Pit X

Context Title: Pit X1     
Context Name (Excavation): Pit X     
Context Name (Publication): Pit X     
Context Description: Pit X was excavated as a large southern extension of the Royal Cemetery area, likely originally conceived as an extension of Pit Y (Pit J) at the southwest corner. Its main purpose was to uncover the earliest burials in the area, the so-called Jemdat Nasr cemetery first encountered in pits Y and Z. Pit X measured approximately 30x15 meters, though it may originally have been laid out to be 35x20. Woolley reports it as a rectangle covering 1000 square meters, but even the largest indication on the plan map and satellite images is at most 700 square meters and not truly rectangular. Nevertheless, it is a very large space that reached sea level some 20 meters below the surface of the mound. In the Antiquaries Journal for 1934 Woolley reports a total of 13,160 cubic meters of dirt having been removed from this pit. Some minor building remains of the Neo-Babylonian and Kassite periods were found near the surface but most of the area was apparently used as a dumping ground in the Late Bronze Age and later. Woolley knew that the Royal Cemetery area extended to the south of his main area PG but believed he would find few graves of the Akkadian and EDIII period. He discovered more than he expected, but none were overly rich in finds. These graves did not receive PG numbers since the UE2 Royal Cemetery volume had already been published. Instead, they received PJ numbers. The series PJG applied to graves in Pit X Woolley felt to be Akkadian or later and PJB applied to those of the EDIII period. The break between these two sequences came at around 10 meters above sea level. In all, Pit X added some 250 to the more than 1000 burials of these periods that Woolley had already uncovered in area PG. Beneath the graves of the Royal Cemetery (starting at around 6 meters above sea level) Woolley reached the earlier graves of what he called the Jemdat Nasr cemetery. Graves at this depth were given JNG numbers. In fact, JNG eventually applied to all of the early graves discovered in pits W, X, Y, and Z. Some of those excavated in Y and Z had received PG numbers but they were renumbered for publication in the JNG sequence. Most of these graves actually date to the Early Dynastic I period. The area near the base of the pit was smaller than that at the top. Only around 400 square meters was exposed near sea level, yet more than 200 early graves were discovered. Although Ubaid period pottery fragments were found, only two Ubaid burials were discovered here. The large area excavation stopped at 2 meters above sea level, but a test pit at the bottom reached down to sea level itself.     
[1] Imported from BM list of contexts.

Objects: Pit X Export: JSON - XML - CSV

Object U Number Museum Number (UPM Date Reg Number) Museum Number (BM Registration Number) Museum Number (UPM B-number) Description (Catalog Card)
19162 (none) (none) (none) Stone table of offerings. White limestone. On the stem, incised palm-leaf pattern. Type 101.
19168 (none) (none) (none) Stone jar. Veined calcite. Type 89
19169 (none) (none) (none) Stone bowl. White calcite. Type 66.
19170 (none) (none) (none) Stone vase. White calcite. Type 76.
19171 35-1-195 (none) (none) Stone vase. White calcite. Type 60b.
19172 (none) (none) (none) Stone vase. White limestone. Type 89
19173 (none) (none) (none) Stone bowl. Basic diorite. Type 24. Along the edge of the rim is a pattern of chevrons and dots, lightly engraved.
19174 (none) (none) (none) Stone bowl. Translucent, white calcite. Type...
19175 (none) (none) (none) Stone bowl. Fine white limestone. Type 15A.
19176 (none) (none) (none) Stone bowl. Basic diorite. Type 16A.
19177 (none) (none) (none) Stone bowl. Limestone. Type 18
19178 (none) (none) (none) Stone vase. White calcite. Type 89
19179 (none) (none) (none) Stone bowl. Basic diorite. Type 41.
19180 35-1-76 (none) (none) Beads. Lapis and carnelian rings; lapis tubes; lapis and carnelian truncated triangles.
19181 (none) (none) (none) Beads. Lapis and carnelian double conoids, Lapis ovals. Carnelian rings. Large cats-eye and white calcite truncated triangle.
19182 (none) (none) (none) Beads. Carnelian rings and balls; lapis double conoids, ovals and tubes; lapis diamond (large) and one large carnelian.
19183 (none) (none) (none) Beads. Lapis double conoids, large, carnelian double conoids, long date-shaped and dated-shaped.
19184 (none) (none) (none) Beads. Two long carnelian tubes and 13 carnelian date-shaped, and 4 lapis ditto.
19185 (none) (none) (none) Beads. Carnelian date-shaped (short): lapis date-shaeped, double conoid and one flattened cylinder.
19186A (none) (none) (none) Group: (A) 2 gold earrings each made of spirally coiled gold wire.; [A and D] (B) Beads. Small lapis date-shaped with ring grooving, carnelian rings and gold-fluted balls; 1 large carnelian flattened date-shaped.; (C) Copper pin, Type 1. With ball head of steatite(?) capped with gold. Broken.
19187 (none) (none) (none) Stone base. White calcite. Type 61a. Rim incomplete.
19188 (none) (none) (none) Cylinder seal. Dark steatite. Seated god and 2 standing figures. Inscription: Ibkusha, son of Lu-Enlilla (C.J.G.)
19189 (none) (none) (none) Stone vase. White calcite. Type 65.
19190 (none) 1935,0112.27 (none) Copper pin. Type 6. [drawing] head thus.
19191 35-1-1 (none) (none) Cylinder seal. Shell. With rings of steatite inset at the two ends. Heroes fighting animals. (somewhat decayed).

Media: Pit X Export: JSON - XML - CSV

Media Media Title Title Label Author Omeka Label
Ur Excavations IV; The Early Periods Ur Excavations IV; The Early Periods 1955 Woolley, L. (none)
  • 1 Media

Sibling Locations

Pit Y

Child Locations

Jemdat Nasr Graves - PJB - PJG

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Context

Ur > Royal Cemetery | PG > PJ > Pit X

References

Woolley, L. . (1955) Ur Excavations IV; The Early Periods, Oxford: Oxford University Press.