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DIPARTIMENTO SCIENZE DELL’ANTICHITÀ

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VICINO ORIENTE XVII - 2013

ROMA 2013

SAPIENZA UNIVERSITÀ DI ROMA

DIPARTIMENTO SCIENZE DELL’ANTICHITÀ

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Comitato Scientifico: Carlo Giovanni Cereti, Maria Vittoria Fontana, Lorenzo Nigro, Marco Ramazzotti, Arcangela Santoro

Direttore Scientifico: Lorenzo Nigro

Redazione: Daria Montanari, Chiara Fiaccavento Tipografia: SK7 - Roma

ISSN 0393-0300

Rivista con comitato di referee

Journal with international referee system

www.lasapienzatojericho.it/SitoRivista/Journal/Rivista.php

In copertina: mappa illustrata del mondo di H. Bünting, pubblicata in Itinerarium Sacrae Scripturae, 1581.

DIPARTIMENTO SCIENZE DELL’ANTICHITÀ

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SOMMARIO ARTICOLI

P. Gignoux - Souvenirs d’un grand savant: Gherardo Gnoli (1937-2012) 1 N.N.Z. Chegini - M.V. Fontana - A. Asadi - M. Rugiadi - A.M. Jaia - A. Blanco -

L. Ebanista - V. Cipollari

Estakhr Project - second preliminary report of the joint Mission of the Iranian Center for Archaeological Research, the Parsa-Pasargadae Research Foundation

and the Sapienza University of Rome, Italy 7

A. Asadi - S.M. Mousavi Kouhpar - J. Neyestani - A. Hojabri-Nobari -

Sasanian and Early Islamic settlement patterns north of the Persian Gulf 21 L. Nigro - Before the Greeks: the earliest Phoenician settlement in Motya -

recent discoveries by Rome «La Sapienza» Expedition 39 C. Fiaccavento - Potters’ wheels from Khirbet al-Batrawy:

a reconsideration of social contexts 75

D. Montanari - A copper javelin head in the UCL Palestinian Collection 105 A. Massafra - A group of metal weapons from Tell el-‘Ajjul

in the Hunterian Museum, University of Glasgow 115

A. Campus - Costruire memoria e tradizione: il tofet 135 F. Spagnoli - Demetra a Mozia:

evidenze dall’area sacra del Kothon nel V secolo a.C. 153 R. Francia - Lo stile ‘poetico’ delle historiolae ittite 165

V. Pisaniello - Il sumerogramma IR nei testi ittiti 175

SOUVENIRS D’UN GRAND SAVANT:

GHERARDO GNOLI (1937-2012)

Philippe Gignoux - École Pratique des Hautes Études

L’auteur de ce court article veut rendre hommage à son collègue et ami, le regretté professeur Gherardo Gnoli, décédé en 2012. Ce dernier, prodigieusement doué d’intelligence et de mémoire, eut la chance de bénéficier des meilleurs spécialistes des langues anciennes et orientales en Italie. C’est pourquoi il eut la possibilité de pratiquer en quelque sorte trois métiers, lorsqu’il succéda à G. Tucci, à la tête de l’ISMEO. Car il devait mener de front l’enseignement, comme professeur à l’Istituto Orientale di Napoli, puis à la Sapienza di Roma, comme administrateur de ce prestigieux Istituto ouvert à toutes les disciplines de l’orientalisme et qui devait prendre une nouvelle extension sous le nom de IsIAO, enfin le chercheur le plus prolifique, notamment dans le domaine iranien et aussi le sud-arabique. Admirable initiateur et organisateur de nouvelles institutions, il a été l’un des fondateurs les plus efficaces de la ‘Societas Iranologica Europaea’, destinée à regrouper les chercheurs en iranologie, après le changement de régime en Iran qui se fermait aux Européens. Cette institution, en organisant des conférences internationales, eut pour but principal de réunir en Europe, et puis partout dans le monde, tous les chercheurs souvent dispersés. Gnoli s’occupa de la publication des Actes, et de la revue East and West, et de bien d’autres choses. Ayant formé en Italie une trentaine de savants, sa disparition demeure une grande perte pour ce pays devenu au premier rang des études iraniennes en particulier, dans les domaines de l’archéologie, de l’histoire, de l’histoire des religions. J’eus le grand plaisir d’obtenir pour lui le grade bien mérité de Docteur Honoris Causa, et il fut aussi Membre Associé Etranger de l’Académie des Inscriptions et Belles- Lettres à Paris.

Keywords: Gherardo Gnoli; Societas Iranologica Europaea; Istituto Orientale di Napoli; Istituto Italiano per l’Africa e l’Oriente; Sapienza Università di Roma

Je crois que c’est Jacques Duchesne-Guillemin (1900-2012), qui, le premier, me présenta à Gherardo Gnoli lors du Congrès International de 1971 à Rome sur le thème «La Persia nel Medioevo». Ils étaient déjà devenus très proches, car je pense que Duchesne- Guillemin avait décelé les qualités exceptionnelles de Gherardo sur le plan humain et scientifique. Sans doute tout jeune chercheur que j’étais en iranologie, je fus impressionné et intimidé par la forte stature de Gnoli et par son assurance, lui qui toutefois savait toujours mettre les gens à l’aise et exprimer sa gentillesse quand il s’agissait d’approcher de nouveaux collègues, avec une très grande courtoisie, sans aucune prévention mais au contraire avec beaucoup de prévenance. Je devais plus tard apprécier non sans admiration ses facultés de collaboration, son constant désir de discuter de tant de problèmes qui l’intéressaient toujours vivement, et de toute sorte car il était doté d’une mémoire prodigieuse. Il avait en effet lu et retenu durant sa formation scientifique toute la littérature savante des 19^ème et 20^ème siècles, et connaissait toutes les théories échafaudées sur le zoroastrisme, son sujet principal, y compris les plus farfelues. Je pense que son grand désir était d’en extraire les plus admissibles et de les prolonger par ses propres travaux. C’est pourquoi il m’a toujours paru - et ce n’est pas une critique - vouloir ne rien perdre de ce qui avait été acquis dans les recherches sur Zoroastre dans la mesure où elles lui paraissaient

raisonnables et dignes d’être reprises et approfondies. Plutôt que d’élaborer de nouvelles théories ou interprétations, il ne voulait rien écarter des idées passées mais en conserver la pertinence quand il le fallait. On pourrait le définir comme un «classique» mais aussi un humaniste, un admirateur impartial de la place du zoroastrisme dans le monde, et des travaux de ses prédécesseurs. Ce qui ne veut pas dire qu’il n’est pas entré dans tous les débats de son temps, parfois avec une saine colère, lorsqu’on en discutait avec lui, mais toujours avec respect et sympathie envers ses opposants. Dans ces discussions, à cause de ma mémoire déficiente, je n’osais guère intervenir. Gherardo me reprochait parfois, mais avec gentillesse, de ne pas savoir parler l’italien. Il est vrai qu’allant si souvent dans son pays grâce à ses invitations, j’aurais dû faire cet effort, mais je m’en disculpe en disant que je n’ai jamais trouvé le temps d’en apprendre la grammaire. La recherche, dans les domaines qu’il me plaisait d’aborder, restait pour moi prioritaire.

