درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

Notwithstanding its cultural wealth, archaeologists have hitherto given little consideration to Meshkinshahr County of Iran’s Ardabil Province. The region is remarkably rich in graves, as is evident from the various types of graves with simple inhumation, dolmen, rectangular stone-built, and Kurgan. In the spring of 2019, a rare example of Kurgan was investigated near the city of Fakhrabad. Unlike all other graves excavated in northwest Iran, its structure consisted of a combination of stones and mud bricks. This paper presents the preliminary results from the excavation of this Kurgan. While introducing the Kurgan, an assemblage of small artifacts and its structure were examined, and a relative chronology was then proposed. The Kurgan arguably occupies a special place in archaeology of Iran and South Caucasus given a combination of stones with mud bricks it has in its construction. Such Kurgan type still remains unreported from the region.

Central Asia is a key unit of archaeological studies of the Ancient Near East and an issue for important questions such as primary states, Aryan people immigration has a unique role in archaeological activities. Considering the geographical location of Dargaz (Dargaz) Plain at the periphery of Central Asia, it is a vital area in the archaeology of the northeastern part of the Iranian Central Plateau and Central Asia. The region is ideally situated to research regional relationships and inter-regional interactions between those cultural-geographical regions due to its ecological potential and geographic location. Archaeologically, to comprehend Cultural Similarities in Dargaz Plain, many studies and surveys have been done since the beginning of the 20th Century. However, because of the lack of more detailed excavation in this area, the quality of cultural material of Central Asia and the Iranian Central Plateau is reassessing continuously. The first archaeological survey by Kohl and Heskel in 1978 reveals the similarities between Central Asia and this area. The Following works were done for the sake of making known the prehistoric Sites, their interaction with neighboring regions, and their ecosystem but it remains incomplete. Twenty-one prehistoric settlements have remained in the area, dating from the Neolithic to the Iron Age I/III, according to archaeological studies carried out during these years. The majority of the locations that have been found are the ruins of dispersed villages and seasonal camps that were scattered throughout the plain, as well as at inaccessible heights and other locations. With an emphasis on the material culture, particularly the local ceramic traditions and the settlement patterns of the prehistoric site, this current work investigates the connection and interconnectedness of the Dargaz Plain and proposes novel prospects for future works. A study of the Dargaz Plain may shed new light on the social and cultural history of a larger region.

Bandian Dargaz site in Khorasan, is one of the fire temples dating back to the Sasanian period. In this fire temple, carved miniature motifs including animals such as goat, deer, ram, cow, horse, snake, scorpion, wolf, fox, turkey, swallow and dove have been found. In this article, carved miniature motifs are examined and analyzed.