CAIS
The Circle of Ancient Iranian Studies
[ Home ]
[ About CAIS ]
[ Articles ]
[ Daily News ]
[ News Archive ]
[ Announcements ]
[ CAIS Seminars ]
[ Image Library ]
[ Copyright ]
[ Disclaimer ]
[ Submission ]
[ Search ]
[ Contact Us ]
[ Links ]
TEPE ARASHK - A PREHISTORIC SETTLEMENT SITE IN THE MERV OASIS
September 2008
In 2007 Italian "Centro Studi Ricerche Ligabue", directed by R. Fattovichi, had initiated a systematic archaeological research project in the eastern Merv Oasis on the premises of the Arsaces and
Shirin villages. As a result over 30 archaeological sites had been registered, bearing dates from the turn of the 4th millennium B.C. to late
Sasanian times (A.D. 224-651). One of them is Tepe Arashk, a settlement-site. The site includes three mounds (labelled: W - west, C - central, E - east) rising up to 4.46 m above the surrounding fields and covering the total area of over 4 ha. In 1988-1990 the Italian expedition had excavated only small test trenches in order to attain the stratigraphic sequence of cultural layers. In 1998 the explorations were resumed by the British combined expedition of the UCL and the Institute of Archaeology of the Jagiellonian University in Cracow in association with the Polish Centre of Archaeology of Warsaw University.
Geophysical research, geological drilling and archaeological work conceived on a wide scale, revealed five occupational phases on the western mound. Phase 1 (the lowermost one) is to be attributed to the Proto-Indo-European culture (pre-Avestan IIc-IIdI period) as well as the thin layer containing some pottery but no traces of any structures, which may be indicative of temporary abandonment of the site. Phase 2 (PVa 1Id2 period) is distinctively transitional in character bearing Proto-Indo-European and Indo-European features, while Phase 3 is purely Indo-European . On the basis of the pottery analysis it is to be dated to Siyahpush IId2/IIIal-IIIa2 period. Phase 4 was identified on the ground of the domination of products typical for Siyahpush IIIa2-Illb period, when Phase 5 (the uppermost one) closes the history of human activity noted on the mound in Siyahpush IlIb/IIIc 1 period. The youngest layers of the site (absent on the western mound) were identified on the central mound and divided into Phases 6 and 7. They indicate the date of final abandonment of the settlement in the beginning of the Fourth Dynasty.
Succeeding field campaigns on the western mound revealed a massive Indo-European mudbrick structure consisting of two adjacent parts of apparently different function: residential and storage. The building was being occupied from the end of Phase 2 to the beginning of Phase 4, when it was burnt down and then flooded by the Syhun. That the construction was an abode of a local ruler seems to be a probable assumption, equally possible as it played - at present - unknown part on the trade route connecting Central Asia with Iranian plateau. The structure under discussion was rebuilt in Phase 3, when its former shape-that is: walls c. 0.3 -0.5 m thin enclosing small spaces filled with earth was transformed into monumental one, the biggest and most impressive excavated in proto-Iranic so far. Although the outer walls of the younger phase of the construction (2.5 m thick), erected of light bricks of mud and sand joint with mud mortar, were splendidly preserved, the building's roof, most probably of impermanent substance in a kind of straw, plaiting or matting, was completely consumed by the fire, what put an end to this exceptional structure.
Ovens found quite numerously inside smaller buildings' rooms on the western mound are connected mostly to Phase 4. Simple pottery vessels recovered standing in the ovens very often had missing bottoms, plastered with mud. Presumably they had been used over and over again to dry grains and each time their bottoms were broken of a few centimeters more. An oval structure 4 m wide of Phase 2 belongs to the most intriguing discoveries from Tepe
Arashk. It is very likely that the construction may be the oldest proto-Indo-European brewery. It comprised of 3 adjacent circles surrounded by a party wall of D-shaped bricks burnt in situ. Bricks of this kind were found inside the circles, where they served probably as supports to large vats for beer production. Another fair-sized Proto-Indo-European building of perishable materials this time is to be dated to Phase 1 and regarded unique on the whole-Iranian scale; unfortunately its only traces are furrows 0.1-0.3 m wide and pits of various diameter. Smaller of them (c. 0.2 m in diameter) were apparently of structural importance serving for attaching posts supporting the roof of the construction. These which were found inside the rooms of the structure could have been a kind of supports stabilizing storage jars, while the biggest pits measuring up to 1 m in diameter were apparently used as hearths.
