The Rise of Urbanized Landscapes in Mesopotamia: The QADIS Integrated Survey Results and the Interpretation of Multi-Layered Historical Landscapes

Abstract

This paper draws on the preliminary results of the QADIS survey project, conducted by the University of Bologna and the Iraqi State Board of Antiquities and Heritage since 2016 in the Qadisiyah province. The project addresses phenomena related to anthropogenic transformation of landscapes in a region that was at the core of the early Mesopotamian urbanization process. Building upon the seminal work conducted by R. McC. Adams in the 1960 s and 1970 s, we implemented an integrated documentation technique to reconstruct at regional levels the changes in the dense network of human settlements and artificial water infrastructures characterizing the evolution of this archaeological landscape over time. The aim of the article is that of providing a finer-grained regional picture of 4th and 3rd millennium BC urban developments which can be useful for better conceptualizing the scale and pace of early Mesopotamian urbanism.

Rediscovering the Heartland of Cities

“…More than twenty boreholes have been dug in the QADIS survey area. Thanks to this methodology we were able to confirm the presence of new channels and harbors at several sites including Bismaya/ Adab (QD049), Drehem/Puzrish-Dagan (QD015), and Tell Dlehim/Tummal (QD038; Marchetti et al 2017;Marchetti, Benati et al 2019).…”

“…In particular, part of the team carried out random surface collections for determining the chronology and extension of occupation of a site on the basis of the presence of ancient finds on the surface. Thanks to this methodology, 120 out of 200 hypothesized new archaeological sites unidentified as such by Adams, and first singled out by us and 2018 (Marchetti, Benati et al 2019). Our survey area is located at the core of Adams' Heartland of Cities and comprises 415 sites dating from later prehistory to the Ottoman period, and it includes some of the most important cities of the Mesopotamian floodplain, including Adab, Puzrish-Dagan, Kisurra, Karkara, and Tummal.…”

“…Then, in order to confirm the aerial data, a second team carried out intensive materials collection at these sites. Intensive surface collection was carried out by dividing each of the eleven sites into a grid of sectors of about 50 × 50 m (in the case of the Tell Jidr megasite the grid was 100 × 100 m), also trying to follow the shape of the neighborhoods whenever possible (Marchetti, Benati et al 2019;Stone and Zimansky 2004). By isolating the surface materials from each sector, we were able to hypothesize the type of activities carried out there in antiquity.…”

“…In particular, three water systems can be reconstructed for this phase: two branches of the Tigris in the northern part of the survey area and the Euphrates at the southern border. The majority of sites' size are limited to few hectares, with only four sites in the range between 10 and 40 ha, thus suggesting a low level of hierarchization (Marchetti, Benati et al 2019).…”

Environmental Influences on the Settlements Patterns of Communities in the Marshes of Iraq

“…After that, in the 4th millennium BC, the weather became colder and more arid, and the Euphrates-Tigris delta extended again towards the south [3]. This led to the formation of different settlement patterns [4]. Like many other regions of the world, these early settlements were established initially as summer camps or for fishing [5].…”