5,000-Year-Old Iraqi Site Reveals Early Government Formation and Collapse

New findings at Shakhi Kora suggest one of the earliest experiments in state governance, later rejected by the local population.

Archaeologists uncovered 5,000-year-old beveled-rim bowls at Shakhi Kora in Iraqi Kurdistan, linked to early centralized governance during the Uruk period.
The bowls were likely used to serve communal meals, such as meat stews, as compensation for labor tied to institutional structures.
Excavations revealed southern Mesopotamian influences in architecture, including pillars and drainage systems, indicating connections to the ancient city of Uruk.
The site was abandoned without evidence of violence or environmental disaster, suggesting a deliberate rejection of hierarchical governance by the local community.
Researchers highlight that early complex societies did not uniformly embrace centralized power, with some communities resisting top-down control.