Yarim Tepe

Yarim Tepe is an archaeological site of an early farming settlement that goes back to about 6000 BC [1]. It is located in the Sinjar valley some 7km southwest from the town of Tal Afar in northern Iraq [1]. The site consists of several hills reflecting the development of the Hassuna culture, and then of the Halaf and Ubaid cultures [1]. The settlement was investigated between 1969 and 1976, and later by the Soviet archaeological expedition under the leadership of Rauf Munchaev and Nikolai Merpert [1]. Yarim Tepe II is a settlement of the Halafian culture, belonging to the fifth millennium BC [1]. Metal was already quite common at Yarim Tepe; as many as 21 examples of worked copper or copper ore were found in the lower levels of the settlement [1].