Prehistoric Iran from Neanderthals to Jiroft

The Neanderthals from at least 100,000 years ago existed in Greater Iran during the Pleistocene andPliocene eras. Modern human artifacts were found to have existed at least from 9000 B.C.E. Thiswas before the civilizations of Elam and the migration of Indo-Iranians into the area in the 2ndmillennium B.C.E., giving Persia its history and character.

Greater Iran was continuously occupied by civilizations from at least the 9th or 10th milleniumB.C.E. Greater Iran is defined as spanning the lands from the Euphrates in the west to the IndusRiver in the east. From the north it spans from the Caucasus, Caspian Sea, and Aral Sea to thePersian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman in the south.

Some of the most ancient civilizations of Greater Iran include the Jiroft culture in Kerman Provinceof southeastern Iran (dating back to the 4th millennium B.C.E.). These civilizations are followed bythe non-Semitic, non-Aryan people of Elam who lived primarily in southeastern Iran from over 5000

years ago.

All of these civilizations existed prior to the migrations of the Indo-Aryans starting from the 2ndmillennia B.C.E. These migrations produced the Medes and the Achaemenid Persians and otherAryan civilizations of Greater Iran.

Neanderthal Populations

The earliest archaeological artifacts in northwestern Iran, and some in central Iran, date to theLower Paleolithic and Middle Paleolithic (from somewhere around 100,000 years ago to 30,000years ago, from Pleistocene to Pliocene eras). Neanderthal tools were found in caves of the Zagrosand Elborz Mountains as well as in central Iran.

The oldest evidence of Neanderthals was found at Kashafrud in Khorasan in the northeast of GreaterIran. This site yielded stone tools, mainly simple core and flake tools made from quarts, that wereOlduwan-like in appearance and that the archaeologist, C. Thibault, dated to 800,000 B.C.E. Thediscovered Mousterian stone tool artifacts which date to the Middle Pleistocene era match artifactsalso found in the Caucasus.

The most well-known of the Neanderthal discoveries in Greater Iran are the skeletons found atShanidar Cave in the Zagros Mountains in Kurdestan. The Shanidar Cave Neanderthals are dated toabout 60,000 years ago.

Ancient Modern Human Populations

The oldest Upper Paleolithic artifacts have been found mainly from the Zagros Mountains in thecaves of Kermanshah and Khoramabad. Other ancient artifacts have been found at Ganj Pars. TerraCotta artifacts and clay vessels were also found at Ganj Dareh in Western Iran. About 9000 yearsago Teppe Sarab in Kermanshah Province existed with animal and human figurines and otherartifacts being found.

Several artifacts have been found from the 8th millennium B.C.E. which demonstrate the beginningof agriculture. 7000 year-old jars of wine were found in the Zagros Mountains, now on display at theUniversity of Pennsylvania.

Jiroft Civilization

Urban settlement has been found at several sites in Greater Iran dating to the 3rd or 4th millenniumB.C.E. One prime example is the Jiroft civilization discovered in southeastern Iran in KermanProvince, in Sistan va Baluchistan Province and in Afghanistan. Some artifacts discovered at Jiroftare thought to possibly predate Mesopotamian civilization.

Many artifacts have been found at Jiroft, some dating to the 4th millennium B.C.E. Many objects aredecorated with architectural motifs and animal figures and some are unlike any other itemspreviously found in the area. Some objects are made from chlorite, a gray-green soft stone; andother objects are made in copper, bronze, terracotta, and lapis lazuli. What are thought to be theearliest inscriptions pre-dating Mesopotamian inscriptions are said to be fakes.

Shahr-i Sukhtah (meaning Burnt City), also spelled Shahr-e Sokhte found in today's Sistan vaBaluchestan Province, is a part of the Jiroft Civilization. The settlement appeared around 3200B.C.E. and was burned down at least three times before being abandoned about 2300 B.C.E.

Unusual artifacts have been found such as an artificial eyeball, a human skull which demonstratesthe use of brain surgery, and the first known backgammon set.

Jiroft Possible Aratti Civilization

Jiroft may have descended from the Aratti people, living in a land called Aratta by the Sumerians inthe 3rd millenium B.C.E.. The Aratti later moved further southwest on the Iranian Plateau. TheAratti (Herodotus referred to the Parthians as the Artaioi) may have been ancestors of the Bactriansand Parthians.

Due to extensive plundering of Jiroft cultural sites, Oscar White Muscarella, archaeologist andformer curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art concludes that little can be substantiated todayabout Jiroft culture based on the archaeology of the past. Uncovered items have appeared on themarket along with copies made resembling the originals, all with undocumented origins.

Archaeological documentation of the original excavations has been lost, and grand speculation andnew claims are being made about the nature of the Jiroft culture, artifacts, dates and origins withoutsolid documentation and scientific analysis.

Sources:

Biglari, F. and S. Shidrang "The Lower PaleolithicOccupation of Iran," Near Eastern Archaeology (2006,69,3-4)

Frost, Martin "History of Iran," Frost's Meditationsmartinfrost.ws Accessed Feb 8 2010

Muscarella, Oscar White "Jiroft iii. General Survey ofExcavations," Encyclopaedia Iranica Online (March2009) iranica.com Accessed Feb 9 2010

New World Encyclopedia. "Iran" newworldencyclopedia.org Accessed Feb 8 2010