A 3rd-millennium BC elite tomb from Tell Umm el-Marra, Syria.

A 3rd-millennium BC elite tomb from Tell Umm el-Marra, Syria. An intact wealthy tomb dating to the later 3rd millennium BC wasdiscovered in the 2000 spring-summer season of the Dutch-Americanexpedition to Tell Umm el-Marra, Syria. This structure provides furtherevidence of the trend towards conspicuous and wealthy mortuary monumentsin Syria's earliest urban civilization (Peltenburg 1999). Located50 km east of Aleppo in the Jabbul plain, Umm el-Marra (ancient Tuba?)is situated near a major east-west route linking the Mediterranean coastwith Mesopotamia. The site was a large centre (c. 25 ha) during theEarly, Middle and Late Bronze periods (c. 2800-1200 BC) and re-occupiedin Persian, Hellenistic and Roman times. Excavations by a joint JohnsHopkins-University of Amsterdam team have been conducted since 1994(Curvers & Schwartz 1997; Schwartz et al. 2000). The tomb was found on the site acropolis acropolis(əkrŏp`əlĭs)[Gr.,=high point of the city], elevated, fortified section of various ancient Greek cities.TheAcropolis of Athens, a hill c.260 ft (80 m) high, with a flat oval top c. immediately below a MiddleBronze Age stratum (c. 1800 BC) containing a large stone construction (amassive platform?). The tomb's absolute elevation is unusually highfor Early Bronze contexts at the site, indicating that this part of thetell was raised above the rest of the city in the 3rd millennium.Apparently freestanding, the rectangular structure measured c. 3.8x2.6m, with a stone foundation and mudbrick superstructure (FIGURE 1). Itsorientation was east-west, with an entry on the eastern, short side. [Figure 1 ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The tomb contents included three layers of skeletons interredinside rectangular coffins placed in the western part of the structure.The coffins were preserved only as `casts' and were probably ofwood originally, lined with a whitish material (reed?) and bitumen bitumen(bĭty`mən)a generic term referring to flammable, brown or black mixtures of tarlike hydrocarbons, derived naturally or by distillation from petroleum. . Inthe top layer, side by side in their respective coffins, were two youngwomen, each with a baby at the knee. The southern individual had a golddiadem diadem,in ancient times, the fillet of silk, wool, or linen tied about the head of a king, queen, or priest as a distinguishing mark. Later, it was a band of gold, which gave rise to the crown. In heraldry, the diadem is one of the arched bars that support the crown. and disk (FIGURE 2), bracelet, pendant and beads, as well assilver pins and bracelets. Associated with the northern individual weregold, silver and lapis lazuli beads and pendants (FIGURES 3, 4), a goldtoggle pin, a cylinder seal, a bronze torque and shells filled withcosmetic material. [Figures 2-4 ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In the layer below were two adult males in two coffins (FIGURE 5),with the skeleton of a baby at some distance to the east. Themiddle-aged man buried to the south wore a silver diadem and bracelet(FIGURE 6), while the young man to the north was accompanied by a bronzedagger and spearhead. In the lowest layer was a male c. 60 years oldwhose accoutrements ac��cou��ter��mentor ac��cou��tre��ment ?n.1. An accessory item of equipment or dress. Often used in the plural.2. Military equipment other than uniforms and weapons. Often used in the plural.3. included a silver cup and pins. [Figures 5-6 ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Numerous ceramic vessels were found in the tomb, some of whichcontained animal bones probably derived from funerary fu��ner��ar��y?adj.Of or suitable for a funeral or burial.[Latin fner offerings. Outsidethe tomb to the south was a jar containing the remains of a baby, anempty spouted jar and two equid equidsee equidae. skulls, perhaps secondary offerings. Theceramics in the tomb allow for a date c. 2300 BC, approximatelycontemporary with Ebla royal palace G and its archives. The tomb is evidently part of a larger complex; walls extendingfrom the tomb indicate further structures yet to be investigated.Whether this represents a necropolis necropolis:see cemetery. necropolis(Greek: “city of the dead”) Extensive and elaborate burial place serving an ancient city. The locations of these cemeteries varied. or another kind of building remainsto be elucidated. A possible parallel can be cited from Tell [Bi.sup.c]aon the Euphrates, where a freestanding complex of elite tombs wasexposed (Strommenger et al. 1994). An important aspect of this discovery is the intact character ofthe tomb. In contrast to the elite mortuary structures from the sameperiod found recently at Banat, [Bi.sup.c]a and Jerablus Tahtani on theSyrian Euphrates, the Umm el-Marra tomb was not disturbed, allowing forunimpeded study of the mortuary ritual involved. It is unclear, atpresent, why the tomb remained inviolate in��vi��o��late?adj.Not violated or profaned; intact: "The great inviolate place had an ancient permanence which the sea cannot claim"Thomas Hardy. , particularly if it was aconspicuous above-ground structure. Also to be further investigated isthe character of the tomb occupants: given the tomb's contents andits elevated location in the acropolis centre, it seems likely that someor all of the individuals were of high social status, perhaps evenmembers of the local ruling family. It remains to be explained why therichest ornaments are reserved for the two young women at the top, eachaccompanied by a baby. Acknowledgements. We are grateful to the Directorate-General ofAntiquities, Syria, and to the National Science Foundation for support.Faunal material is studied by J. Weber (University of Pennsylvania (body, education) University of Pennsylvania - The home of ENIAC and Machiavelli.http://upenn.edu/.Address: Philadelphia, PA, USA. ) andhuman skeletal material by B. Stuart (Beirut Archaeological Centre); thetomb was excavated by Stuart, Weber and A. Petty (Johns HopkinsUniversity Johns Hopkins University,mainly at Baltimore, Md. Johns Hopkins in 1867 had a group of his associates incorporated as the trustees of a university and a hospital, endowing each with $3.5 million. Daniel C. ). References CURVERS, H.H. & G.M. SCHWARTZ. 1997. Umm el-Marra, a Bronze Ageurban center in the Jabbul Plain, Western Syria, American Journal ofArchaeology 101: 201-39. PELTENBURG, E. 1999. The living and the ancestors: Early Bronzemortuary practices at Jerablus Tahtani, in G. del Olmo Lete & J.-L.Montero Fenollos (ed.), Archaeology of the Upper Syrian Euphrates: TheTishrin Dam Area: 421-42. Barcelona: Editorial AUSA. SCHWARTZ, G.M., H.H. CURVERS, F.A. GERRITSEN, J.A. MACCORMACK, N.F.MILLER & J.A. WEBER. 2000. Excavation and survey in the JabbulPlain: The Umm el-Marra Project 1996-1997, American Journal ofArchaeology 104: 419-62. STROMMENGER, E. 1994. Die Ausgrabungen in Tall [Bi.sup.c]a 1993,Mitteilungen der deutschen Orient-Gesellschaft 126: 11-31. GLENN M. SCHWARTZ, HANS H. CURVERS & BARBARA STUART, Schwartz,Department of Near Eastern Studies, Johns Hopkins University, 128 GilmanHall/3400 N. Charles Street, Baltimore MD 21218-2690, USA.schwartz@jhu.edu Curvers & Stuart, Instituut voor Prae- enProtohistorie, University of Amsterdam, Nieuwe Prinsengracht 130,Amsterdam 1018 VZ, Netherlands. CurversH@solidere.com.lb