CHALCOLITHIC PERIOD IN WESTERN ANATOLIA: ARCHITECTURE AND CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES

The architecture of the coastal Western Anatolian Chalcolithic settlements form the main focus of this study. Construction techniques details and architectural plans have been evaluated with a chronological order in order to reveal a more general picture. Although there are minor variations, architectural features like construction material, technical details and house types generally reflect a uniform picture during the Chalcolithic period. Wattle - and - daub, stone foundations with mudbrick superstructure and mudbrick construction form the main technical aspects of architecture. Stone foundations with mudbrick superstructure was in use throughout the entire Chalcolithic Period while, Wattle - and - daub walls were used during the Middle and Late Chalcolithic period, pure mudbrick walls are attested only during the Late Chalcolithic. Rectangular, apsidal, grill planned or round structures and pit houses comprise the main architectural forms which were in use in different phases of the Chalcolithic Period. Rectangular plans were in use during the entire Chalcolithic Period while pit houses and round structures date to Middle and Late Chalcolithic. Apsidal and grill planned structures date to the Late Chalcolithic Period in coastal Western Anatolia.