2, M-41, and M-

49) under the Late Iron Age buildings on

the Tasmasor hill comprising the Central

Excavation Area are stratigraphically earlier.

Regarding burial customs, they have also Late

Iron Age characteristics.

Burial M-1

In the Central Excavation Area (Trench

B-36), this burial with a pit of 100 x 70

centimetres cut into white tuffs and its well

preserved skeleton is one of the best examples of

simple inhumations. There was no architectural

evidence except for natural tuffs surrounding

the burial pit (Figure 2A). The head and body

(Figure 2A-B) face the east and was laid in the

hocker position in a north-south direction.

The skeleton was determined to have been a

young adult female whose body was laid on

her right side with her head at the southern

corner of the burial. This burial was very close

to the surface so it was partly disturbed by

Post-Medieval graves. A carinated wide rimcarinated wide rimwide rim

bowl (Figure 2C) placed in front of the corpse

and a necklace6 (Figure 2D) consisting of frit

beads were found in the burial. Parallels of the

large, short-necked carinated bowl7 in Burial

M-1 very close to Building A, one of the best

preserved Late Iron Age building in Tasmasor,

were found in the Median layers8 in Baba Jan.

Basit Toprak Mezarlar

--

-

M-1

-

-

(Resim 2A) -

(Resim 2A-B)-

-

(Resim 2C)(Resim

2D)

-

8

71TASMASOR

Resim 2: Figure 2:

M-2

--

(Resim 3) ---

-

-

--

Burial M-2

The burial that was unearthed under

the eastern wall of Building A in the Central

Excavation Area (Trench B-36) was at a depth

of 15-20 centimetres. Most of the heavily

damaged skeleton (Figure 3) was found under

the foundations of a later wall added along

the northeast to southwest direction of the

Late Iron Age building. The burial pit that

was actually cut into the soil in the bedrock

is covered by second phase wall. The skeleton,

with only its skull and some of the front arm

bones preserved, was laid in the hocker position

in north south orientation as its head and body

face east. Since there were no burial finds next

to this skeleton belonging to a old female, it

could not be dated. In contrast, ceramic sherds

from the vicinity of the burial are believed to

have belonged to the Late Iron Age, though

they have affinities with Middle Iron Age

forms.

72 TASMASOR

Resim 4: Figure 4:

M-8

(Resim 4) ---

(Resim4A-B)

--

10 Resim 4C)

Burial M-8

In Trench B-35, the burial (Figure 4)

unearthed in the area of concentrated tuff

rocks to the south of Building A is one of the

well-preserved burials. Large stones (Figure

4A-B) related to the burial’s architecture were

found around the skeleton that was placed in

an oval-shaped pit of 80 x 55 centimetres. Like

in burials M-1 and M-2, the skeleton was laid

in the hocker position in northwest southeast

direction and laid on its left side, so that it faced and laid on its left side, so that it faced

east. One glass bead9 and one carnelian bead10

(Figure 4C) were found from the burial that

belonged to a six to seven year-old child.

Resim 3: Figure 3:

73TASMASOR

Resim 5: Figure 5:

M-44

-

-

-11

M-49-

(Resim 5)

-

-

-

M-66

--

-(Re-

sim 6A-B) -

11

Burial M-44

In Trench B-37, the skeleton whose skull

was under the east wall of Building A was heavily

damaged and therefore the rest of the skeleton

was not available for determining the burial

custom. Anthropological analyses revealed that

bone pieces of this skeleton belonged to a 28-

32 year-old male.11

Burial M-49

Only the upper part of the skeleton (Figure

5) found in Trench B-37, belonging to a old

adult male was preserved. Well-preserved skull

and arm bones indicate that the body was laid

on his right side in the hocker position in an

approximate east to west direction as he faced

south. The presence of large and flat stone

blocks unearthed from the oval-shaped burial

pit that was opened into bedrock consisting of

soft tuff and limestone indicated that the burial

was surrounded by stones. No finds were seen

in the vicinity of the burial.

Burial M-66

Burial M-66 in Trench A-40 was unearthed

from a depth of 45 centimetres and just below

the floor pavement of the medieval building

in the Eastern Excavation Area. The simple

inhumation burial with an oval burial pit

(Figure 6A-B) of 130 x 65 centimetres cut into

a calcareous area was in east-west direction.

The skeleton of a young adult female was laid

11

74 TASMASOR

Resim 7: Figure 7:

-

12 (Resim 6C)

M-108

(Resim 7)

--

--

on her right side in the hocker position facing

north. Except for four blue frit beads12 (Figure

6C), there were no other finds from this burial,

which had no architectural arrangement.

