Tappeh Sialk - the Glory of Ancient Kashan

4. Armineh Kaspari-Marghussian
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Fig. 4.1 Map of the central plateau of Iran showing the location of the prominent prehistoric sites in the region
Fig. 4.2a Sialk pottery sherd,
Fig. 4.2b Sialk pottery sherd, Sialk II Red Ware


Fig. 4.3a SEM microstructure of a Sialk I pottery sherd
Fig. 4.3b SEM microstructure of a Sialk II pottery sherd
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Fig. 4.4 SEM microstructure and an elemental map showing the surface of a Sialk II specimen covered with a red coating rich in iron oxide. Mixed map: calcium (red), silicon (green), iron (blue)
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Fig. 4.5 A typical elemental spectrum of a Sialk II Sample with a red coating: (a) core (4.782 wt% Fe) (b), exterior surface (24.810 wt% Fe)
Fig. 4.6 A typical elemental spectrum of a Sialk II Sample which is in red colour both on exterior and core: (a) exterior surface (5.109 wt% Fe), (b) core (4.823 wt% Fe)
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5. Barbara Helwing
Fig. 5.1 Map of Iran, indicating Proto-Elamite sites and select reference sites for Uruk period (map made with Natural Earth and QGIS 2.12)
Fig. 5.2 Contour map of Sialk South, indicating location of Ghirshman’s trenches and location of new excavation area immediately to the north: in blue
– the irregular shape is the result of the area following the topography of the site (map prepared on the basis of plan from Ghirshman 1938–9: I, pl. XXXIII)
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Fig. 5.3 Tappeh Sialk, view over Ghirshman’s trench 1 towards the new excavated area, photograph taken at the very beginning of the new work; the section cleaned 2002 is visible on the right below the new excavation area (photograph by B. Helwing for SRP)
Fig. 5.5 Tappeh Sialk, Iron Age architecture (photograph by B. Helwing for SRP)
Fig. 5.7 Arisman, overview of the site from north, with the Karkas mountains in the background (photograph by B. Helwing for DAI)
Fig. 5.4 Tappeh Sialk, the excavation area after removal of Ghirshman’s the Proto-Elamite layers (photograph by B. Helwing for SRP)
Fig. 5.6 Tappeh Sialk, nested deposit of BRBs in upper preserved Proto- Elamite layer (photograph by B. Helwing for SRP)
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Fig. 5.8 Arisman, area C Proto-Elamite architecture (photograph by B. Helwing for DAI)


Fig. 5.9 Arisman, copper smelting furnace in area A (photograph by B. Helwing for DAI)
Fig. 5.10 Arisman, proto-Elamite ceramic types: band-painted wares, band-painted pitcher, painted nose-lugged jar (photographs by
B. Helwing for DAI)
Fig. 5.11 Arisman, moulds for the casting of copper axes; left – Proto- Elamite from area A; right – Sialk III period, from area B (photographs by B. Helwing for DAI)
Fig. 5.12 Arisman, Proto-Elamite cylinder seals from area C (photographs by B. Helwing for DAI)
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6. Michael Danti
Fig. 6.1 The mound of Sialk South from the North Mound, with the Karkas mountains in the distance
Fig. 6.2 Archaeological survey in the Karkas mountains in 2005
Fig. 6.3 The intermontane valleys of the Karkas mountains provide seasonal pastures for pastoral production
Fig. 6.4 Water harvesting in the Karkas mountains to irrigate local gardens and orchards and channel water eastward to feed the qanat system of Kashan
Fig. 6.5 The eastern piedmont of the Karkas mountains
Fig. 6.6 The interior of a subterranean water channel (qanat Ab used to distribute water collected near the Karkas mountains to the arid plain around Kashan
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Fig. 6.7 The remains of an early modern mill located in the rural hinterland of Old Kashan
Fig. 6.8 Urban development in the western outskirts of Kashan in 2005 was damaging and destroying archaeological sites in the piedmont zone
Fig. 6.9 The dunes of the Rig Boland or high sands east of Kashan, forming the western fringes of the Dasht-e Kavir


Fig. 6.10 Sialk A Tomb IV (adapted from Ghirshman 1938–9: II)
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Fig. 6.11 Giyan I Tombs 3, 5 and 23 (adapted from Contenau and Ghirshman 1935)


Fig. 6.12 Finds from the ‘Solduz Necropolis’ (adapted from Ghirshman 1938–9: II)
Fig. 6.13 Dyson Chart (adapted from Dyson 1963)
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7. Reza Naseri & Mehrdad Malekzadeh

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Fig. 7.2 Table of motifs on decorated bricks from Sialk
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Fig. 7.3 Geometric motifs on Sialk bricks


