Excavations at the Amida Mound, often called the "heart of Diyarbakır," have revealed that human settlement at this historic site dates back 10,000 years. Situated in southeastern Türkiye, Diyarbakır is renowned for its rich cultural and historical significance, lying on the banks of the Tigris River.
The Amida Mound has been home to a succession of civilizations over millennia, including the Hurri-Mitanni, Urartians, Assyrians, Medes, Persians, the Kingdom of Tigran the Great, Romans, Sassanids, Byzantines, Umayyads, Abbasids, Marwanids, Seljuks, Artuqids, Ayyubids, Aq Qoyunlu, Safavids and Ottomans. Excavations at the site, led by professor İrfan Yıldız of Dicle University’s Faculty of Education, began in 2018 under the supervision of Türkiye’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism. These findings provide invaluable insights into the continuous and diverse settlement patterns in this region across millennia.
Among the discoveries made so far are remnants such as 1,800-year-old water channels, a heating system, 1,700-year-old burial chambers, 782 World War I grenades and 800-year-old marble artifacts. Current work focuses on the area south of the reception hall of the Artuklu Palace and between Saraykapi and the King's Road.
Based on evidence from fire traces, ceramic fragments, and stone materials found in one trench, researchers determined that settlement began 10,000 years ago at the mound.
Yildiz explained that they initiated the excavation in a trench located in the damaged section of Saraykapi and the King's Road. He explained:
"During the excavations in this trench, 3 burn marks, which were previously found in the trenches at the bottom of the mound, appeared here. Necessary examinations and dating were made with the Carbon-14 method. The first burnt layer of the city was 6,764 B.C., the second burnt layer was 5721 B.C. and the third burnt layer was 5518 B.C."
"Therefore, the city was burnt three times between 7000 and 5000 B.C. Especially in this trench, the traces of the 6764 B.C. burn layer were much more intense. There are burn marks ranging between approximately 5-10 centimeters (1.97 inches to 3.94 inches). We understand from this that Amida, which was an important city at that time, was burned together with its inhabitants and the fire lasted for days."
Yildiz also noted that civilizations inhabiting Amida Mound made construction advancements based on previous settlements. They found obsidian tools dating back to 8000 B.C. just beneath the fire layer from 7000 B.C.
He emphasized that continuous life has persisted at Amida Mound for 10,000 years, as indicated by the 8000 B.C. ceramic shards and stone artifacts discovered in the same trench.
"When we started the excavations at Amida Mound, we initially estimated its history to begin around 3500 B.C., approximately 5,500 years ago. However, this date is continually being updated based on new findings. In the trench where we are currently working, we found evidence dating back to 10,000 years,” Yildiz stated, adding that this date might change as excavations progress.
"It is certain that there will be data dating back to 9000 B.C., which is 11,000 years from today, and maybe we will go even further. When we look at life in the region, we see that settlement started around 10500 B.C. in Kortik Tepe, Hasankeyf Mound and Gobeklitepe, and goes up to 12500 B.C.
Amida Mound will probably be dated close to these dates. For the time being, we can say that a settlement started here 10,000 years ago and continued uninterruptedly. This is the most important feature of Amida Mound. As it can be understood from the excavations, settlement has never been interrupted in any period."
Yildiz observed that Jericho in Palestine is recognized as the earliest city on Earth where life has persisted continuously, with evidence indicating that settlement in Jericho began 11,000 years ago.
"Amida Mound is in second place, settlement started here 9,000 years ago. However, as of now, it has shifted to 10,000 years ago. We can now say that for Amida Mound, settlement started 10,000 ago and continued uninterruptedly, the data clearly shows this. After the work in the trench is completed, I think we can say that settlement started here 11,000 years ago. The excavation of Amida Mound will continue to be a candidate to change the history of Diyarbakir.”
