Journal of Archaeological Studies

Abstract Abstract
Ahranjan Tepe is a prehistoric mound located in the Salmas Plain of northwestern Iran, in West Azerbaijan Province. The presence of a ten-meter-deep Late Neolithic deposit suggests that the site functioned as a principal regional center during the Late Neolithic period (Hasanlu X horizon). Excavations were undertaken to investigate the cultural conditions of northwestern Iran during this time span. Following the Late Neolithic occupation, Ahranjan appears to have been abandoned. This paper examines the cultural relationships between the Salmas Plain and neighboring regions through a detailed presentation of the site’s stratigraphy, burial practices, ovens, architectural remains, and associated small finds. Radiocarbon dates, in conjunction with relative chronological analysis and excavation results, indicate cultural connections between Ahranjan and sites such as Hajji Firuz Tepe and Jarmo in Mesopotamia. The article further aims to clarify the cultural sequence of the mound and to address the question of whether the site contains evidence of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic (PPN), or whether occupation began only during the Pottery Neolithic period. The research results include the discovery of mass human burials within residential spaces and the identification of distinctive thermal oven pits, which appear to be unique and have not been reported at other sites.
Keywords: Northwestern Iran, Lake Urmia Basin, Late Neolithic, Group Burial.
 
1. Introduction
The cultural materials of Ahranjan have close similarities, especially with Jarmo on the one hand, and also with other contemporary sites, including Hajji Firuz and Yanik Tepe in the Lake Urmia basin on the other. However, despite some similarities, it has fundamental differences with Hajji Firuz, despite the fact that all Neolithic sites are on the same horizon as each other, but they also have structural differences. With regard to the cultural materials of Ahranjan, it must be acknowledged that this site does not fit into the framework of the Hajji Firuz culture that was introduced earlier and has more different characteristics than Hajji Firuz and other sites on the same horizon and has its own cultural characteristics. The archaeological excavation of Ahranjan Tepe was carried out with the aim of updating and accurately explaining the cultural sequence of the Neolithic period in the Lake Urmia basin, explaining the phases and settlement layers, examining pottery kilns, burial methods, presenting relative and absolute chronology, and also providing documentary evidence of the presence of a late Neolithic culture that is different from other cultures of the same horizon.
 
2. Archaeological Background
In the Archaeological literature, Northwest Iran is primarily famed for the plains of the Lake Urmia Basin. The sphere of influence of the region’s culture, however, spreads over a much vaster zone. In the northern Basin, excavations at the Neolithic site of Tepe Hajji Firuz have yielded ceramics paralleling the material from the Early Hassuna sites such as Umm Dabaghiyah (Voigt 1983: 101). Dalma-type pottery has occurred at Tepe Sivan (Solecki 1973), Hajji Firuz (Voigt 1983: 80) and Pisdeli. The University of Pennsylvania Museum’s long-lasting Hasanlu Project, started in 1956 under the general direction of Robert H. Dyson, is the most significant work in this basin (Dyson 1969). On the other hand, work in the northeastern basin of the lake began in 1960 by Charles Burney at Yanik Tepe, furnishing important results, among them the identification of the Trans-Caucasian culture’s infiltration into northwest Iran (Burney 1961, 1964). Excavations at Yanik Tepe revealed a sequence spanning the Neolithic (Hasanlu Period X or Hajji Firuz Period), i.e. sixth millennium B.C.E., to the second half of the first millennium B.C.E. 
 
3. Work Procedure
Ahranjan Tepe has an area measuring 25 x 52 meters, equivalent to 1300 square meters, which is located in a north-south direction, 4.5 meters above the surrounding land. It is necessary to explain that the archaeological layers and deposits of the Tepe were 10 meters thick. Prior to the excavation, a topographic map of the mound was made. The excavation followed a locus and feature approach. Some nine phases were documented on the whole. In the course of the excavation, burials, architectural remains, and a pit were recovered, a brief outline of which follows.
 
