Reliefs from Tell Halaf - Bird

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The cuneiform inscription seen on the reliefs records, 'Palace of Kapara, son of Hadianu'. Bird WA 117105 Tell Halaf Situated on the headwaters of the river Habur in north-eastern Syria, Tell Halaf was excavated between 1911 and 1921 by a German expedition under the direction of Baron Max von Oppenheim. Large areas of the early Iron Age city (c. 1200-900 BC) were revealed. Ruled by an Aramaean family, the city, known as Guzana (Old Testament, Gozan), reached its peak of prosperity around the middle of the tenth century BC under King Kapara. The base of the south wall of Kapara's palace was lined with a series of 187 reliefs carved in black basalt alternating with red-ochre tinted limestone.  Altogether Tell Halaf was occupied in later periods, it ceased to be an important city after the fall of the dynasty of Kapara.