Technology and Conservation

Thousands of small-sized artifacts were uncovered at Nuzi and shipped to Harvard University’s Semitic and Fogg museums for study and display. Although the majority of the pieces in the collection are fragments, the study of these artifacts has provided and continues to provide valuable insight into the ancient technologies of their manufacture. The collection includes rich early evidence for glazed ceramics and glass production in the ancient Near East. Also included are ornaments made of brass, a mixture of copper and zinc. The discovery of brass artifacts stunned researchers since brass technology was traditionally understood to have developed some one and one-half millennia after the destruction of Nuzi. Experimentation and analysis of metals from Nuzi also contributed importantly to the development of archaeological conservation techniques, some of which were still in their infancy in the early 20th century.