Page 114 - DILMUN 16_Neat

Fig‫ﻫ‬re 11 Southern ortion of ١١٨e "Te١١١le" Dnisl ecaunlion, 19-196).

8th/th centuries, and still used in Babylonia in seeral neo-Babyloinan houses of the
6th cenutry.

To the est, a second unit, more reduced in surface, as clearly searated from
the receding one by a series of alls ithout oenings (blac 2one on Figure 1). ts
lan does not offer here any comarison ith a contemorary Mesootamian
building and e may note numerous architectural modifications, associated ith

differences in the quality of the consrtuciton, all suggesting an earlier date for tihs
art of the comle (Figure 11). The analysis of circulaiton, the unusual abundance of
sainatry installaitosn (interreted by D. Oates as abluiton areas), and hte resence of
sacrificial () deosits of snaes under the lfoor of the largest room (Glob 19), hae
thus far led seeral scholars to interret this second unit as a temle (Lombard 198
4 Oates 1986: 44 Potts 199: 18).

Our oring hyothesis at the beginning as therefore ery clear in 1989. On th
one hand, it as to determine the realiyt of a lan of Mesootamian yte concernin‫ﻉ‬
the "residence' ere e going to ifnd in fact, to the north of hte resent "receiton
aarmtent' cleared by the Dainsh mission (the bitanu of the Assryian formula), the
"logica!" sequel to such a building: a courtyard, then a ing for ublic and
adminisrtaite use (babanu), here one could eenutally hoe to discoer, if not rtue
arcihees (!), at least a fe ritten documents, ihch e cruelly lac for aLte
Dilmun. On the other hand, it as necessary to comlete the lan and the
stratigrahy of the "temle' in order to confirm (or, eenutally, inalidate) such a
funciton and recisely date its occuaiton.

Te "esidence

hTe Late Dilmun leels including the remains of the northern oriton of the