4. Discussion
In summary, in this article, we set out to describe the cultural materials of the late Neolithic period in the region. Based on the results of the cultural materials of Ahranjan, the excavation of Ahranjan provided valuable information about the late Neolithic. With regard to absolute chronology and the date of 6940 ± 50 BP, Tepe Ahranjan is on the same horizon as Tepe Hajji Firuz. This excavation yielded thermal structures, human burials, and architectural remains, which to some extent clarified the cultural situation of the New Neolithic of Salmas-Northwest. Regarding human burials, it should be stated that the differences in burial styles go back to the religious beliefs of Neolithic societies, especially since the Neolithic society was highly religious, so the burials of Ahranjan were also carried out in line with religious matters. Neolithic human burials, often found within architectural contexts, have been reported at most Neolithic sites. The pottery of Ahranjan is also comparable to that of Hajji Firuz, however, it has some differences and similarities, and the most important difference between Ahranjan and Hajji Firuz pottery is that the type of painted pottery is rarely found in Ahranjan and is more similar to earlier vessels. Other important findings include large, tub-shaped thermal structures that have been identified in various dimensions and phases. This tradition is specific to the Lake Urmia basin. These structures, which are on average 45 to 60 cm deep, have an orange mud wall 3 cm thick, whose inner surface has been blackened by heat. Their contents consist of a thick accumulation of ash and fine charcoal particles.
 
5. Conclusion
In the late Neolithic period, known as Hasanlu X, the Urmia Lake basin was not uninhabited and was introduced by the Haji Firuz culture, although there are brief reports on other sites, including Yanik Tepe. However, the research at Ahranjan is considered a turning point in the Neolithic of the Northwest because we are faced with new, but different, information and knowledge. This information is about the type of burials, the remains of thermal kilns, pottery making techniques, and structures related to pottery firing. Ahranjan was a large and important site that had relations with Jarmo because Ahranjan is a wider part of the late Neolithic area. Ahranjan Tepe, 10 meters high, is located in the Salmas Plain and, considering that it includes a thick deposit of the Late Neolithic period, is considered one of the key points of the northwestern areas of Iran, so it is important to address it and provides useful information from this period. Ahranjan Tepe is the most significant and largest prehistoric site (2.6 hectares) northwest of Lake Urmia, located in the fertile Salmas Plain; this cultural area is located at the communication distance that connects the Iranian Plateau and the Lake Urmia basin to the South Caucasus region on one side and to eastern Anatolia and northern Mesopotamia on the other. In this article, we have examined the cultural tradition of the late Neolithic and tried to provide a clear understanding of the cultural situation of the important Neolithic period in the northwest basin of Lake Urmia by providing detailed excavation and study of cultural materials. One of the problems of archaeology in the northwest basin is the lack of sufficient information about the late Neolithic period, so new research can be a new information in the studies of the Northwest Neolithic period.

Abstract Tepe "Chay" (1181 m asl) is a small site with an area of less than one hectare in and a height of 1 meter above the surrounding fertile lands, which is located 2.5 km southwest of Dizajdiz town and 10 km southeast of Khoy. The first season of excavation at the site was carried out in July and August of 2021 in order to delimit the site, to ascertain its exact extent as well as conduct soundings of the stratigraphy of the site to better understand its phasing, periodization and chronology. In this regard, nine test trenches were excavated in different parts of the site; of these, only three test trenches were located within the site’s limits and the rest were off-site. Based on the delimiting soundings the exact extent of the site was 7468 square meters. A stratigraphic trench (TR.10) was also excavated in the southwestern part of Tepe Chay and in total, 7.4 m of architectural, layers and cultural deposits were identified; virgin soil was reached at a depth of 8 meters. According to the typology of pottery obtained from the layers and their comparison with other sites of northwestern Iran, the a relative chronology of the site consists of four settlement phases belonging to 1) the Early Chalcolithic (Dalma culture) (Tepe Chay I); 2) Late Chalcolithic 1 (Pisdeli) (Tepe Chay II); 3) Late Chalcolithic 2 (Chaff-Faced Ware) (Tepe Chay III); and 4) Late Chalcolithic 3 (Chaff-Tempered with comb-design and perforated manqals). Futhermore a Kura-Araxes I (Tepe Chay IV) component is suggested for the sequence of the site. During the excavation, no cultural interruption or gap was observed between Late Chalcolithic and Kura-Araxes layers, and the evidence indicates a continuity and transition between these two periods. It is therefore possible that the Kura-Araxesian, like the Kul Tepe Hadishahr, originates from Late Chalcolithic society of Tepe Chay. Therefore, according to the results of the excavations of Tepe Chay as well as the excavations of Kul Tepe, Dozdaghi Khoy, Tepe Gijlar and Geoy Tepe, perhaps northwestern Iran can be introduced as one of the core centers for the formation of early stages of the Kura-Araxes culture. Evidence from the excavation also suggests a function of trade with neighboring areas, especially the prehistoric obsidian and salt trade for Tepe Chay.