YouTube
Sign up

Teppe Hasanlu

تپه حسنلو

Iran · West Azerbaijan

SettlementUnknown
Approximate period6,000 BCE — 300 CEFrom the Neolithic to periods contemporary with the Roman Imperial era See on the map ↓

In brief

The settlement's main stratigraphic sequence extends from approximately the 6th millennium BC to the 3rd century AD. An attack and fire at the end of the 9th century BC created an exceptional archaeological context for buildings, objects and human remains.

What was found?

  • 1Hasanlu gold bowl

    This is a gold vessel found in the settlement's destruction layer associated with fire. Its discovery alongside other objects and structural remains allows investigation of the historical setting in which it was used.

  • 2Silver vessel with electrum decoration

    The silver vessel recovered from the ash layer bears electrum decoration. It documents decorative craftsmanship combining precious metals.

  • 3Bronze helmet

    Parallels to the helmet found in Burned Building II appear in Assyrian reliefs. According to researchers, this type could be used by soldiers from different regions, so it does not establish the attackers' identity on its own.

  • 4Iron sword

    The sword, dated to 1000–800 BC, has a pommel, grip and blade made as a single piece. It is a concrete example of the use of iron in weapon production.

  • 5Dress pin with a lion finial

    This is a dress pin whose cast bronze finial depicts a reclining lion. It demonstrates figurative metalworking on small objects used in clothing.

What does it point to?

Precious vessels, decorated clothing accessories and weapons reveal a world of production based on different skills at Hasanlu. Buildings destroyed by fire and the remains of people who died together document the settlement's violent end; the attackers' identity remains uncertain.

What did it teach us?

  1. Documented Early Iron Age buildings and their contents within the same destruction context.
  2. Showed that iron weapons were used alongside bronze and precious metal objects.
  3. Demonstrated that similarities in military objects cannot, on their own, explain the attackers' identity.

Images

Hasanlu-gold-cup
Emtadbir · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Hasanlu 13960422 16
Mahdi Zavar مهدی زوار · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Record

First modern dig
1934
Team / historical
Robert H. Dyson; University of Pennsylvania Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art and Iranian Archaeological Service
Coordinates
37.0046°, 45.4583°

Sources

  1. penn.museum
  2. iranicaonline.org
  3. era.ed.ac.uk
  4. en.wikipedia.org
  5. Penn Museum Koleksiyonları — Demir kılıç

Nearby excavations


—
—
12.000

From beneath the soil: latest discoveries

  • Rare Messapic inscriptions found in a 2,300-year-old tomb in Italy

    Two Messapic inscriptions were found on the cover slabs of a rock-cut tomb in Manduria. According to researchers, the texts may indicate that the woman associated with the tomb held a religious role; a connection to priesthood and the cult of Demeter has not yet been confirmed.

    Heritage Daily ↗
  • Main sewer line and inscriptions describing Roman rituals found at Aquinum

    Investigations at Aquinum uncovered the main sewer line, a group of 120 coins and religious inscriptions. The finds help researchers understand water management in the Roman city and practices such as consecrating places struck by lightning.

    Heritage Daily ↗
  • Analysis of Inca mummies detects traces of coca, alcohol and harmine

    Hair and nail analyses of eight Inca mummies from Peru and Argentina identified evidence of coca consumption, alcohol in four individuals and traces of harmine in the Ampato mummy. According to researchers, the use of different substances shows that sacrificial ceremonies varied according to local traditions.

    Arkeofili ↗
  • Object from a 5,300-year-old grave in Russia identified as a kidney stone

    Analyses of an object measuring approximately 2.1 centimeters, found in a Bronze Age grave in the Stavropol Upland, revealed a mineral composition consistent with a kidney stone. According to researchers, the find indicates that the man buried in the grave had a chronic infection, providing direct evidence of diseases of the period.

    Arkeofili ↗
  • 3,000-year-old bronze objects found during battlefield survey in Hungary

    A survey of the Mezőkeresztes battlefield uncovered a large bronze vessel and two decorated spiral arm ornaments. The objects, dated to the 13th–11th centuries BC, were recovered with their original positions preserved, allowing researchers to study Bronze Age practices of burying valuable objects.

    Heritage Daily ↗
  • 2,600-year-old mudbrick structure identified beneath the city of Buto in Egypt

    The walls of a large mudbrick structure identified through satellite and geophysical surveys were confirmed by a trial excavation. According to the researchers, a layer of sand placed beneath the foundations may have helped protect the structure in the waterlogged ground of the Nile Delta.

    Heritage Daily ↗ · Excavation notebook
  • Celtic woman's grave containing jewelry and animal remains found in Germany

    A woman's skeleton, heavy bronze anklets, a sapropelite arm ring, and the remains of a lamb or kid were found in the grave in Bavaria. According to the researchers, placing the animal in the grave as a food offering represents an unusual example of Celtic funerary practices in the region.

    Arkeofili ↗
  • Cupboard containing personal belongings, childhood amulets and coins found in Pompeii

    Grooming items, 38 bronze coins and a necklace made up of at least 24 amulets were found in a cupboard in a house in Pompeii that had remained closed since the eruption in AD 79. The preservation of these objects together provides detailed information about everyday life and personal mementos in Roman times.

    Arkeofili ↗ · Excavation notebook

    All excavation sites (395)

    Türkiye

    Kazakhstan

    Federated States of Micronesia

    Guatemala

    Honduras

    North Macedonia

    Sri Lanka