Tell es-Sweyhat

Tell es-Sweyhat was occupied throughout the 3rd millennium BCE or Early Bronze Age (EBA).

Founded as a walled farmstead at the beginning of the EBA, it became a medium-sized city-state with a fortification at its core by the 3rd quarter of the 3rd millennium, and a major urban center consisting of a citadel surrounded by an extensive lower town by ca. 2150 BCE. The site offers important opportunities for understanding the dynamics of subsistence and settlement in marginal environments and the role of pastoralism in the emergence of early state societies, as well as the topography of northern Mesopotamian cities.

Photo caption: General view of the late 3rd millennium BCE temple at the top of the high mound.

Where
Syria

When
3200–2000 BCE

Researchers
Michael D. Danti, Boston University

Sponsors
University of Pennsylvania