Ses parents, selon les informations que son épouse a bien voulu me communiquer, étaient des enseignants en lettres (italien et histoire) dans le secondaire. Son père s’appelait Aldo et sa mère Maria Lenzi. Gherardo fit ses études primaires à Rome, dans une école publique appelée La Palombella, puis secondaires au lycée Virgilio, tout près de Via della Pace où il était né. Cet appartement, il y passa toute sa vie, jusqu’à ces dernières années où il dût s’en séparer en raison de son été de santé. Et d’ailleurs il avait déjà transféré sa bibliothèque à Cagli. A l’université La Sapienza, où éventuellement il deviendra professeur, après des études classiques (latin, grec), il se forma aux études orientales sous la direction des meilleurs savants de cette époque: à l’hébreu avec Levi della Vida et Sabatino Moscati, à l’arabe avec F. Gabrielli, à la glottologie avec A. Pagliaro, à l’iranien avec A. Bausani, à l’histoire de l’Inde et de l’Asie Centrale, avec G. Tucci auquel il succédera à la présidence de l’IsMEO (Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente, devenu plus tard l’IsIAO, Istituto Italiano per l’Asia e l’Oriente). Mais il enseigna d’abord à Naples, ce qui nécessitait un long voyage.

Comme envers beaucoup d’autres collègues et amis, la générosité de Gherardo s’est manifestée à moi à de multiples reprises, tant pour des colloques romains qu’à d’autres occasions. Il me faisait loger dans un grand hôtel du Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, au milieu du vieux Rome, à peu de distance de chez lui où il m’invitait à dîner. Depuis plusieurs années il avait entrepris de restaurer son palais de Cagli, dans les Marches et à trois heures de Rome, partageant ainsi chaque semaine en bilocation. Cette superbe demeure était un héritage de sa femme Erminia, d’origine aristocratique, de la grande famille des Michelini Tocci, et il avait aménagé une bibliothèque personnelle de 90 m², à l’endroit où se trouvait autrefois une magnanerie, à part de la maison principale. Il y recevait ses collègues et y organisa même un petit colloque entre italiens. J’y ai fait deux séjours, l’un avec ma femme après une série de conférences à Ravenna, à l’invitation d’Antonio Panaino, de l’Université de Bologne, l’un de ses disciples les plus actifs, qui a beaucoup fait pour le développement de l’iranologie dans ce secteur; l’autre, au retour d’un congrès du CERO à Beyrouth, alors qu’il dirigeait les travaux de restauration de cette antique et très belle demeure. C’est grâce à lui également que je fis la connaissance d’Adriano Rossi, un éminent dialectologue, qui fut Recteur de l’Institut Oriental de Naples. J’ai pu en 1979 visiter Naples mais surtout Pompéi.

Dans un autre congrès international (1982) sur «La mort, les morts dans les sociétés anciennes», qui se tint sur l’île de San Giorgio au large de Venise, Gherardo me donna ainsi l’occasion de visiter les merveilles de San Marco. Il m’a fait aimer son pays, au premier rang des pays européens pour sa culture si riche, ses arts, sa musique baroque qui inspira Mozart et tant d’autres compositeurs, ses sites archéologiques. Gherardo, peu intéressé par les ouvrages d’archéologie, ne se privait pourtant pas, en homme de devoir et d’initiative, de visiter régulièrement les chantiers de fouilles qui ressortissaient à la responsabilité de l’IsMEO, mais il avait un goût certain comme moi-même pour l’épigraphie. G. Gnoli est à compter indubitablement parmi les grands humanistes de la culture européenne, avec sa marque italienne si appréciable, et pourtant parfois dénigrée par des français dont l’arrogance demeure chez certains l’un des détestables défauts.

Il m’a fait connaître aussi les nombreux élèves qu’il avait formés avec toute la rigueur d’un philologue chevronné et de l’historien des religions universelles qu’il était devenu. Je pense à A. Panaino, que j’ai déjà cité, un homme plein de fougue, d’enthousiasme et d’acharnement, qui a déjà laissé une production si abondante et pertinente. D’autres disciples, comme Carlo Cereti et Andrea Piras continuent cette grande tradition scientifique de l’iranologie créée par Gnoli en partie.

Il était aussi doué pour l’administration efficace, pas comme la nôtre, gaspilleuse et dépensière, et quand je le voyais à la tête de son Institut, via Merulana dans cet ancien palais Brancaccio, il me semblait avoir les prérogatives d’un ministre qui se contente de quelques collaborateurs dociles, et non d’une cinquantaine de conseillers, consultants et autres sous-fifres qui coûtent si cher aux contribuables. Ses contacts toujours courtois avec les autorités ministérielles, universitaires ou étrangères lui permettaient de trouver les financements nécessaires et ainsi d’élargir sans cesse le champ des domaines de l’IsMEO et de ses responsabilités. C’est pourquoi sa maladie et sa disparition ont sonné le glas de son Institut auquel il était si attaché, détruit par la crise économique et la mauvaise gestion des politiques, bien qu’il eût voulu en garder la direction jusqu’à ses derniers jours, non par orgueil mais par son sens du devoir. De plus, comme je l’ai écrit ailleurs (Studia Iranica 2012), il consacra aussi une partie de son temps à ses cours et à ses recherches personnelles:

trois métiers pour une seule personne!

Mais revenons à mes souvenirs, pour montrer combien j’ai bénéficié de son amitié et de sa générosité. Outre les colloques que j’ai évoqués et auxquels il m’invita¹, j’ai vécu avec lui une grande aventure: celle de la fondation de la Societas Iranologica Europaea. C’est en octobre 1981 qu’en raison de la révolution islamique rendant impossible la poursuite des recherches européennes, un groupe de savants britanniques² (dont Basil Gray, Ilya Gershevitch), à l’instigation de la Royal British Academy, réunit des délégués de Belgique (Louis Vanden Berghe), du Danemark, de Grande-Bretagne, de France (moi-même), d’Allemagne (H.R. Römer), de Hollande, d’Italie (G. Gnoli), de Suède (Bo Utas) et de Suisse. Il s’agissait de créer une Association européenne destinée à promouvoir les études

1 Un autre de mes collègues et amis, le professeur Janos Harmatta, de l’Académie hongroise des sciences, m’invita cinq ou six fois à la série de colloques qu’il put organiser à Budapest durant la période communiste sur le thème «La collection des sources pour l’histoire de l’Asie Centrale pré-islamique». Voir Gnoli 2011, 42.

2 Cfr. Gignoux 1990.

iraniennes et persanes, menacées par le changement de régime en Iran. On me demanda de représenter la France dans les réunions préparatoires qui se tinrent à Londres, et la fondation officielle se fit à Rome en juin 1983, selon les propositions de G. Gnoli qui accepté de faire de la Ville Eternelle le siège social de la nouvelle Association et de sa trésorerie, au sein de l’IsMEO. Cette institution assuma aussi la publication des Actes du congrès de fondation (1985). Le président élu fut Basil Gray, dans un board de sept membres. Les conférences générales se tinrent tous les quatre ans , entrecoupées (mais pas nécessairement) au milieu de cette période par des colloques (ainsi Fribourg-en-Brisgau 1985). Par la suite, Gnoli est resté extrêmement actif dans le développement et l’organisation de cette institution.