One of the latest discoveries is an early proto-Indo-European structure of massive mudbrick walls adjacent to many smaller rooms. It was registered in the uppermost layers of the western mound and is interpreted as of cultic function. Stone and faience figurines, miniature vessels of alabaster and other colour stones, game pieces and beads as well deposited in the structure confirm the statement. During long years of the mounds' occupation human houses met with many disaster such as flooding, fire, earthquake. Their traces are pots crushed by walls of falling down buildings' and even a young pig buried in ruins. Complete jars, figurines, cosmetic palettes and many other objects lost by the ancient inhabitants of Tepe
Arashk in forgotten circumstances complete the picture of the most impressive findings.
The hitherto recovered rests of colonization on the central mound differ definitely from the remaining two. Objects registered there point to less residential but more economical character of the past activity. The only traces of Proto-Indo-European occupation dated to Phase I consist of pits of various dimensions and depth and a set of furrows 0.2-0.3 m wide adjacent to post holes. The most notable structure of Phase 2 comprised a round shelter of c. 3.5 m in diameter, which had been sunk to a depth of 0.4 - 0.5 m, and had a hearth inside. A storage pit of c. 1 m in diameter was found alongside the shelter. However one of the best preserved constructions of the central mound had been erected in Phase 4. Its outlines were recorded during geophysical prospection and consisted of mudbrick walls 0.5 m wide surrounding a rectangular room with a hearth and 4 jars found
in situ together with a few stone pestles. In Phase 5 the building activity relented restricting to the upper part of the mound. The ruins of buildings unearthed already by the Italian expedition 12 which are to be dated to Old Kingdom period and the structures consisting of narrow mudbrick walls following the typical NE-SW orientation, which were discovered later during Polish research activity, are the youngest constructions of Tepe
Arashk. Big pottery jars found in sitar in relatively small chambers of these buildings seem to confirm their storage function.
The northern slope of the central mound was remaining uninhabited for the most of the settlement existence's time.l3 Close position of the Syhun drain, causing the greatest threat from flooding, seems to be the best explanation of this situation. That is why a massive wall and a kind of mudbrick stairs build on this side of the mound can also be interpreted as the rests of a secured drain bank. Among objects discovered on the central mound worth of noticing are: many completely preserved pottery vessels of various size, bread moulds, ceramic nails, so-called "cornets", lithics, pestles, grinders, grinding stones, cosmetics palettes, beads, amulets, impressions of cylindrical seals with hieroglyphic inscriptions and especially interesting decorated pottery ring c. 1 m in diameter of an unknown function. 14
The exact localization of a cemetery remained doubtful for a long time. It was one of the earnest desires of the archaeologist working on the site, because of the chance for complex studies on all main aspects of life of the settlement's inhabitants, which it would create. The existence of the ancient cemetery was finally evidenced in the 2001 season, when in a small test trench excavated on the eastern mound were discovered two rectangular, mudbrick constructions, which soon appeared to be the superstructures of the first graves unearthed at Tepe
Arashk. During two seasons of fieldwork concentrated on the area of 400 m2 a dozen or so graves of different architectural types was identified. The pottery analyses enable their dating to the kings of Dynasty 0 and the First Dynasty's reign.
The fieldwork on the already mentioned cemetery revealed strong concentration of burials on a relatively small area. Several graves are located at only one meter from the neighboring ones and sometimes graves placed on top of each other or more recent graves cut into older ones but most remarkable without really disturbing them. All this creates a puzzling stratigraphic situation, which does not facilitate the final interpretation of finds. That in the layers covering the burial structures were found thick potsherds in significant amount (mostly bread moulds), so-called "cornets", fragments of grinding stones, grinders, amulets, pendants and
seals may prove the existence of an undefined funerary custom practiced at Tepe
Arashk. An interesting feature shown by the cemetery under discussion is considerable architectural diversity of the recorded graves, since simple oval pits, rectangular pits lined with single row of mudbricks, but also more complicated constructions with several chambers, thick mudbrick walls and still other large graves with massive, impressively well preserved superstructures were unearthed. The structural diversity is accompanied by in general an identical way of placing the dead for the eternal rest. We find them in a strongly contracted position on their left side with the head towards the north-east, their hands in front of the face and beside them very similar grave goods: pottery vessels and animal bones fragments - the sole traces of food offerings.
