Tell Beydar (ancient Nabada) seals and sealings of the 3rd millennium BC

Start - End 
1994 - 2014 (completed)
Other institution(s) 
Near Eastern Department KU Leuven
Research Focus 

Tabgroup

Abstract

The Kranzhügel, Tell Beydar (ancient Nabada) is located in the Upper Syrian Jezireh. Its main occupation dates back to the Early Dynastic/Early Jezireh IIIb period during which time Beydar was subordinate to Tell Brak (ancient Nagar). 

Tell Beydar has produced more than 1500 sealings, representing 214 different designs, many of the finest quality. Eighty-five percent of these sealings can be ascribed to the final phase of the Early Jezireh IIIb Official Upper City Complex (dated around 2350 BC). This glyptic material is the largest corpus of Early Bronze Age sealings from Northern Mesopotamia attributed to an official household. The study of the different designs, the functional aspects and the contextual analyses of the sealings give an impression of the official administration in an Early Bronze Age palatial complex. 

 

Bibliography

Bretschneider J. (2015) Seals, tablets and bricks: fine-tuning of early dynastic chronology in Syria. Altertumskunde des Vorderen Orients 15. p.33-49 https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/5846254

 

Bretschneider J. & Jans G. (2014) Vertrauen ist gut, Kontrolle ist besser: 4500 Jahre alte Palastbürokratie entschlüsselt. ANTIKE WELT. 4. p.76-83 https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/5845688

 

Jans G. & Bretschneider J. (2011)  Seals and sealings of Tell Beydar/Nabada https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/5845672

People

Supervisor(s)

External(s)

Greta Jans

KU Leuven
Publications