Urkesh (Tell Mozan)
أوركيش (تل موزان)
Ancient Hurrian city near Amuda in Hasakah, flourishing in the third millennium BC, with temples and a royal palace uncovered.
In far northeast Syria near Amuda, Tell Mozan holds Urkesh, one of the oldest known Hurrian cities. The Hurrians lived across northern Mesopotamia and Syria and shaped the region's culture and religion.
Urkesh flourished in the third millennium BC as a religious and political centre, linked in Hurrian myth to Kumarbi, father of the gods. Excavations since the 1980s led by Giorgio Buccellati and Marilyn Kelly-Buccellati revealed a temple on a massive terrace, a royal palace attributed to King Tupkish and seal impressions naming kings and royals, as well as an underground structure thought to be used in rituals to reach the netherworld.
Tell Mozan lies in the foothills of the Taurus Mountains in Hasakah governorate; the city god of Urkesh was Kumarbi, father of Teshup. Tell Leilan is about 50 km to the east, and Leilan, Brak and Urkesh were particularly prominent in the Akkadian period.
The mission is known for involving the local community in protecting and presenting the site.
Note: photos may not reflect the site's current condition.
For the visitor
Location: 37.0569, 40.9972 · Open on the map
Photos
Photos: Zoeperkoe — via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA) · The Metropolitan Museum of Art — via Wikimedia Commons (CC0)
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