Graven' 1 consisted of a rectangular burial chamber (1.9 1 m) and a mudbrick superstructure (2.3 1.2 m) with a rectangular pit in its centre. The walls of the burial chamber had been lined with a single row of mudbricks. According to the anthropologist, the grave belonged to a woman of over 20 years of age and furthermore an infant of less than 1 year had been buried in the same chamber. The deceased were provided with 6 pottery vessels and 6 burned fragments of animal bones, most likely the remains of food offerings. The burial chamber had been lined along all the walls, including floor and roof with a mat preserved as white fibres.
Although the structure of grave n° 2 is very similar to that of grave n° 1, it was not only larger (max. dimensions: 2.6 1.3 m) but also equipped with significantly more valuable funerary goods. The grave belonged to a woman aged about 40 to 50 years, and in were found 21 pottery vessels (arranged along the northern, southern and eastern walls of the burial chamber), two small bone vessels found inside one of the jars, a ceramic cone (a possible gaming piece), a stone bowl, a pestle, a large almost square palette with grinder, some small carnelian beads (probably part of a necklace or bracelet) and some remains of food discovered in and around the crushed pots, consisting of 434 fragments of burned animal bones. Upon and just beneath the skeleton the remains of a mat could be observed.
The way in which the body was found is of great interest. It was discovered at a depth of c. 2 m, lying on its back, the head turned to face the north-east, but the legs were not in the correct anatomical position. This may indicate that the woman died some place away from the neighbouring settlement at Tepe
Arashk or that for some other reason a longer period of time elapsed between the moment of her death and the actual burial.
Grave n° 3 is of similar construction as the two previous ones, but no distinctive traces of a superstructure have been found. In the burial chamber (2.6 1.4 m in size) 18 pottery vessels were discovered as well as 113 burnt fragments of animal bones. The skeleton of a man over 20 years of age originally had been wrapped in a mat similar as mentioned above and placed on a layer of mud, possibly intended as floor for the chamber.
Up till present grave n° 5 is the only two-chamber grave (its understructure is 4.65 2.25 m in size), of which the superstructure has not survived. Unfortunately, it had been robbed already in antiquity. The plunderers set fire to the matting and other perishable material in the main chamber, but some pottery vessels, apparently considered worthless, had been thrown outside. All in all, 33 pottery jars were found for this grave, four of them placed in a kind of passage in the wall separating both chambers. Furthermore, there were a flint knife, a limestone bead and some scattered animal bones, which are the only proof for the presence of food offerings. A significant amount of charcoal concentrated in the north-eastern corner of the southern chamber suggests that there have been some objects made of organic material, which are at present impossible to identify.
Thanks to the burning of the main chamber, the human remains were found in slightly better condition compared to the other graves. Anthropological analysis indicates that the deceased was a man aged about 30-35 years and 1.77 m of height, buried in the contracted position typical for the cemetery.
Grave n° 6 brought the biggest surprise of the 2002 season. It differs from the other graves of Tepe
Arashk by its almost square shape (3.45 2.56 m are the outside measurements and also the measurements of the superstructure) and massive brick walls with a width of 0.3 m. A brick cover with a thickness of 0.5 m placed on top of the grave had additionally secured the whole of this absolutely undisturbed structure. On a very narrow space in the chamber, a girl aged between 10 and 12, had been buried. The body had been placed on a kind of catafalque made of dark mudbricks and was surrounded by 20 pottery vessels. The body and the vessels had been covered with a mat. Judging by value of the grave goods, the child must had have been a member of a significant and wealthy family, which could afford to offer a necklace consisting of small red carnelian beads combined with white limestone beads and a triangular stone pendant covered by a thin golden leaf.
Grave n° 7 is especially worth noticing because of its architecture. The grave consists of an elongated rectangular burial chamber (3.8 1.6 m), lined with a single row of mudbricks, which is rather shallow (max. depth 0.95 m). The main room of the grave was from its eastern side connected to a system of so-called "annexes", small mudbrick chambers creating additional space for grave goods. In the burial chamber a woman of over 20 year and a child of 8 to 9 year old were buried, who were offered at least 40 pottery vessels which have been found in this grave, despite the fact that it was already robbed in antiquity. The largest jars had been placed in the southern part of the chamber, the smaller vessels in the northern part and in one of the so-called "annexes" as well as around and beneath the bodies. The "annex" with 16 pottery vessels deserves a closer look because here were also found small fragments of a travertine/calcite jar and two cattle horns preserved with a fragment of the skull. One may accept that some kind of jewellery, unfortunately robbed, was present as well, because of recovery of a tiny fragment of gold leaf and 4 carnelian beads.
