Northwest Iran

Mannea is the most important state, which was established before Median kingdom and ruled on vast part of northwestern Iran for several centuries. Manneaen were from Hurrian race and language and probably entered the region about 1500 B.C. In their political life although they suffered many inva-sions from Assyria and Urartu, they kept their political and cultural independence and expended their power and realm in next period. In spite of this historical fact and available archaeological data, up to the present time no notable study about Mannea has been conducted and therefore basic aspects of Manneaen culture have remained unknown. The present study undertakes to accomplish this.

It is well documented that the Mongol rule in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries fostered the direct exchange of ideas and practices between diverse cultures and religions. From this point of view, while the Mongols believed in shamanism, they embraced other religions for several reasons, ranging from a personal desire for the spiritual gains to issues of control and political and social cohesion. Hence, century of Mongol domination in Great Iran (1256-1353 CE) witnessed the practice of Buddhism, Manichaeism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. While the importance of the Ilkhanid period for the architectural history of the Islamic World has generally been acknowledged, explanations for the appearance of rock-cut buildings in Iran under the Mongol dominion, in contrast with Islamic architecture, are not very satisfying. By focusing on field studies, the aim is to catalogue rock-cut architecture of Ilkhanid Iran with certain parallels with Buddhist architecture, isolate construction phases of monuments of this type in northwest Iran. According to the results, while an investigation of Buddhist architecture in northwest Iran would reveal a vibrant portrait of life in Ilkhanid Iran by illustrating how Ilkhanid architecture responds to various faiths and traditions, it would be possible to have a fresh look at the sociopolitical history of Islamic Iran in collision with the Mongol culture.

The appearance of Square in Northwest Iran, as a traditional element of the city, did not have a certain definition in the urban planning due to its structural disruption in the spatial fabric as well as its chaotic present in the manifestation of its identity. On the other hand, since the concept of the square in this area does not match to the similar models existing in the central plateau of Iran including the characteristics of being enclosed and architectural integrity, most researchers have assumed that the irregularity of the form in the squares of northwest Iran is because of gradual growth, lack of spatial desirability, and performance without a predesigned plan. This descriptive-analytic research studies the effect of climate on the formation of the structural layout of "Saheb Abad" Square as a case study. In this way, a specified framework would be suggested, and a fixed sustainable urban pattern would be achieved regarding the form of a square in modern urbanism in this region. According to the findings of this study, the disintegrated layout of the square in Northwest Iran is not only because of its structural weakness, but it was in certain parallels with environmental and natural conditions. It is obvious that the investigation of this innovation could lead to sustainable development in modern urban constructions.

Rick Abad Tepe is located north of the Zab River in Northwest of Iran, close to the border with Iraq. The excavation at this archeological site was carried out in the summer of 2019. The materials and evidence obtained from there showed Rick Abad belonged to the Bronze Age, with some monuments not documented yet from any site in the Zab Basin. The Tamarchin passage, west of Piranshahr, connects this region to northern Mesopotamia. This research tries to respond to the following questions: What was the status of Zab Basin settlements in the Bronze Age? How was the regional and extra-regional communication with the surrounding areas? As a matter of fact, seven levels belonging to the Bronze Age were identified in the course of the excavation. In the south of Lake Urmia, Kura-Araxes potteries were less visible; however, typical black-burnished ceramics similar to those of the Kura-Araxes tradition were recovered from some sites. Surprisingly, Painted Orange Ware (POW) and beveled-rim Bowl were seen in the early Bronze Age of the Zab Basin. Furthermore, the impression of the seal from Rick Abad is remarkable as well since this type of object had an administrative function and it is a sign of economic and social activities as well as regional and extra-regional relations. The location of this region between northwest of Iran and the north of Mesopotamia (Iraqi Kurdistan) somehow turned this basin into a meeting place of various cultures. Probably these sites played a key role in trade and commerce, although, they never attained an urban status.  

Notwithstanding its cultural wealth, archaeologists have hitherto given little consideration to Meshkinshahr County of Iran’s Ardabil Province. The region is remarkably rich in graves, as is evident from the various types of graves with simple inhumation, dolmen, rectangular stone-built, and Kurgan. In the spring of 2019, a rare example of Kurgan was investigated near the city of Fakhrabad. Unlike all other graves excavated in northwest Iran, its structure consisted of a combination of stones and mud bricks. This paper presents the preliminary results from the excavation of this Kurgan. While introducing the Kurgan, an assemblage of small artifacts and its structure were examined, and a relative chronology was then proposed. The Kurgan arguably occupies a special place in archaeology of Iran and South Caucasus given a combination of stones with mud bricks it has in its construction. Such Kurgan type still remains unreported from the region.