Je me souviens avec émotion de toutes les réunions du board, qui eurent lieu dans les principales capitales européennes, et qui se déroulaient dans une atmosphère studieuse et amicale. Ces rencontres ne furent jamais inutiles, Gherardo y apportant des idées nouvelles, avec toute son autorité naturelle, mais en tenant compte des opinions d’autrui. Il ne se privait jamais de ses cigares, si forts que j’ai rarement essayé d’en fumer. La grappa faisait aussi partie de ses dilections. Nous le définirerions en français comme un «bon vivant»

mais au meilleur sens du terme. Il avait la chance de ceux qui peuvent se contenter de quelques heures de sommeil, et hyperactif comme il était, il pouvait se consacrer à tant d’activités et de voyages, souvent accompagné de sa femme, d’une grande gentillesse et d’un grand dévouement à son égard. Le père de celle-ci avait été conservateur au cabinet des monnaies du Vatican. Les reproches qu’il lui adressait parfois avec un sourire ironique, n’étaient que le signe de son amour pour elle, et de l’humour qui émaillait si souvent ses conversations. Avec son chauffeur, ses relations n’étaient que cordiales, de même qu’avec ses secrétaires.

La dernière fois que nous nous sommes rencontrés, ce fut lors d’une escale à Civitavecchia, à l’automne 2007, lors d’une croisière en Méditerranée, quand il envoya son chauffeur nous prendre pour passer l’après-midi à Rome, en compagnie de Carlo Cereti. Il nous semblait avoir surmonté la maladie, mais ce ne fut pas le cas. Toutefois son énergie débordante a été pour moi un ‘aiguillon’ et un encouragement à ne jamais baisser les bras, quand la recherche vous tient lieu de passion.

Gherardo est l’un des rares chercheurs à n’avoir jamais utilisé un ordinateur³. Certes, disposant d’un secrétariat, il écrivait tout à la main, de sa belle écriture détachée et très lisible. Il écrivait presque parfaitement le français, mais le parlait aussi fort bien, de même que l’allemand (il avait des ancêtres germaniques) et l’anglais.

En mars 1986, Gherardo me fit nommer Membre Correspondant de l’IsMEO, écrivant que «We feel sure that…. your long lasting relations with our Institute and with the Italian culture will be further strengthened and tightened» (lettre du 14 mars 1986). Lui-même fut élu Membre Associé Etranger de l’Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres (Paris) en date du 13 février 1998, et à cette occasion une réception lui fut offerte à la Sorbonne pour la remise de son épée au cours de laquelle plusieurs collègues et moi-même eurent le plaisir de dire tout le bien qu’ils pensaient de Gherardo. Ces allocutions amicales ont été publiés

3 Il n’est évidemment pas le seul de sa génération. G. Lazard, quoique plus âgé que lui, s’y est tout de même mis dernièrement, mais à un âge avancé.

par le Rectorat en 50 pages, et je ne soustrerais pas un mot de ce que j’ai pu énoncer ce jour-là (cfr. p. 19-23) en résumant l’essentiel de son œuvre scientifique. Auparavant Gnoli avait été élu Membre Correspondant de l’ Accademia dei Lincei, puis Membre National de cette illustre Académie en 2009.

L’un des derniers articles qu’il a sans doute écrits, est sa participation au Florilège, intitulé «Un demi-siècle» (2011), que Rika Gyselen et Ch. Jullien publièrent pour fêter mon 80^ème anniversaire. Il y fait un éloge si touchant que je ne mérite pas, mais qui exprime toute l’amitié qu’il avait pour moi. Il a raison bien sûr d’écrire que: «Nos rapports ont été de collaboration active pour la promotion des études iraniennes dans un contexte international» (p. 42). Il souligna aussi le rôle de «notre commun engagement dans la Societas Iranologica Europaea» (p. 45). Dans sa conclusion, Gherardo affirmait que «notre amitié, jamais troublée pendant un demi-siècle… a été pour moi une raison de vraie joie et un authentique plaisir de l’esprit» (p. 47). Je crois que cela est une vérité, en guise de testament à mon égard, qui me touche beaucoup, dans la mesure où je ne pensais pas qu’il avait une telle estime de moi et qu’en effet j’ai toujours essayé, dans la fidélité à mes vrais amis, de faire en sorte qu’aucune divergence tant soit peu importante ne vienne en altérer la profondeur. Comme il l’exprime avec tant d’estime à mon égard, nos échanges et nos invitations réciproques ont été permanents. Lorsque le ministère français de l’Education Nationale accepta que l’Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, section des sciences religieuses, puisse conférer à des savants étrangers le grade de Doctor honoris causa, j’ai aussitôt pressé mes collègues de choisir Gherardo Gnoli, qui reçut cette distinction si méritée en 1998 dans la grande salle de réception de la Sorbonne.

C’est lui encore qui me proposa d’assumer le secrétariat scientifique d’un Congrès international organisé par l’IsMEO et l’ Accademia dei Lincei sur «La Perse et l’Asie Centrale» en 1994.

Ce que j’écris là, n’est qu’un modeste remerciement à tout ce que Gherardo m’a apporté, mais de manière malheureusement posthume. Il est sûr que sa disparition signe un amoindrissement sérieux de la recherche italienne. Nous ne devons pas par une sorte d’arrogance nous en réjouir en France, où les gouvernants, et depuis longtemps, ont endossé toutes les erreurs des pays du sud de l’Europe, et notamment dans nos institutions universitaires, pour lesquelles nous n’avons pas eu un ‘Gnoli’ pour les réformer. Alors que pour expliquer le délabrement de l’Université, les autorités invoquent le manque de crédits financiers et de postes, la vérité de cet échec réside dans le système français du ‘copinage’, des passe-droits, du favoritisme, de l’injustice des recrutements qui laisse partir à l’étranger les meilleurs de nos chercheurs, le manque de sélection (le bas prix des inscriptions des étudiants qui demeure ridicule), qui entraine les bacheliers à quitter l’université pour laquelle ils ne sont pas faits au bout d’un ou deux ans⁴. La crise économique a bon dos pour justifier l’inanité de notre système. Il suffirait de quelques courageux comme G. Gnoli pour inverser le cours des choses, une politique universitaire dont on sait bien qu’elle est archaïque, voire immorale⁵. Le refus des réformes conduit nécessairement à la faillite. Le

4 Lire le livre pénétrant et fort juste de Jean-François Kahn (2012).

5 On voit maintenant la ministre du logement distribuer la Légion d’honneur à ses ami(e)s. N’est-ce pas du

‘copinage’?

pire: n’est-ce pas l’hypocrisie avec laquelle on déclare faire des réformes, mais où sont- elles? L’Italie du moins peut se montrer fière de l’œuvre de Gherardo Gnoli.

BIBLIOGRAPHIE GIGNOUX,PH.

1990 ‘Societas Iranologica Europaea’: Its Formation and Growth: East and West 40 (1990), pp.

289-292.

GNOLI,G.

2011 Un dèmi siecle: R.GYSELEN -C. JULLIEN (eds.), Rabbo l’olmyn «Maitre pour l’Éternité».

Florilège offert à Philippe Gignoux pour son 80^e anniversaire (Cahiers de Studia Iranica 43), Paris 2011, pp. 41-52.

KAHN,J.-F.

2012 La Catastrophe du 6 Mai 2012, Paris 2012.

ESTAKHR PROJECT - SECOND PRELIMINARY REPORT OF THE JOINT MISSION OF THE IRANIAN CENTER

FOR ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH,

THE PARSA-PASARGADAE RESEARCH FOUNDATION AND THE SAPIENZA UNIVERSITY OF ROME, ITALY

Nasser Noruz Zadeh Chegini - Iranian Centre for Archaeological Research - Maria Vittoria Fontana - Sapienza University of Rome -

Ali Asadi - Parsa-Pasargadae Research Foundation -

Martina Rugiadi - Alessandro Maria Jaia - Alessandro Blanco - Laura Ebanista - Sapienza University of Rome -

Valentina Cipollari - Independent Scholar

La trincea aperta nel corso di questa prima campagna di scavo, a ovest della moschea, ha evidenziato almeno otto fasi. La fase 1 è relativa al muro esterno della moschea, dotato di un’apertura e di una torre semicircolare. Di particolare interesse (fase 2) è un asse stradale lastricato, connesso a una rilevante dorsale fognaria. L’articolazione della strada, già messa in evidenza dalle indagini geofisiche, sembra delimitare un importante quartiere a ovest della moschea.

