Editing Hurrians (section)

==Archaeology==
Hurrian settlements are distributed over three modern countries, Iraq, Syria and Turkey. The heart of the Hurrian world is bisected by the modern border between Syria and Turkey. Several sites are situated within the border zone, making access for excavations problematic. A threat to the ancient sites are the many dam projects in the [[Euphrates]], [[Tigris]] and Khabur valleys. Several rescue operations have already been undertaken when the construction of dams put entire river valleys under water.

The first major excavations of Hurrian sites in Iraq and Syria began in the 1920s and 1930s. They were led by the American archaeologist [[Edward Chiera]] at Yorghan Tepe (Nuzi), and the British archaeologist [[Max Mallowan]] at [[Chagar Bazar]] and Tell Brak. Recent excavations and surveys in progress are conducted by American, Belgian, Danish, Dutch, French, German and Italian teams of archaeologists, with international participants, in cooperation with the Syrian Department of Antiquities. The tells, or city mounds, often reveal a long occupation beginning in the [[Neolithic]] and ending in the Roman period or later. The characteristic Hurrian pottery, the Khabur ware, is helpful in determining the different strata of occupation within the mounds. The Hurrian settlements are usually identified from the Middle Bronze Age to the end of the Late Bronze Age, with Tell Mozan (Urkesh) being the main exception.

===Important sites===
The list includes some important ancient sites from the area dominated by the Hurrians. Excavation reports and images are found at the websites linked. As noted above, important discoveries of Hurrian culture and history were also made at Alalakh, Amarna, Hattusa and Ugarit.

{{columns-list|colwidth=15em|
* [[Tell Mozan|Urkesh]] (Tell Mozan)
* [[Yorghan Tepe|Nuzi]] (Yorghan Tepe)
* [[Tell Brak|Nagar]] (Tell Brak)
* [[Tell Leilan|Shehna and Shubat-Enlil]] (Tell Leilan)
* [[Tell Barri|Kahat]] (Tell Barri)
* [[Tell Beydar|Nabada]] (Tell Beydar)
* [[Tell Tuneinir]]
* [[Umm el-Marra]] (Tuba?)
* [[Tell Chuera]]
* [[Tell Hammam et-Turkman]] (Zalpa?)
* [[Tell Sabi Abyad]]
* [[Hamoukar]]
* [[Chagar Bazar]]
* [[Tell Fekheriye]] (Sikkan, Washukanni?)
* [[Tall Al-Hamidiya]] (Taidu?)
}}