مهدی رهبر

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. 

In 1994, it was reported that a group of smugglers had been arrested while excavating the hills of Hossein Abad, south of Susa, about 800m south of an area called Siahchal (Donjon). That excavation led to the revelation of half of a stone coffin or a sarcophagus and eventually led to the discovery of two more sarcophagi, which were located 2.5m from each other. The first sarcophagus was constructed in the form of a tomb with bricks of lion stamp patterns. Both sarcophagi are made of sandstones. The mine of these stones does not appear to have existed in Susa. However, the older fabric of Susa had instances of a sand mass, with underground cellars created inside these stones. Hence, the stones from which the sarcophagi were built could probably relate to Susa. No objects or human skeletal representing burial remnants were recovered from inside of the sarcophagi; however, out of Sarcophagus No. 1, some pieces of earthenware and perfume containers (Alabaster) were found. The bricks used in Tomb No. 1 were bearing lion patterns, as the pieces of earthenware and marble perfume bottles, numerous examples of which were reported from there, demonstrate they could reasonably be attributed to the Achaemenid dynasty.  

An archaeological survey was conducted in 2004-2005 in the middle of Mianab Shushtar in Khuzestan, followed by an excavation there in 2005-2006, which led to the discovery of a Sasanian palace as well as valuable stuccoes at two other locations, namely the JilJilak Tepe and behind a Gas Station on the Shushtar-Ahwaz Road. In this article, the discovered stuccoes have been examined, which indicates that the Jiljilak stuccoes can be divided into three categories based on their features and application: a) geometric patterns, b) plant patterns, and c) animal patterns. Comparing these stuccoes with those found elsewhere such as Kuh-e Khwaja, Bīshāpūr, and Bandian in Dargaz shows that they can be attributed to the Parthian-Sasanian period. 

A dakhma, also known as Tower of Silence is a place where Zoroastrian people used to put the dead bodies of their loved ones. A similar structure from the Sasanian period was discovered in Bandian Dargaz, along with excavations conducted at Gelālak of Shushtar, Saleh Davood of Shush, and Shoghab of Bushehr, as well as other researches and excavations across various regions of Iran. It provides evidence that Zoroastrians practiced a burial ritual involving the removal of flesh from the body of the deceased and subsequent collection of bones, which were then placed in a container known as an ossuary. This intriguing method served as a motivation for the author to undertake more extensive studies on Zoroastrian burial rituals. This article focuses on the archaeological excavations conducted in the Torkabad’s Dakhma of Ardakan, Yazd, shedding light on this particular aspect.