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187 The artifacts and irrigation system, of a much higher standard than had then prevailed in the area, convinced the archaeologists that the settlers had come from Mesopotamia. Of the three hillocks that together formed the large mound, two appear to have been used as abodes and one as a work area. The latter was found to have been subdivided into rectangularlike seg- ments, within which there were built circular "pits," frequently in pairs. That they were not hearths for food preparation is suggested not only by their pairing and profusion (why would six or eight of them be required in one compartment?), but also by the fact that some of them were cylindrical and went quite deep into the ground. Combined with them were enigmatic "bands of ashes" (Fig. 58), the remains of some combustible material, which were covered with fine sand and then with regular soil, only to form the founda- tion of yet another layer of such "band of ashes." On the surface, the ground was strewn with pebbles, the remains of rocks broken up by some force that also blackened them. Among the artifacts found was a small, circular object made of fired clay (Fig. 59), shaped with precision for some unknown tech- nical purpose. The mystery only deepened by the discoveries in the residential areas. There the walls of the rectangular houses collapsed as ee 2 or aaa a ec i On ee aT though hit by a sudden force just above “ground level, as a result of which the upper parts of the walls collapsed neatly inward. Peace on Earth