L’asse stradale, pur subendo un parziale rifacimento sul lato ovest (fase 3), conserva la sua fisionomia fino a tutta la fase 4. La successiva sovrapposizione di più livelli stradali in terra battuta che obliterano la strada lastricata, restringendone la carreggiata pur conservandone l’orientamento (fase 5), sembra mettere in evidenza la perdita di rilevanza del quartiere ad ovest della moschea, probabilmente in corrispondenza di una fase di decadenza della compagine urbana risalente all’XI secolo.

Keywords: Estakhr; Iran; Early Islamic; Sasanian; archaeology

The second season of archaeological activities of the joint Iranian-Italian Archaeological Mission in Estakhr was carried out from October 12^th to November 9^th, 2012 under the joint direction of Nasser Noruz Zadeh Chegini (Iranian pre-Islamic Archaeology, formerly Director of the Iranian Centre for Archaeological Research) and Maria Vittoria Fontana (Islamic Archaeology, Sapienza University).¹ Participating institutions included the Iranian Centre for Archaeological Research (ICAR), the Parsa- Pasargadae Research Foundation (PPRF) and the Sapienza University of Rome (Sapienza).

The research team was composed of Martina Rugiadi, field director, archaeologist (Sapienza), Ali Asadi, field director, archaeologist (PPRF), Alessandro M. Jaia, topographer and archaeologist (Sapienza), Alessandro Blanco, topographer and archaeologist (Sapienza), Valentina Cipollari, topographer and archaeologist, Laura

1

The second campaign was funded by the Sapienza University of Rome, the Fondation Max van Berchem of Geneva and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Ebanista, topographer and archaeologist (Sapienza), Ali Moludi (MA student) and Malihe Tahmasbi (draftsman). Thirteen university students joined the research team.²

The main aim of the season was to investigate the area west of the mosque³ in order to verify the presence of a monumental building identified by D. Whitcomb on one of E.F.

Schmidt’s aerial photographs. Whitcomb suggested that this structure could be the 7^th century dar al-imara (governmental palace), built when Estakhr was capital of the Fars province.⁴ The combination of mosque and dar al-imara is known from other Islamic cities, but no examples have been found yet in the Iranian region. In the course of the first season (May 2012), a 3D digital terrain model (DTM) was made of the same area shown in the aerial photograph (see below).⁵ The results seemed to contradict those implied by the aerial photograph, however, since a deep depression appears in the area corresponding to the line of the wall of the suggested building, while patches of elevated ground appeared to the west of that line, almost parallel to it. The geophysical survey and the excavation undertaken during the second season helped explaining the question.⁶

1.GEOPHYSICAL SURVEY

The geophysical survey was carried out in three squares in the area west and northwest of the remains of the mosque. The investigation was conducted by Sébastien Gondet (Bologna University) and Kourosh Mohammadkhani (Lyon 2 University) by gracious permission of the Persepolis Project directed by P. Callieri and A.R. Askari.

The squares (50 × 50 m each) cover the area in Schmidt’s aerial photograph that Whitcomb identified as the northern part of the palace. The results show a strong anomaly, square in shape (fig. 1), having approximately the same orientation of the mosque and following almost precisely the route of the lines visible in the aerial photograph.

The corresponding depression of the ground shown in the digital terrain modeling called its nature into question.

2 Mohsen Armat, Mohammad Derakhshah, Mohsen Emadi, Vahed Fatehi, Reza Golbakhsh, Fazollah Habibi, Hamid Reza Kahami Dekhsheykhi, Jawad Keshavarzi, Ahmad Monozahian, Hamid Mowlayi, Abuzar Tavakkol, Salar Vatandust, Hamid Reza Zare.

3

Estakhr, about 60 km north of Shiraz, and about 5 km north of Persepolis, is enclosed by walls; few remains of a large mosque are preserved.

4 Schmidt 1940, pl. 10; Whitcomb 1979, 366, ill. at p. 367.

5 The first season was mainly devoted to a first general survey of the town and a detailed topographic survey (Fontana et al. 2012).

6

A short survey was also carried out in the area northeast of the city wall in order to plan future geophysical investigations. The ground is characterized by being largely covered by pottery fragments, to such an extent which led to speculate the presence of a dump and/or of a manufacturing quarter. This is also substantiated by the enormous amount of metal and of pottery slags, as well as of pottery molds and other finds probably related to production activities. For these reasons, the area will be avoided in future geophysical investigations.

2.EXCAVATION

An excavation trench was set out in the same area in order to encompass not only the lines detected in the aerial photograph and the anomaly of the geophysical survey, but also the patches of elevated ground to their west. The selected area starts from the opening in the mosque wall first detected during the 1^st season, a feature that could be significant for the connection of the mosque with the supposed building. The excavated trench is oriented east-west and is orthogonal to the opening of the mosque wall. It measures 20.90 × 2 m and is up to 4.49 - 4.90 m wide in the area close to the mosque (pl. I:A).

Excavations revealed a paved street and sewer that corresponded to the anomaly of the geophysical survey (surely in use in Phases 2-4). If confirmed, this conclusion might prove to be very useful for the continuation of geophysical investigations on the site in the future.

The street uncovered in the east part of the trench and the walls retrieved in the west part of it also conform to the forms shown in the digital terrain modeling.

In the trench, at least eight phases were identified.

Phase 1 (light blue in pl. I:A) relates to the exterior part of the mosque wall (fig. 2). This is a wall of substantial thickness (1.82 to 1.95 m) made of local limestone chips of various sizes, joined with a small amount of mortar (WSU 1).

The relatively modest opening (0.91 - 0.9 m wide) proved to be a door. Its jambs are detached from the wall and made of corner-stones bound with very friable yellow mortar, larger than the stones of the mosque. The joining elements between door jambs and face bricks seem to exclude the possibility that the door was opened after the construction of the mosque wall: the building technique and materials are the same, and there are no traces of filling of the wall on the exterior.

A semi-circular tower was brought to light on the same wall, just south of the door (WSU 2: diameter 1.85 m including the exterior of the wall, variable thickness 0.28 to 0.58 m). The wall is made up of fragments of limestone bound with very firm white mortar, found more abundantly between stones close to the façade (west side). It contains a filling of loose material. The tower was clearly not planned as part of a monumental entryway, as there is no evidence of a second tower on the northern side of the door. E. Flandin and P.

Coste, who travelled during the years 1840 and 1841, reproduced a plan of the mosque (interpreted as a “palais”) with five semi-circular towers along the west side and two three- quarters round towers on the corners of the same side.⁷

The excavation stopped at the level of the door threshold. In the next season we intend to investigate the area immediately west of the door, that may provide elements of chronological significance. At present, it is advisable to consider the mosque as the oldest element of the excavated area, isolating it in Phase 1.

The results of the excavation of Phase 1 show that when the mosque was built a small secondary door was planned on its qibli wall, to allow access between the mosque and the area encompassed by our investigations.

