The site was virtually intact. It was a large public hall from 5,000 years ago for banquets, with its benches for diners, two ovens, remains of up to 150 ceramic cups and even a kind of fridge made of clay that the ancient Sumerians called zeer.
Archaeologists found this ancient bar-restaurant in a residential neighborhood of Lagash (Iraq), one of the oldest cities in Southwest Asia. "It's an eating space that dates to around 2700 BC that's partially outdoors and has a dedicated kitchen space," says Holly Pittman, a professor in the art history department at the University of Pennsylvania.
His team has been excavating the site for four years, an area where Pennsylvania researchers have been working since the 1930s, when they partnered with Leonard Woolley and the British Museum to study the important archaeological site of Ur, located about 50 kilometers to the southwest. .
Using state-of-the-art methodologies that include drone photography, thermal imaging, magnetometry, or microstratigraphic sampling (a type of surgically precise excavation), experts are trying to understand the context in which this impressive enclave moved.
“At over 450 hectares, Lagash was one of the largest sites in southern Iraq during the third millennium BC,” Pittman says. “The site was of great political, economic and religious importance. It was also an important population center that had easy access to fertile land and people dedicated to intensive craft production. In that way, it could have been a major industrial capital," he adds.
About 6,000 years ago, the mouth of the Persian Gulf was about 250 kilometers northwest of where it is today. Near that ancient shoreline was a trio of settlements—Girsu, Lagash, and Niĝin—that made up a larger city-state, also known as Lagash. For more than 150 years, the three towns were unified as a wealthy and powerful political entity.
The study of the place has been continuously affected by the different war conflicts. First there was the Iran-Iraq war, then there was the first Persian Gulf war. Until 2017, work on the site was not allowed to resume. A little later the coronavirus pandemic arrived, forcing the tasks to stop again.
The Lagash settlement stretches approximately five kilometers from north to south and one and a half kilometers wide, making it one of the largest archaeological sites in southern Mesopotamia. Beneath its surface is evidence that can help piece together the lives of common people during what is known as the Early Dynastic period, a 600-year period from 2,900 to 2,300 B.C., when some of the first cities were formed. of the world.
In the southern area of the site, archaeologists saw clear evidence of a tall building, as well as waste materials from pottery manufacturing. They dug a large square trench, where they unearthed six ovens with oval holes made of baked adobe. In 2022, five more ovens were found.
These evidences indicate significant ceramic production at Lagash. The kilns have probably survived for thousands of years because they were hardened by fire. It is becoming increasingly clear, moreover, that most of the surrounding streets, alleys and buildings are older.
An open space just to the west, probably used by those same pottery makers, contained benches and a table. In another nearby plaza, what appears to be a domestic dwelling was excavated that had a kitchen with earthenware lids, bowls with food, and a grinding stone, as well as a bathroom.
“Now we don't go after big mounds expecting to find an ancient temple. We use our techniques and then, based on scientific priority, we look for what we think will provide important information to close knowledge gaps in the field," the researchers say in a statement.
This is what happened last fall when the tavern was discovered. Instead of digging according to the architectural construction phases, the archaeologists were exploring “layer by layer as if you were doing very careful surgery,” says Pittman. “Just going down 20 inches we were able to capture all the material. We were happily amazed.” , remember.
Bones of fish and other animals were found in the bowls, along with evidence of beer consumption, a drink widespread among the Sumerians, even more so than water. "This was a place where people, normal people, could go to eat. It wasn't a domestic space," she concludes.
