Page 273 - Life & Land Use on the Bahrain Islands (Curtis E Larsen)

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Tlie Kassite Period

As Judged by the destruction of the final temple at Barbar, the Barbar n phase may
have ended suddenly, A clear break is also evident in the archeological
stratigraphy at the Qala'at al-Bahrain between this and the next definite ceramic
assemblage, that of the Kassite period. This is in contrast to the Barbar through
Kassite period occupation on Failaka Island where settlement was continuous.

There, the distinctive pottery of the Barbar n phase underwent stylistic change and
was eventually replaced by Old Babylonian and finally Kassite pottery styles.
Persian Gulf seals, however, remained a distinct link with the past and continued
into Kassite times.
In Bahrain, one is fortunate to find Kassite occupational remains, although
there is abundant evidence of this influence in the north coast graves (Tarawneh
n.d., Rice 1976). Until the discovery of a massive Kassite period building at the
qalat, the only recognizable evidence was from rubbish dumps in the north wall
trench (Bibby 1971:139). Even after more Kassite levels were uncovered, there was
still no strong evidence for continuous occupation of the site. Thus, there is a real
difference in the post Barbar n transition between Bahrain and Failaka. It is more
important to note that massive buildings containing Kassite period pottery were
found beneath a Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian structure (Bibby 1971:258). The
Kassite building was a warehouse for the storage of dates and was subsequently
destroyed by fire. Fortunately charred date remains yielded one of the few useful
radiocarbon dates from the qalat. TTiis was 1180 + 110 B.C., well within the late
Kassite range with a calibrated date of 1370 B.C. (Ralph, Michael, and Han 1973).
Although a substantial ceramic collection from the Kassite building is
available for study at the Moesgaard Museum, time did not permit a detailed
analysis. Rather, I have relied on a qualitative examination of the Kassite
stratigraphy at Qala'at al-Bahrain and museum displays at Moesgaard for key
examples of the pottery. As Bibby has suggested, the Kassite period pottery is
quite recognizable. The most common forms are shown by Figures 54a-c. TTiese