Authors
1
Ph.D. Student in Archaeology, Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Art and Architecture, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran
2
Associate Professor, Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Art and Architecture, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran
3
Assistant Professor, Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism, Mazandaran University, Chalus, Iran
10.22084/nb.2024.28468.2636
Abstract
Regarding the developments of the Copper Age in the east of Mazandaran, many questions are raised, including the methods of formation of these societies and the recognition of their native, regional, and extra-regional cultural indicators. Painted red pottery is the most significant cultural data left from the late Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods in the east of Mazandaran. Studying and understanding the characteristics of this type of pottery, both technically and decoratively, can provide a better perspective of the societies of this region and possible links with neighboring Regions in the sixth millennium to the middle of the fifth millennium BC. By studying and investigating the lowest settlement layers of the Tapeh Abbasi Neka plain, we saw the simultaneous presence of Neolithic-type pottery and painted red pottery. Given their similarities to types found in neighboring regions, such as the Central Plateau of Iran, Northeast of Iran, and Gorgan Plain, these pieces of Pottery exhibit technical and decorative characteristics that differ from the pottery culture of the previous period (Neolithic). This suggests the emergence of a new level of technology in pottery production.
Based on the available data, it appears that painted red pottery emerged in Tapeh Abbasi Neka (and the eastern plains of Mazandaran), However, the subsequent process diverges from the patterns classified in the Central Plateau of Iran. painted red pottery appears in the lowest settlement layer (layer 12) of Tapeh Abbasi during a phase that aligns with the transitional phase of copper in the central plateau (phase 1). In the subsequent layer (layer 11), it appears again, this time in a distinct period with advanced production characteristics. However, it maintains the aesthetic specifications from the previous phase (phase 2). In the subsequent stage, within layer 10 (Bronze period), the use or production of phase 2 painted red pottery continues, albeit with a declining trend in both quality and quantity.
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