Tappeh Pahlavan, a Late Neolithic and Transitional Chalcolithic Site in North East of Iran

The Jajarm plain is one of the richest areas of the province of North Khorasan, where a long cultural sequence from the Neolithic to the Islamic period was evidenced. This area is located in a natural corridor between the Alborz range and the Dasht-e Kavir where main trade routes in the northeast of the central plateau have development and where environmental conditions were still suitable for human settlements. Prehistoric human communities were also attracted to this region because of the presence of mineral resources and raw materials. Few archaeological reserch have been done in the prehistoric period of Jajarm plain and our knowledge of cultural developments of this period, especially in the Neolithic and Calcolithic periods are very limited. The few archaeological excavations carried out in this area have not yet been able to determine the cultural sequence of the Jajarm plain. Tappeh Pahlavan is one of the prehistoric sites in the Jajarm plain. It is located in the south of the Jajarm county at the northern edge of Dasht-e Kavir and to the south-west of the city of Jajarm. Archaeological deposits from the Late Neolithic, Chalcolithic and Islamic periods were reported of this site. Excavations at Tappeh Pahlavan have revealed the earliest evidence for human occupation in this area. C14 dating has been provided the evidence of the Late Neolithic to the Transitional Chalcolithic (5800- 4800 BCE) in Tappeh Pahlavan.
 
Introduction
Tappeh Pahlavan, discussed in this paper, is one of the prehistoric sites in the Jajarm plain. It is located in the south of the Jajarm county at the northern edge of Dasht-e Kavir and to the south-west of the city of Jajarm, at an altitude of 923 m.asl. Today the region is a steppe-desert without vegetation. However during the prehistoric times the environmental setting offered obviously suitable subsistence conditions due to the presence of permanent and impermanent water sources. Archaeological deposits from the Neolithic, Chalcolithic and Islamic periods were reported earlier by Brian Spooner and then Seichi Masuda during his excavations at Tappeh Sang-e Chakhmaq. Few decades later, the site was visited by Ali Vahdati (Vahdati 2010) in the frame of investigations on the Neolithic spread to the east and the relation of this site with Jeitoun sites in southern Turkmenistan. Vahdati collected surface pottery finds and allocated it to the Neolithic and Chalcolithic. In 2015 (1393) the first sounding of Tappeh Pahlavan was initiated under the direction of the first author to find the limits of the site. Several trenches were sounded around Tappeh Pahlavan and helped in evaluating an area of 2,5 hectars for the prehistoric and historic occupation of the site. According to the collected information it was soon established that the site belonged to the Late Neolithic and Transitional Chalcolithic and also Ilkhanid (Azizi Kharanaghi et al, 2016). In 2018, the second season of excavation was organized in Tappeh Pahlavan to investigate the stratigraphy and the absolute chronology of the site (Azizi Kharanaghi et al, 2017 (1396).
 
Archaeological Excavation
The site of Tappeh Pahlavan is 6 meters height. In total, four trenches (A to D) were excavated. The cultural layers were concentrated in the northern part of the site that might be related to water resources closer to that part of the site. The presence of water is probably one of the reasons of the continuous settlement from Late Neolithic to the transitional chalcolithic period.
A large number of archaeological materials was uncovered in Tappeh Pahlevan that include pottery, lithic, faunal and botanical remains. The most remarkable finds on this site are semi-precious stones. During the Transitional Chalcolithic period, the high number of stone drills and drilling tools, along with the complete variety of stone bead and the possibility of reconstructing the “chaine operatoire” points to the economic importance of the stone bead manufacturing activity in this area. This is similar to the specialization of some sites during the transitional Chalcolithic period, such as at the Tepe Pardis in the Tehran plain (Fazeli Nashli et al, 2007). The pottery collection of Tappeh Pahlavan, is comparable with the third levels of Tappeh Sang-e Chakhmaq East mound (Roustaei et al., 2015), which was also discussed by Akira Tsuneki (Tsuneki, 2017, 2014). Almost half of the pottery collection in Tappeh Pahlavan is constituted of Cheshmeh Ali type and comparable to those of the center of the Iranian Plateau (Sialk North (Ghirshman, 1938), Cheshmeh Ali (Fazeli Nashli et al., 2004), Tepe Pardis (Fazeli Nashli et al., 2007), Aq Tappeh (Malek Shahmirzadi and Nokandeh 1379 (2001), Komishani cave (Vadati Nasab, 1388 (2009) and also to those of the neighboring areas such as in Kalateh Khan, Dehkheir (Rezvani and Roustaei, 2016) and Ghaf Khaneh (Roustaei, 1388 (2009). It is noteworthy that no architectural remains could be found in the four excavated trenches of the site.
 
