Citation:
Abstract:
With a study "The lithic assemblage of Sangtarashan" by Francesca Manclossi
Sangtarashan is an archaeological site located in the central part of the Zagros Mountain in the Luristan region (Western Iran). Discovered in 2002, the site was the subject of six excavation seasons between 2005 and 2011.
From the first archaeological investigations, it became clear that the site presents an exceptional character. Within a circular stone structure, overlapped by several other constructions, over two thousand artefacts, among them hundreds of metallic objects known as “the Bronzes of Luristan,” have been uncovered. These artefacts were buried as a package under the floor, embedded in the walls or scattered over the surface of the site.
Architectural and artefact studies led to a proposal of Sangtarashan as a ritual place with two occupation levels. Artefact deposits from the first level consisted of weapons and vessels and were buried as packages under the floor of the sanctuary. Those of the second level, made up of isolated objects, smaller in size and more varied in nature, were deposited in the walls or scattered on the surface. The first occupation level dates to the Iron Age I-II and the second dates to the Iron Age II-III (and perhaps even IV). The hypothesis of a non-ritual function for the second level is not entirely ruled out, given the extension of the architectural structures to the west and the position of objects scattered across the entire site.
Along with Surkh Dom-i Lori, Sangtarashan is the second Iron Age sanctuary in the Central Zagros where worshippers dedicated hundreds of artefacts as ritual deposits. The richness of metal artifacts discovered in Sangtarashan placed it as a reference site for the study of the Bronzes of Luristan.
The publication project was directed by the 2018 grant award recipient Zahra Hashemi.
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