The 1988 Excavations at Tell Sabi Abyad, a Later Neolithic Village in Northern Syria

The site of Tell Sabi Abyad in the upper Balikh valley of northern Syria is one of the focal points of excavation of a regionally oriented research project, aimed at clarifying the chronology, settlement organization, and ecology of later Neolithic society in the region. So far the emphasis of fieldwork has been on the Halaf period, i.e., the later sixth and early fifth millennium B. C. The second season of excavation (1988) at Tell Sabi Abyad, one of the largest Halaf settlements in the region, provided insight into the origins of Halaf, well supported by a series of 12 radiocarbon dates. The absence of a stratigraphic break points toward a continuous and uninterrupted sequence of occupation, with Halaf gradually emerging out of an earlier, locally founded Neolithic tradition. A major innovation was the introduction of finely textured and busily painted ceramics around 5200 B. C., some of which display clear Samarran stylistic traits. The excavations have yielded a detailed picture of Halaf settlement layout in its earliest days. Over 800 m2 have been investigated in broad horizontal exposures, showing evidence of a loose aggregation of multiroomed (and possibly multistoried) rectilinear buildings, surrounded by subsidiary annexes and circular structures. The role of a huge stone retaining wall remains enigmatic; most likely this wall supported a large terrace, the function of which is still unknown.