The Asingeran Excavation Project (AEP) was born to investigate a site of approximately 3 hectares in a so far little-known region of northern Mesopotamia, namely the Navkur Plain. This area is almost unique in its characteristics. Its particularly fertile clayey soils, crisscrossed by several seasonal watercourses, offer ideal conditions for permanent human settlement. However, the area is at the same time “cut off ” from the rest of northern Mesopotamia due to surrounding ridges that sharply define it along the four cardinal axes, affecting communication routes and modes of contact.
Despite the unique environment, we still know little about how the plain was populated between the 7th and 4th millennia BCE. It is particularly unclear how early communities responded to the significant transformation process that led Mesopotamian societies to experiment with increasingly complex growth and development models. AEP was established to address these questions, its primary aim being to investigate the transformation of a community between the late 6th and 4th millennia BCE (corresponding roughly to the Chalcolithic period) as it gradually, and then more rapidly, altered its way of life, i.e. economic strategies (for subsistence and beyond), coexistence dynamics, and regional and supraregional relations.
The initial findings indicate the presence of artisanal districts dedicated to the intensive production of ceramics, a clear indication of an increasingly important economic role played by specialisation in craftsmanship. The first data on society are equally interesting: a necropolis containing burials of individuals aged from perinatal (0-6 months) to two years old, dating back to the second half of the 5th millennium BCE, reveals a new and particular focus on the youngest members. The selection of a specific area clearly dedicated to deceased children not only suggests well-defined funerary rituals for even the most vulnerable members of the community but also reflects a new conception of the community as a whole. It is noteworthy that the site’s more recent occupation levels, dating to the Sasanian period (3rd – 7th centuries CE), have also yielded utterly singular burial evidence related to children. Such archaeological finds reinforce the cultural distinctiveness of Navkur, making Asingeran a unique case study.
Other than reaching its scientific goals, the joint mission is equally dedicated to involving the local population in discovering their own archaeological and cultural heritage. Since 2021, AEP has developed a dissemination program targeted primarily at future generations: a series of meetings organised at village schools near Asingeran are aimed at explaining the importance of studying the past and offering experiences at the archaeological site. Such activities will pave the way for greater awareness of the archaeological and cultural heritage and enable AEP to contribute to its valorisation as a crucial component in the well-being of the Navkur communities, fostering growth through sustainable strategies.