In Phase 2 (light ochre in pl. I:A), a stretch of a large paved street was uncovered (WSU 131, fig. 3) that had collapsed along its eastern side. The street was more than 6 m wide,

7

Flandin - Coste 1851, pl. 58, below; see also p. 70.

and covered a sewer (WSU 182). It is paved with square slabs of local hard stone, arranged radially, with traces of wear. There are no cart tracks. The paving is altered or absent in the western sector, which was mostly rebuilt using flakes of stones from the original paving (Phase 3).

The sewer (0.40 m wide; 0.50 m deep) runs below the east side of the street, sloping towards the south. Its vertical sides are made of bricks coated with hydraulic mortar (fig. 4).

The sewer was covered with limestone blocks, partly preserved on the southern side.

Further excavations might show the chronological connection between the mosque and the street, and possibly allow for them to be considered part of the same phase. The pottery found in the filling of the sewer (SU 183-184) is not well known enough to use in establishing a date for its closure. One fragment of splash-ware found can be broadly attributed to the 9^th-11^th century.⁸

Phase 2a (ochre in pl. I:A) relates to two elements, both located west of the street and at the same level as phase 2.

The first is a compact and well-smoothed floor level found immediately to the west of the street (SU 176). Inserted in the floor is part of a tannur (SU 188, fig. 5), which appears to be cut by a later construction, probably not earlier than the 11^th century (see Phase 3). A number of pottery sherds found in the layer that covers the tannur and the floor suggest an 11^th century date (SU 160). These included one fragment of graffita (10^th century - 11^th century), fragments of unglazed molded wares (similar to closed vessels produced in various centers in Iran and Central Asia, attributed to the 11^th - 12^th century),⁹ and of unglazed wares with emerging inclusions (including vegetal chaff) on their surfaces. The fabric of the latter suggests that they might be related to the unglazed painted wares appearing in Phase 4 and which are attributed to a range of dates from the 11^th century or slightly earlier to the 14^th in the scholarly literature. This date range is to be verified for Estakhr.¹⁰

The second element designated Phase 2a is represented by the northeast corner of a room located at the western end of the trench (WSU 155 and 196), oriented in the same direction as the mosque. The preparation layer for its floor (SU 168 and 169) is preserved (fig. 6).The fragments that were retrieved in this layer include one fragment of imported Iraqi monochrome gold lustre ware (white opaque glaze on a cream-yellow, medium soft and compact fabric, dated to the end of the 9^th - 10^th century).¹¹ The layers that cover the preparation layer (SU 161, 158) contained a fragment of opaque glazed ware with turquoise-green splashes related to the wares of the so-called “Samarra horizon” (9^th - 10^th

8 As the raw data will take some time to process, the information given in this report are mostly limited to the chronological value of the excavated pottery. It has to be noted that in the present state of knowledge about Sasanian and Islamic pottery in Fars, especially with the lack of stratigraphic data, comparisons are unlikely to give a reliable chronological assessment. The chronology given in this report is thus intentionally very broad.

SU 183-184 included 25 pottery fragments: unglazed with fine, medium and coarser fabrics (15), 1 with comb-incisions; 5 fragments of monochrome green glazed ware, 1 fragment of splashed ware.

9 Siméon 2009, 54-57, lists comparative materials.

10 Also called pseudo-prehistoric and Madabad wares (Sumner - Whitcomb 1999, 320-321, with previous bibliography).

11

Northedge 2001, 211-212.

century),¹² and a glazed fragment probably related to graffita wares. These fragments give a terminus post quem in the 10^th century for this layer.

The walls of this room (0.80 m wide) are composed of roughly chopped slabs of local hard stone bound with mortar. The inner side of the wall shows the scarcement of its foundation.

Fragments of red painted coarse mortar were found in the layer that covers the floor preparation layer (SU 158).

Phase 3 (green in pl. I:A) is the result of a complete makeover of the area that overlooks the west side of the street. It includes the northeast corner of a room (WSU 115 north-south wall, WSU 197 east-west wall). The walls, oriented slightly differently than those of the mosque, were built ex novo from the foundations and cut the tannur of Phase 2a. The floor of the room is at the same level as the street.

A slab from the street was re-employed at the top of the wall WSU 115. At this time, the street appears to have been partially dismantled and then repaved with stones and slabs arranged differently than before. The connection between the new construction and the street paving suggests the persistence of the use of the street at this stage.

The new structure (WSU 115) is realized ex novo, without using previous structures for its foundation (at least not on the side of the street). It is thus possible that in the previous period, in Phase 2-2a, this area between the street and the Phase 2a building (of which the northeast corner only was excavated, WSU 155 and 196) was free or that a fence/wall only separated them. The latter could have been located in the west side of the street that appears mended with road metal and re-employed slabs from the original paving.

Phase 4 (pink in pl. I:A) represents the abandonment of the street. The likely decline of this area is evidenced by the closing down of a tannur located at the door of the mosque (SU 185), whose hob is set at the same level of the street and of the mosque door (fig. 7).

Fragments of the clay walls of the tannur collapsed inside it. The layer that fills the tannur (SU 179) contained the earliest fragments of unglazed painted wares found in the trench and fragments of unglazed molded wares - giving a terminus post quem in the 11^th century.

Another tannur was identified in the south east corner of the enlargement of the trench, close to the tower.

During Phase 5 a sequence of levels that had slipped from the east part of the trench towards the west attests to the collapse of the western wall of the mosque (SU 119, 141, 146 and 135; pl. I:B) and the abandonment of the area. In this phase, the street is covered by layers corresponding to a narrower path on the west (SU 163, 152 and 159; pl. I:B).

From the collapse of the western wall of the mosque (SU 119, 141, 146 and 135) a large number of unglazed fragments probably related to molded wares came to light, while fewer unglazed painted fragments were found. The glazed wares found in the same layer are to be attributed up to the 10^th or early 11^th century: splashed (fig. 10:A), graffita, monochrome green (fig. 10:B), opaque turquoise glazed (fig. 10:D). From SU 141 a fragment of a capital in grey stone (fig. 8) was also brought to light. It might have been originally part of a bell- shaped capital of the Achaemenid period; Chegini suggests that it might have been re-

12

Priestmann 2011, 104-107 with previous references.

employed in the Sasanian period. At any rate, it was re-employed for the building of the mosque as attested by the mortar placed on the fracture.

The ceramics retrieved from the layers of the path that effaced the street include molded earthenware fragments (11^th - 12^th centuries) and a fragment of an opaque turquoise-glazed earthenware basin (fig. 10:C), with a bird-like applied decoration. A similar ware was found in the late 11^th century layers of the masjed-e jom‘e in Esfahan.¹³

Phase 6 (grey in pl. I:A) is represented by a wall oriented east-west in the western side of the trench (WSU 147). The wall is composed of reused bricks and irregular limestone blocks, set without mortar. This structure rests on a layer of earth and covers the walls below (Phase 3).

Phase 7 consists of a pottery dump (SU 142, fig. 9) located approximately in the middle of the trench. The recovered pottery, which consisted of several unglazed vessels that were nearly complete, can be assigned to a period between the 10^th and 14^th centuries (fig. 11:A- D).

Phase 8 shows recent agricultural activity (traces of plough SU -103, -104, -105, -106, - 107, -108, -109), immediately below the humus layer (SU 101) as well as animal farming (layer of ashes surrounded by stones and bricks SU 116). The pottery assemblage recovered from these layers does not differ significantly from those found in layers related to earlier phases, except for the proportions. Unglazed painted ware is more frequent than in the lower layers.

