Empirical Field Test Results for Ancient Mudbricks from Tell Zurghul, Iraq

Sixteen mudbrick samples from the site of Tell Zurghul/Nigin in Iraq, dating from the mid-5th to mid 3rd millennium BCE, were analyzed. The dataset contains raw data from empirical field tests assessing material composition, grain size, clay behavior, and cohesion. It was created by De Vito, Licia as part of the EnEAp project and last updated in October 2025.

Use Cases

• Classifying ancient construction materials based on raw material composition and grain size results.
• Informing conservation strategies for earthen structures based on cohesion and adhesion test outcomes.
• Analyzing material homogeneity over time based on results spanning a two-millennium period.
• Assessing the need for stabilizers in restoration based on data about limited cohesion and favorable drainage.

Strengths

• Includes data from sixteen distinct samples, fifteen archaeological and one modern.
• Covers a long temporal range from approximately the mid-5th to mid-3rd millennium BCE.
• Contains results from multiple specific tests: smell, visual, handwashing, cigar, pastil, bottle, peeling, and sedimentation.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.

Provenance

Source

EnEAp project, via e-cienciaDatos Harvested Dataverse.

Collection Method

Empirical field tests carried out on mudbrick samples.

Time Range

mid-5th to mid-3rd millennium BCE.

Freshness

Last updated 2025-10-14 21:54:20; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Tell Zurghul/Nigin, Dhi Qar province, south-eastern Iraq.