Evaluation of Late Chalcolithic Phases 1-3 in the Upper Tigris Basin based on data from Başur Höyük

The Chalcolithic Period, which is thought to have lasted until the 3rd millennium B.C. in northern Mesopotamia, is a time when social and economic structures became more complex and significant changes occurred in settlement organization and material culture. During this period, aesthetically elaborate pottery was replaced by more functional and mass-produced pottery. This change is associated with the new social and economic order of the time. From the second half of the 5th millennium BC, this type of pottery is found in both small and central settlements, and the social and commercial networks developed between central settlements and small communities form the basis of the urbanization process. The Upper Tigris Basin is a little-known region for the Late Chalcolithic 1-3 periods of northern Mesopotamia. However, the basin not only contains highly fertile areas for these periods, but also provides important transit and communication routes due to its strategic location. This dissertation focuses on the data obtained from the deep trench at Başur Höyük, in the basin where the Late Chalcolithic 1-3 levels are located. The pottery, which is the densest group of finds, shows a simplification over time in parallel with the general trend of the period, and the decorated examples such as Coba-type bowls and sprig ware show that Başur Höyük was open to regional interactions and involved in cultural transmission processes. Late Chalcolithic settlements in the Upper Tigris Basin are generally characterized by small-scale, cell-planned structures, giving the impression of a more egalitarian social order than hierarchical structures. Although the settlement organization and spatial arrangements in the Late Chalcolithic 1-3 periods at Başur Höyük are somewhat ambiguous, they appear to be similar to the organization in the basin. However, the Late Chalcolithic 1-3 periods of Başur Höyük also show the transition to the organization of the later phases of settlement.