Is there a Post-Ubaid culture ? Reflections on the transition

The time period between the end of the Ubaid and the beginning of the Uruk expansion is one of the least known, yet most important eras in the ancient history of the Middle East. This era, which is often referred toas the “Post-Ubaid” period, is marked by major structural changes such as the rise of social hierarchies,technological innovations and economic reorganisation that eventually led to the emergence of proto-statesand cities.

Through the analysis of recently and less recently excavated sites in the Caucasus and Anatolia that bear strong links with the “Post-Ubaid” settlements of Syro-Mesopotamia, the author questions thesignificance of this era, which roughly extends between 4500 and 3800 BC.

More than a “Mesopotamian”episode, she argues, the Post-Ubaid horizon is characterized by multi-directional, structural dynamicsanchored both in the north (Anatolia and the Caucasus) and in the south (Syro-Mesopotamia). For this reason, its significance should be claimed through a change in analytical paradigms, focussing on theinteractions between the Lowlands and the Highlands, with a reassessment of the available data from anon-Mesopotamian perspective.

Is there a Post-Ubaid culture ? Reflections on the transition