Late 3rd millennium BC painted pottery from Tell Arbid
Late 3rd millennium BC painted pottery from Tell Arbid

Author(s): Łukasz Rutkowski
Subject(s): Archaeology, Ancient World
Published by: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego
Keywords: Tell Arbid; post-Akkadian; Early Jezirah 5; EB/MB transition; pre‑Khabur painted pottery; late 3rd millennium BC bichrome painted vessels
Summary/Abstract: Painted pottery (Middle Bronze Khabur Ware) is widely believedto have reappeared in northern Mesopotamia at the advent of the2nd millennium BC after a long break during the second half of the3rd millennium BC when plain (i.e., unpainted) pottery prevailed.Strictly speaking, “Jezirah Bichrome Stands”, attested as late asthe EJZ 3a period (around 2500 BC), can be regarded as the last,well known mid-3rd millennium BC manifestation of the paintedpottery. Revival of painted decoration on pottery is observed duringthe OJZ 1 period (around 2000 BC), with the appearance of the“Early Khabur Ware”. However, painted ornaments on pottery inlate 3rd millennium BC contexts occur fairly occasionally. LateAkkadian and post-Akkadian layers at Tell Arbid yielded a handfulof painted potsherds that evidently preceded the Khabur Ware style.Three different types of ornaments can be distinguished among them:(1) dots and bands in black bitumen paint; (2) simple monochromaticbands in red or brown paint; (3) bichrome cross-hatched patterns onfine-ware vessels, a very rare and unusual design, which finds onlya few parallels in the region. By presenting these examples, this paperis an attempt to contribute to a debate on the Early Bronze–MiddleBronze Age transition in Upper Mesopotamia.

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