UTAR: Upper Tigris Archaeological Research Project

"The Upper Tigris Archaeological Research Project (UTARP) is a multi-year archaeological excavation and survey project aimed at defining archaeological correlates of ancient imperialism, colonialism and culture contact in an area that was, for much of Mesopotamian history, a frontier zone between the centralized states of Mesopotamia and the much less centralized cultures of its Anatolian periphery. By combining both regional and intensive archaeological surveys with excavations at several key archaeological sites in the Upper Tigris River Valley of southeastern Anatolia this project will contribute to the growing body of literature on ancient empires and the formation and mutation of culture in frontier zones."