Cultural Interactions between the Sistan Basin and the Bampur Valley:Grey Wares Characterization in Question During the 3rd Millennium BCE

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 Department of Archaeology, University of Sistan and Baluchestan, Zahedan, Iran

2 Department of Archaeology & Archaeological Sciences Research Centre, University of Sistan and Baluchestan, Zahedan, Iran.

3 German Mining Museum, Bochum, Germany

Abstract

During the third Millennium BCE, grey wares were the most popular wares in the Indo-Iranian borderlands in
which the Bampur Valley and the Sistan basin played a significant role. This research aims to compare grey wares
of the above-mentioned regions in order to have a better understanding of possible cultural similarities in both
regions. Similarities between grey wares of the regions at the issue have been frequently explained in the light of
the long-distance trade mechanism, and considered as a result of the (intentional or unintentional) exchange of
pottery techniques and design styles through commercial activities. Eighteen Grey ceramic sherds were sampled
at Tepe Bampur and Shahr-i Sokhta, two key-sites, which are respectively located in the Bampur Valley and the
Sistan Basin. To compare the raw materials of the ceramic samples after their analyses, some clay samples were also
collected from two specific natural clay deposits, located 10 km north and 45 km south of Shahr-i Sokhta, and from
the bank and riverbed of the Bampur River. In addition, a clay sample was also collected from a clay deposit in the
Pirgel region, located 100 km north of Tepe Bampur and 300 km southwest of Shahr-i Sokhta. By means of XRF
techniques, it was attempted to compare different elements of the ceramic and soil samples. The results show that
there are close similarities between the chemical elements of the grey wares collected at Shahr-i Sokhta and Tepe
Bampur and soil samples from the Bampur Valley and the Pirgel region. Although these similarities are not seen
with soil samples of the Sistan Basin, the grey wares of these two sites were completely similar. Finally, it can be
stated that the fine grey wares of the Sistan Basin were not locally manufactured but were probably imported from
the Bampur Valley and other regions through long-distance trade during the third millennium BCE.

Keywords

References

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Iranian Journal of Archaeological Studies
Volume 11, Issue 1
2021
Pages 113-122

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