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Area
Results / East Area Team / Photo Gallery. The excavation area designated as East is located on a little prominence on the eastern slope of the East Mound. It comprises a strip 10 x 50 m of EW alignment. It was arbitrarily divided into five 10 x 10 meters Squares, labeled from 1 to 5, as seen from the west to the east. The area stretches from the bottom of NE slope of south eminence and the slope in the west to the arguably modern field boundary in the east. After the initial season the excavation focused in the three first Squares.
The new project on the East Area initiated in the 2018 season has a number of objectives: (1) to recognize the character of occupation in eastern zone of Çatalhöyük settlement, (2) to recognize the character of dwelling structures, special purpose buildings, burial practices and diachronic changes in their character in this area, (3) to compare the settlement layout with the occupation of North eminence, both in the North Area and the zone subjected to scraping prior to commencement of the excavation works in early 2000s, and (4) to recognize the abandonment of this part of settlement in relation the abandonment processes in the North Area as well as overall demographic processes in the second half of the seventh millennium BC. The excavation in 2018
and 2019 seasons revealed complex occupational history in this part of
the mound, including deposits belonging to the Neolithic, as well as to
the post- Neolithic period.
History of research The East Area, along with the entire eastern part of the East mound, has never been excavated. However, it has been subjected to a range of non-invasive methods related to the beginning of the Çatalhöyük Research Project in the years 1993-1995 and the geophysical survey from 2012. The latter revealed a number of anomalies, including some rectilinear structures, which may be interpreted as Neolithic walls. The aim of the initial season 2018 was to expose, through surface scraping, the underlying Neolithic and later deposits and identify potentially interesting place for setting up trenches for future excavation. An extensive surface excavation of an area measuring 10 m x 50m took place. The 50 m by 10 m strip was divided into five parts (10x10 m, numbered from 1 to 5) and scraped one by one, from the west to the east. The work involved a removal of top soil on the whole area. It was followed by the excavation of arbitrarily defined layers of ca. 10 cm deep from the entire targeted surface leading to the exposure of numerous Neolithic and post-Neolithic features and deposits. The work carried out in the 2018 season made it possible to recognize complex stratigraphy of the uppermost levels of the East Area. The season involved also excavation of some post- Neolithic features, namely three late Roman (?) burials. A rich and complex stratigraphic situation was the revealed in the three westernmost Squares of the trench. The two easternmost squares of the trench were covered by very deep and homogenous deposits, most likely remains of a large alluvium covering the area surrounding the mound and being a result of a long-lasting process of an accumulation following the end of the Neolithic. As no Neolithic deposits were unearthed in this part of the trench, it was decided not to continue working in this area. Hence, in 2019 it was decided to work in three westernmost Squares of the trench covering the area 10 x 30 meters. The season comprised the excavation of a range of structures and deposits dated back to the Late Neolithic and Early Chalcolithic,located in Squares 2 and 3. The excavation also involved the intense work on the post-Chalcolithic cemetery. All burials from the cemetery from Square 1 and 2 were excavated in 2019. The associated task involved also the excavation of different domestic features, mostly post-Chalcolithic pits. All features belonging to this phase of the East Area occupation and located in Squares 1, 2 and 3 has been excavated to date. The work in the coming excavation season will involve a continuation of excavating the remaining Neolithic structures in Squares 2 and 3. It will also involve the excavations of corresponding Neolithic structures in Square 1, which is now possible thanks to a completion of the work on the post-Chalcolithic cemetery located in this part of the excavated area. ...
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