Conclusion
Finally, a total of seven charcoal samples were 14C dated and provided the evidence of a continuous chronology from the Late Neolithic to the Transitional Chalcolithic (5800- 4800 BCE) and an occupation over a thousand years. These short investigations at Tappeh Pahlavan have revealed some of the earliest evidences of human occupation in the Jajarm plain.
However, considering the cultural and historical potential of the Jajarm Plain and the number of archaeological sites reported until now, the ration of excavated sites is very low and the archaeological investigation in this area are still very weak. Excavations at Tappeh Pahlavan have revealed the earliest evidence for human occupation in this area but the present chronological sequence despite the excavations of Tappeh Pahlavan and Tepe Chalow (Vahdati et al 2019), has still many gaps. Future investigations on prehistoric and historical sites of the Jajarm plain may fill these gaps and our understanding of the dynamics of human settlement in this part of Iran. We need to have a more detailed understanding of the daily life in this part of Iran and subsistence economies, local and regional trade routes in connection with southern central Asia and more particularly with Turkmenistan.
The Jajarm plain is one of the richest areas of the province of North Khorasan, where a long cultural sequence from the Neolithic to the Islamic period was evidenced. This area is located in a natural corridor between the Alborz range and the Dasht-e Kavir where main trade routes in the northeast of the central plateau have development and where environmental conditions were still suitable for human settlements. Prehistoric human communities were also attracted to this region because of the presence of mineral resources and raw materials. Few archaeological reserch have been done in the prehistoric period of Jajarm plain and our knowledge of cultural developments of this period, especially in the Neolithic and Calcolithic periods are very limited. The few archaeological excavations carried out in this area have not yet been able to determine the cultural sequence of the Jajarm plain. Tappeh Pahlavan is one of the prehistoric sites in the Jajarm plain. It is located in the south of the Jajarm county at the northern edge of Dasht-e Kavir and to the south-west of the city of Jajarm. Archaeological deposits from the Late Neolithic, Chalcolithic and Islamic periods were reported of this site. Excavations at Tappeh Pahlavan have revealed the earliest evidence for human occupation in this area. C14 dating has been provided the evidence of the Late Neolithic to the Transitional Chalcolithic (5800- 4800 BCE) in Tappeh Pahlavan.

Introduction
Tappeh Pahlavan, discussed in this paper, is one of the prehistoric sites in the Jajarm plain. It is located in the south of the Jajarm county at the northern edge of Dasht-e Kavir and to the south-west of the city of Jajarm, at an altitude of 923 m.asl. Today the region is a steppe-desert without vegetation. However during the prehistoric times the environmental setting offered obviously suitable subsistence conditions due to the presence of permanent and impermanent water sources. Archaeological deposits from the Neolithic, Chalcolithic and Islamic periods were reported earlier by Brian Spooner and then Seichi Masuda during his excavations at Tappeh Sang-e Chakhmaq. Few decades later, the site was visited by Ali Vahdati (Vahdati 2010) in the frame of investigations on the Neolithic spread to the east and the relation of this site with Jeitoun sites in southern Turkmenistan. Vahdati collected surface pottery finds and allocated it to the Neolithic and Chalcolithic. In 2015 (1393) the first sounding of Tappeh Pahlavan was initiated under the direction of the first author to find the limits of the site. Several trenches were sounded around Tappeh Pahlavan and helped in evaluating an area of 2,5 hectars for the prehistoric and historic occupation of the site. According to the collected information it was soon established that the site belonged to the Late Neolithic and Transitional Chalcolithic and also Ilkhanid (Azizi Kharanaghi et al, 2016). In 2018, the second season of excavation was organized in Tappeh Pahlavan to investigate the stratigraphy and the absolute chronology of the site (Azizi Kharanaghi et al, 2017 (1396).
Archaeological Excavation
The site of Tappeh Pahlavan is 6 meters height. In total, four trenches (A to D) were excavated. The cultural layers were concentrated in the northern part of the site that might be related to water resources closer to that part of the site. The presence of water is probably one of the reasons of the continuous settlement from Late Neolithic to the transitional chalcolithic period.
A large number of archaeological materials was uncovered in Tappeh Pahlevan that include pottery, lithic, faunal and botanical remains. The most remarkable finds on this site are semi-precious stones. During the Transitional Chalcolithic period, the high number of stone drills and drilling tools, along with the complete variety of stone bead and the possibility of reconstructing the “chaine operatoire” points to the economic importance of the stone bead manufacturing activity in this area. This is similar to the specialization of some sites during the transitional Chalcolithic period, such as at the Tepe Pardis in the Tehran plain (Fazeli Nashli et al, 2007). The pottery collection of Tappeh Pahlavan, is comparable with the third levels of Tappeh Sang-e Chakhmaq East mound (Roustaei et al., 2015), which was also discussed by Akira Tsuneki (Tsuneki, 2017, 2014). Almost half of the pottery collection in Tappeh Pahlavan is constituted of Cheshmeh Ali type and comparable to those of the center of the Iranian Plateau (Sialk North (Ghirshman, 1938), Cheshmeh Ali (Fazeli Nashli et al., 2004), Tepe Pardis (Fazeli Nashli et al., 2007), Aq Tappeh (Malek Shahmirzadi and Nokandeh 1379 (2001), Komishani cave (Vadati Nasab, 1388 (2009) and also to those of the neighboring areas such as in Kalateh Khan, Dehkheir (Rezvani and Roustaei, 2016) and Ghaf Khaneh (Roustaei, 1388 (2009). It is noteworthy that no architectural remains could be found in the four excavated trenches of the site.
 
Conclusion
Finally, a total of seven charcoal samples were 14C dated and provided the evidence of a continuous chronology from the Late Neolithic to the Transitional Chalcolithic (5800- 4800 BCE) and an occupation over a thousand years. These short investigations at Tappeh Pahlavan have revealed some of the earliest evidences of human occupation in the Jajarm plain.
However, considering the cultural and historical potential of the Jajarm Plain and the number of archaeological sites reported until now, the ration of excavated sites is very low and the archaeological investigation in this area are still very weak. Excavations at Tappeh Pahlavan have revealed the earliest evidence for human occupation in this area but the present chronological sequence despite the excavations of Tappeh Pahlavan and Tepe Chalow (Vahdati et al 2019), has still many gaps. Future investigations on prehistoric and historical sites of the Jajarm plain may fill these gaps and our understanding of the dynamics of human settlement in this part of Iran. We need to have a more detailed understanding of the daily life in this part of Iran and subsistence economies, local and regional trade routes in connection with southern central Asia and more particularly with Turkmenistan.v