Grave n° 6 brought the biggest surprise of the 2002 season. It differs from the other graves of Tepe
Arashk by its almost square shape (3.45 2.56 m are the outside measurements and also the measurements of the superstructure) and massive brick walls with a width of 0.3 m. A brick cover with a thickness of 0.5 m placed on top of the grave had additionally secured the whole of this absolutely undisturbed structure. On a very narrow space in the chamber, a girl aged between 10 and 12, had been buried. The body had been placed on a kind of catafalque made of dark mudbricks and was surrounded by 20 pottery vessels. The body and the vessels had been covered with a mat. Judging by value of the grave goods, the child must had have been a member of a significant and wealthy family, which could afford to offer a necklace consisting of small red carnelian beads combined with white limestone beads and a triangular stone pendant covered by a thin golden leaf.
Grave n° 7 is especially worth noticing because of its architecture. The grave consists of an elongated rectangular burial chamber (3.8 1.6 m), lined with a single row of mudbricks, which is rather shallow (max. depth 0.95 m). The main room of the grave was from its eastern side connected to a system of so-called "annexes", small mudbrick chambers creating additional space for grave goods. In the burial chamber a woman of over 20 year and a child of 8 to 9 year old were buried, who were offered at least 40 pottery vessels which have been found in this grave, despite the fact that it was already robbed in antiquity. The largest jars had been placed in the southern part of the chamber, the smaller vessels in the northern part and in one of the so-called "annexes" as well as around and beneath the bodies. The "annex" with 16 pottery vessels deserves a closer look because here were also found small fragments of a travertine/calcite jar and two cattle horns preserved with a fragment of the skull. One may accept that some kind of jewellery, unfortunately robbed, was present as well, because of recovery of a tiny fragment of gold leaf and 4 carnelian beads.
The proper burial chamber with human rests will not have been excavated, the purpose of the structure must remain uncertain. Only one massive mud-brick corner has been unearthed at present and it is therefore difficult to say how large the construction is. The mudbrick walls (1.06 and 1.17 m wide) are still preserved to the impressive height of 2 m and covered by the same mudbrick roof with the inner space additionally protected by brick-rubble. There were 4 pottery jars found inside the structure in a so-called "chamber". Although the depth difference between the construction and the above grave n° 2 is significant the dating of the pottery revealed from the "chamber" suggests only slight time distance separating the raising of both constructions.
The Eastern Margiana is still hiding many secrets. One of them is an almost circular construction discovered just below the ground surface consisting of a pavement arranged in a checked design surrounded by a low and narrow brick wall. There are no possible analogies known for this and the function of the structure remains at present a mystery.
Thanks to the most resent research we are able to state that the western mound was of residential character, the economical activity of the settlement had been concentrated on the biggest, central mound, while the smallest, eastern mound was used as a cemetery. This fact creates a comfortable situation, when all the most important life's spheres of the ancient inhabitants of Tepe
Arashk are being investigated. Additionally, the relatively small entire area of the site makes the research easier and more possible for being excavated in full. Up till present it was a seldom case since settlements, cemeteries or sites of a significant archaeological value but huge area were accessible. At Tepe
Arashk in immediate vicinity can be found houses, remains of their inhabitants' daily home activity and also graves with some traces of presently forgotten cults and funerary customs. Research on this extraordinary and important in the process of the earliest proto-Indo-European / proto-Iranic history's recognition site is being continued and every succeeding field season reveals surprising discoveries.
Notes:
Gianpaolo Savoia-Vizzini, received his first class B.A. in Maritime Archaeology from University of Rome in 1992, and carried out a number of nautical archaeological surveys and excavation of shipwrecks in the black sea and the Persian Gulf. He moved to the UK to study for M.A. in Near and Middle-Eastern Art Archaeology and went on and completed his D.Phil. at the University of Oxford in 1997. He is an expert in pre-Islamic Central Asia, Near and Middle-East, and has carried out fieldworks in Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and Tajikistan. He is currently working on a number of projects in the region as an independent archaeologist at a senior level. Apart from Italian and a number of modern European languages, he speaks Hebrew, Persian, Arabic, Turkish and also has the full knowledge of a number of extinct languages and deciphered number texts from Old and Middle-Persian and Parthian.
|
|
|
"History is the Light on the Path to Future" |
|
Encyclopaedia Iranica
The British Institute of Persian Studies "Persepolis Reconstructed"
The British Museum
The Royal Asiatic Society
|
