Arslantepe Mound is a 30-metre-tall archaeological tell located in the Malatya plain, 15 km south-west of the Euphrates River. Archaeological evidence from the site testifies to its occupation from at least the 6th millennium BCE up until the Medieval period. The earliest layers belong to the Late Chalcolithic 1-2 periods, contemporary to Early Uruk in Southern Mesopotamia (4300-3900 BCE) and are characterized by adobe houses. The most prominent and flourishing period of the site was in the Late Chalcolithic 5 period, during which the so-called palace complex was constructed. Considerable evidence also testifies to the Early Bronze Age period, most prominently identified by the Royal Tomb complex. The archaeological stratigraphy then extends to the Middle and Late Bronze Ages and Hittite periods, including Neo-Hittite levels. The site illustrates the processes which led to the emergence of a State society in the Near East and a sophisticated bureaucratic system that predates writing. Exceptional metal objects and weapons have been excavated at the site, among them the earliest swords so far known in the world, which suggests the beginning of forms of organized combat as the prerogative of an elite, who -at Arslantepe- exhibited them as instruments of their new political power.

Brief synthesis Arslantepe Mound is an archaeological tell of about 4.5 ha in extension, and 30 m high, at the heart of the fertile Malatya plain, 12 kilometres from the right bank of the Euphrates. The archaeological evidence of the site testifies to its occupation from at least the 6th millennium BCE up until the late Roman period. The most outstanding testimony of the site is documented in its remains of the Late Chalcolithic period, during which the palace complex was constructed. Considerable evidence also testifies other phases of occupation, such as the earlier Late Chalcolithic period characterized by adobe houses dating to the first half of the 4th millennium BCE and the Early Bronze Age period, most prominently identified by a Royal Tomb complex. The later archaeological finds also extend to the Paleo-Assyrian and Hittite periods, including Neo-Hittite levels. The Arslantepe Mound presents a unique window into the Late Chalcolithic period, recording a specific moment in time, which testifies to elite life and the earliest forms of state administration. Due to an apparently sudden and violent destruction of the palace complex and surrounding structures in the late 4th millennium BCE, Arslantepe has preserved archaeological evidence of an exceptional state of preservation when compared to other settlements within the region. Important architectural attributes of the Late Chalcolithic period (3400-3100 BCE) include the settlement plan and layout of individual…