Tell Zeidan
Encyclopedia
Tell Zeidan is an archaeological site of the Ubaid culture in northern Syria
, from about 5500 to 4000 BC. The dig consists of three large mounds on the east bank of the Balikh River, slightly north of its confluence with the Euphrates River, and is located about 5 km (3.1 mi) east of the modern Syrian city of ar-Raqqah (or Raqqa). This site is included within the historical region known as Mesopotamia
and the Tigris-Euphrates river system
, often called the Cradle of Civilization
.
Muhammad Sarhan, director of the Raqqa Museum, and Gil Stein
, director of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, are co-directors of the project.
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, from about 5500 to 4000 BC. The dig consists of three large mounds on the east bank of the Balikh River, slightly north of its confluence with the Euphrates River, and is located about 5 km (3.1 mi) east of the modern Syrian city of ar-Raqqah (or Raqqa). This site is included within the historical region known as Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
and the Tigris-Euphrates river system
Tigris-Euphrates river system
The Tigris–Euphrates river system is part of the palearctic Tigris-Euphrates alluvial salt marsh ecoregion, in the flooded grasslands and savannas biome, located in West Asia.-Geography:...
, often called the Cradle of Civilization
Cradle of Civilization
The cradle of civilization is a term referring to any of the possible locations for the emergence of civilization.It is usually applied to the Ancient Near Eastern Chalcolithic , especially in the Fertile Crescent , but also extended to sites in Armenia, and the Persian Plateau, besides other Asian...
.
Archaeology
An international archaeological project, the Joint Syrian-American Archaeological Research Project at Tell Zeidan, is surveying and excavating the Tell Zeidan site. The project started in 2008, two seasons are completed, and the third season is scheduled to start in July 2010.Muhammad Sarhan, director of the Raqqa Museum, and Gil Stein
Gil Stein (archaeologist)
Gil Stein is an American archaeologist and current director of the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago.Stein received a B.A. from Yale University in 1978 and a Ph.D. in 1988 from the University of Pennsylvania.-Publications:...
, director of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, are co-directors of the project.
External links
- The dig page at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago
- The approximate location at Wikimapia Press Release 10-054
- Video from the dig, produced by the National Science foundation, narrated by Gil Stein of the Oriental Institute
- The Land Before the Wheel - Gil Stein discusses the mound of Tell Zeidan Alternative respository at YouTube of the same NSF video. Better video and streaming quality.