The Riverine Landscape of Formative and Archaic Susiana (SW Iran); A Suggestion Based on Recent Geoarchaeological Evidence
The settlement evolution of the Early Neolithic period is considered a milestone in the human cultural history.While the archaeological implications of this period are discussed extensively, the landscape of Early Neolithic Iran has remained underrepresented, mostly due to lack of geoarchaeological...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Archaeological Sciences Research Centre, University of Sistan and Baluchestan
2022-06-01
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| Series: | Iranian Journal of Archaeological Studies |
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| Online Access: | https://ijas.usb.ac.ir/article_7491_76e4e04ede516d3928b30bce109bf238.pdf |
| _version_ | 1797371305643737088 |
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| author | Elnaz Rashidian |
| author_facet | Elnaz Rashidian |
| author_sort | Elnaz Rashidian |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The settlement evolution of the Early Neolithic period is considered a milestone in the human cultural history.While the archaeological implications of this period are discussed extensively, the landscape of Early Neolithic Iran has remained underrepresented, mostly due to lack of geoarchaeological investigations. The early periods Formative and Archaic Susiana, attested in several sites in the Susiana plain in southwestern Iran, are of utmostimportance as they bear witness to the first implications of standardization of material culture and intra-regional organization. This paper summarizes our current understanding of these periods as well as their landscape in the seventh and sixth millennia BCE. Then, it proposes a preliminary reconstruction of the landscape in this period based on recent geoarchaeological investigations by the author, applying a combination of different methods such as remote sensing, GIS analysis, and original geoarchaeological data including sediment cores, soil profiles, as well as laboratory analyses including sedimentological and chemical analyses (and lithological description in the field) and OSL dating. The results widen our perspective regarding the region’s hydrology. The Early Neolithic landscape of Susiana seems to have been different from the current one, primarily due to the tangible changes in watercourses and the noticeable differences in the surface soil and vegetation. The results further confirm thatheavy sedimentation of later periods covers most of the surface of this buried landscape including now buried watercourses and small wetlands. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T18:16:53Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b5055624dd164785b9d62a52a086b14d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2251-743X 2676-2919 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T18:16:53Z |
| publishDate | 2022-06-01 |
| publisher | Archaeological Sciences Research Centre, University of Sistan and Baluchestan |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Iranian Journal of Archaeological Studies |
| spelling | doaj.art-b5055624dd164785b9d62a52a086b14d2023-12-31T11:32:53ZengArchaeological Sciences Research Centre, University of Sistan and BaluchestanIranian Journal of Archaeological Studies2251-743X2676-29192022-06-0112112810.22111/ijas.2022.74917491The Riverine Landscape of Formative and Archaic Susiana (SW Iran); A Suggestion Based on Recent Geoarchaeological EvidenceElnaz Rashidian0Department of Archaeology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany.The settlement evolution of the Early Neolithic period is considered a milestone in the human cultural history.While the archaeological implications of this period are discussed extensively, the landscape of Early Neolithic Iran has remained underrepresented, mostly due to lack of geoarchaeological investigations. The early periods Formative and Archaic Susiana, attested in several sites in the Susiana plain in southwestern Iran, are of utmostimportance as they bear witness to the first implications of standardization of material culture and intra-regional organization. This paper summarizes our current understanding of these periods as well as their landscape in the seventh and sixth millennia BCE. Then, it proposes a preliminary reconstruction of the landscape in this period based on recent geoarchaeological investigations by the author, applying a combination of different methods such as remote sensing, GIS analysis, and original geoarchaeological data including sediment cores, soil profiles, as well as laboratory analyses including sedimentological and chemical analyses (and lithological description in the field) and OSL dating. The results widen our perspective regarding the region’s hydrology. The Early Neolithic landscape of Susiana seems to have been different from the current one, primarily due to the tangible changes in watercourses and the noticeable differences in the surface soil and vegetation. The results further confirm thatheavy sedimentation of later periods covers most of the surface of this buried landscape including now buried watercourses and small wetlands.https://ijas.usb.ac.ir/article_7491_76e4e04ede516d3928b30bce109bf238.pdfiransusiananeolithicgeoarchaeologyriverine landscapeearly holocene |
| spellingShingle | Elnaz Rashidian The Riverine Landscape of Formative and Archaic Susiana (SW Iran); A Suggestion Based on Recent Geoarchaeological Evidence Iranian Journal of Archaeological Studies iran susiana neolithic geoarchaeology riverine landscape early holocene |
| title | The Riverine Landscape of Formative and Archaic Susiana (SW Iran); A Suggestion Based on Recent Geoarchaeological Evidence |
| title_full | The Riverine Landscape of Formative and Archaic Susiana (SW Iran); A Suggestion Based on Recent Geoarchaeological Evidence |
| title_fullStr | The Riverine Landscape of Formative and Archaic Susiana (SW Iran); A Suggestion Based on Recent Geoarchaeological Evidence |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Riverine Landscape of Formative and Archaic Susiana (SW Iran); A Suggestion Based on Recent Geoarchaeological Evidence |
| title_short | The Riverine Landscape of Formative and Archaic Susiana (SW Iran); A Suggestion Based on Recent Geoarchaeological Evidence |
| title_sort | riverine landscape of formative and archaic susiana sw iran a suggestion based on recent geoarchaeological evidence |
| topic | iran susiana neolithic geoarchaeology riverine landscape early holocene |
| url | https://ijas.usb.ac.ir/article_7491_76e4e04ede516d3928b30bce109bf238.pdf |
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