Burial M-108

The burial (Figure 7) in Trenches B/C-

35 was found at a depth of 20 centimetres.

Some of the leg and arm bones were seriously

damaged. A skeleton belonging to a 28-30 year

old female was placed in the burial of 140 x

45 centimetres in a semi-hocker position in

a north to south direction. Ordinary stones

found around the skeleton without any finds

may indicate that the burial was surrounded

with stones.

Resim 6: Figure 6:

75TASMASOR

Resim 8: Figure 8:

M-123

123--

(Resim 8) ---

M-144

(Resim9)

-

-

Burial M-123

Burial M-123 which was one of the poorly

preserved burials was that of a 15-year old child.

The skeleton (Figure 8) that was unearthed in

Trench A-35 was in the hocker position in an

east to west direction on his left side, and its rib

bones were extremely damaged. In the burial

which had no architectural arrangement there

were no finds.

Burial M-144

The oval-shaped burial in a depth of

fifteen centimetres in Trench A-33 is 140 x 60

centimetres and in an east approximate east-west

direction. The skeleton, which faces the north,

was poorly preserved. The deceased (Figure 9)

was a young adult female. Burial M-144 was

partially damaged by the construction of the

Post-Medieval graves that were uncovered in that were uncovered in

lower levels. Medium sized stones around the

skeleton are thought to have belonged to the

burial’s architecture. There were no finds.

76 TASMASOR

Resim 10: Figure 10:

M-169

(Resim 10A-C) --

-

(Resim 10E) 13

Burial M-169

Burial M-169 that was found in Trench

C-36 belonged to an adult female. The stones

seen around the burial and above the skeleton

indicate that the grave (Figure 10A-C) was

surrounded with coarse stones. The skeleton

was laid in an east to west direction and was

found at a depth of 35 centimetres. The skeleton

faced south in the hocker position and was laid

on its right side. Six stone and frit beads13 with

various colours and forms (Figure 10E) were

discovered in the burial.

Resim 9: Figure 9:

77TASMASOR


M-229

(Resim 11)

--

-

M-230

-(Resim 12) -

-

-

-

--

-

Burial M-229

The burial (Figure 11) that was found

in Trench B-27 was poorly preserved since itpoorly preserved since it preserved since it

was very close to the surface. The east-facing

skeleton that belongs to a 28-30 year-old male

was laid in the hocker position in a pit of 110

x 100 centimetres cut into the earth in a north

to south direction. Except for a miniature bowl

found just behind the skull, no other finds were

recovered.

Burial M-230

Burial M-230 in Trench B-21 that was the

only grave unearthed in the Western Excavation

Area was located 60 metres west of the Late

Iron Age burials on the Tasmasor hill (Central

Excavation Area). The burial (Figure 12) in a

northwest to southeast direction is 140 x 80

centimetres in dimensions. The westward-facing

skeleton was poorly preserved and belonged to

an adult female in hocker position. Burial M-

230 is quite remote from the other Late Iron

Age burials and partly destroyed the eastern

wall of Building D in the Western Excavation

Area, and therefore, it probably belonged to a

later period. Since there were no finds, Burial

M-230 could not be dated. Except for its

hocker-type burial, there was also no data to

indicate that this burial was contemporary to

the other Late Iron Age burials on the Tasmasor

hill mound.

78 TASMASOR


Küp Mezarlar

M-80

--

(Resim 13)

---

-(Resim

13A)(Resim

13B)

1415

Pithos Burials

A total of five pithos burials (M-80, M-100,

M-120, M-131 and M-207) were unearthed

in Tasmasor as four were from the Central

Excavation Area and one was from the Eastern

Excavation Area.

Burial M-80

This well preserved pithos burial (Figure 13)

was unearthed in Trench A-39 northeast of the

medieval building, just next to its surrounding

wall, in the Eastern Excavation Area. The

skeleton in the hocker position covered with

a vertically broken half-pithos. The skeleton

under the pithos with an eastward facing rim

was positioned in an east-west orientation. The

base section of the pithos was set above the head

and shoulders of the deceased. There is a hole

in the base of the pithos. A bronze bracelet14

(Figure 13A) was found from the right arm

of the badly preserved skeleton belonging to

an old female. In addition, two glass beads15

(Figure 13B) were recovered from the burial.

