Rescue Archaeology Application: Investigation of Kuriki Mound Archaeological Area (Batman, SE Turkey) by using Direct Current Resistivity and Magnetic Methods

In this study, we investigated the Kuriki Mound Area using direct current resistivity and magnetometry. The investigation site is considered the first settlement area and is dated to four thousand years. The purpose of the geophysical study was to direct the excavation and to rescue the historical heritage, which will be flooded due to a dam to be constructed in the region. The resistivity data that were measured in the field along parallel lines were interpreted using 2D and 3D inversion algorithms and we investigated the deficiencies of 2D inversion compared to the 3D inversion. Moreover, we identified anomalous zones very clearly by applying a tangent hyperbolic filter to the magnetic gradiometer data. Regions with anomalies identified with both geophysical methods were excavated, and remains from 4th to 1st millennium BC were found. Furthermore, we discovered that there were no connecting structures between the two mounds, therefore preventing an unnecessary and large-scale excavation.