[3] Its remains constitute a tell located in the Upper Khabur region, near the modern village of Tell Brak, 50 kilometers north-east of Al-Hasaka city, Al-Hasakah Governorate.

The city never regained its former importance, remaining as a small settlement, and abandoned at some points of its history, until disappearing from records during the early Abbasid era.

Tell Brak was a religious center from its earliest periods; its famous Eye Temple is unique in the Fertile Crescent, and its main deity, Belet Nagar, was revered in the entire Khabur region, making the city a pilgrimage site.

[10] The name "Nagar" ceased occurring following the Old Babylonian period,[11][12] however, the city continued to exist as Nawar, under the control of Hurrian state of Mitanni.

[21] Excavations and surface survey of the site and its surroundings, unearthed a large platform of patzen bricks that dates to late Ubaid,[note 1][21] and revealed that Tell Brak developed as an urban center slightly earlier than better known cities of southern Mesopotamia, such as Uruk.

[29] Comparison can be made with Hamoukar in LC1-2 period, where the early urban settlement has been described as "a vast low or flat scatter of pottery and obsidian".

[64] At its height, Nagar encompassed most of the southwestern half of the Khabur Basin,[64] and was a diplomatic and political equal of the Eblaite and Mariote states.

[65] The kingdom included at least 17 subordinate cities,[66] such as Hazna,[67] and most importantly Nabada, which was a city-state annexed by Nagar,[68] and served as a provincial capital.

[63] However, a few years later, a treaty was concluded, and the relations progressed toward a dynastic marriage between princess Tagrish-Damu of Ebla, and prince Ultum-Huhu, Nagar's monarch's son.

[70] Later, Ebla's king Isar-Damu concluded an alliance with Nagar and Kish against Mari,[71] and the campaign was headed by the Eblaite vizier Ibbi-Sipish, who led the combined armies to victory in a battle near Terqa.

[81] The early Akkadian monarchs were occupied with internal conflicts,[82] and Tell Brak was temporarily abandoned by Akkad at some point preceding the reign of Naram-Sin.

[91] The most important Akkadian building in the city is called the "Palace of Naram-Sin",[note 6][91] which had parts of it built over the original Eye Temple.

[103] Few short lived houses were built in area CH during period N,[103] and although greatly reduced in size, archaeology provided evidence for continued occupation in the city, instead of abandonment.

[51] The Urukean colony was abandoned by the colonists toward the end of the fourth millennium BC, leaving the indigenous Tell Brak a much contracted city.

[38] The temple was probably dedicated for the Sumerian Innana or the Semitic Ishtar; Michel Meslin hypothesized that the "Eyes" figurines were a representation of an all-seeing female deity.

[note 12][121][148] The excavations in area TW revealed feasting to be an important local habit, as two cooking facilities, large amounts of grains, skeletons of animals, a domed backing oven and barbequing fire pits were discovered.

[154] Tell Brak provided great knowledge on the culture of Mitanni, which produced glass using sophisticated techniques, that resulted in different varieties of multicolored and decorated shapes.

[115] Samples of the elaborate Nuzi ware were discovered, in addition to seals that combine distinctive Mitannian elements with the international motifs of that period.

[79] However, central control was tightened and the number of Akkadian officials increased, following the supposed environmental event that preceded the construction of Naram-Sin's palace.

[113] The post-Akkadian Nagar was a city-state kingdom,[163] that gradually lost its political importance during the early second millennium BC, as no evidence for a king dating to that period exists.

[45] The city manufactured different objects, including chalices made of obsidian and white marble,[36] faience,[168] flint tools and shell inlays.

[169] However, evidence exists for a slight shift in production of goods toward manufacturing objects desired in the south, following the establishment of the Uruk colony.

[83] The kingdom produced glass,[168] wool,[64] and was famous for breeding and trading in the Kunga,[170][171] a hybrid of a jenny (a female donkey) and a male Syrian wild ass.

[115] The city provided evidence for the international commercial contacts of Mitanni, including Egyptian, Hittite and Mycenaean objects, some of which were produced in the region to satisfy the local taste.

[175] The kungas of Nagar were in great demand in the Eblaite empire;[170] they cost two kilos of silver, fifty times the price of a donkey,[174] and were imported regularly by the monarchs of Ebla to be used as transport animals and gifts for allied cities.

[176][4] After a survey of the area in 1934, Tell Brak was excavated for three seasons by the British archaeologist Sir Max Mallowan, husband of Agatha Christie, in 1937 and 1938.

Finds included a large cache of carnelian, gold, silver, and lapis lazuli beads, late 3rd millennium arrowheads, stone maceheads, a range of ceramic wares, and an alabaster statuette of a seated bear.

[194] The most recent excavations took place in the spring of 2011, but archaeological work is currently suspended due to the ongoing Syrian Civil War.

[195] A number of Proto-Literate clay tokens were found at the site, mainly in Uruk leveling fill but in one case in a stratified context.

[197] The site changed hands between the different combatants, mainly the Kurdish People's Protection Units and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.