1415

79TASMASOR


M-100-

-(Resim 14)

--

-

Burial M-100

The pithos burial in Trench A-35 in the

Central Excavation Area was placed in a

shallow pit of 70 x 45 centimetres. The east-

west oriented pithos (Figure 14), sealed by a

large flat stone and surrounded with some large

stones as well. As in Burial M-80, there is a hole

in the bottom of this pithos. The bones of the

skeleton piled at the bottom of the pithos were

determined to have belonged to a 4-5 years-old

child. There were no finds.


80 TASMASOR


M-120

(Resim 15) -

(Resim 15C)(Resim 15D) -

M-131-

(Resim 16A)--

(Resim 16B) --

Burial M-120

Burial M-120 (Figure 15) unearthed in

Trench C-37 is one of the best preserved of

the Tasmasor pithos burials. The east to west

oriented pithos with an east-facing rim was

placed in a pit of 50 centimetres in depth and

0.70 x 1.25 m dimensions. The pithos (Figure

15C) was sealed by a spouted bowl with handle

(Figure 15D). Except for poorly preserved

skeleton fragments of a 3-4 month-old infant,

there were no finds in this well preserved

pithos.

Burial M-131

The pithos burial (Figure 16A) unearthed

in the Trench C-37 in the Central Excavation

Area was placed in a pit of 110 x 80 centimetres

cut into the tuff rocks. Burial M-131 has features

similar to Burial M-80. The burial was formed

by covering (Figure 16B) the skeleton with the

pithos fragments. The southeast to northwest

81TASMASOR

-

(Re-sim 16C)

M-207-

(Resim 17)

--

oriented skeleton facing the southeast was laid

in a semi-hocker position on its right side and

it belonged to an adult female. Most of the

pithos fragments covering the burial could not

be preserved. Except for several stone, frit, glass

and faience beads16 (Figure 16C), there were

no other finds.

Burial M-207The pithos burial (Figure 17) discovered

in Trench B-37 was placed in an east to west

direction like the other pithos burials. Except

for an extremely badly preserved skull and

a few arm bones, probably belonging to a 6-

month old infant, no other finds were obtained

from the pithos whose rim was oriented to the

east.



82 TASMASOR

-

-

--

-

--

-

--

(Resim 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 14)

---

-

Conclusion

Since the excavation activities had to be

conducted in the 28-metre corridor, it was not

possible to determine the total extension of the

Late Iron Age cemetery. However, although

the destruction brought about by the building

construction of later periods and modern

burials, the location of unearthed burials hints

that the cemetery area most likely extended in

a north to south direction.

Among seventeen Late Iron Age burials

unearthed in Tasmasor, twelve were simple

inhumation burials. Of these burials with

no consistency in orientation, five were east

to west, four were north to south and two

were southeast to northwest. The head of the

skeleton was generally facing east in the east

to west-oriented burials, while in the north

to south-oriented burials, they faced south.

Although some of the simple inhumations

are of semi-hocker type, the burial custom is

mostly hocker type. In the Tasmasor Late Iron

Age burials, they are completely composed of

single burials. No multiple burials were found.

Due to heavy damage by the construction of

the Post Medieval graves, the architectural

charactheristics could not be fully investigated.

However, ordinary stones (Figures 4, 5, 7, 9,

10, 14) around the burials may indicate that

some burials were surrounded with stones.

The burials were generally cut into the proper

earthy areas on the volcanic tuffs.

In the Karaz, Pulur, Güzelova, Sos and

Bulamaç excavations, important results were

obtained pertaining to the cultures of the

region during the forth to second millennium

BC. However, there is no sufficient data on

the Middle and Late Iron Age burial customs

in the region. The most important data on the

83TASMASOR

---

18

20

21 -

----

22

23

-

--

-

---

--

1718

Iron Age burial customs of eastern Anatolia

was mostly obtained from the archaeological

excavations and surveys conducted in the

Van region which was the heart of the

Urartian Kingdom. A number of burials and

finds excavated from the Van Ernis-Ünseli

Necropolis,17 Karagündüz Necropolis,18

Dilkaya Necropolis,19 Yoncatepe Necropolis 20

and Van Kalesi Höyüğü21 shed light especially

on the burial customs of the Early Iron Age.

Parallels of the Tasmasor simple

inhumations were unearthed in the Erzurum-

Tetikom Höyük22 and Erzurum-Güllüdere23

excavations conducted within the scope of

the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Crude Oil Pipeline

Archaeological Salvage Excavations Project.

