Bronze Age city unearthed in Iraqi Kurdistan
Archaeologists working at the sites. Photo: Roger Benet/UAB
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – Spanish archaeologists have discovered the remains of a Bronze Age city in Erbil governorate in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, taking a significant step toward better understanding how agriculture and cities developed.
Footage showed some of the Bronze Age city’s clay brick buildings, including stairs and rooms.
Erbil’s director of archaeology, Nader Bakbar Mohammed, explained that several excavations have been conducted in recent years in Erbil in search of archaeological sites.
“We discovered 1,000 sites. We excavated archeological sites and discovered an old city. The discovered site was in a flat area, an agricultural land cultivated by farmers,” Mohammed elaborated.
“We had not expected to find an archeological site in such a flat area. The team performing a field study identified a vast archaeological area, which is significant for Erbil governorate and demonstrates that it is rich in archaeological sites,” the Iraqi official said.
Two excavation initiatives in 2023 and 2024 apparently yielded historical information on the origins of agriculture, cattle farming, and the establishment of the city-state in the region, which is a global leader in historical changes.
According to the Autonomous University of Barcelona, the project involves three Iraqi locations, each representing a distinct period of historical development.
The Bronze Age (3600–2000 BC) was distinguished by the birth of towns and villages as people built above-ground structures and fortifications, which were made achievable by the emergence of bronze tools.