American Schools of Oriental Research

ASOR’s 2019 Annual Meeting

San Diego, California, November 20–23, 2019,
At The Westin San Diego,

PAPER ABSTRACTS

Organized by: The American Schools of Oriental Research (ASOR)

2019
4F. Archaeology of Iran II
CHAIR: Holly Pittman (University of Pennsylvania)

Nomadism and Potteries:

A Research on the Interaction between Life Style and the Production of
Cultural Materials,
Case Study: Mersin cemetery in Shahmirzad, Semnan

Mehrdad Malekzadeh
(Iranian Center for Archaeological Research)

Zahra Golmohammadi
(MA in Archaeology)

Researches on typology and morphology of Iranian Iron Age had a fundamental

change since the beginning of 1960s; ROBERT HENRY DYSON JR. and THEODORE
CUYLER YOUNG JR. made new categories in classification on Iron Ages material
culture of western edge of Iranian plateau, based on their separated surveys and
excavations in Hasanlu and Godin, almost at the same time.
DYSON faced three different and distinguished potteries Style in cultural and
historical deposits in Hasanlu; He chose the easier solution; He simply called those
three kinds, three cultural and recognition in Iron Age, approximately: I) 1500 to
1500 BCE, II) 1250 to 850 BCE, III) 850 to 550 BCE.
This is while YOUNG chose the harder solution; His findings in Kangavar valley
and Godin were in three different pottery categories based on the frequency of type
and kind, he put them in three different categories: I) The early western gray ware
horizon, II) The late western gray ware horizon, III) The late western buff ware
horizon.
Although, there are old researches in Sialk (Kashan) and Khorvin (Karaj) and
later researches in Ma’murin (IKIA) and Qholi-Darvish-e Jamkaran (Qom),
archaeological researches in Iron Age in the central Iranian plateau is still new.
Whatever we know is related to Iron Age in Western edge of Iranian plateau.
In eastern parts of Iranian plateau, Mersin in the East of Talajim village and in
western Height Sefid (Espi) Rud River, and in the back of the mountains,
Mahdishahr (old Sangsar) and near Shahmirzad, Semnan are located. This area was
selected not only to the aim of archeological surveys but also for recognizing,
examining and documentation of historical and cultural effects in Finesk Dam.
Considering the evidences in this area, there is a cemetery in this area which back
to Iron Age III (Median period), IV (Achaemenid period) cultural materials
findings from Mersin, represents pottery, typology, morphology in late Iranian Iron
Age. But besides chronology and dating of collections, these potteries represent
newly recognized local traditions which can be said most of them belong to
Nomadic people.
Those, who would not stay in a place for a long time and would not place their
potteries and belongings on a flat surface for a long time too. They would put them
on horses and camels and go from one place to another. Some of these potteries are
designed and produced in a meaningful and special way without balance and
basically there is no balance like what we have in normal potteries.
More analysis about the interaction between the lifestyle and cultural material
production among Mersin findings are a part of questions in New Archaeology and
Anthropological Archaeology. Questions on how the nomadic life affects
archeology cultural materials and maybe opposite, how limitations of access to
cultural material affect production and life style. This is the responsibility of the
speech of the present study to go through these issues.