Discovery of Neolithic Artifacts in Sardasht Excavations

The project manager of the Sardasht archaeological site announced that archaeologists have discovered artifacts from the "Neolithic era" dating back to "six thousand years before Christ" during excavations in the area. According to the state news agency IRNA, Youssef Fallahian stated on Tuesday, October 19, that these artifacts include evidence of life, settlements, burial sites, and objects found in the living areas of the ancient inhabitants of this region. Mr. Fallahian noted that these findings were made during excavations conducted by archaeologists and anthropology specialists that began 20 days ago in five sites: "Nisk Abad, Briso, Balān, Bāghī, and Boruh" in Sardasht. Archaeologists define the "Neolithic era" as the age when agriculture and animal domestication began, estimating the start of this period to be around 10,000 years ago. Reports indicate that among the artifacts from this period in Iran are a wine vessel dating back about 4500 years before Christ found at the "Haji Firuz Naghdeh" mound, as well as discoveries at the "Ganj Dareh" mound and the "Mill" near Kermanshah and "Ali Kosh" in Ilam. Previously, artifacts from the "second and first millennium before Christ" had been discovered at the Sardasht archaeological mound. Meanwhile, Reza Heydari, an archaeology expert from the cultural heritage of West Azerbaijan, stated that archaeological surveys and the registration of historical artifacts in Sardasht have been conducted since the 1960s, with the ancient mound of "Rabt" being registered as a national heritage site for the first time. According to Mr. Heydari, archaeological excavations at the "Rabt 2" mound began in 2005, uncovering pavements from the "first millennium before Christ" and glazed bricks, some of which had cuneiform inscriptions. He added that "excavations and studies of the Balān mound also revealed artifacts related to the first millennium before Christ and the Sasanian period." According to this archaeology expert, "architectural structures from the Sasanian period," jars made of plaster, bricks, and pottery, as well as "figurines" used for decoration have been found in this area. Previously, the cultural heritage news agency had reported several times on "illegal excavations" at the ancient mound of "Rabt" in Sardasht. According to this news agency, the ancient mound of "Rabt" is located in the residential area of Sardasht and "no fencing" has been erected around it, making it easy for "illegal excavators to remove ancient objects from this area."