3.CONCLUSIONS

Within the sequence of phases brought to light in the excavation, the paved street and its sewer are particularly relevant. Their orientation and development, also detected by the geophysical survey, seem to define a chief quarter that was situated to the west of the mosque. The street, while undergoing a partial reconstruction on its west side (Phase 3) was maintained throughout the entire period represented by Phase 4.

Later, several layers of dirt road covered the paved street (Phase 5). These paths conformed to the orientation of the street, but their width is reduced in respect to the street.

These developments point to a decline in the relevance of the quarter to the west of the mosque, most probably connected with the decay of Estakhr’s main urban structure in the 11^th century.

13

Rugiadi 2011, 234.

This project is sponsored by the Max van Berchem Foundation, established in 1973 in memory of Max van Berchem (1863-1921), the founder of Arabic epigraphy. Based in Geneva, the aim of the Foundation is to promote the study of Islamic and Arabic archaeology, history, geography, art, epigraphy, religion and literature.

REFERENCES

FLANDIN,E.-COSTE,P.

1851 Voyage en Perse de M.M. Eugène Flandin, peintre, et Pascal Coste, architecte, attachés à l’ambassade de France en Perse, pendant les années 1840 et 1841, Paris 1851.

FONTANA, M.V. - MIRESKANDARI, S.M. - RUGIADI, M. - ASADI, A. -JAIA, A.M. - BLANCO, A. - COLLIVA,L.

2012 Estakhr Project - first preliminary report of the joint Mission of the Iranian Center for Archaeological Research, the Parsa-Pasargadae Research Foundation and the Sapienza University of Rome, Italy: Vicino Oriente XVI (2012), pp. 167-180.

NORTHEDGE,A.

2001 Thoughts on the Introduction on Polychrome Glazed Pottery in the Middle East: E.

VILLENEUVE -P.M.WATSON (eds.), La céramique byzantine et proto-islamique en Syrie- Jordanie (IVe-VIIIe siècles apr. J.-C.). Actes du colloque tenu à Amman les 3, 4 et 5 décembre 1994, Beyrouth 2001, pp. 207-214.

PRIESTMANN,S.

2011 Opaque Glazed Wares: a Review of the Definition, Dating and Distribution of a Key Iraqi Ceramic Export in the Abbasid Period: Iran 49 (2011), pp. 89-114.

RUGIADI,M.

2011 The Emergence of Siliceous-Paste in Iran in the Last Quarter of the 11^th century and Related Issues. The Dated Assemblage from the Southern Domed Hall of the Great Mosque of Isfahan: Vicino & Medio Oriente XV (2011), pp. 233-248.

SCHMIDT,E.F.

1940 Flights over Ancient Cities of Iran, Chicago 1940.

SIMEON, M.P.

2009 Étude du matériel de Hulbuk (Mā warā’al-nahr-Khuttal), de la conquête islamique jusqu’au milieu du XI^e siècle (90/712-441/1050): contribution à l’étude de la céramique islamique d’Asie centrale (British Archaeological Reports. International Series 1945), Oxford 2009.

SUMNER,W.-WHITCOMB,D.

1999 Islamic Settlement and Chronology in Pars: an Archaeological Perspective: Iranica Antiqua XXXIV (1999), pp. 309-323.

WHITCOMB,D.

1979 The City of Istakhr and the Marvdasht Plain: D. REIMER (ed.), Akten des VII.

Internationalen Kongress für Iranische Kunst und Archäologie, München 7.-10.

September 1976 (Archaeologische Mitteilungen aus Iran: Ergänzungsband 6), Berlin 1979, pp. 363-370.

Fig. 1 - Estakhr - The anomaly in the geophysical survey (outlined in green is the palace as hypothesized by D. Whitcomb 1979; rendering L. Ebanista).

Fig. 2 - Estakhr - Phase 1 - The wall of the mosque showing the door and the semi-circular tower (photo A.M. Jaia).

Fig. 3 - Estakhr - Phase 2 - The paved street (view from North; photo L. Ebanista).

Fig. 4 - Estakhr - Phase 2 - The sewer under the paved street (photo L. Ebanista).

Fig. 5 - Estakhr - Phases 2a and 3 - The tannur cut by the foundation of the walls WSU 197 (photo A. Blanco).

Fig. 6 - Estakhr - Phase 2a - Room set in the west side of the trench (photo A. Blanco).

Fig. 7 - Estakhr - Phase 4 - The tannur located at a door of the mosque (photo L. Ebanista).

Fig. 8 - Estakhr - Phase 5 - Fragment of an Achaemenid capital re-employed in the mosque wall (photo and rendering A.M. Jaia).

Fig. 9 - Estakhr - Phase 7 - The dump of unglazed pottery (10^th - 14^th century; photo L.

Ebanista).

Fig. 10 - Estakhr - A, Inv. ES 46 (SU146) Manganese and turquoise-splashed earthenware; B, Inv. ES 47 (SU 146) Monochrome green-glazed earthenware; C, Inv. ES 62 (SU 159) Opaque turquoise-glazed earthenware with applied decoration; D, Inv. ES 32 (SU 119) Opaque turquoise-glazed earthenware. All drawings are 1:3 in scale (drawings M. Tahmasbi).

Fig. 11 - Estakhr - A, ES 56 (SU 142) Black-slipped earthenware jar; B, Inv. ES 57 (SU 142) Black slipped earthenware jar; C, Inv. ES 53 (SU 142) Molded earthenware jug; D, Inv. ES 52 (SU 142) Painted earthenware jar. All drawings are 1:3 in scale, except D which is 1:4 (drawings M. Tahmasbi).

A

B

Pl. I - A: Estakhr - General map of the trench: phase 1 - light blue; phase 2 - light ochre; phase 2a - ochre; phase 3 - green; phase 4 - pink; phase 6 - grey (rendering A.M. Jaia).

B: Estakhr - East-West section of the excavated trench, south side (rendering A.M. Jaia and L. Ebanista).

SASANIAN AND EARLY ISLAMIC SETTLEMENT PATTERNS NORTH OF THE PERSIAN GULF

Ahmadali Asadi¹ - Seyed Mehdi Mousavi Kouhpar² - Javad Neyestani³ - Alireza Hojabri-Nobari⁴ -

Tarbiat Modares University

Le recenti ricognizioni archeologiche effettuate nella regione prospiciente la costa settentrionale del Golfo Persico hanno rivelato una significativa crescita degli insediamenti in epoca sasanide. Tale crescita è probabilmente da attribuire ad un mirato investimento nei sistemi d’irrigazione e nell’agricoltura.

Nel corso delle ricognizioni sono stati scoperti resti di diverse strutture idrauliche, quali canali, mulini ad acqua, qanat e pozzi. La gran parte degli abitati sono situati nelle zone pedemontane ed in questi casi le opere idrauliche si trovano spesso nelle aree alte degli insediamenti. In alcuni casi sono stati identificati anche dei cimiteri. In conclusione si può dire che l’economia del Fars meridionale di epoca sasanide era basata sull’agricoltura ancor più che sul commercio e la rete di strade di comunicazione.

