More Ancient Hills Discovered in Burnt City - CAIS Archaeological & Cultural News of Iranian World©

LONDON, (CAIS) -- Archaeological excavations in Burnt City (Shahr-e Sukhteh) led to discovery of eight pre-historic and two historic hills. With this discovery, the number of discovered hills in this region reached to 137.

“The excavation team succeeded in discovery of 10 historic hills near Burnt City. These hills are located 8 kilometres from the Burnt City and it seems that most of them must have been satellite villages of this city. Discovery of an oilstone in one of these historical hills which is very similar to those previously found in the Achaemenid city of Dahaneh-e Gholaman in Sistan province has strengthened the idea that this historic hill must have belonged to the Achaemenid era,” said Alireza Khosravi, head of the office of Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization in the Burnt City.

Archaeological evidence shows that Dahaneh Gholaman historical site dates back to the Achaemenid era (580-330 BCE) and is considered one of the very few known Achaemenid sites in Iran. Remains of several religious and governmental complexes of the Achaemenid dynastic era are still evident in this city. It consists of buildings set up above agricultural lands so that the houses would be protected against the threat of seasonal floods caused by the nearby Hirmand River.

“A number of questions still exist about what happened to the people of this historical city after they abandoned the Burnt City. Archaeologists are trying to find traces of their migration,” added Khosravi.

According to Khosravi, it is believed that 700 historical hills must have existed near the Burnt City, while only 137 of them have been identified so far.

Burnt City, located some 55 kilometres off Zabol in the southeastern Sistan va Baluchestan province, was once one of the largest cities around 3200 BCE and enjoyed a high civilization and urbanization at that time. The city had four stages of civilization and was burnt down three times. Since it was not rebuilt after the last blaze around 2100 BCE, it was named the Burnt City. Despite nine seasons of archaeological excavations in this ancient site, myriad mysteries have remained unravelled.