Archaeological Research of Iran

Archaeological Research of Iran

Archaeological excavations of the Aghche Rish site: Evidence of a pottery-producing and consuming community from the 8th to the 14th centuries AD.

Author
assistance professor
10.22084/nb.2026.31374.2795
Abstract
The Ağche Rish site is in the south of East Azerbaijan Province, adjacent to strategic communication routes connecting northwest Iran with the Caucasus, Anatolia, and central Iran. This site was excavated during two archaeological seasons in 2020 and 2023, and evidence of occupation from the 8th to the 14th centuries AD was identified. Architectural findings, plaster decorations, workshop remains, various types of sgraffito pottery, monochrome glazed pottery, lustrous glazed pottery, and glass are among the important outcomes of these excavations. In the middle layers (10th to 12th centuries AD), alongside the discovery of a coin from the Buyid period, remains of a pottery workshop including a kiln, kiln rods, tripods, and pottery waste were found, indicating production activities at this site. This research, employing a descriptive-analytical method and based on field and library studies, aims to answer two questions: To which historical periods do the pottery types found at the Ağche Rrish site belong? Which types of pottery were likely produced locally at this site, and which were imported? According to this study, the typology of recovered pottery includes a diverse range of simple unglazed pottery, simple glazed pottery, green and yellow splashed glaze, simple sgraffito, splashed glaze sgraffito, Champleve type, and a limited number of lustrous glazed and polychrome sgraffito pieces. These are comparable with pottery from the 8th to 14th centuries AD found in other Islamic world regions (Nishapur, Shush, Siraf, Sirjan, Rey, Gorgan, Samarra, Basra, and Byzantine sites in Anatolia). Additionally, technological data obtained from the kiln structure, related equipment, and technical characteristics of the pottery provided information on the pottery production system at the Ağche Rish site. Some of the unglazed pottery, simple glazed pottery, simple sgraffito, and splashed glaze types were locally produced, while splashed glaze, Champleve, lustrous painted, and polychrome sgraffito pottery were identified as imports.
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Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 04 January 2026