Preliminary Results of the Archaeological survey on the southern Zayandeh Rood Basin, Laran County, Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari Province

Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari province witnesses a long period of human occupations. It is due to for the geography and environmental factors such as its location on the highly mountainous regions as well as the existence of permanent water resources, small plains, deep valleys and the presence of tribal and nomadic roads. One of these mountainous regions is the Laran County, which is in fact a relatively long valley with smaller suburbs. This section includes the southern aquiferous of Zayandeh-Rud Basin and its branches and the eastern portion of the Karoon River Basin. This region is perhaps one of the few areas of the country where no major archaeological activities have been performed yet. Considering the geographical location and environmental capabilities of the area, carrying out an archaeological survey with the aim of understanding the location of the region in the archaeological studies in Zagros, identifying the factors affecting to the formation, continuity, expansion and disruption of its settlements, and assessing the history of human life developments in the region is necessary. Accordingly, the Laran County was systematic surveyed in 2010. Overall, 210 archaeological sites from the Neolithic period to the contemporary era were identified and recorded. The remains discovered include sites, hills, caves and shelters, cemeteries, bridges, mosques and shrine. In total, 4 settlements from the Neolithic period, 20 settlements of various periods of Chalcolithic, 6 settlements from the Bronze Age 32 sites of the Iron and Achaemenid period, 60 sites from the Parthian and Sassanian periods and 111 ancient sites of the Islamic period were identified. Most of the settlements in this area are located at low altitude and their surface findings have been very poor. Due to the location and morphology of these sites, as well as the studies of the remains of the living nomadic peoples, it seems that most of them are used seasonally. This article is intended to present the preliminary results of this survey work.