The earliest culture discovered at Tell Barri belonged to the Halaf culture. Barri was situated in the fertile crescent and could benefit from winter rains as well as the river water. This developed the early agriculture of the area. The site of Tell Barri was inhabited since the fourth millennium BC. By the middle of the third millennium BC Barri came under Akkadian cultural influence. The main cultural centre at Tell Brak was only a short distance away.