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2023 SHEPARD URGENT ACTION GRANT: RESCUE OPERATIONS AT THE SITE OF CHAM PASHAYA II, DUHOK PROVINCE, KURDISTAN REGION OF IRAQ

Along with natural catastrophes and destruction during conflict, artificial dam construction and the consequent water impact are primary causes of the loss of archaeological heritage. Once submerged, most flooded sites do not re-emerge. Others periodically resurface due to the reservoir’s exceptional or cyclical water fluctuation processes, and once again reveal the evidence of their past. One such site is Cham Pashaya II, located in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq on the shore of the Mosul Dam reservoir (Fig. 1).

Cham Pashaya
Fig. 1: View of Cham Pashaya with the Mosul Lake in the background.

Cham Pashaya II is a large cemetery (ca. 2 ha) that extends across two adjacent hillocks (Fig. 2). The site contains over 50 visible cist graves that are threatened by destruction, looting, and vandalism when the water levels of the lake drop and the site is accessible. Since the closing of the dam in 1988, the site has remained mostly underwater, resurfacing only twice: once in 2018 and again in winter 2022.

Water level in the dam area is affected by a number of connected factors including normal dam management, increasing population pressure, the region’s aridification which is driven by global climate change, as well as political strife between countries for control of the dammed basins.

Fig. 2A: Aerial view of the site with visible graves.
Fig. 2A: Aerial view of the site with visible graves.
View of Cham Pashaya with the Mosul Lake in the background.
Fig. 2B: View of the cemetery Cham Pashaya with the main tell already partially submerged in the background

Thanks to a Shepard Urgent Action Grant, a three-week salvage mission was carried out at the site in April 2023 by a Kurdish-Italian team led by the University of Palermo in cooperation with the Duhok Directorate of Antiquities and Heritage (Fig. 3). This was a multi-disciplinary mission that included salvage excavations, archaeological survey, high-resolution documentation of the site’s state of preservation, and monitoring of damage and looting to the cultural resources.

People at work
Fig 3: The team at work.

An area of 150 square meters was cleared and 25 graves were exposed to investigate the spatial relationships between them. These graves are primarily stone cists of different sizes ranging from over 3 m in length to only 40 cm in diameter. The majority of the graves are rectangular (Fig. 4), but there are also oval and round graves. The team determined that the Cham Pashaya II cemetery has graves from multiple phases based on their spatial relationships. The variety of sizes and forms also supports this interpretation.

We decided to further investigate and fully excavate 5 graves, choosing a selection of the different typologies and sizes (Fig. 5).

Despite widespread ancient and modern looting and the very poor state of preservation of the bone material due to the water-logged environment, we found that it was still possible to reconstruct some of the funerary practices and to establish a chronological framework for the cemetery. Graves were meant to host one or more individuals. The larger ones were apparently used for longer periods, and had evidence to show that they were re-opened many times.

One of the largest graves.
Fig. 4: One of the largest graves.
Our anthropologist at work
Fig. 5: Our anthropologist at work.

Our current interpretation is that Cham Pashaya II was a burial ground for the community living at the adjacent multi-period mound of Cham Pashaya I during the first half of the third millennium BC. This was a critical time that saw the establishment of the first “urban model” in Upper Mesopotamia—a focal point of research on the archaeology of Southwest Asia in recent decades.

Cham Pashaya II disappeared again under the lake water a few days after the end of our fieldwork (Fig. 6). It is hard to predict if and when it will re-emerge.

Rising of the water level in the days before our departure.
Fig. 6: Rising of the water level in the days before our departure.
Dr. Sconzo consults with a one of the project's partners from the Duhok Directorate of Antiquities and Heritage.
Dr. Sconzo consults with the project's partner, Dr. Bekas Jamaluddin Hasan Al-Brifkany, from the Duhok Directorate of Antiquities and Heritage.

-Dr. Paola Sconzo, University of Palermo

The Cham Pashaya salvage excavation is part of a larger monitoring, survey, and rescue activities project called .

Established in 2020 with annual contributions, the Shepard Urgent Action Grants program was created to support emergency and rapid response activities on archaeological sites in the greater Mediterranean region. Shepard Grants have provided $59,625 in support of projects with urgent need since the program began. While preference is given to projects and teams with current ÂÌñÒùÆÞ affiliation, applications will be considered from all projects. All 2023 grant funds have been awarded, and ÂÌñÒùÆÞ plans to resume accepting applications for Shepard Grants in 2024. Read more about the grant program here.

BROWSE THE NEWS ARCHIVE

  • 2025 Grant & Fellowship Awardees
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  • FOA Webinar: Amy Gansell
  • Fieldwork Report: Rubar Yavuz

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