The view from the north : comparative analysis of the Chalcolithic pottery assemblages from Norşuntepe and Ovçular Tepesi

Abstract

The strong similarities apparent between the Chalcolithic ceramic assemblages of Norşuntepe in eastern Anatolia and Ovçular Tepesi in the south Caucasus are here analysed step by step in order to assess the degree of relationships between the two regions. Interestingly, in spite of the considerable distance between the sites - 700 km as the crow flies - the evidence shows that these similarities affect core features of the ceramic repertoires (their technical traits as well as their functional composition), while specificities either correspond to rare types (in absolute number) or derive from chronological differences between the sites : indeed, the Chalcolithic occupation of Norşuntepe (ca. 4500-3800 BC) is longer than at Ovçular Tepesi (ca. 4350-3950 BC ) by at least a century at each end of its stratigraphic sequence. Although Nor§untepe and Ovçular Tepesi clearly belong to two distinct ceramic provinces, it is nonetheless clear they are affected by the same transregional trends and are both part of a common system, the "Standardised ware oikoumene".Les fortes similitudes perceptibles entre les assemblages céramiques de Norşuntepe en Anatolie orientale et d' Ovçular Tepesi dans le Caucase méridional sont ici analysées systématiquement afin de mettre en évidence le degré de parenté entre ces deux régions. Malgré la distance considérable qui sépare les deux sites - 700 km à vol d'oiseau - il est intéressant de constater que ces similitudes ont trait à des caractéristiques fondamentales des deux répertoires (spécificités techniques et composition fonctionnelle de l'assemblage). A l'inverse, les divergences se rapportent à des types morphologiques et décoratifs rares (en chiffre absolu) ; ou encore s'expliquent par les différences chronologiques entre les deux sites : l'occupation de Norçuntepe (ca. 4500-3800 av.n.è.) est en effet plus longue que celle d' Ovçular Tepesi (ca. 4350-3950 av.n.è.) d'au moins un siècle de part et d'autre de la séquence chronologique. Quoique Norşuntepe et Ovçular Tepesi appartiennent à deux provinces céramiques distinctes, il est cependant clair que celles-ci sont traversées par de mêmes tendances transrégionales et font toutes deux partie d'un même système, la "Standardised ware oikoumene".Gülçur Sevil, Marro Catherine. The view from the north : comparative analysis of the Chalcolithic pottery assemblages from Norşuntepe and Ovçular Tepesi. In: After the Ubaid. Interpreting change from the Caucasus to Mesopotamia at the dawn of urban civilization (4500-3500 BC). Papers from The Post-Ubaid Horizon in the Fertile Crescent and Beyond. International Workshop held at Fosseuse, 29th June-1st July 2009. Istanbul : Institut Français d'Études Anatoliennes-Georges Dumézil, 2012. pp. 305-352. (Varia Anatolica, 27

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