OVERVIEW / PREFACE / $01hurry.htm
1: G. Buccellati, April 2011
Updated July 2017, L. Recht

A guide for first timers

Ancient Urkesh

The site of Urkesh has yielded significant new information about a very important period in early Syrian history. The Hurrians built a civilization that proved to be very influential for the whole of the ancient Near East. And Urkesh is the only city of the third millennium that can safely be considered as a major religious and political center of the Hurrians.
In this section, we introduce some of the highlights that define this civilization, such as they have emerged from our excavations. It is in the nature of an archaeological project that every new turn of the spade yields new insights, on the strength of which we must redefine our earlier understanding. With us, you, too, are on the crest of a wave that moves relentlessly forward. We hope you will enjoy being part, through your visit, of this exciting intellectual adventure.

Modern urkesh.org

     The navigation of urkesh.org is intended to be intuitive. The top bar shows the main sections of the website, and when clicking a section, the left-hand menu will show its content. Further detailed content and sub-pages can be shown by clicking the 'expand' button at the top of the left-hand menu.
     The present "Overview" section provides an general introduction to both the ancient site of Urkesh and the modern website of urkesh.org, while detailed information and in-depth discussions are found in the other sections.
     The website makes extensive use of links between the different pages, which facilitates greater contextual understanding and non-linear learning; it also encourages exploring. At the top of each page you will see the path of the page you are on, so that although exploring, you will never be lost.

     The website contains many individual pages and a large amount of different types of information and data. In order for you to navigate the site and find what you are looking for, you may consider the following:

For a general overview of the contents of each of the main sections of the website, click here.
If you want a quick overview of the excavations, go to the heading IN BRIEF in the sidebar, or click here.
Looking for a specific topic? Try the search option.
Does the website have you in mind? Look at Audience in the side bar, or click here.
See also these video clips with navigation tips and highlighted topics:

Navigational tips	Format: YouTube Duration: 6.55 minutes By: G. Buccellati Produced: May 2011	The basic elements you need to find what you are looking for, in particular: the directional toolbars at the top and on the side, and the indices.
Digging deeper	Missing	How to start out from the general introductory sections and get to more advanced argument and more complete data within the website.