Six simple inhumation burials found at the

Tetikom Höyük on the western borders of the

Pasinler Plain, five kilometres east of Tasmasor,

have similar characteristics regarding their

architectural arrangements, orientations, burial

types and finds. The Tetikom burials, included

in the group of stone surrounded burials,

considering their well preserved architectural

arrangements in comparison to the Tasmasor

burials, are dated to the late Middle Iron Age

– early Late Iron Age.24

Eight simple inhumations found at

Güllüdere in the Aşkale Plain 65 kilometres

away from Tasmasor show similar characteristics

to the Tasmasor burials. Finds obtained from

these hocker type burials which have no

architectural arrangement are dated to the late

1718

84 TASMASOR

-

-

-

--

-

28

-

-

-

-

Middle Iron Age – early Late Iron Age.25

Regarding the burial technique and the

finds, two simple inhumation burials26 from

the 4c level of the Van-Karagündüz, which

was explored during archaeological work

conducted in the Van region and dated to the

transition period between the downfall of the

Urartian state and the beginning of Late Iron

Age, are other parallels to the Tasmasor simple

inhumation burials. Simple inhumation

burials of infants in the hocker position from

the Van Kalesi Höyüğü were also found in

the partially preserved foundation walls of

the Urartian period.27 The burials from Van-

Karagündüz Höyüğü are also seen above the

building remains of the Urartian period. These

burials are dated to a period shortly after the

downfall of the Urartian state. Bronze rings,

two small bowls and a double handled cup

found in burial no. 140 in particular are dated

to the post-Urartian period, Late Iron Age.28

In Tasmasor, in contrast to the simple

inhumation burials, five pithos burials were in

the same orientation. All these pithoi in which

mostly ovoid, simple rim large pots were used

were in an east to west direction and their rim

opened to the east. The pithoi were generally

sealed with a bowl or large flat stones. Although

most were placed in small and shallow pits

cut into the soil, Pithos burial M-120 was

placed in a deeper pit. Complete pithoi were

used in three of the pithos burials and two of

were formed by covering the body with pithos

fragments. It is thought that pithos or large

bowls, all of which resemble daily use vessels,

85TASMASOR

-

--

-

-

-

-30

31 -32

33 --

-

-

-

-

-

were not produced specifically for burials.

Some rare pithos burials of the Urartian period

are known to have been used previously for

storage.29 Four pithoi belonging to infant

or child burials unearthed at Tasmasor may

indicate that pot/bowl burials were preferred

for infants and children. The fact that the

burial in burial M-131 belonging to an adult

female was also covered with broken pot pieces

may indicate that an adult person could not fit

in a large vessel.

In eastern Anatolia, there are two pithos

burial types: 1) placing the body in the hocker

position and 2) placing cremated bones into

a vessel. In addition to inhumation burials

that are accepted as the predominant burial

custom of the Early Iron Age,30 cremation31

was also known from the Van-Karagündüz

excavations.32 It is known that cremations

during the Urartian period were also used along

side inhumations.33 During this period, it was

very common that the ashes of the corpse were

placed in an urn rather than in a pithos.34 The

absence of cremation at Tasmasor may indicate

that these burials are different from the burials

and burial customs of Urartian period.

Another notable feature of the Tasmasor

pithos burials is the holes of 0.5 centimetres

in the pithos bases. These holes may have had

similar usage as those on the cremation urns of

the Urartian period.35 The practise of putting

two to six holes on the urns discovered from

the necropolises in the Van region is related to

86 TASMASOR

--

-

38

-

-

-

-

-

-

--

-

-

41

the “spirit of dead.”36 This type of perforated

burial pots that were also common in the pre-

Urartian societies of Anatolia is accepted as an

Anatolian tradition which continued during

the Urartian period.37 A perforated pithos was

found in the cemetery explored during surveys

at Sos Höyük (Area B).38 These perforated

pithos burials, with parallels found in the

Erzurum-Güllüdere and Tetikom excavations,

may indicate that this type of pithos burial

practice, which is peculiar to Urartian period

and associated with the spirit of dead, was also

continued into the Late Iron Age in Erzurum

and its environs.

Parallels of pithos burials in the

surrounding areas that comprise the second

type of Tasmasor Late Iron Age burials were

unearthed in the Erzurum-Tetikom39 and

Erzurum-Güllüdere40 excavations. Like those

in Tasmasor, three pot burials uncovered

at Tetikom Höyük which is dated to the

transition phase of Middle Iron Age – Late

Iron Age were also used for infant burials.