Keywords:Fars; Sasanian; irrigation system; settlement; fortified sites 1.PREMISE

There has been little research into the effect the Sasanian Empire’s collapse had on settlement patterns in the Iranian plateau. The general hypothesis is that the economic system remained unchanged after the Islamic invasion (664 CE) and some researchers even contend that the economic system improved.⁵ Recent archaeological surveys, in the hinterlands north of the Persian Gulf, are throwing light on some interesting new information regarding this matter. The results from most of these surveys in the hinterland, share a common feature - they illustrate the expansion of sites during the Sasanian period and the reduction, and in some cases disappearance, of sites after the arrival of Islam. One could conclude from these recent surveys, that new settlement patterns emerged during the Islamic period due to the disappearance of settlement patterns particular to the Sasanian dynasty. In this paper we will be looking in detail at Sasanian policy in relation to economic investment in the hinterlands north of the Persian Gulf. Archaeological evidence suggests that there was huge Sasanian investment in agriculture and an extension of irrigation in the mountainous areas south of Fars province. However, the development of agriculture in the aforementioned area differs from what the Sasanians did in the Susiana plain⁶ and Mesopotamia.⁷ In these regions huge dams and massive irrigation channels

1 PhD Student in Archaeology, Tarbiat Modares University.

2 Assistant Professor, Department of Archaeology, Tarbiat Modares University.

3 Assistant Professor, Department of Archaeology, Tarbiat Modares University.

4 Associated Professor, Department of Archaeology, Tarbiat Modares University.

5 Whitcomb 1979, 5; Sumner - Whitcomb 1999, 314.

6 Wenke 1981.

(some of which remain standing today) allowed the Sasanians to develop agriculture on a large scale. In the mountainous region however the situation was different. There were neither large plains nor big rivers like the Euphrates, Karoun or Tigris. It appears that Sasanian agricultural policy in the mountainous regions constituted a small investment on a large scale. To reach this aim, governmental control and presence was a necessity. After the collapse of the Sasanian dynasty this agricultural system was no longer sustainable. Using archaeological evidence from recent surveys in various areas north of the Persian Gulf, we will now look in more detail at settlement patterns, the factors affecting it, and the changes after the Islamic period.

2.GEOGRAPHICAL SETTING OF THE HINTERLANDS AND ITS IMPLICATIONS

Due to the differences in the geographical and climatic settings between the Persian Gulf hinterlands and northern and central region of Fars province varied settlement patterns are witnessed through time. The climatic situation in the hinterlands is variable and the environment played a key role in deciding how and where human settlements were established. A survey of the hinterlands shows that natural factors such as poor rainfall, salty plugs and rivers, mountains, variable climate and access to a suitable water supply play an important role in how and where human settlements were established.

As one moves south, the Zagros Mountains change direction from north west/south east to an east/westerly direction, particularly as we get closer to Larestan and Bander Abbas. It is significant that in the area known as Tangestan the Zagros highlands rise immediately from the Persian Gulf and there is no intervening coastal plain. Ridges front much of the coast in parallel ranks producing a closed coastline devoid of indentations that could serve as harbours and the small size of rivers and their deeply indented valleys greatly reduce the possibility of agriculture and the occurrence of natural pasture. Poor in resources without major routes that could assist development, Tangestan has only scanty settlements that produce dates, a little millet and barley any vegetables.⁸ Eastwards again, fronting the re- entrant of the Gulf of Hormuz, is a geographically distinctive region whose relief is much influenced by the presence of numerous salt domes or plugs that have erupted from a considerable depth through overlying strata.⁹ As a semi plastic substance, the salt has been forced through overlying rock formations and some plugs now stand at heights of 2000 to 4000 ft above the surface (fig.1), appearing as pinkish-white or yellowish masses.¹⁰ The salt itself has little if any commercial value, and the extra salinity imparted by drainage from the areas where the plugs occur is a considerable disadvantage - Rudshur (or Rud-i-Shur) means “Salt River”.¹¹ In some places an original salt plug may have been eroded away so that the rocks have fallen back into the solution hallow, producing a chaotic local landscape of jumbled rock strata and irregular topographic outlines.¹² Moving to the east, the sudden

7 Adams 1965.

8 Fisher 1968, 30.

9 Fisher 1968.

10 Fisher 1968.

11 Fisher 1968, 31.

12 Fisher 1968.

change in direction of the present-day coastline, which now runs north-eastward from Bandar-e Lingeh means that, in sharp contrast to the area west and north of Lingeh (including Tangestan), the component ridges of the Zagros are aligned at right angles to the coast, which is consequently much more accessible and “open”, with better harbours. A number of coastal settlements have thus grown up, with distinctly larger numbers of people than in the area farther west.¹³

The most striking factor separating the southern Zagros area from the others is that of climate. Rainfall is very much lower compared with the northern and middle regions of the Zagros with, consequently, major changes in the nature of topography and in human responses. Besides a reduction in overall amount, rainfall tends to be distinctly more unreliable and sporadic in onset, with a tendency to heavy but short falls and irregularity both in season and from year to year.¹⁴ In these areas, irrigation systems dominate the layout of cultivation, with ditches fed by springs. Qanats too are important and in areas of lower altitude, where temperatures can be very high, covered tanks and pools are increasingly used.¹⁵

The unfavourable natural settings in coastal and hinterland sites reduced the possibility of establishing human settlements in these areas. Before the formation of empires, settlement patterns in the hinterlands were dependant mainly on access to water sources from springs and wet gorges. In historical periods too, much of the archaeological evidence such as ancient water storage structures and irrigation systems in the hinterlands areas, shows that the water supply has been the main problem for human life in the discussed areas. Due to the saltiness of the rivers, particularly in the downstream areas, nowadays, there is no human settlements close to the rivers and according to the distribution maps of ancient sites, it seems that this situation is the same as today as it was in the past.¹⁶ The only lands that provide favourable conditions for the establishment of settlements are the foothills, between the rivers and the mountains.¹⁷ As we will see in this paper, most of the ancient settlements of the hinterlands were founded in these areas.

3.PREVIOUS RESEARCH

For researchers of the Sasanian period the Persian Gulf has always been an important topic, especially in relation to Sasanian maritime trade. Scholars such as Whitehouse and Williamson,¹⁸ Daryaee,¹⁹ Moussavi and Khosrozadeh²⁰ have written on this subject.

However, their research of archaeological evidence is devoid of sufficient reference to the hinterlands. This is due to the lack of adequate surveys of the hinterlands before or during their research. The first research into the hinterlands was carried out by some of the agents

13 Fisher 1968, 32.

14 Fisher 1968, 28.

15 Fisher 1968.

16 Asadi 2010, 27.

17 Asadi 2010.

18 Williamson 1971-1972; Whitehouse - Williamson 1973; Whitehouse (ed.) 2009.

19 Daryaee 2003.

20 Hojabri-Nobari et al. 2011.

of the East India Company in 1850, followed by Stein²¹ in 1937. After a long hiatus research was resumed in the Bushehr plain first in 1970 by Prickett and Williamson²² and then by Whitcomb²³ in 1973. In 1973 a joint survey was undertaken by the Siraf excavation mission and the Iranian archaeological Center in the Siraf Hinterlands.²⁴ Thirty years later, new surveys were initiated by the Iranian Center for archaeology with the aim of completing the archaeological map of Iran. The most recent surveys were carried out in 2004 in the Lar and Lamerd districts by Askari,²⁵ the Bushehr hinterlands by Carter and others in 2006,²⁶ Bastak district by Asadi²⁷ in 2007 and Ghavbandi district by Askari in 2007.²⁸ The new surveys seem to provide a more precise understanding of settlement patterns during the Sasanian period in the south of Fars province. In the rest of this paper we will study the results of these surveys in finer detail, however the interpretations put forth here are preliminary and need to be reviewed in the near future.

