Archaeological Research of Iran

Archaeological Research of Iran

Preliminary Analysis: The Administrative Organization of Tapeh Tyalineh: An Early Bronze Age Node of Exchange and Bureaucracy in the Central Zagros

Authors
1 Department of Architecture , University of Kurdistan
2 Ph.D. in Archaeology , University of Tehran
10.22084/nb.2026.32050.2829
Abstract
This article examines an assemblage of 78 clay sealings discovered on the surface of the archaeological site of Tapeh Tyalineh, located in the Mahidasht-Kuzaran region of the Central Zagros. It analyzes the iconography and style of the Tyalineh seal impressions and dates them on the basis of comparable corpora. The article assesses the administrative organization of the site through a functional analysis of the clay sealings. The corpus of Tyalineh seal impressions encompasses all the glyptic styles of the Proto-Elamite period, as well as examples of styles from the Trans-Tigridian corridor and southeastern Turkey. Comparable materials—from Proto-Elamite sites such as Susa, Malyan, Tepe Yahya, and Shahr-i Sokhta; and from Tell Gubba and the Sin Temple at Khafajah in the Hamrin and Diyala regions; as well as Chogha Maran in Mahidasht and Arslantepe in southeastern Turkey—date the corpus to a period between 3100 and 2800 BCE. Since jar sealings and storage-door sealings constitute approximately 79% and 14.5% of the Tyalineh sealings, respectively, the administrative institution of Tyalineh appears to have specialized in overseeing the storage, allocation, and exchange of specific commodities and goods. The profiles of the sealings and the site’s ceramic assemblage attest that the storage of liquids—such as oil, wine, and beer—constituted a significant portion of these commodities at Tyalineh. The iconographic and functional analysis of the Tyalineh administrative assemblage suggests that the site was founded by members of Proto-Elamite society, likely individuals of equivalent social rank (e.g., households or merchants) rather than representatives of a centralized Proto-Elamite administrative institution. Furthermore, the presence of both Kura-Araxes and Proto-Elamite ceramics at Tepe Tyalineh provides a valuable context for studying interactions between the Proto-Elamite and Kura-Araxes cultures in western Iran.
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Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 03 May 2026