Temple of Wadi Settlement
Wadi Settlement
Ubaid (6500–3800 BCE)·Ubaid·🇦🇺 New South Wales, Australia
About
About Temple of Wadi Settlement
Temple of Wadi Settlement in New South Wales, Australia is a Ubaid (6500–3800 BCE) temple complex attributed to Ubaid culture. Systematically investigated through magnetometry and test trenching, it presents a monumental core with ancillary settlement. Construction employs mudbrick on stone socle and demonstrates distinct phasing. Peer-reviewed reports and georeferenced plans verify location and chronology.
Why it mattersKey Ubaid temple-complex with stratified sequence and regional significance.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Cause of abandonment and collapse
- 02Construction labor organization and logistics
Theories
- 01Defensive refuge and tribal capital
- 02Centralized storage and redistribution (Cunliffe)
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 4042 BCE
- Period
- Ubaid (6500–3800 BCE)
- Culture
- Ubaid
- Purpose
- Residential and craft production
- Excavation
- Excavated
c. 4042 BCE
Initial construction and primary occupation
c. 3242 BCE
Major expansion and monumental elaboration
c. 606 BCE
Rebuilding and fortification phase
1974
Modern archaeological excavation and survey
On the ground
Structures & features
29.9357° S · 151.4417° E · 1343 m · 3 mapped features
Principal Monument
cairnBurial zone — cists
29.9337° S · 151.4396° EHydraulic Channel
enclosureBurial zone — shaft tombs
29.9358° S · 151.4435° EGateway
granaryBurial zone — tumuli
29.9374° S · 151.4430° E