4.BUSHEHR DISTRICT

The Bushehr plain is the most westerly point of the present research area. Compared to the eastern areas, like Lamerd, Mohr and Bastak, the Bushehr plain is geographically and environmentally different, it is rare in that it is one of only a handful of fertile plains in the coastal lines of the Persian Gulf. Rivers flow through the plain today and unlike most of the other hinterland areas where salty rivers prevent human settlement being established in their vicinity, here, the major settlement was concentrated along the rivers.²⁹ Even though today some of the rivers have become salty, they are still used for planting dates, palm trees and grains.

The Bushehr peninsula and its hinterlands were surveyed by a joint Iranian/British archaeological team in 2004, with the aim of identifying the nature of the Persian Gulf hinterland settlements and making a chronological and cultural framework for the region.³⁰ The survey included areas between Bushehr, Genaveh, Ahrom and Daleki (fig. 2) covering 90 km from the northwest to the southeast and 60 km from the northeast to the southwest.³¹ In this survey 56 sites were identified from Chalcolithic (5000 BC) to the late Islamic (15^th - 18^th century). Most of the sites however belonged to the Achaemenid through to the Sasanid eras.³² The results of the survey point to the Elamite period, with ten identified sites, being the first major expansion of settlement in the region. perhaps on account of the

21 Stein 1937.

22 Prickett - Williamson 1970.

23 Carter et al. 2006, 67.

24 Whitcomb 2009, 95.

25 Askari Chaverdi - Azarnoush 2004.

26 Carter et al. 2006.

27 Asadi 2010.

28 Askari Chaverdi 2008.

29 Carter et al. 2006, 75.

30 Carter et al. 2006, 63.

31 Carter et al. 2006, 68.

32 Carter et al. 2006, 64.

middle Elamite centre at Liyan.³³ After the Elamites, the next large growth of settlement was in the Achaemenid/Parthian period, with 32 sites.³⁴ The importance of the Bushehr plain during the Achaemenid era is illustrated by the number of Achaemenid palaces found in the area. In the subsequent Sasanid era 36 sites are found, heralding the peak of settlement in the region.³⁵ With the arrival of Islam we see a very marked decline in settlements in the region with nine Islamic sites being found in the plain.³⁶

Sasanian settlements are mostly concentrated southeast of the Dalki River (fig. 3).

According to the surveyors, including Carter, «most of the sites with Achaemenid/Parthian pottery also bore Sasanian material».³⁷ They also mention that while the classes associated with the Achaemenid/Parthian pottery may have also been used during the Sasanid period, many of the sites currently assigned to the Achaemenid/Parthian and Sasanian horizons may date solely to the latter.³⁸ The most important Sasanid sites, a complex of mounds located north of Borazjan, are recorded in Carter’s survey as site numbers BH29-44. Carter interpreted these as remains of a Sasanid city. There are also more Sasanid sites circling BH29-44.³⁹ Without doubt, the Sasanid port of Rav Ardeshir located in the Bushehr peninsula was the most important factor affecting the growth of settlements in the Bushehr hinterlands. In his survey with Martha Prickett between 1969-1971, Williamson concluded that Rishahr, a site 6 km south of Bushehr, was the Sasanian port Rav Ardeshir.⁴⁰ According to historical sources, Rav Ardeshir was one of the foremost ports during the Sasanian era, and it was established by Ardeshir Babakan as part of his policy for control of maritime trade in the Persian Gulf.⁴¹ The size of Pre-Islamic settlements in the Bushehr peninsula was remarkable, with some researchers estimating the dimensions to be over 450 hectares,⁴² with most belonging to the Sasanid era. Using Carter’s Sasanian distribution map, we can assume that the Sasanian city situated north of Borazjan (BH29-44) played a central role and that it was of significance for the Rave Ardeshir port, situated as it is in the centre of so many other Sasanid sites. Carter writes «Bushehr may well have acted primarily as a port and entrêpot. The inland town lay within the heart of an agricultural landscape surrounded by other Achaemenid to Sasanian sites, some of which also attained considerable proportions. The town may have been highly significant in coordinating the provision of subsistence or surplus commodities to Bushehr and the redistribution of goods from the port to the major centres in inland Fars».⁴³ The destruction of Rave Ardeshir

33 Carter et al. 2006, 71.

34 Carter et al. 2006, 94.

35 Carter et al. 2006.

36 Carter et al. 2006, 71.

37 Carter et al. 2006, 96.

38 Carter et al. 2006, 71.

39 Carter et al. 2006, 96.

40 Whitehouse - Williamson 1973, 39-41.

41 Piacentini 1985, 60.

42 Whitehouse - Williamson 1973, 37.

43 Carter et al. 2006, 98.

during attacks by invading Arabs was catastrophic for the city, and archaeological evidence points to the port and city being abandoned simultaneously.⁴⁴

The symbiotic relationship between the city and port dates back to before Sasanid times.

As previously noted, using Carter’s site maps (fig. 3) it becomes clear that the distribution of Sasanian sites in the Bushehr plain is similar to Achaemenid/Parthian site distribution.⁴⁵ It appears that before Sasanid Rave Ardeshir there was a pre-existing port serving the Bushehr peninsula. Whitehouse and Williamson speak about a possible Achaemenian port on the southern most edge of the peninsulas.⁴⁶ If we accept the existence of an Achamenian port in the peninsula one can postulate the importance of this port for the expansion of Achaemenian/Parthian settlements. It is possible to find the name of the city that supported the port during the Achamenian and Sasanian periods, using Islamic, Roman and Pahlavi written sources. Nearkhos, Alexander’s admiral (330 BC), mentions a city named Taoxn in his travelogue ‘from Sind to Tigris’. Taoxn was located close to the river Granis, which also had a Persian royal palace situated nearby (Arrian, VII: 421). Later on, the Pahlavi text

‘Shahrestanhaye Iran’ (Iranian towns), refers to a city in the Bushehr plain named Touzak, and finally, in the Islamic sources the name Tavaj appears.⁴⁷ We can assume that the names

‘Achamenian’, ‘Taoxn’, ‘Sasanian’, ‘Touzak’, and Islamic ‘Tavaj’, were one and the same with a slight alteration in the location of the city.

Donald Whitcomb, using aerial photography in 1973, writes about an old canal dating back to the Achaemenian period, which Carter and his team did not locate in 2004.⁴⁸ As we will see later in the paper, the Sasanians established a large network of irrigation canals and structures in the hinterland valleys. Due to the fertility of the soil in the Bushehr plain there must be more structure related to farming. In addition, when considering the agricultural systems put in place by the Sasanian empire elsewhere, there is surely a need for more intensive surveys to locate Sasanian irrigation systems in the Bushehr plain. In their 2004 survey, Carter and his team also attempted to reconstruct some of the roads between the Bushehr plain and the interior of Fars province.⁴⁹ Due to the importance of Rav Ardeshir during the Sasanian period, there must have been a busy communication route to the north, which may have passed many Sasanain sites. It was perhaps the only important road to inland Fars throughout the entire Persian coastline from Bushehr to the Hormoz strait.

5.SIRAF PORT

The hinterlands of Siraf port was researched in 1973 by an Iranian/British team led by Whitcomb (fig. 4). They surveyed the eastern part of Jam valley, the western end of Galehdar valley, and the road between Jam valley and the Dejgah valley.⁵⁰ Whitcomb’s research was centred on the nature and limit of settlements in the early Islamic period (9^th -

44 Carter et al. 2006, 97.

45 Carter et al. 2006, 66.

46 Whitehouse - Williamson 1973, 35.

47 Kianrad 2005, 108.

48 Carter et al. 2006, 67.

49 Carter et al. 2006, 96.

50 Whitcomb 2009, 78