Bestansur
Neolithic tell with early textile imprints and multiple burials.
Bestansur is a Neolithic tell, or archaeological settlement mound, located in Arbat Town, Sulaimaniyah province, Kurdistan Region, Iraq, in the western Zagros foothills. It lies on the edge of the Shahrizor Plain, 30 km southeast of Sulaimaniyah, and is on the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List. The site provides key evidence for early Neolithic occupation in Upper Mesopotamia, including early textile imprints and complex burial practices.
- location
- Arbat Town, Sulaimaniyah province, Kurdistan Region, Iraq
- period
- Early Neolithic (7600–7100 BC), Neo-Assyrian, Sasanian, Ottoman
- excavation_start
- 2012
- co_directors
- Roger Mathews, Wendy Matthews, Kamal Raheem
- institutions
- University of Reading, University of British Columbia
- site_type
- Tell (settlement mound)
- dimensions
- 80–90 m diameter, 6 m high
Lore & Background
Bestansur is a tell located on the left bank of the Tanjero River, near several perennial and seasonal springs and streams in the Shahrizor Plain. The area has been densely occupied throughout time, as evidenced by many recorded sites including Yasintepe. The site measures 80–90 m in diameter and is 6 m high. It was first examined by Ephraim Speiser in 1927, who noted pottery dating to before Persian times. Later surveys were conducted by the Iraqi Directorate of Antiquities and the Shahrizor Survey Project, where Bestansur received site number SSP 6. Excavations have been undertaken since 2012 by the University of Reading and the University of British Columbia, co-directed by Roger Mathews, Wendy Matthews, and Kamal Raheem.
Reader's Guide
Bestansur is significant for its well-preserved Early Neolithic occupation dating to 7600–7100 BC, as well as later Neo-Assyrian, Sasanian, and Ottoman periods. The site has yielded evidence of mud-brick and pisé rectangular buildings, plaster use, and red and black pigments identified through infrared microspectroscopy. A large-porticoed building, Building 5, contained a large oven and 72 individuals buried beneath the floor of a single room. Surface survey recorded pottery fragments dating to the seventh or early sixth millennium BC, with parallels at Tell Sabi Abyad, Tell Hassuna, and Jarmo. One fragment bore an imprint of a textile net, among the earliest evidence for textile imprints in Upper Mesopotamia; its primary use as a fishing net has been proposed based on mesh size and the marshy environment. Fish depictions on painted Samarra and Halaf pottery further indicate fish as an important resource. The site's inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List underscores its archaeological value.
Did You Know?
- Bestansur is on the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List.
- A pottery fragment from the site bears an imprint of a textile net, among the earliest such evidence in Upper Mesopotamia.
- Seventy-two individuals were buried beneath the floor of a single room in Building 5.
- The site was first examined by Ephraim Speiser in 1927.
More in World Heritage Tentative List 1-24
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