In Kurdistan's Duhok: 8,000-year-old Neolithic site discovered
Shafaq News/ Two archaeologicalsites, one dating back 8,000 years to the Neolithic era, have been discoveredin Kurdistan Region's Duhok, the province's Director of Antiques and Heritage,Bekas Brifkani, announced on Thursday.
Brifkani told Shafaq News Agencythat the sites were discovered in Asinkran and Kanisban areas, located in theNafkor plain near the Rovia district in eastern Duhok.
The discovery in Asinkran includessome of the earliest forms of pottery production, along with grain processing,dating back more than 8,000 years. Meanwhile, at the Kanisban site, a Neolithicsettlement from the 7th millennium BCE, traces of early agriculturalspecialization and craft production were found.
At the nearby Asinkran site, twoexceptional buildings dating back about 7,000 years were uncovered. "Thesebuildings, the Rectangular Mudbrick Building and the White Building, wereconstructed on a high mound and likely served as residences for the socialelite of that era," he explained.
Brifkani pointed out that thesediscoveries are part of an excavation campaign under a joint project betweenthe Duhok Antiquities Department and the University of Udine in Italy,supervised by the Directorate General of Antiquities and Heritage in the KurdistanRegion.
“This campaign aims to understandthe transformations in early agricultural societies, from egalitariancommunities to complex settlements with specialized labor and socialhierarchies,” he said.
Brifkani described the discovery asan "important step" in reconstructing the history of humandevelopment in the region, highlighting the Kurdistan Region's significance as “oneof the main centers of early civilization.”
