The Tell Abu Duwari Archaeological Project

伊丽莎白·斯通博士和她的同事们将继续对Tell Abu Duwari进行考古挖掘和测绘，这是一个可以追溯到公元前第二个千年的美索不达米亚古老遗址。与那个时期的大多数主要中心不同，这个分布在56公顷的伊拉克主要遗址只被占领了很短的一段时间。阿布杜瓦里显然在一场大火中被摧毁，完全被遗弃。由于文化材料和建筑遗迹只被一层薄薄的沙子覆盖，因此大规模水平挖掘是可行的。在两个野外工作季节，该小组将完成他们的现场勘测，地面刮取大片区域以获得住宅布局的信息，并在一个大型公共结构物中进行密集挖掘。泥板将被破译，并对陶瓷、花卉和动物遗骸进行分析。尽管在近东进行了许多研究，但对城市组织几乎一无所知。这是因为挖掘主要集中在层次分明的寺庙上，而重建城市功能所需的那种水平挖掘还没有进行。Tell Abu Duwari是从大量潜在的SSI中故意挑选出来的，因为它提供了恢复此类信息的可能性。这项研究应该能洞察大部分权力集中的程度。斯通博士认为，它可能已经传播到了许多宗教和民间机构。这项研究还将提供关于居民之间地位分化程度以及社区在社会组织和控制中的作用的信息。这项研究很重要，因为它将增加我们对复杂社会(如我们自己的社会)最初是如何出现和维持的理解。因为考古学涉及的是较长的时间段，所以考古学在研究这种长期的过程方面具有独特的地位。与来自其他遗址的信息一起，这次发掘将有助于我们对这一现象的理解。

Dr. Elizabeth Stone and her colleagues will continue their archaeological excavation and mapping of Tell Abu Duwari, an ancient Mesopotamian site which dates to the second millennium B.C. Unlike most major centers of the time period, this major Iraqi site, scattered over 56 hectares, was occupied for only a short period of time. Abu Duwari was apparently destroyed in a conflagration and totally abandoned. Because cultural materials and architectural remains are covered by only a thin layer of sand, large scale horizontal excavation is feasible. During two field seasons of work, the team will complete their survey of the site, surface scrape a large area to gain information on residential layout, and conduct intensive excavation in one large public structure. Clay tablets will be deciphered and analyses conducted on ceramic, floral, and faunal remains. Although much research has been conducted in the Near east, almost nothing is known about city organization. This is because excavation has concentrated on deeply stratified temple mounts, and the kind of horizontal excavation necessary to reconstruct how cities function has not been undertaken. Tell Abu Duwari was purposely selected from among a large number of potential sties because it offered the possibility to recover such information. This research should provide insight into the degree to which much authority was centralized. Dr. Stone suggests that it may have been spread across a number of religious and civil institutions. The study will also yield information on the degree of status differentiation among inhabitants and the role of neighborhoods in social organization and control. This research is important because it will increase our understanding of how complex societies, such as our own, first emerge and are maintained. Because it deals with extended periods of time, archaeology is in a unique position to investigate such long term processes. Together with information from other sites, this excavation will contribute to our understanding of this phenomenon.