Fig. 7.4 Comparison of decorative brick motifs from the Sialk platform with the motifs on pottery and seals from Cemetery B
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Fig. 7.5 Sialk painted pottery with anthropomorphic motifs
Fig. 7.6a: Median akinakes 106



Fig. 7.8 Decorative bricks found on the central plateau of Iran, a: example discovered in Qolam Tappe-ye Ja’farabad (Naseri 1390); b: example of a zoomorphic pattern from Sialk (Naseri 1390); c: a zoomorphic pattern from Shamshirgah (Naseri 1390).
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Fig. 7.9 Examples of decorated bricks with zoomorphic, anthropomorphic and geometric patterns from Qoli-Darwish d., p.2).
Fig. 7.10 Examples of decorated bricks with zoomorphic, anthropomorphic and geometric patterns from Shamshirgah (Naseri 1390).
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Fig. 7.11 Lion attacking a bull, comparison of motifs on bricks, pottery and seals from Sialk with Qoli-Darwish. (a) Photo and sketch of a
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8. Stephan Kroll
Fig. 8.1 The double-handled tankards from Sialk (Ghirshman 1938–9: II, pl. IV.)
Fig. 8.2 Typical ‘Median’ pottery from Tappeh Nush-i Jan (compiled from Stronach 1978)
Fig. 8.3 Double-handled tankard from Godin Tappeh, period II (Gopnik
Fig. 8.4 Bastam, east–west section through the post-Urartian level at
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Fig. 8.9 Nor-Armavir, Armenia, post-Urartian burial (photo courtesy of Fig. 8.10 One of several tankards found in the citadel of Ulug Nvard Tiratsyan)
Fig. 8.11 Roaf’s map with Tappeh Sialk now added
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9. Hassan Fazeli Nashli, Hengameh Ilkhani & Alexandra Livarda
Fig. 9.1 The location of a domestic hearth within the residential area in the Transitional Chalcolithic phase (Fazeli et al. 2010)
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Fig. 9.2 A: Atriplex sp.; B: cf. ‘New Type’ glume wheat spikelet bases; C: Emmer wheat spikelet bases; D: Astragalus type; E: sheep/goat dung pellets


10. Marjan Mashkour & Céline Bon
Fig. 10.1 Grave excavated by Roman Ghirshman (from Ghirshman 1935)
Fig. 10.2a Skull #27290 from Tappeh Sialk in the anthropological collection of the Musée de l’Homme
anthropological collection of the Musée de l’Homme
Fig. 10.5 Two skulls from Tappeh Sialk exhibited in the Musée de l’Homme
Fig 10.2b 3D surface scan of Fig. 10.2a (MNHN HA-27290) in right lateral view

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Fig. 10.6 Faunal remains from Sialk published in Vaufrey 1940: pl. 32
Fig. 10.7 Equid and cattle teeth and bones from Tappeh Sialk in the IPH collection. Occlusal views of a) Equus sp., lower 2nd molar same as Vaufrey 1940: pl. 32, no. 11 and no. 22 of IPH catalogue; b) Equus cf. hemionus, upper 2nd molar, no. 12 in idem no. 21 idem; c)–d) Vestibular and lingual views of Bos taurus 1st /2nd lower Molar, no. 21 of IPH catalogue (© Marjan Mashkour)
Fig. 10.8 Wild and domestic goat horncores from Tappeh Sialk in the IPH collection. Capra cf aegagrus a) medial and b) lateral views, specimen Vaufrey 1940: pl. 32, no. 6. Capra hircus c & d), lateral and medial views (no. 1198 and no. 1184), e) Ovis aries lateral view (no. 1185) (© Marjan Mashkour)
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Fig. 10.9 Wild sheep horncore from Tappeh Sialk in the IPH collection. Ovis orientalis, a) medial and b) lateral views and c) basal section, same as Vaufrey 1940: pl. 32, no. 7 (© Marjan Mashkour)
Fig. 10.10 The faunal spectrum of the Neolithic level of the ‘Tappeh Sialk Reconsideration Project’
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11. François Bridey & Julien Cuny
Fig. 11.1 Ghirshman’s 1934 sketchbook. Necropolis A, tomb V. Written in Russian (Sialk expedition archive © Département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)
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Fig. 11.2 Members of the 1934 expedition in Kashan. Standing, left to right: Souren Malhossian, Roman Ghirshman, Georges Contenau, Azad Gregorian. Sitting, left to right: Gustave Tellier, Tania Ghirshman, Maxime Siroux (Sialk expedition archive, photograph DAO-600-004-0144. © Département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)