Two pithos burials found at Güllüdere can

also be considered in the same group. With

respect to burial application, particularly

Güllüdere pithos burial M-40 is very similar

to Tasmasor Burials M-80 and M-131. The

practice of covering the body with broken

pot pieces correlates well with the Late Iron

Age pot burial at Van-Karagündüz41 building

4c and pot burial no. 214 at the Van Kalesi

Höyüğü.42

A limited number of finds were obtained

from the Tasmasor Late Iron Age burials. The

-

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--

(Resim 16C: 14)(Resim 4C:

1)

-

(M-8,M-131, M-169) -

-

(Resim 13A)

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45

4748

51

bowl found in Burial M-1 and the miniature

bowl from Burial M-229 belongs to finds that

can mostly be related to banquet practices.

The most common group of finds consists

of the beads in different forms and sizes from

frit, glass and faience. The fact that all of the

burials from which the beads were found

belonged to adult females indicates that these

finds were also of daily use. The faience eye-

bead (Figure 16C: 14) from Burial M-131,

from which many of the beads came, and the

glass eye-bead (Figure 4C: 1) from Burial M-8

are different from the other beads in respect to

the characteristics of the period. Similar eye-

beads to those of Tasmasor were found at sites

such as Deve Höyük,43 Kamid El-Loz,44 Nush-

i Jan,45 Ghalekuti,46 Al Mina,47 İmikuşağı48

and Tetikom.49 It was agreed that eye-beads

commonly used in burials were prevalent from

the eighth century BC onwards50 and became

more widespread during the second half of the

first millennium BC.51 It has been accepted

that the carnelian beads in the group of stone

beads from Burials M-8, M-131, and M-169

are especially common in Iron Age burials.52

Parallels of the simple and undecorated

bracelet (Figure 13A) from Pithos Burial M-

80, as the only metal find from the Late Iron

Age burials at Tasmasor, were found from

Achaemenid period burials at Deve Höyük.53

Fourteen of the Late Iron Age burials

at Tasmasor were unearthed in the Central

Excavation Area where A, B, C buildings

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45

4748

51

88 TASMASOR

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--

(Resim 1) -

-

--

---

-

54

were found. One was found in the Western

Excavation Area where Building D was found

and two were found in the Eastern Excavation

Area where the medieval building was found.

The burials in the Central Excavation Area were

heavily damaged by the construction of the

Late Iron Age buildings and modern burials.

It was determined that skeleton fragments

that were disturbed by the foundations of the

buildings were dumped into the garbage pits

(Figure 1). This situation and the ceramic

sherds of different phases of the Late Iron

Age from the buildings may indicate that the

Late Iron Age at Tasmasor was of at least two

phases. It is unclear whether the additional

units observed in Building A represent these

two phases. Some common features such as

most of the other simple inhumation burials

(Burials M-1, M-3, M-7, M-8, M-108, M-

123, M-169) concentrated around Buildings

A and B are in a north to south direction and

the skeletons were laid on their right sides and

face the east may indicate the presence of a

Late Iron Age cemetery at Tasmasor. Isolated

Burial M-230 in the southern wall of Building

D in the Western Excavation Area should

belong to a later phase of Late Iron Age.

It has been shown that the location of the

Late Iron Age burials unearthed at Tasmasor

were very close to the settlement area. This

situation seen at Tasmasor as well as at the

Güllüdere and Tetikom settlements may imply

that this regress54 in burial customs which is

proposed to have appeared after the second

half of the seventh century BC was also valid

in Erzurum and its environs.

54

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Kaynaklar / Bibliography

Abbot 1842 K. E. Abbot, “Notes of a Tour in Armenia in 1837”, Journal of the Royal Geographical Society in London 12: 207-220.

Belli and Konyar 2000

Belli and Konyar 2003ve Nekropolleri / Early Iron Age Fortresses and Necropolises in Eastern Anatolia,

Curtis 1984 J. Curtis, Nush-i Jan III: The Small Finds,

Çevik 2000 , Ankara.

1992 1, Ankara: 403-422.

Derin 1993 Ege

Derin 1994 Anatolian Iron Ages 3, Ankara: 49-62.

Goff 1985I”, Iran 23: 1-20.

Haerinck 1989Archaeologia Iranica et Orientalis.

. Gent : 455-474.

Hewsen 2001 R. H. Hewsen,

Moorey 1980, B.A.R.

90 TASMASOR

Poppa 1978Funde, Bonn.

Sagona et al. 1995Anatolian Studies 45: 193-218.

Sevin 1995 , Ankara

Sevin 2005Arkeoloji ve Sanat 120: 45-50.

Türkiye Arkeolojisi

Sevin et al. 1999 63: 847-867.

Sözer 1970 Atatürk

10-14.

Tarhan and Sevin 1993 1, Ankara: 407-431.

Tarhan and Sevin 1994

Woolley 1938 The Journal of

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