Excavations at Norşuntepe were conducted between 1968 and 1974 by the German Archaeological Institute archaeologists led by Harald Hauptmann, the Heidelberg professor of Prehistory and Early History.
Location: The site is located 26 km southeast of Elazig; within the geographical triangle of the villages of Alisam (Harmanpinari); Yukari Aginsi (Elmapinar); and Asagi Aginsi (Kavakalti). It is 3 km south of the village of Alisam. The mound has become an island in the reservoir of Keban Dam after 1975 and now is vanishing slowly. The name is local and the location code is O 54 / 8.
Geography and Environment: The conical; 150x130 m mound with a height of 35 m used to be one of the larger mounds of Altinova Region. It used to cover an area of 500x300 m together with its slopes. The region is a watery and fertile plain; framed by Mastar and Bingöl Mountains and irrigated by Heringet Stream and Karasu River. Today; this plain is mostly inundated; as well. Destruction Details: The mound is flooded by dam reservoir [TAYEx 15.8.2003].
See also: Norsuntepe. Kleinfunde I. Die lithische Industrie. 1996. READ/PDF
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Norsuntepe: Kleinfunde II. By KLAUS SCHMIDT. Archaeologica Euphratica, vol. 2. Mainz: VERLAG PHILIPP VON ZABERN, 2002. Pp. xi + 206, plates. [euro]128.
Large-scale salvage projects in the Keban area (modern eastern Turkey) carried out between 1968 and 1974 have contributed significantly to our knowledge of prehistoric activities in eastern and southeastern Anatolia. The preliminary reports published in the Middle East Technical University's Keban dam project series still represent the foundation for further research activities in this region.
One of the most important sites investigated is the multi-period mound called Norsuntepe in the Elazig province of modern Turkey, excavated by the German Archaeological Institute under the directorship of Harald Hauptmann. The site's extensive stratigraphy, covering periods from the Late Chalcolithic (layers 25-30) to the Iron Ages (layers 1-2) promised unprecedented insight into cultural changes and developments in a previously little-known region of ancient Anatolia. The Bronze Age occupation especially remains of great interest for the archaeological community desperately trying to link the Metal Age chronologies of western, central, and southern Anatolia with that of the Euphrates region of Asia Minor. This task will not be accomplished so long as the final publication of Norsuntepe's stratigraphy and architecture is not available.
Nevertheless, scholars are grateful that the first two final volumes of the Norsuntepe mission have now been issued: the first on lithic industries (K. Schmidt, Norsuntepe I: Die lithische Industrie [Mainz: Verlag Philipp von Zabern, 1996]) and the second, reviewed here, by the same author on ground stone, bone, and antler artifacts as well as clay, metal, and glass items from all periods documented at Norsuntepe. Since the first monograph of this Archaeologica Euphratica series was already of remarkable quality, one could expect the same high standard for the publication of the small finds, and indeed this expectation has been fulfilled. The primary author is one of the leading experts on the Near Eastern Neolithic, and he was joined by several other contributors: Istvan Baranyi on Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age slags, and Ernst Pernicka and Sigrid Schmitt-Strecker on metalworking techniques.
Nevertheless, the main section of this monograph is devoted to the description and analysis of the huge bulk of small finds from all occupation horizons, roughly divided into functional types: weapons and tools (A. Waffen und Gerate), fashion and jewelry (B. Tracht und Schmuck), figural objects (C. Figurliche Objekte), and finally stamps and seals (D. Stempel und Siegel). Each of these chapters has additional subdivisions, taking technical, material, and typological issues into account. The outcome is, for the most part, a very detailed and challenging typological inquiry that discusses all small finds from the Late Chalcolithic to the Iron Age levels.
Since the Neolithic is Klaus Schmidt's field, it is not surprising that the chapters dealing with Norsuntepe's earlier materials and stone artifacts like ground stone axes, mace heads, and drill cores are the most detailed. Equal weight is then given to the discussion of antler tools and a large variety of clay items, from molds and crucibles to miniature cones and wheels and oddities like clay brushes (Tonbursten), whose function is still a puzzle. Detailed discussions of metalworking tools like molds represent an important contribution, for studies dealing with the achaeological aspect of metalworking technologies are still limited (cf. A. Muller-Karpe, Altanatolisches Metallhandwerk [Neumunster, 1994]).
Of special interest in a wider geographical context is an artifact category known as "bread stamps" (p. 104; pl. 84:G), known not only from Anatolia but from neighboring regions like the southern Caucasus and (south)eastern Europe (see map on p. 106). The purpose of these artifacts can be debated, although they were most probably used to label baked goods such as breads and cakes. They seem closely related to "Brotlaibidole" (bread idols) known from as far west as central Europe (see M. M. Rind, "Weltenburg zwischen Arbon und Veterov: Neues zu ratselhaften Tonobjekten der Fruhbronzezeit," in Vortrage des 17. Niederbayerischen Archaologentages, ed. K. Schmotz [Rahden, 1999], 71-85). Publication of the Norsuntepe examples with extensive bibliographical references broadens our knowledge of these items significantly.
Other artifacts like stamp and cylinder seals receive less attention here, but enough to provide the information necessary for further research.
Wherever appropriate, sub-chapters are provided with distribution maps and lists of find spots for comparable items. Most user-friendly are the listings in the appendix, which provide extensive bibliographies. The illustrations are of the quality one might expect for publications from von Zabern, although the drawing style within a single category of finds is inconsistent and detracts a bit from the good overall impression (cf. the molds in pl. 41 and pl. 42).
The long-expected final report series of the Norsuntepe excavations is now enriched by this densely packed volume, providing us with a detailed view of one side of Norsuntepe's occupation history. The major features still eagerly awaited--the ceramic material and an architectural account--can be expected to follow the same high standard, and one hopes for their timely appearance.
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