The Hirbemerdon Tepe Archaeological Project: The First Five Seasons of Archaeological Work at a Site in the Upper Tigris River Valley, Southeastern Turkey

Recent excavations in the upper Tigris River valley have yielded an increasing number of archaeological data that have been helping archaeologists in the reconstruction of ancient histories in this specific region. Among these projects, the Hirbemerdon Tepe Archaeological Project has focused its attention on a funda- mental phase of occupation ― the Middle Bronze Age ― that characterises the site as well as numerous other settlements in the upper Tigris River valley. The present article will emphasise the role played by Hirbemerdon Tepe, located along the western bank of the upper Tigris river valley in southeastern Turkey, at both a local and inter-regional level during the Middle Bronze Age period that shows an increase in long-distance commercial exchanges between Mesopotamian and Anatolian polities. More specifically, an in-depth analysis will be given to the large architectural complex discovered on the site's High Mound and on a preliminary interpretation of the material culture found within it.