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Fig. 11.4 Proto-Elamite tablet found on 25 November 1933, now housed in the Louvre (inv. AO 18173) (Sialk expedition archive, photograph DAO-600-004-0093 © Département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)
Fig. 11.5 South Mound, Trench 1 and Trench 2 during excavation, seen from the north-west, 1933 (Sialk expedition archive, photograph DAO-600- 004-0011 © Département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)
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Fig. 11.6 Necropolis A, sketched by Ghirshman, written in Russian (Sialk expedition archive © Département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)
Fig. 11.7 Necropolis B during excavation, with Souren Malhossian standing at the centre, wearing a hat, undated (1934 or 1937) (Sialk expedition archive, photograph DAO-600-004-0095. © Département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)
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Fig. 11.8 South Mound, Trench 1P, plan of the remains of Period IV 1 (see Ghirshman 1938–9: I, pl. LX) (drawn by Hardy, December 1937. Sialk expedition archive © Département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)
Fig. 11.9 South Mound, Trench 1P, remains of Period III 3 during excavation, December 1937 (see Ghirshman 1938–9: I, pl. LX). Trench I is visible to the right (Sialk expedition archive, photograph DAO-600- 004-0442 © Département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)
Fig. 11.10 South Mound, Trench 1P, after excavation, showing the centre the kiln of Period III 1 at the foot of the bench (see Ghirshman 1938–9: I, pl. LX), end December 1937) Sialk expedition archive, photograph DAO-600-004-0042 © Département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)
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Fig. 11.11 Hardy’s 1937 sketchbook. Necropolis B, tombs 136 and 135, October 1937 (Sialk expedition archive © Département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)
Fig. 11.12 Registration card of a long-spouted vessel from Necropolis B, tomb 13, now on display in the National Museum of Iran in Tehran (object number: S 1472) (drawings by Tania Ghirshman. Sialk expedition archive © Département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)
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of the collection. The black band separates two equal selections of objects. The numbers 1 and 2 are visible in the background (Sialk expedition archive, photograph DAO-600-004-0336 © Département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)
Fig. 11.14 Distribution diagrams of the Sialk collection in the Louvre: (a) intra-site distribution, (b) material distribution
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Fig. 11.15 Showcase with objects from Sialk in the Louvre, Room V, undated (1950s?) (© Archives du département des Antiquités orientales, musée du Louvre)
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12. Mohsen Javeri
Fig. 12.1 Aerial photograph of the Sialk site (from Ghirshman 1938–9: I, Fig. 12.2 Registration of Sialk on Iranian National Heritage list pl. I)
Fig. 12.3 Members of the 2015 excavation team Fig. 12.4 Section drawings from Sondage 3, 2015
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Fig. 12.5 Location of 2015 sondages (TT=test trench)
Fig. 12.6 Aerial photograph showing the Sialk site surrounded by buildings
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Fig. 12.7 Encroachment of agricultural land and new buildings at Sialk Fig. 12.8 Construction of an illegal building, 2011
Fig. 12.9 Construction of an illegal building Fig. 12.10 View to the south from Sialk
Fig. 12.11 View to the north from Sialk
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Fig. 12.12 New proposition for the boundaries of the Sialk site


13. Hossein Mahlouji
Fig. 13.1 The Ameri House, before and after restoration
Fig. 13.2 The Tabatabaei House, before and after restoration
Fig. 13.3 Sultan Amir Ahmad Bathhouse, before and after restoration
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Fig. 13.4 The Al’Yassin House, before and after restoration
Fig. 13.5a The Abbasian House, before and after restoration
Fig. 13.5b The Abbasian House, restored courtyard
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Fig. 13.6 Traditional loom technique Fig. 13.7 Women creating handicrafts at the House of Handicrafts of the Blind
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Appendix
Participants in the 2017 Tappeh Sialk conference:
Back row, from left: Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis, Nima Nezafati, Robin Coningham, Armineh Kaspari-Marghussian, Hassan Fazeli Nashli, Michael Danti, Astrid Johansen, Massoumeh Parker.
Front row, from left: Hossein Entezar, John Curtis, Alireza Rastegar, Iradj Bagherzadeh, Jebrael Nokandeh, Fereidoun Biglari
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Participants in the 2018 Tappeh Sialk conference:
Back row, from left: Astrid Johansen, Vahid Alaghband, Barbara Helwing, Mohsen Javari, Nima Nezafati, Hamid-Reza Momenian, Jebrael Nokandeh, Fereidoun Biglari, Roger Matthews, François Bridey, Julien Cuny.
Front row, from left: Massoumeh Parker, Ali Rashidian, John Curtis, Stefan Kroll, Hossein Mahlouji, Hassan Fazeli Nashli, Mehrdad Malekzadeh, Reza Naseri, Armineh Kaspari-Marghussian, Sima Yadollahi
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